Longbow advice please??

OK I'm looking to buy a longbow. They seem quite difficult to buy on ebay just now and I have been advised on here to avoid used ones. So it looks like I'm going to have to shell out £200 for a decent one

Well I don't do compromise, even though it's just for a bit of fun etc, I may use it for the odd tournament and would like to keep my options open and buy a decent one.

What do I need to shoot to a distance of 100 yds? What draw weight and what type of construction? I know I can probably cope with 50-55lb. Will this do the job?

Can anyone recomend a Bowyer who can supply one for this sort of money?

So far I'm looking at Yewtree archery or a Bickerstaffe of some sort, anyone else out there who can supply?

[Kellog]

Try Keith at Yewtreearchery (and say you were sent by Louise) I can't remember the club discount number but can look it up for you. He does custom longbows reasonably cheap

Originally Posted by Kellog

Try Keith at Yewtreearchery (and say you were sent by Louise) I can't remember the club discount number but can look it up for you. He does custom longbows reasonably cheap

So far Keith is very high on my list. Cheers

[simon m]

Go into the woods select a stout looking tree, yew know the rest.....

[Bald Eagle]

If "fun" is finding your arows in the grass , well good luck.The longbow is the hardest disciplne to master. We have guys in our club who have been shooting for years and still miss at 60 yds.We spend most of the night looking for their arrows, despite having a backstop net which they decline to errect. I'm sorry to say this, but shooting a longbow is an excuse to miss! In my experience, longbow archers are failed recurve archers, it's a dead bow, bury it, get a compound!!If I was still missing after years of shooting it I would be asking myself a few questions as to why. Bring on the flak, I don't care, keep longbows over the fire as a talking point, or better still, light the fires with them!!

Originally Posted by Bald Eagle

If "fun" is finding your arows in the grass , well good luck.The longbow is the hardest disciplne to master. We have guys in our club who have been shooting for years and still miss at 60 yds.We spend most of the night looking for their arrows, despite having a backstop net which they decline to errect. I'm sorry to say this, but shooting a longbow is an excuse to miss! In my experience, longbow archers are failed recurve archers, it's a dead bow, bury it, get a compound!!If I was still missing after years of shooting it I would be asking myself a few questions as to why. Bring on the flak, I don't care, keep longbows over the fire as a talking point, or better still, light the fires with them!!

I have shot all three types of bow Mr Eagle, I am fully aware of the pro's and cons of all types of bow too. It seems today is the day for sweeping statements. Like you I don't care either, I'm getting one and I'm going to enjoy shooting it, and I will shoot it with pride and a smile on my face. Unlike you, I am capable of change, I now have respect for all forms of archery and feel we should all live and let live.

[Gibbon]

Originally Posted by Bald Eagle

If "fun" is finding your arows in the grass , well good luck.The longbow is the hardest disciplne to master. We have guys in our club who have been shooting for years and still miss at 60 yds.We spend most of the night looking for their arrows, despite having a backstop net which they decline to errect. I'm sorry to say this, but shooting a longbow is an excuse to miss! In my experience, longbow archers are failed recurve archers, it's a dead bow, bury it, get a compound!!If I was still missing after years of shooting it I would be asking myself a few questions as to why. Bring on the flak, I don't care, keep longbows over the fire as a talking point, or better still, light the fires with them!!

shooting longbow is an excuse to miss you say??
why? is there something wrong with the bow?
surely if you take a nice longbow it will be consistant enough to hit every time.... assuming that the archer is good enough

[Bald Eagle]

You've hit the nail on the head Gibbon, I too have shot all disciplines and did well in all and thoroughly enjoyed the experiences, but why do longbowmen have to shoot together? Why can't they mix in with other disciplines? Why do they mock other disciplines as though theirs is the only "true" bow? I admire longbow archers who shoot well but they seem to be few and far between. I love the new woods that are used in longbow making, i.e. Bamboo,but why are they still missing the boss and ricochetting off tres in the wood?

[Bald Eagle]

P.S. Bickerstaffes are Brilliant, Paul Cromack in Whitby makes a beautiful bow too,Rod Lyons in Merseyside makes a good bow as well!!!!

Originally Posted by Bald Eagle

You've hit the nail on the head Gibbon, I too have shot all disciplines and did well in all and thoroughly enjoyed the experiences, but why do longbowmen have to shoot together? Why can't they mix in with other disciplines? Why do they mock other disciplines as though theirs is the only "true" bow? I admire longbow archers who shoot well but they seem to be few and far between. I love the new woods that are used in longbow making, i.e. Bamboo,but why are they still missing the boss and ricochetting off tres in the wood?

I agree with you on this BE, some longbow archers can be a little odd and can have huge chips on there shoulder oozing tradition and such like. Well I for one intend not to be like that, I will shoot with anyone and everyone, and not all longbow archers are like that anyway. Why do they miss all the time? For the very reasons you described earlier, lack of commitment, not taking it seriously and using it as an excuse to miss. But none of that is the fault of the longbow is it? It is a very difficult bow to shoot, not idealy suited to people who do not realy want to do it properly.

Like every thing I do I will do it to the best of my ability, pulling arrows out of the grass is something I do not intend to do for long.

I had a chat with Keith from yewtree archey, he is the chap who will make my bow. reality check on my part, to reach 100 yds I need a bow of about 60lb DW, no way can I shoot one like that, I'm going for a 50lb and leave the macho stuff to the worm hunters.