Bow Making Course

[Big John]

Had a great time on a 2 day bow-making course recently with Chris Boyton. Rather than make an ELB, we met in advance of the course and discussed what I wanted to get out of it in terms of learning and in terms of bow. We decided to make a tonkin-backed ipe laminate with reflexed tips. Chris made-up the stave before the course and then took me through all manufacturing steps from basic shaping to refining and tillering. This was a challenging bow to make and turned-out to be very heavy indeed - our estimates when weighing on the tiller with a tillering string attached put it above 98lbs. Seems that the combination of Ipe and great quality bamboo (which was 40 years old) makes a very powerful yet slim bow. The profile and limb tip shape support horn overlays rather than horn nocks and a simple leather grip will be added soon.

Aside from the vast amount I learned on bow-making, the chats and stories with Chris also taught me a huge amount about bowyery and traditional archery as well as the Mary Rose bows, which Chris has studied. I really enjoyed seeing Chris' other bow in various stages of production and chatting to him about past projects. It was a pleasure to spend 2 days with him and we also had quite a few laughs. He is great bloke and I highly recommend the course.

[robtattoo]

More info needed!!!

How do you get on the course?
Where is it held?
How much is it?
How often is it run?
Is it one-on-one or run as a group?

Thanks fr any further info. I'm VERY interested in this course!

[Kae]

Originally Posted by robtattoo

More info needed!!!

How do you get on the course?
Where is it held?
How much is it?
How often is it run?
Is it one-on-one or run as a group?

Thanks fr any further info. I'm VERY interested in this course!

Yeh yeah yeah, more info please!!

I'd love to try and draw a bow that heavy........ although my shoulders might not like it... don't know until you try....

Kae.

[Ffish]

To save on disk space quoting the above replies:

Yeah me too please - where, when, how much, who, how many, etc etc

[Big John]

Not sure how busy Chris is and whether he has time to dedicate to lots of courses. The course is one-on-one (the best possible way to learn) and takes place at Chris' workshop in Hayes, Middlesex. Cost is £395 although I paid a more for the additional work that Chris needed to do in advance (reflexing and bamboo prep). The 'standard' course is to make a laminated ELB, with horn nocks etc. The course is run ad hoc - it is a case of speaking to him and working out when you and he are available.

Chris is an accomplished bow maker and makes some outstanding bows (he made my longbow). Because of his TV appearances, and Glade articles (Boyton Archery) he gets lots of interest from people wanting to 'talk archery' - which is nice if you have the time but not so nice if you are trying to make a living working (!)

I think he also teaches on group courses organised through Ray Mears company.

[Yew Selfbow]

Sounds like you had a great time John...... any chance of seeing the bow?

[Big John]

It is still with Chris for final finishing off but once I get it I'll try and post some pictures. It should be around the 60lb mark - you will recall my earlier posts about whether to go for a heavy bow? Well, I had a gently go at drawing one of Chris' mighty self yew bows and knew instantly that I was living in a dream land. I would need to work out to get to the stage where I could comfortably draw 100lbs, and even then I would risk injury......oh, and bows of those kinds of weights don't last forever!