i have a 48", 1/2" thick piece of red oak that i want to make a short "d" bow out of. its 1.5" wide. my question is, what type of layout should i use to take advantage of the thickness and get the most draw weight? i had considered a pyramid design tapering to 3/4" nocks, similar to an eastern woodlands but shorter, however i wondered if maybe a flatbow design with much of the limb the full width and the final bit tapering would give me more weight in the end. any opinions would be appreciated.
Both designs you suggest are very similar and would give you similar results. If you make the limbs full width, yo have to take more from the belly to make it bend. Either way, you don't have much to work with unless you're aiming for a kids bow or you plan to put some sinew.
How far do you want to draw it? You could try a bendy handle bow. Let us know how it goes. Tough thing about 1-1/2" is getting an arrow to shoot out of that wie of a handle. Give it a shot.