Use West System epoxy. Available from boat stores. It is waterproof, and has gap filling properties
The laminate strips can be of a variety of species. I favor white pine. Strips that are 3/16 in thickness are going to give you negligable spring back with the amount of curve needeg for a bow. They need to be about 3/4in wider than the finished bow. They can be ripped or band sawed when you are using a gap filling epoxy.
Use an existing bow to determine the shape of the form. Lay it on a sheet of plywood that's a bit bigger than the bow. Clamp it down. Using a scribe, draw a line that is concentric to the bottom of the bow, and the thickness of 2 lamintes, away from the bottom of the bow. Take the bow off the plywood and set aside. Now, screw blocks of wood on 8 inch centers along the drawn line (below it). Blocks should be say 3 inches long, and the heighth of strip width. They could be less if your screws can't make it through the taller blocks. Now tack 2 laminate strips to the blocks. This is your form.
You now need the required number of strips, plus 4 extra, and a bunch of clamps. Tape wax paper to the form. Cover one face and the edges of one of the extra strips. Roll or brush the epoxy on the required strips. Stack them together. Put the tape covered strip on the pile followed by the 3 other extra strips. Fold the whole pile onto the form with the extra strips out and clamp away. Resist using too much clamp pressure as you will cause flat spots.
When dry, It needs to be dressed up. Use a jointer or electric hand plane to joint one edge smooth. I then rip it to width on the table saw. Sand and paint. You do need to give it a wipe down with a mild soap solution and a quick rinse as epoxy leaves an amino acid film on the surface that bubbles paint.
Hope this helps. Pm me or Email me if you want me to explain myself more.
Tom
