Main Discussion Area > Bows
Richard Longbow
psylvain:
Getting back to the subject of this post, I can say with certainty that Richard Longbow takes his craft seriously, and makes some of the finest primitive bows you will find. The proof is in owning and shooting one of his bows, which obviously none of the critics and jokesters here have done. And, as is the case with many Native Americans, his is a spiritual relationship with the natural world and materials in it.
My bow was the subject of much of the earlier debate here, and that was fine. Agree or disagree with some of the things a bowyer does -- that's okay. But apparently a bowyer has to be part of some kind of Good Ol' Boys Club here to be taken seriously, or to be respected. To make a comment regarding the "spirit" he referred to in his article, is uncalled for.
jpitts:
I've read the article and the author looks like a very experienced bowyer. I enjoyed the article. I don't guess it matters, speaking as a rookie here, whether you get the rawhide for your backing from a buffalo or a doggie chew....would be interesting to see shark skin or ray skin too for that matter....but I ain't peeing on a bow and if I find out one has been treated in such a manner I'm not handling it...ok? Just a thing I have...although I have read where it was used as a mouth wash back in Merry Ol England.....all I can say is eeeuuuuuuwwwwww.
BTW....has anyone ever used or seen used shark or ray skins? Ray skins were and still are used for handles on Japanese swords.
Dane,
That does sound like a cool place. I remember a place back in my teens where you could hear the soldiers marching down the hill from this cemetery. You could hear the horses and wagons too. You couldn't light a match or bic lighter within the cemetery. Neat place to visit.
Coo-wah-chobee:
Jimmy.............-I have used shark skins in the past to back bows using hide glue. Have used tiger shark,sand shark, mako, blue an hammerhead. Tiger shark skin rmakes a beautiful backing if you can get a big enough piece so you dont have to use wrappings on the limb. All shark skin is very tough stuff, and btw makes good sandpaper. Have thought about using rays but have never followed through. ;).....bob
Ryano:
Squirrel, I don't think thats True. This Longbow character is just trying to tell us to do things to our bow wood that have been prooven for years and years to be counter productive and it shows that its counter productive from the pictures of the bow you posted, the limbs are over 2" wide and the bow has 6" of set. Obviously something went wrong there.To be fair I haven't read the new article yet, but the whole soaking your bow in salt water thing still has me scratching my head..... :P
Justin Snyder:
Squirrel, I'm not going to touch the Richard Longbow thing, however I do take offense to the good old boys club comment.
I didn't know anyone on this site when I started comming here. I only recently met a few of them in person. You ask ANY of the guys who are new to bow building and this site, and you will discover that the incredible bowyers on this site are some of the most gracious people you will ever meet. They are willing to share their knowledge with every new guy that happens along. Many a new guy has been gifted a stave or arrows or some other item to help them get their start. Several guys, George and Mickey, among others have set up websites to help people they don't even know learn the art of building bows. Where I come from that is gracious, kind and generous behavior, NOT the good old boys club that takes care of their own and cares about nobody outside of their circle. Justin
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version