After reading so many different opinions on what the best wood for a crossbow was, I decided to find out on my own. My test would be simple. Make a crossbow out of each wood, all with the same metal, than see which one fired the farthest.
First, I had to choose a metal. I wanted something readily available, and cheap. So, I went with rust.
Second, I had to get enough wood to make crossbows with each type. There are nine types of wood.
1. Maple
2. Walnut
3. Flakeboard
4. Beech
5. Pine
6. Cherry
7. Oak
8. Teak
9. Cork
For the test, all I had to do was remain stationary while I fired each crossbow:
First, I fired one several times, to make sure that the speed and distance remained constant, it did.
Second, I went through every crossbow, intending to note which ones fired noticeably further than the rest, and retry those.
After firing all nine crossbows, I found that the speed and distance of the bolt still remained constant.
Verdict: Wood makes absolutely no difference when building a crossbow.
Next test, metals. Gathering the necessary supplies once again, may take awhile, so don't expect a reply for a week or so.
