Self bow A self bow is a bow made from a single piece of wood . Extra material such as horn nocks on the ends , or built - up handles , would normally be accepted as part of a self bow . Some modern authorities would also accept a bow spliced together in the handle from two pieces of wood . Advantages and disadvantages compared to composite bows . An effective self bow can be made from widely - available local material in most inhabited parts of the world , with limited tools whose functions include chopping , shaving , and scraping . A day of work may be needed , starting with a seasoned stave ; a composite bow requires a week ' s work , starting with a much greater range of materials and skills . However self bows must be long , approximately the height of the archer if they are to allow a long draw , and they are less efficient in the specialized art of flight archery . Well - designed composite bows of high draw - weight give higher arrow velocity , and the bow itself is shorter . At the weights more usual for modern amateurs , the greater density of horn and sinew compared to wood usually cancels any advantage of composite construction . For most practical non - mounted archery purposes , self bows can perform as well as composite ; " the initial velocity is about the same for all types of bow . . . within certain limits " History . In many parts of the world including much of Africa , the Americas , northern Europe , and Southern Asia , the great majority of traditional bows are self bows . The first bow artifacts , the Stellmoor and Holmegaard artifacts of Northern Europe , are self bows . The Stellmoor bow was made from the heartwood of a Scots Pine while the oldest Holmegaard bows were carved from small - diameter elms . In primitive flight archery competitions , bows inspired by the design of the Holmegaard bows perform very well because of their light , non - bending tips . Selecting wood . In most inhabited areas , common timbers can be made into high - quality self bows . The pieces must be long enough ( approximately the height of the archer ) , and the grain must be sufficiently straight . Denser timbers normally store energy better and can be made into narrower bows with less effort – high - quality yew allows for particularly narrow self bows , such as the traditional European version of the longbow . The Eastern Woodlands tribes of North America used hickory , tribes in parts of the Midwestern United States osage orange , Native Americans of the west coast used short , wide , recurved bows made of American Pacific Yew , Brazilian rainforest tribes used palm wood , and many others . In Europe and North America , common woods such as maple , ash , elm , and oak will make excellent flat bow s , and are far easier to obtain than good - quality yew . The fibres on the back of a self bow must be , so far as possible , continuous . This may be achieved by using the outer , under - bark surface of the tree as the back of the bow ( convenient with most white woods ) , by the painstaking process of removing outer growth ring s ( often used with yew and osage orange ) , or by making or following a cut or split surface which happens to have continuous grain ( a usual approach if starting with commercially sawn wood ) . The density of timber correlates well with its ability to store energy as it is bent . Denser timbers can make narrower bows . The same design for less dense timbers will result in the bow taking excessive set / string follow , or even breaking . However , equally effective bows may be made from less dense timber by making them wider near the centre . The mass of equivalent bows will be closely similar whatever the density of wood ; approximately the same mass of wood is required whatever the density of the timber . The overall length of bending wood must be about 2 . 3 times the draw length . Narrow bows ( known as " longbows " ) can bend in the handle . Wider bows ( known as " flatbows " ) must be narrow in the handle if they are to be practical , but the handle must be made thicker so as not to bend , and the complete bow will therefore tend to be longer . Self bows may be of any side - view profile ; moderate recurving can often be achieved with heat and force .