I would be interested in hearing about non glass laminated bows. If you have made any, I would like to know about the performance you have achieved, problems making them etc. How did you determine the thickness of the laminations to achieve desired poundage?
Check out Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 4. Mike Westvang has an excellent "how to" on wood laminated bows. Bob
A couple years ago I finished a bamboo backed osage bland from Dryad Bows (Mike Westvang). It's a great bow and I feel like I'm cheating on it when I shoot any of my other bows. Performance wise, it is just as fast as any of the glass laminated longbows I've made from Binghams kits, but A LOT more quiet. If you are thinking about making one, I highly recommend a Dryad blank for your first. It comes with a DVD on how to tiller.
My typing sucks - bamboo backed osage blank not "bland".
Boo backed Ipe bows are all I make. My glass recurve is faster but speed isn't everything.
Richard
Talk to wingnut at dryad. He has made a lot of them.
Bisch
You can talk to Lynn Harrelson at Tannehill in about two weeks. His Kolomi is bamboo back and belly with walnut, hickory or osage core. Bill