ntn: 59½”
bh: 5”
mass: 506 gram
max. width: 1¾”
symmetrical
stiff handle:
species: carpinus betulus
08”: 06,0
10”: 11,2 (+5,2)
12”: 15,9 (+4,7)
14”: 20,2 (+4,3)
16”: 24,3 (+4,1)
18”: 28,4 (+4,1)
20”: 32,6 (+4,2)
22”: 36,6 (+4,0)
24”: 40,6 (+4,0)
26”: 45,0 (+4,4)
28”: 49,8 (+4,8)
Carpinus betulus, european hornbeam, or Hainbuche in German is one of the heaviest and densest woods here in Germany. This one was harvested years ago in summer and I remember it was not easy to remove the bark.
The back of the bow has a stunning texture of grooves and valleys. This stave had a very unusual cross section – an oval shaped about 1½” x 2½”. I used the flatter side, but had to accept another funny thing – the side profile had a pronounced dogleg. Btw. The complete short diameter of that stave is at handle (1½” depth), if you look close you can see the pith in one of the detail pics.
The bow got some stain, as the wood is otherwise boring white, a mild brown and some reddish at the handle area. Some remaining cambium also adds some color on the back.
Tips are pin nocks, which I thought is the right for that crude stick.
The handle is covered with hemp yarn.
2 Comments
I love this bow, the finish and the hemp wrapped stiff handle! You have done a great job with the tiller as well considering the dog leg on the lower half. It looks like it could have some speed too! The texture of the wood on the back looks a lot like our HHB we have here in Ontario, Canada. A lot of the wood has similar ridges and valleys.
How does it shoot?
Happy New Year,
Phil A
Thank you Philipp,
I believe there are some similarities comparing HHB and Carpinus. But to be true, I never had HHB in my hands …
It is a good shooter, and I think this will be not the last bow from this wood.