a question about books on arrow making

[dave_t_aber]

Hello,
Ive just finished my longbow, its a nice lemonwood bow, with a bamboo backing. Its taken a little set, but im happy with it, as its my first bow which hasnt snapped/failed to be finished or was overly worked!

I would put a picture up, but i dont seem to be able to (website told me i dont have permission). Anyway, I have made one arrow so far for it, just to see how it goes, which is well, it shoots a good 120 yards at 2 thirds draw length, but i havent gone to full draw yet. I want to make sure my arrows are spot on, as ive spend many hours on the bow, its a waste to use mismatched arrows. Can anyone recommend a good book on arrow making/building?

Many Thanks
Dave.

[djthompson]

Hi Dave,

Well done making your longbow (is it your first).

I set up an account on photobucket and uploaded the photos of my first bow (a self lemonwood longbow). Then you copy the URL of the photo and stick it in using the photo button tool on the message editor of this site.

Where did you get the boo from? how easy was it to work & glue the boo?

D

[dave_t_aber]

Thanks, the bow is my first good bow, I made a yew longbow first, but the yew snapped in 4 places when i was tillering it in the final stages, and i made a elm bow, but that ended up very weak, it only shot about 65 yards.
I got the bamboo from a website called ukbamboosupplies.co.uk (i think thats it) I cost £33 for 5 2 metre poles of 55mm diameter bamboo, including delivery. Trouble is, the bamboo was slightly too small, it wasnt perfect for backing. Im making another one, so im going to order the bamboo again, in the 90mm diameter size, which should be fine. My next venture is bamboo backed and bellied bow, with a maple core, and maybe a tropical wood handle. Once ive made one, ive got the bug! The making is just as good as the shooting in my opinion.

I glued the bamboo with cascamite, it wasnt too hard, I let it dry for 3 weeks to be sure. The bamboo was tricky to work, I ruined a pair of leather gloves doing it, cut them to shreds, and cut my thumb on it quite badly. It doesnt plane that well sometimes, and can suddenly rip, so i found it best to be very gentle with the plane.

I will open a photobucket account then.
cheers
dave

[dave_t_aber]

I created a photobucket account,
here are a few pics:
IMG_1425.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

IMG_1424.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

IMG_1422.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

It is a 40lb draw at 29 inches, as you may be able to see, i think the upper limb has a little tillering imperfection, it seems the mid limb is slighlty weaker than the mid limb of the lower limb, unless im just being overly picky. The handle is suede (from an old coat!) and the arrow plate is cows horn, found locally in a field.

dave

[SVL]

It looks like a great bow but is a flat bow?
It might just be the angle of the picture but it does not look like a D section and you appear to have an arrow self. I am making a childs longbow my self (just reached tillering stage)

[dave_t_aber]

flatbow? well its not really a true longbow, its not a D section, but its not a flatbow, its 1 inch wide mid limb, and has a rectangular cross section. I did this as I want all areas of the limb to share equal load.

Yes it does have a arrow plate, out of cow horn, not sure if its traditional, im not really worried, as long as its made from natural materials, and made by me.

What you making your childs longbow from? what draw weight you aiming at? Im hoping to start on a longbow for my younger brother soon, aiming at 25lb draw weight. Will be interesting.
dave

[Huffy]

Back on topic, Richard Head publishes a booklet on making longbow arrows but I have not seen it so cannot comment on the contents.

Richard Head Longbows 2007 catalogue, traditional archery accessories, Lemonwood and other Longbows

Best wishes, Mark

Nice looking bow by the way.

[dave_t_aber]

cheers mark,
I will have a look on his site for it. I have tried shooting with a straight arrow i made the other night, it shoots well, but goes to the left a little, im making a second trial arrow, with a slight taper, I will test it tommorow.
cheers
dave

[jaselpool]

Originally Posted by Huffy

Back on topic, Richard Head publishes a booklet on making longbow arrows but I have not seen it so cannot comment on the contents.

Richard Head Longbows 2007 catalogue, traditional archery accessories, Lemonwood and other Longbows

Best wishes, Mark

Nice looking bow by the way.

Hi there

That's a good one for making traditional medieval arrows. If you want to get into it in more detail here's a few I can recommend:

Traditional Bowyers Bible 1 2 or 3 can't remember which one has arrow section!
James Duff: bows and arrows
The Traditional Archers Handbook: Hilary Greenland
The Archer's Craft: Adrian Eliot Hodgkin
Fletchery: Bill Searle

[SVL]

Originally Posted by jaselpool

Hi there

That's a good one for making traditional medieval arrows. If you want to get into it in more detail here's a few I can recommend:

Traditional Bowyers Bible 1 2 or 3 can't remember which one has arrow section!
James Duff: bows and arrows
The Traditional Archers Handbook: Hilary Greenland
The Archer's Craft: Adrian Eliot Hodgkin
Fletchery: Bill Searle

I would say that "Fletchery" is the best if you want to get into making your arrows from scratch and spine testing them so to make arrows to match your bow. The first, third and fourth books assume you already have correctly spined shafts and take you through the process of making the arrow, including cap dipping and cresting ( I think it is V3 of the Traditional Bowyers Bible). Actually if you like making bows I seriously recommend getting the Traditional Bowyers Bible as it contains a wealth of information.