Letters to Editor

[Morgan]

Morgan I wish I could agree with you but it shows in the bow contest nearly every time. The artisan votes are for the art side and don’t care about performance . It won’t matter how good a bow will out perform the artisan , or they don’t know the difference. Most know the difference i would say. I love and respect the artisan side but that does not always mean it’s a superior weapon. It’s a bow contest. That been said keep your drawknife sharp and your arrows straight. Arvin

I see what you’re saying Arvin. Choosing beauty over performance in BOM contest.

[Don W]

I think pretty and shiny and nice looking beats function and I see that in other types of presentations as well (I collect vintage tools) I think it's a human condition, and I think a lot of people here (myself included) are still trying to learn what exactly "performance" should look like in a "good" bow.

There is a lot of talk about speed, cast, stability and longevity, but very little hard facts or data to back it up. There is also a lot of contradictory information, which I've come to believe is likely can be or is likely a difference in wood type and characteristics, climate, or other contributing factor we don't think of.

I focus much more on hunting bows, so understanding bows for distance shooting or war bows is very lacking and my shoulder just snapped just thinking about shooting an 80# bow

[Selfbowman]

I think pretty and shiny and nice looking beats function and I see that in other types of presentations as well (I collect vintage tools) I think it's a human condition, and I think a lot of people here (myself included) are still trying to learn what exactly "performance" should look like in a "good" bow.

There is a lot of talk about speed, cast, stability and longevity, but very little hard facts or data to back it up. There is also a lot of contradictory information, which I've come to believe is likely can be or is likely a difference in wood type and characteristics, climate, or other contributing factor we don't think of.

I focus much more on hunting bows, so understanding bows for distance shooting or war bows is very lacking and my shoulder just snapped just thinking about shooting an 80# bow

Don all the flight divisions are not all heavy bows. With the bamboo backed 50’ bow I shot 260 yds. Chuck Louffler s record in the 70 # class is 266 yds. Chuck and i are having a great time doing this sport . it’s nothing more than some bragging rights and needling  one another. Chuck has my attention for sure. He’s a good bowyer. Also Sleek knows his stuff about design. I come off more offensive on the net than I mean to sometimes. I’m just not as pure as some guys on here. I’m old but not primitive. Happy bow building. Arvin

[Allyn T]

Morgan I wish I could agree with you but it shows in the bow contest nearly every time. The artisan votes are for the art side and don’t care about performance . It won’t matter how good a bow will out perform the artisan , or they don’t know the difference. Most know the difference i would say. I love and respect the artisan side but that does not always mean it’s a superior weapon. It’s a bow contest. That been said keep your drawknife sharp and your arrows straight. Arvin

You never know how well those artsy bows preform. I think the best bows are both, they preform well and they look sharp. The bow of the month is an overall contest not a performance contest, that's what flight shoots are for. I wouldnt pick a bow just because it shot the farthest any more than I would pick a bow because it had the prettiest paint job.

[Jim Davis]

I quit thinking about the bow of the month when I realized it was all about appearance or novelty. I make nothing but pyramid bows and my purpose is to make an efficient bow that will last as long as the  Egyptian pyramids if not abused.

But I admit the BOM could not continue if it were based on my purposes.

[WhistlingBadger]

(This isn't a letter to the editor)

Only reason I keep entering BOM is I really want one of those cool hats!  Always on the lookout for a good hat.  ha ha 

But Arvin, I think it's just the nature of the beast.  I don't usually have time to read through all the threads and find out everything about the various bows.  I suspect a lot of people vote based on the provided full-draw shot and nothing more.  It would be better if we all read the stories and stats before voting on the coolest overall bow, instead of the one with the nicest looking full draw profile.  But a lot of people (myself included, some months) just don't take the time.  I don't think that means people really value appearance over performance; it just means that the BOM contest i is mostly based on photos because that's all we have to go on.  I think that's why recurves tend to win a disproportionate amount of the time--they're beautiful to look at.

But I'm OK with all that.  I still get to learn about some interesting bows, so it's all good.

[Digital Caveman]

But Arvin, I think it's just the nature of the beast.  I don't usually have time to read through all the threads and find out everything about the various bows.  I suspect a lot of people vote based on the provided full-draw shot and nothing more.  It would be better if we all read the stories and stats before voting on the coolest overall bow, instead of the one with the nicest looking full draw profile.  But a lot of people (myself included, some months) just don't take the time.  I don't think that means people really value appearance over performance; it just means that the BOM contest i is mostly based on photos because that's all we have to go on.  I think that's why recurves tend to win a disproportionate amount of the time--they're beautiful to look at.

Agreed