Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Kegan on July 20, 2008, 06:42:11 pm
-
It seems that may people think D bows are harder to shoot as accurately. Jimm Hamm and Dean Torges both wrote that they are more difficult to shoot accurately, among others.
However, Natives and the English did wonders with long bendy handle bows, and I've gotten several Robin Hoods, as well as being able to shoot a golfball on the fly.
My questions is, is it really that the bow bends through the handle, or is it because the bow is shorter (a favorite trait of both the bowyers mentioned)? I know the require more accurate spine, but I haven't had any trouble with long D bows, even heavy weight ones.
-
Keegan,
I prefer them hands down. I shoot several bows as my personall bows and they are all bend through the handel. I think its really the archer. After you get used to a bend in the handel they are easier to shoot. I think what turns allot of people off is the lack of the heavy riser or handel area wich no doubt helps stablie the bow arm a bit. bend in the handels lack this. They need a bit better form, a bit stiller bow arm and a cleaner relase then the stiff handel riser style bows......of corse this is just in my experience. But for me.....I love them weather they be big honkin war bows, modest bend through elb's or short bend in the handel west coast NA bows.
SJM
-
Well said Yew, but I do have to practice alot more with my 56" bend in the handle bow...but its my 1st and still my favorite....Brian
-
Well put indeed :)! I just don't think they get enough good press other than being easy to build, and was wondering if anyone else felt that way. I'm glad some do ;D.
-
The last bow I build was a vine maple D bow. It was my first bendy handle. I prefer it hands down to my rigid handle bows. I thought it would have a lot of hand shock, but it has virtually none. I don't notice an accuracy difference either. I shoot just as bad with it as I do with a stiff handle. ;D
-
I know some disagree, but I think that they are harder to make....gettin the right amount of bend in the handle can be tricky indeed....Brian
-
I wouldnt say the D bows are easier to buld. I think they are allot harder to get a good tiller on then handle bows. With handel bows you have 2 sepearte limbs that really dont affect each other much, with a D bow every piece of it i affected by wod removal. I would say that they are comporable in diffaculty to build. For beginers I never sugest a D bow but do sugest a nice simple flat bow.
SJM
-
You also had Tim Baker knocking them for bows over 50lb. I really haven't observed that although I've only made a few at 60+lb. I like bows at 50lb so its a moot point.
-
I wonder what he'd think of the 70#+ bows I like ;)?
-
Guys I have not made many D bows but the tiller actually seems easier to me, thats just me. While at Mojam my favorite bowhunter John MaGee from OK was looking for a heavier bow so I let him shoot my little bow. He came back after shooting it and says "I can hunt with that" and then he gets out his wallet and says (as he counts out all his money) he comes up with seventy two dollars and I said no, I'll take fifty tho ;D Oh I forgot to mention John is prolly 12, but one of my most respected friends. The bow is osage 60" 50# @ 26, he is a tad over-bowed today but come huntin season I expect him to make meat with it.
-
I like them. I had never made one till this year because of all the rumors of handshock and such. Boy was I missing out! I've made three this year, one 59" and two 55" and none of them have any handshock and are as fast and quiet as any other i've made.
I think they're under rated and as far as not being a good design for over 50#... I disagree also.
-
Bendy handle D bow, 75# @ 27", ...I think it works pretty good ;) ;)
(http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d124/NorthShoreLB/007-5-1.jpg)
-
Myth-D bows are shocky. Not if they are well tillered. :) Jawge
-
Manny,that's one nice hog- bet it didn't think there was too much handshock ;D. Is the handle built up with leather? That's one beautiful bow there.
-
Manny, that things a beast!! And the hog is mean lookin too! Oh and great bow! ;D....Brian
-
Richard Saffold has to take credit for the bow,
Kegan, yeah I build up the handle with leather and superglue
-
Richard Saffold has to take credit for the bow,
Kegan, yeah I build up the handle with leather and superglue
Leather handles sure are more comfortable, and it's easier to tiller wihtout those silly things in the way before hand, isn't it ;D?
-
I find D-bows somewhat harder to shoot because I make them with the arrow pass that is wider than a comparable stiff handled bow. As a result I tend to experience arrow slap when I shoot them. That said, I do love the lines of a well crafted D-bow and how they feel in the hand.
-
In Tim's defense he was writing this when many D bows were made from whitewoods. He and many others would agree that it is best to go a touch wider with whitewoods which results in a handle that can verge on too wide over 50 pounds.
The recent rise in the use of Ipe gives the potential to make a very narrow, high weight D bow with none of the wider handle pitfalls of the lighter woods.
-
although i dont own one, i do like bendy handles over stiff handles. the one i made for my dad, with fifteen minuts of practice i was hitting as well with it as i was with my hickory elb. maby jist me, but i like bendy handles.
oh, by the way,NOMADIC PIRATE, you look like freakin rambo with a bow, aka ram-bow! ;D yeah, im a dork.
-
I think the D bow can be made very well from medium dense white woods in the 50# to 60# range keeping them narrow and just building them like elbs. When I was doing the research for my mass chapter I did stacks of D bows from all types of wood. For instance a 100# maple bendy handle bow around 72" long would average only about 1 1/2" wide. Lighter bows in the 50# range could easily be made only around 1" wide. I preffered to make the bows about 1 1/8 wide and not worry about the 5/8 rule that the elbs use. Biggest problem I had was the bows wanting to bend sideways. Steve
-
PatM- I've made 70+# whitewood D bows that were only 1 1/2" wide. I;ve enevr gotten the oppurtunity to work ipe yet. I think the main reason they didn't believe white woods could handle it is because 1) their bows were too short for the stress and 2) heat tempering the belly hadn't become as popular.
-
D-bows are my favorites. I've got one which shoots very well, no hand shock, and really quiet. I have found that a lot of my shooting problems can be solved by simply not holding the bow as tight as I normally do. But then, that's something that all shooters should watch out for. :)
My bows, most of them being shorter, are more finicky about the way I shoot. A longer D-bow is really smooth. Most of my bows, particularly bendy handled bows, are Osage, and I can make them about 1" wide with no problems. This makes the problem of the arrow bending around the handle no more trouble than with stiff handled bows.
Sean
-
The bow Manny has in the photo is under 1 1/8" at the grip, and I have made many "D" styles 3/4" wide at the arrow pass. This gets closer to the accuracy of the built-up grips which can be truly center-shot.. And it does allow for a little more spine variation.
Rich
-
I don't dispute that an inch and a half is more than adequate but most people would prefer a narrower handle than that which was Tim's point I think..
Of course there is no reason you couldn't do a super stretched out West Coast style tiller with whitewood if you want a narrower handle.
That verges a bit from the classic D bow shape.
-
Yep Rich, just mesured the bow and it's exactly 1",..it shoots the same set of arrows that I shoot out of my 85 # HILL ( I builded up the arrow pass a bit on the Hill to make it shoot like a selfbow)