I used to shoot archery in high school (many years ago) and loved it. The equipment was provided by the school, so I never really had to learn anything about it. Now I would like to get back into it, and also get my 13 year old son into it. I am looking for traditional wooden bows, but cannot find any in the shops in my area. I have done some research and can find plenty of websites from which I can order one, but I have questions. Aesthetically, I prefer the recurves, but I also see a lot of longbows. Is there a better type for beginners? Do you need to be tall to shoot a longbow? And when they say "a 70 inch longbow", is that strung or unstrung? Also, how do you determine what your draw length should be? I would imagine one would have to experiment to find the proper draw weight for oneself, correct?
Any help you can give will be appreciated, since I am very serious about this and I want to get it right so we don't get discouraged from trying to use equipment that is inappropriate for us.
Any help you can give will be appreciated, since I am very serious about this and I want to get it right so we don't get discouraged from trying to use equipment that is inappropriate for us.
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Re: Question...
Wed, February 2, 2005 - 5:22 PMlongbows are more of a midevil europe historical type of bow. they require a little bit of a different technique to aiming, as they are not "center shot" bows. the arrow oscillates as it is fired in a very interesting little bit of physics phenomena.
recurve bows are center shots, which means they just shoot in a strait line (which is more accurate and easier to aim). aesthetically, some people prefer longbows for historical or other reasons having to do with style and simplicity.
you do not need to be "tall" to fire a longbow. it is merely a type of bow. i think that the 70" bow refers to the unstrung bow.
the easiest was to figure out your draw length is to draw a bow to your ear/cheek area and hold it out in front of you as if you were to shoot it. the distance from one hand to the other is the draw length.
the weight is dependent on how strong you are and how comfortable you are with a particular weight. i would suggest starting out with a low weight so as to get the muscles in your back used to working. many people try to draw using only thier arms, which makes it unnecesarily difficult. ideally, your shoulder should take the brunt of your draw. a good starting weight is 40-45 lbs for a grown up who's new to archery, 25 lbs for a kid.
i don't know if you've looked in hunting shops, but they usually have nice bows, and you don't necessarily have to use them for hunting. i got my bow in a hunting shop, and even got personalized handmade arrows out of the deal. of course, i never had any intention of hunting with them, but brushed aluminum purple arrows are just cool.
i hope this helps -
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Thu, February 3, 2005 - 9:03 PMYes, you've been very helpful. Thanks. Actually, I did check several hunting shops (and some sporting goods stores), and none of them carried anything but compound bows, and perhaps a fiberglass bow or two, and no one seemed very interested in helping me find wooden bows. Maybe it was just the luck of the draw, and I chose the wrong shops... -
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Fri, February 4, 2005 - 12:47 AMmaybe... the shop i went to mostly only had wooden bows, but hey, to each his own. -
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Tue, February 8, 2005 - 6:51 AMI'm thinking the area you live in may have an effect on what you will find in your local stores. (I have a feeling the Bay Area in CA has a much better selection than Arizona.)
You might want to see if you can find an SCA group local to you, and see who thier local archer folks are. They may be able to help you shop for your equipment, or at least give helpful info. on locating it. Go here: www.atenveldt.com/ You are located in the Kingdom of Atenveldt. You should be able to find a group somewhat close to you, from that website. (Just click on the part that says "look for the group that is closest to you," in blue, and it will give you a list to choose from.) -
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Re: Question...
Tue, February 8, 2005 - 7:01 AMOh, I almost forgot. For an adult female, a good starting weight is 30-35 pounds. Unless you work out a lot, then you might be perfectly comfortable pulling 40 pounds or more. Try several different weights, and see what feels most comfortable. Don't try to push yourself to use a weight that is too hard to hold for long, and will end up hurting you. It's not worth it. You *can* work up to a stronger pull, but it tends to take a little while.
Oh, and good luck. :) -
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Tue, February 8, 2005 - 7:34 AMoh, woops... i never realized you were female... sorry about that. You might try looking up stores in a wider area around where you live. I got my bow in florida and had to drive 50 miles to get to the store I bought it at. -
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Tue, February 8, 2005 - 8:27 PMHey, no problem...I figured I would have to start with a lower weight anyway, since I have chronic tendonitis in my arm. Thanks to both of you for the info. I knew about the SCA, but I haven't gotten around to looking into the organization, apart from seeing them every year at the local Ren Faire. And I have no doubt that location has everything to do with what one can find locally. -
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Wed, February 9, 2005 - 2:05 PMHi,
I belong to a club in the LA area that gives free lessons to the public. I'm one of the instructors (volunteer). We start everyone out with low-poundage recurves. Generally in the 15 to 25# range. The idea is that people can concentrate on learning form and technique before having to deal with building up their strength. I often see people, new to archery who have somehow acquired a bow that is too strong for them. It is an uphill battle for them because learning to use the correct muscles that aren't strong yet throws their form all out of whack and they can easily get discouraged. I recommend buying an inexpensive, low-pundage bow to start with. You will grow out of it quickly so save your money for a nice bow later on.
Below is a price list that someone from my club put together based on a trip to a local archery store. These are all recurves biased in favor of FITA style (Olympic Style) archery. Personally, I prefer traditional shooting, with wood recurves.
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The following all have metal handles
PSE Sentry - $149
Comet - $169
PSE Optima - $179 – A good choice
Samick Lavita - $179 – A good choice
Samick Progress - $279 – A good choice (this is a nice bow, and they may “negotiate” the price down to $250) I have one for instruction.
