YEW is the most desirable of woods for bowstaves, having the right qualities of high tensile strength in the sap wood for the back of the bow combined with the capability of a high degree of compression in the heartwood for the belly and a low mass weight or "cast" which allows the speedy transference of energy to the arrow.
Yew bowstaves of the right quality are difficult to source becauses the grain needs to be free of knots, flat and straight, or at least evenly wavy, and the sapwood white with no sap rot between it and the heartwood.
Where the sapwood of an otherwise potentially good yew bowstave is poor it can be replaced by a laminate of HICKORY which has the requisite tensile strength combined with moderately low cast.
SYCAMORE, like yew, will make good one piece bows if the wood is flat sawn and pinless i.e.free of knots.
LEMONWOOD, CASTELO BOX, AMERICAN WHITE ASH and CANADIAN ROCK MAPLE make good bows, when backed with hickory.
PURPLEHEART is used for the cores of three piece laminate bows with backs of hickory and bellies of lemonwood.
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