Hundred Years War exhibit at the West Point Military Academy Museum

[leonard]

I visited the West Point museum which by the way is free and toured the exhibits which show the history of warfare from guys throwing rocks at each other to an example of the "Fat Boy" atomic bomb.  The only exhibit that was not accurate and disappointing was the Hundred Years War.  The archery equipment representing the Medieval War Bow and Arrows consisted of a tired looking Edwardian target bow and a couple of hunting arrows with Zwickey broadheads! probably made  in the '60's.  This museum really needs some help with this exhibit with donations of an authenic English war bow and some BBLS standard arrows with bodkin and Type 16 points.

[Del the cat]

Shame, it would be easy enough to make a bow that at least looked the part...
If I was over there, I'd do it! The arrows aren't my thing tho'
Del

[WillS]

I wish I'd known earlier! I have to make up a display set of warbow arrows for Abbotsbury Swannery here in the UK, and I had to get the heads handforged to order.  If I'd known I would have done a couple more and sent them over.

[Lucasade]

Wills - I'm guessing you used swan feathers for the fletchings then? Do they sell them or is it just that you are friendly with them?

[WillS]

Yeah I needed swan feathers for my quarter pound arrows.  They don't sell them, as they're usually backed up with orders for over 3 thousand feathers for various people.  It was a result of a lot of chatting and meetings and eventually agreeing on a couple of display arrows in return.

Funny thing is, they let me sift through their buckets and pick 21 perfect primaries, and the week after I took a punt at a local lake and walked away with over 150 swan primaries so didn't need to make some arrows anyway!  Still, nice to have some of my work on display I suppose.

[Lucasade]

I've heard that looking in the wild can be extremely variable in terms of feather quality, but it sounds like it's well worth a shot!

[WillS]

When I went looking for goose feathers I ended up taking 460 home.  By the time I had sifted through the nasty ones, and scrapped the ones too short for war arrows (anything under 6" long) I still had about 350 left, and 200 of those at least are beautiful "premium" quality primaries.  That's enough to see me through this year and the next, and possibly make some money selling them at shoots etc as well. 

If you time it right, and hit the lakes/parks right in the middle of moulting season (late May through to July) you'll end up with so many you won't know what to do with them all!

[Lucasade]

Excellent - that's about the time I'll be needing them!