My Shortest Ever

[John Scifres]

This is a sinew backed osage bow I recently finished.  It is 51" NTN, about 1-1/8" wide and bends in the handle.  I put some watersnake skins on the back.
   
 

 

 

 

This piece wasshort and thin and destined to be a kid's bow but it was so nice I decided to try a design that I remembered Buz Ackerman ("Buz-AL") showed me many years ago at Cloverdale.  It is a deflexed handle with recurved tips.

53# at 27".  I am about 1" short of full draw here:

 

[KellyG]

Wow John I bet that one spits an arrow. LOOKS great.

[DVSHUNTER]

Sweet bend john. Well done.

[Echatham]

nice.  ive been itching to try a shorty.

[mwosborn]

Lot of bend for a short bow - nicely done!

[Sockrsblur]

What a beautiful bow John! Might you have any other pictures of the build?

[Dan Landis]

John, how many layers of sinew did you use?

[John Scifres]

Thanks all.

I didn't take pics along the way.  I built a D-R form and bent it with a heatgun.

I think 3-4 layers of sinew is about what I used but I didn't really take notes.  I used TB3.

[Sockrsblur]

It just has great lines... simplistic beauty! Well done... I love it Sir

[Bowjunkie]

My favorite bow of all time... so far... has an almost identicle profile to that one. I can practically feel how your bow shoots just by lookin' at it.

Gonna HAVE to say 'nicely done' Mr. Scifres  

[BCWV]

Very nice bow John!

[Roy from Pa]

Sweet, John...

[jess stuart]

Wonderful, I have a soft spot for recurves and especially ones of wood and sinew. Thanks for sharing with us.

[cunruhshoot]

Definitely a nice one! Short and Sweet...kind of like a good conversation with the wife...  

[Trapper Rob]

Sweet bow.

[JJB]

Very nice!
-Jay

[Walt Francis]

Sweet looking bow.

[bigbob2]

lovely working bend for such a small length bow!. Very nice!

[twitchstick]

   

[David Flanrey]

Very nice bow John.  I love short osage bows.