The machine might be helpful for shaping components , but there is absolutely ZERO chance that you can slap a board or log in , and have a bow come out the other side , regardless of how good the wood is . The single most important feature of a wooden bow is an intact layer off wood fibers running longitudinally on the front of the bow called the back funny enough . Wood must be coaxed into a bow , not carved . Corny adages like you have to make the bow the tree wants to be are actually true , and once design and construction are understood , you ' ll see why we say Mr . Miyagi stuff like that . On the other hand , Baker once said The requirements for a functional bow are surprisingly low . If you went to Lowe ' s and picked up a 12 x 6 ' bamboo garden stake and tied a string to both ends , well that ' s a bow , and it will shoot an arrow . There are two ways to go if you want to make your own . Either learn about fiberglass laminated construction and make a bow , or learn about primitive bowyer and make an allwood bow . Both taoe some study , preparation and skill , but neither is all that hard . The first requires buying components like some laminations and glues , making a form , hotbox , etc . and shaping with power tools usually . The second might have you hacking down a mulberry sapling from a nearby wood lot and learning to tiller and shape your bow with a hatchet , rasps , scrapers , planes , and what have you . There is no best wood , universally , though some woods are essentially useless , and some seem to beg to be made into bows . Design is king . There is a long list of worthy bow woods , if you learn how to treat them . Anyway , join us on rbowyer and read up a bit . Let us know how else we can help .