Bows with Universal Limbs
KAP Evolution II - $279 Upgraded limbs area available for an additional $50 to $100. A better choice. I have one for instruction.
Samick Mizar - $350 Upgraded limbs area available for an additional $50 to $200 (none in stock currently)
Samick Agulla - $400 Upgraded limbs area available for an additional $50 to $250
Hoyt TD-4 – About the same as the Agulla
Sometimes strings are extra, running $12 to $24
The next level above these will start at about $500 and go to $800 or $900.
The KAP bow is manufactured by W&W or Win & Win, and had received a lot of praise for an entry level universal limb bow.
But remember; the bow is just part of the package. In the past three months, two of my collegiate students acquired complete set ups of the Samick Mizar, including bow, sight, plunger, rest, stabilizer, finger tab, finger sling, arm guard, and bow case and the total was right around $500, and one added arrows that increased the total to $600. And none of these packages included any of the higher end accessories. All accessories were K&K, Cartel, etc. but all included Cavalier Tabs with finger separators, which run $34 or so. -
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Re: Question...
Thu, February 10, 2005 - 7:34 AMPrices will probably vary a bit from state to state. We are located in California, while Laegrandir is located in Arizona.
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Sun, February 13, 2005 - 9:29 PMHeyla, Greetings, and all that;
I read Traditional Bowhunter Magazine, and they had an interesting article recently (Dec 2004/Jan 2005; Bow Weight and The "Guy Thing", by G. Fred Asbell) on how to choose a bow -- especially how to tell if the bow is too "heavy" for you. Instead of drawing the bow as if you are going to send an arrow down-range, point the bow straight down towards the ground at your feet and draw to your normal anchor point; if it is easy, the bow is ok, but if it is hard to do the bow is too "heavy" for you. Easy, simple and quick to check. I can't tell y'all how many folks I have seen doing a good impression of someone with Parkinson's Disease just because they want to show how "strong" they are while shooting over-bowed.
--Artúr Dúbh Maca'Gobhaínn - Archer/Fletcher
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Sun, February 13, 2005 - 9:59 PMHeyla, and Greetings;
Longbows are fine, so are recurves, and there are those who will say that if it ain't a crossbow it ain't right. Well, I say that they are all right.
Probably the best type of bow to start a young person on is the "Lil' Sioux" type, fibreglass with a grip built for EITHER right- or left-handed people. Besides, even adults can use them to start out with.
Yes, recurves are very nice, asthetically...but so are the reflex-deflex longbows on the market today, as are the Magyar type bows available from horsebows.com -- they sell bows by Lajos Kassai of Hungary (ya got about $400-$600 ya can spare?).
Less expensive bows can be found in various places, one of which is www.threeriversarchery.com based in Ashley, Indiana. Another is The Footed Shaft (e-mail footedshaft@uswest.net ), owned/operated by Lamont Granger in Rochester, Minnesota. I know, neither of these are in Arizona, but it is a start.
Um, please, could you define what you mean by "tall"? I stand 5' 8" (that's 68") and shoot a 68" longbow, does that qualify? All that truly matters is the bottom tip of the bow is not resting on the ground (or other obstruction) when you are shooting the bow. And the 68" for my longbow is when it is unstrung, nock to nock.
It has been said that to determine draw length, one should simply measure from **hand to hand** while pretending to draw a bow; this may be good enough for a general rule-of-thumb, but it is somewhat in error. Actual draw length is measured from the string to just in front of the bow-hand knuckle at full draw; this helps to ensure that the arrow tip will not fall off the "shelf" of the bow at full draw -- unless you plan to use an over-draw shelf on the bow, in which case your arrows will be **shorter** than normal.
If your local archery shops have only compound bows, ask them if they can set up various draw weights **without** the "let-off" normally used on them -- that way you can get a better idea what draw weight you need to start with. They probably will not be able to do so, but it is worth trying.
I'll stop now, so that you don't suffer over-much from information overload ;-)
--Artúr Dúbh Maca'Gobhaínn - Archer/Fletcher -
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Mon, February 14, 2005 - 6:16 PMThanks to you all for all the information. There's nothing worse than walking into a shop cold, not knowing the right questions to ask (which is what happened to me). You all have given me good information, so now at least I have a starting point and don't feel so intimidated. Again, I'm grateful to you all for your time.
And A., thanks for the tip about using the compound bows to determine a good draw weight. At least I can give it a shot. As to the cost, I am waiting for my tax return so I can get started. Being a single mother, it ain't easy coming up with that kind of money. But I shall persevere... -
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Tue, February 15, 2005 - 5:31 AMI know buying archery equipment isn't cheap. I only managed to get mine, because I was on the Intercollegiate Archery Team, and my "coach" wanted me to have my own equipment. Her husband owned the local Archery shop, so she had me work there, to earn a good used bow and arrows for myself.
You might also see if your local shop has any 'used trade-ins'.
You also might want to try checking places like ebay, to see if you can find a basic recurve at a decent price. Fred Bear and Hoyt are good brands to look for.
(I still say check with the local SCA archery folk...) -
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Sat, February 19, 2005 - 7:16 PMI agree, check with the local SCA group and ask any archers there may be in that group. But I disagree about going on-line to places such as E-bay -- if you can't hold the bow in your hand prior to purchasing it, how can you know that it will be fit your hand? Remember, things you buy on E-bay are non-refundable, unless you are lucky enough to make such arrangements with the seller...I found my first bow at a flea-market, and it just happened to fit my hand so I bought it right then and built up my strength until I could draw it with relative ease.
--Artúr Dúbh
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