I'm have made several hundred bows from Bamboo. The photos above are some of my earliest models. I no longer use gaffer tape. They still use insulation tape in Bhutan. Bows have been manufactured from Bamboo for 1000s years. The Yumi bow for example served the Samurai horse archers pretty well.
Bamboo is easy to work compared to Yew or Elm.
My personal Himalayan Bows range in draw weight from 45 -55lb at 26 inches. This gives an arrow speed of around 170 fps. Comparable to my laminate long bows they are actually slightly faster as bamboo is lighter and more efficient.
Bamboo species I use are Moso or Black Bamboo. Black Bamboo is harder to work but makes a heavy draw weight bow. Heavier draw weight means more chance of snappy snappy.
The inside of the bamboo is the back of the bow. There are two reasons for this.
Firstly if you're making a Bhutanese Bow it will give a natural recurve.
Secondly it ensures you're not damaging the power fibres and is much less likely to set.
Aaron's Bow he made on my first course at the moot is still shooting with a decent draw weight. Must be 10 years old by now.
