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This shape, viewing the limbs, is designed to take into account the construction materials, the performance required, and the intended use of the bow. There are many different kinds of bow shapes. However, most fall into three main categories: straight, recurve and compound. Straight and recurve are considered traditional bows.
Picture of a longbow made with wood, 2013. A longbow is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. Longbows for hunting and warfare have been made from many different woods in many cultures; in Europe they date from the Paleolithic era and, since the Bronze Age, were made mainly from yew, or from wych elm if yew was unavailable.
The wooden core gives the bow its shape and dimensional stability. It is often made of multiple pieces, joined with animal glue in V-splices, so the wood must accept glue well. Pieced construction allows the sharp bends that many designs require, and the use of woods with different mechanical properties for the bending and nonbending sections.
In archery, a recurve bow is one of the main shapes a bow can take, with limbs that curve away from the archer when unstrung. A recurve bow stores more energy and delivers energy more efficiently than the equivalent straight-limbed bow, giving a greater amount of energy and speed to the arrow .
Estimates for the draw of these bows varies considerably. Before the recovery of the Mary Rose, Count M. Mildmay Stayner, Recorder of the British Long Bow Society, estimated the bows of the medieval period drew 90–110 pounds-force (400–490 newtons), maximum, and W. F. Paterson, Chairman of the Society of Archer-Antiquaries, believed the weapon had a supreme draw weight of only 80–90 lb f ...
Straight bow: a bow approximately straight in side-view profile. These bows are referred to as straight, although there may be minor curves in the natural wood, and the bow may have a "set" or curvature that a wooden bow takes after use. Recurve bow: a bow with the tips curving away from the archer. The curves straighten out as the bow is drawn ...
While the bows of the past were more traditional or borderline tacky (think: plaid, bright red velvet, huge glittery varieties), these bows are thinner and come in more muted tones and textures.
The flatbow is a superior bow design for almost all materials because the stress is more evenly spread out than with rounded limb sections. A bow limb is essentially a flexed beam undergoing bending, and in any flexed beam the farther from the neutral axis (line in the middle of the flexing beam which is not under tension or compression: see diagram in Bending article) the more stress there is ...