I've been looking at every post and every website to figure out which wood I want to go with on my new brush bow. I'm a big fan of the cocobolo but I've read about issues of cracking with cocobolo as a veneer. What have others heard? Also, being from Texas I love the red cedar look but I understand you can't do a riser out of it so what riser combo would look best with it? Thanks for the help
How about a cocobolo riser with red cedar veneers?
How about cedar lam's,cocobolo riser.Lota red
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y85/Blkbird/Picture-3-7042.jpg)
I've thought about it but I'm afraid the colors might not contrast well. Do you think the reds would end up different shades?
Blkbird, I like that. Do you have a side shot of the riser? what is the lighter wood on the front of the riser?
I did a red cedar with walnut riser that I really like. I didn't want the riser to compete with the limbs. Here's a link to pix:
http://oldpharttsarchery.com/bowbuilding/gallery/outofcloset/outofcloset.html
I've done several bows with fancy exotic wood limbs. They look good, but the truth seems to be that these exotics are mostly heavy and stiff... good looking but not good bow woods, so, you're going to pay some price in performance for the looks, depending on the thickness. I don't like working real thin and with my light weight bows and short draw I need the performance, so I've moved away from using exotics in favor of more traditional, but still good looking woods... cedar, cherry, walnut, osage, yew, maple... So many woods, so little time! 8^)
Riser
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y85/Blkbird/Picture-3-7047.jpg)
The lighter is cocobolo too
Dick thats a beautful bow. I love the knots, do you find they weaken the wood?
Blkbird, I'm suprised that the lighter is cocobolo, don't know that I've seen that before. Did you match the reds or did they just happen to work out that way?
Red cedar is not a strong wood, light and tends to break with a snap. Knots in wood make it stronger not weaker as long as they are solid, not "encased" as where the trunk grows over a dead limb.
Cedar in a riser would be much stronger if it is laminated with other harder woods.
Shaun,
I've searched but not found anyone who's done a laminated cedar. Have you seen or heard of it before?
Zane
Cocobolo is a very oily wood. I would be afraid of the glue joints. It's even hard to put a finish on a riser. I made a red cedar limbed bow and it was very smooth drawing. Casts a nice arrow. By the way, cocobolo is very toxic to work with. Use a respirator. Dick
Here is a little different ERC lam bow..
(http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d34/kennym/101_1865.jpg)
I don't have any with coco and ERC tho...
I'm really liking that Kenny! You have any more like that?
Here are some of my ERC limbed combos:
Persimmon riser
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/H03110-3.jpg)
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/H03110-6.jpg)
Canary riser:
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/H027101.jpg)
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/H027103.jpg)
Bubinga riser.
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/BoodyMarsh-3.jpg)
(http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o203/Apex-Predator/Apex%20bows/BoodyMarsh-2.jpg)
Wow guys, those look amazing! Thanks for the pics
I know the cedar is too weak to do a riser with but what do you guys think about ebony with a few cedar swoops within the ebony?
I'll look around Marty,hard to find just the right board to make that work!
I think I'd stay away from ERC for anything in the riser personally. I only use it for thin veneers.
How bout bloodwood? Anyone use it in a riser?
I agree with Kenny on the cedar in the riser. I think the shear stresses may cause a failure.
TexasRecurve... You'll note I put those big knots on the fades, not up the limbs. I don't worry about small, contained knots in the limbs on outer lams on my own bows. I build light, that bow was 32#, and I have a short draw of 25". Also, on cedar and yew I use lamboo cores. I don't like to get a knot on the edge of lams, and I examine them. Just last week I was about to lay up a yew bow and found that one lam had a beginning crack running out from it. I scrapped both that lam and the bookmark mate that had the same knot, even though that one didn't seem to have the crack. When I was sailing, we used to say that a collision at sea can ruin your whole day. I feel much the same about a breaking bow limb. My old head has been hit enough times that it doesn't need an upper limb break hitting it... and I don't even want to think about a lower limb... 8^)