Apple Flatbow 54# @ 27"

[Robert Pougnier]

Thanks Hamish!
I think it would have taken a narrower design but I intentionally overbuilt it since it was my first experience with it.
The handle is just 4 inches long and the fades are two inches each. I put the arrow shelf just 3/4 of an inch above the bow center so the handle wrap is halfway down the lower limb fades. I have been rounding the fades quite a bit too. I don't often build shelves but am trying to become a more consistent shooter.

[medicinewheel]

Very nice!
Did you induce some reflex before starting?

[Robert Pougnier]

Thanks MW! I did not. The only thing I knew about apple before starting was it's estimated SG along with reports that it was good in compression and prone to dramatic tension failures. So I did not want to make the back do any extra work and added the rawhide for an extra margin.

If I had a few more staves I would try again with narrower limbs, maybe 1 5/8" and a slight heat treat into 1" of reflex.

[bjrogg]

A nice apple bow Robert. It immediately brought back memories of Simson’s bows.

I have a wild apple tree I have been looking at for a while now. I’m going to need a little help trimming it but I can definitely see a couple good staves in there.

Bjrogg

[medicinewheel]

I actually see a large apple branch with a natural and quite even reflex right here in front of my livingroom window... 

[Robert Pougnier]

Maybe those are some good candidates?
I definitely think it's worth setting any likely staves or billets aside and making some bows from them. There are so many apple and crabapple hybrids there's got to be a good range of density and design possibilities! The wood was really fine grained and pleasant to work. And well, its' apple and I love apples!

[bjrogg]

Apple a day

   Keeps the doctor away

[Selfbowman]

I may have some apple staves coming my way. Is Apple just not good in tension? If so would bamboo on the back be to much tension?  Maybe gemsbok horn on the back? What is the density on Apple wood?

[WhistlingBadger]

That's a great looking bow.  I have always wanted to try crab apple wood--we have a lot of it around here.  I wonder how it would be sinew backed.

[Will B]

I really like every aspect of this bow. I’d love to try apple some day. Very beautiful color and I bet it’s a nice shooting bow with that tiller. Thanks for sharing your work.

[Robert Pougnier]

I may have some apple staves coming my way. Is Apple just not good in tension? If so would bamboo on the back be to much tension?  Maybe gemsbok horn on the back? What is the density on Apple wood?

I somehow missed this question.

I don't have any solid info on this as there is little I can find. I hadn't seen any other apple bows until tuomo linked the simson apple bow, really cool! I should have kept a sliver and done a break test.
I did not have a 1" cube when i calculated SG, but the chunk was 11.46cm cubed and weighed 146.5 gn. I believe the MC is 7.5. I came up with .75 SG with a fair margin of error. I don't think it was that dense really. TBB has it a .68 i think. Honestly I'm surprised how much wood is in this bow and it takes a dent pretty easily. I did expect to lose more mass. I think without the backing/tb3, handle wrap and string it weighs 24 oz. I need to start keeping better records of each piece.
I'd love to make some unbacked apple bows and figure out better how to treat this wood. But I love this bow. The wood could make a really beautiful horn/boo core I think.

[Selfbowman]

If I get some Apple staves  I was thinking boo backed or gemsbok horn backing.