90+ pound Ash Bow
Mar 17, 2009 2:18:13 GMT
Post by Deleted on Mar 17, 2009 2:18:13 GMT
Well, here it is! The first bow review on SBG if I'm not mistaken.
Here we go!
I bought this from a distributor in New Zealand who gets these in various draw weights from his bowyer. Unfortunately they are no longer in stock
Unfortunately bows aren't the greatest things to look at when they're unstrung but here it is.
Stats
She's 71 inches from tip to tip and 69 and 1/2 inches from knock to knock.
The beauty of a bow comes out when it's strung ;D She's about 67.5 inches from knock to knock when strung. I always ALWAYS use a bow stringer on traditional (non laminated bows) and I suggest everyone do the same to preserve there bow and protect from an uneven 'set'. However all non-laminated bows will generally take a set over time (as you may have noticed from my pics) so don't worry! As long as you cannot see any stress cracks running along the bow you should be fine. Check your bow regularly!
Some History
This particular bow is a D cross section which was used by English (and Welsh) bowyers on Yew staves during the medieval period (and probably long before that but not in great numbers)
There are many theories for this. One reason that i tend to agree with is the economic value of this design. One can get more staves out of using D sections than, say, a square section bow.
Draw Length
She was originally measured for 28 inches but I cheated a little and use 30 inch arrows. Be sure to check with the bowyer before doing this! Generally 1 to 2 inches won't end in catastrophic failure but it pays to ask. As for arrows I use alluminium as traditional wood arrows and heads are bloody expensive! They are a work in progress and as soon as I get the materials from overseas I'll post some pics.
Handling
As with most bows of this weight (especially the D section variety) you expect some handshock which is fine. This particular bow's handshock is quite reasonable and doesn't diminish the experience at all. She also tends to 'stack', that is, pile up draw pressure towards the 90 pound mark which is also to be expected in bows like this.
It should be noted that drawing a mega 120 pound Warbow at 30 inches is alot different than drawing it at 32 inches!
I'm confident in getting at least a few more years of service. The thing with bows like this is that you don't really know how long they might last. They could last for 50 years!
String
There are many kinds of strings and string materials so I'll simply say my string is made from B-50 Dacron in "parallel style". This means there are many strands within the string structure itself all running parallel.
Historical Accuracy
I was in two minds about using this heading and I'll explain why. Practicality in Warbow archery tends to take over from a hardcore traditionalist approach. For example, in order for my bow to be 100 percent accurate it would have to made from either high altitude Italian or Spanish Yew although not exclusively, (English yew was used but it wasn't the very best) and have a silk bowstring wrapped with hemp cord. Most people into heavy draw Warbows are more into technique and draw weight rather than hardcore historical accuracy and looking from the financial side I agree.
Conclusion
At $300 NZD I'm well pleased with this Bow. It is a joy to shoot and hopefully will be for many years more.
Phew! Well, that's that. If anyone has any questions queries or problems feel free to ask.
Here we go!
I bought this from a distributor in New Zealand who gets these in various draw weights from his bowyer. Unfortunately they are no longer in stock
Unfortunately bows aren't the greatest things to look at when they're unstrung but here it is.
Stats
She's 71 inches from tip to tip and 69 and 1/2 inches from knock to knock.
The beauty of a bow comes out when it's strung ;D She's about 67.5 inches from knock to knock when strung. I always ALWAYS use a bow stringer on traditional (non laminated bows) and I suggest everyone do the same to preserve there bow and protect from an uneven 'set'. However all non-laminated bows will generally take a set over time (as you may have noticed from my pics) so don't worry! As long as you cannot see any stress cracks running along the bow you should be fine. Check your bow regularly!
Some History
This particular bow is a D cross section which was used by English (and Welsh) bowyers on Yew staves during the medieval period (and probably long before that but not in great numbers)
There are many theories for this. One reason that i tend to agree with is the economic value of this design. One can get more staves out of using D sections than, say, a square section bow.
Draw Length
She was originally measured for 28 inches but I cheated a little and use 30 inch arrows. Be sure to check with the bowyer before doing this! Generally 1 to 2 inches won't end in catastrophic failure but it pays to ask. As for arrows I use alluminium as traditional wood arrows and heads are bloody expensive! They are a work in progress and as soon as I get the materials from overseas I'll post some pics.
Handling
As with most bows of this weight (especially the D section variety) you expect some handshock which is fine. This particular bow's handshock is quite reasonable and doesn't diminish the experience at all. She also tends to 'stack', that is, pile up draw pressure towards the 90 pound mark which is also to be expected in bows like this.
It should be noted that drawing a mega 120 pound Warbow at 30 inches is alot different than drawing it at 32 inches!
I'm confident in getting at least a few more years of service. The thing with bows like this is that you don't really know how long they might last. They could last for 50 years!
String
There are many kinds of strings and string materials so I'll simply say my string is made from B-50 Dacron in "parallel style". This means there are many strands within the string structure itself all running parallel.
Historical Accuracy
I was in two minds about using this heading and I'll explain why. Practicality in Warbow archery tends to take over from a hardcore traditionalist approach. For example, in order for my bow to be 100 percent accurate it would have to made from either high altitude Italian or Spanish Yew although not exclusively, (English yew was used but it wasn't the very best) and have a silk bowstring wrapped with hemp cord. Most people into heavy draw Warbows are more into technique and draw weight rather than hardcore historical accuracy and looking from the financial side I agree.
Conclusion
At $300 NZD I'm well pleased with this Bow. It is a joy to shoot and hopefully will be for many years more.
Phew! Well, that's that. If anyone has any questions queries or problems feel free to ask.