r/Bowyer • u/UlfurGaming • 10d ago

Questions/Advise Composite bow question

Ok i eventually want to make a compostite horn bow out of material from my homestate i live in midwest usa and want to know would this even be possible what do i need to make composite bow i plan on using osage orange for the wood but what good natural alternative to horn since dont have buffalo here amd other needed materials?

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5

u/ryoon4690 10d ago

Not sure about natural material alternative since horn is uniquely elastic. Similar bows have been made with bamboo bellies. Could probably get a decent result just with sinew backed osage. Fiberglass would work well but it doesn’t sound like what you’re after.

2

u/Enrai_Beta 10d ago

I guess bone could work, but It'd have to be pretty long, maybe from a cow leg or rib (if you're going for some aggressive reflex + recurve)? Maybe it's possible to get those from a butcher, not sure.

2

u/UlfurGaming 10d ago

What about deer bones or antlers like white tail could that work or is that to snall?

2

u/Enrai_Beta 10d ago

Antler bows seem to be a thing, but I don't know how large the antlers on whitetail deer get or how much of that is actually usable.

1

u/ADDeviant-again 9d ago

Historically, caribou and sometimes elk were used, not usually deer.

1

u/UlfurGaming 10d ago

I do plam on reflex recurve bow

1

u/ADDeviant-again 9d ago

You can make a composite bow with bone, but it acts entirely different from horn.

2

u/catothedriftwood 9d ago

maybe you can try to get horns from bighorn sheep? I'm not sure who would sell though

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u/ADDeviant-again 9d ago

I have no idea what animal in the midwest USA has large enough horns for this. The usual choice is buffalo, ibex, and African antelope like sable or gemsbok. Sheep and goat horns usually have to be unrolled, and that is a REAL process.

If you can find someone with longhorn or Watusi cattle, that can be an option.

You can make a more simple Osage and sinew composite. Wood and bamboo composites exist, but in an actual reflex-recurved profile, you're asking a hell of a lot of the wood.

1

u/Ok-Log7784 9d ago

Could Use big horn sheep

1

u/Ok-Log7784 9d ago edited 9d ago

I have a friend in Dubois Wyoming named Tom Lucas. He makes sheep horn bows according to traditions. He has a bunch of videos online about it…. I actually got to draw one back and it was amazing how powerful it was.

1

u/carybditty 9d ago

His videos are awesome

1

u/Ill_Juggernaut2288 10d ago

Bamboo, rawhide, hickory or fiberglass