Hi guys,
I'm reasonably new to making self bows, with 2 of six ending up as shooters so far. I usually use red oak boards since they've become available easily in Australia, since i want some experience before hitting the white oak and elm staves I've drying drying. Besides bamboo poles and flooring there is not a great deal of bow wood available to get some practice making bows in Australia, not without spending a fair bit of cash, which is a problem with me going back to uni (college for you US blokes). A redoak board for 4est trekkers build along starts at $50
I've also got new Zealand flax growing in the yard like a weed. I was wondering if as a backing it does any work like sinew or just holds down fibers like the brown paper I'm using already. I haven't tried making strings with any of it yet either but might give that a shot for fun.
And a big thanks to, too many of you blokes to name for the knowledge and experience I've been able to read through in a lot of threads.
Flax just holds it together... Does not add performance, I have used flax linen backing with great success on many bows :thumbsup:
Because of its non-stretch properties be careful not to add too much raw flax as it can overpower the belly. A thin layer will give you good back protection. Carpenters glue(TiteBond in US) works well for this.