Gregor
Lord of Altera
Hello everyone! Its come to my attention that many do not know how a bow works or how to use it so I am writing a guide on how to use a longbow.
NOTE: This is a very bare bone guide, not going in depth at all. It merely gives you a rough idea on how to use a bow.
Q: Why a longbow Gregor?
Q: But the recurve bow was widely used in history and it was stronger than a longbow!
Now then, I'm not going to get into the realistic details of how much inches the arrow or bow has to be. Or on how much force is behind each arrow. If you are looking for that you might want to do some indepth research yourself as it is quite complicated.
The bow
The bow and its durability/material
A bow does not last for long in the medieval ages. It doesn't quite get passed down from father to son like a well maintained sword does. If a archer holds a bow too long at full draw it will take a deeper set A smaller set is sweeter to shoot and usually gives a vicious kick in the hand at the time o the loose.
The bow is usually made out of yew but a lot of yew types are unfit. The english yew rarely makes a long lasting bow due to annual rings in the timber being too coarse.
The string may be made from any material, traditionally linen, hemp or sik. Bear in mind that a a string beaking inveriably means a bow breaking due to it swinging back into unstrung position.
Preparation
First, a bracer is worn on the bow arm to protect the forearm from the lash of a string after `loosing` an arrow. This is important due to, well it hurting if you dont wear it.
On the string hand, either an archery glove or a tab is worn to help draw back the arrow. These cover three fingers that pull back the string.
Holding the bow
Take hold of the bow in the hand determined by the dominant eye with the arm hanging loose by your side. The bow should be horizontal to the ground with the string crossing the forearm.
The grip should be firm but not -clenched-. The wrist should be straight.
Now lift the bow vertically in front of you and we now go to holding the string.
The forefinger is placed on the string above the nock The middle and ring fingers beneath with a clear gap between the fingers and the nock.
Making the shot
Place your feet comfortably apart and stand perpendicular to the shooting line. Bow arm shoulder presented to the target. The bow is now brought up round to the front of the body held at a comfortable angle.
Take an arrow a couple of inches below the fletching and bring it up and over the bow and rest it on the uppermost fingers of the bowhand and firmly nock the nocking point on the string. Carefully hook the fingers onto the string, two fingers below the nock and one finger above.
Close your non dominant eye and turn the head towards the target. With the bow arm straight but not locked at the elbow, draw back the string steadily. The Bow arm does two things, resisting the pressures from the string and moving towards the point of aim, all at the same time.
Keep the drawing of the string going as soon as the string touches the chin and nose and relax the hold fingers which allows the kinetic energy stored to relieve the arrow, making it soar towards its target. Keep the bow arm pointed towards the point of aim until the arrow is flying towards its target.
If you have any further questions or want more of the topic covered. Please do respond on the thread!
NOTE: This is a very bare bone guide, not going in depth at all. It merely gives you a rough idea on how to use a bow.
Q: Why a longbow Gregor?
A: Longbows are the things you want to use if you want to hurt people, and the recurve isnt quite realistic.
Q: But the recurve bow was widely used in history and it was stronger than a longbow!
A: Sort of. First issue is that composite recurve bows are hard to make and require quite some exotic materials.
Second, recurve bows of the day were a comosite of animal tendons for the tension side and horn for the compression side with a hardwood infill. All of this was held together with hide glue and sinew wrapping. The bowstring was sinew or hemp
This structure results in a relatively short bow with a long draw that is very effective when used from horseback IN A DRY CLIMATE. Because the materials change drastically when wet the bows are useless in a damp or wet (read Europe) climate. The longbow, when strung with a hemp string, is relatively stable in a wet climate.
Second, recurve bows of the day were a comosite of animal tendons for the tension side and horn for the compression side with a hardwood infill. All of this was held together with hide glue and sinew wrapping. The bowstring was sinew or hemp
This structure results in a relatively short bow with a long draw that is very effective when used from horseback IN A DRY CLIMATE. Because the materials change drastically when wet the bows are useless in a damp or wet (read Europe) climate. The longbow, when strung with a hemp string, is relatively stable in a wet climate.
Now then, I'm not going to get into the realistic details of how much inches the arrow or bow has to be. Or on how much force is behind each arrow. If you are looking for that you might want to do some indepth research yourself as it is quite complicated.
The bow
The bow and its durability/material
A bow does not last for long in the medieval ages. It doesn't quite get passed down from father to son like a well maintained sword does. If a archer holds a bow too long at full draw it will take a deeper set A smaller set is sweeter to shoot and usually gives a vicious kick in the hand at the time o the loose.
The bow is usually made out of yew but a lot of yew types are unfit. The english yew rarely makes a long lasting bow due to annual rings in the timber being too coarse.
The string may be made from any material, traditionally linen, hemp or sik. Bear in mind that a a string beaking inveriably means a bow breaking due to it swinging back into unstrung position.
Preparation
First, a bracer is worn on the bow arm to protect the forearm from the lash of a string after `loosing` an arrow. This is important due to, well it hurting if you dont wear it.
On the string hand, either an archery glove or a tab is worn to help draw back the arrow. These cover three fingers that pull back the string.
Holding the bow
Take hold of the bow in the hand determined by the dominant eye with the arm hanging loose by your side. The bow should be horizontal to the ground with the string crossing the forearm.
The grip should be firm but not -clenched-. The wrist should be straight.
Now lift the bow vertically in front of you and we now go to holding the string.
The forefinger is placed on the string above the nock The middle and ring fingers beneath with a clear gap between the fingers and the nock.
Making the shot
Place your feet comfortably apart and stand perpendicular to the shooting line. Bow arm shoulder presented to the target. The bow is now brought up round to the front of the body held at a comfortable angle.
Take an arrow a couple of inches below the fletching and bring it up and over the bow and rest it on the uppermost fingers of the bowhand and firmly nock the nocking point on the string. Carefully hook the fingers onto the string, two fingers below the nock and one finger above.
Close your non dominant eye and turn the head towards the target. With the bow arm straight but not locked at the elbow, draw back the string steadily. The Bow arm does two things, resisting the pressures from the string and moving towards the point of aim, all at the same time.
Keep the drawing of the string going as soon as the string touches the chin and nose and relax the hold fingers which allows the kinetic energy stored to relieve the arrow, making it soar towards its target. Keep the bow arm pointed towards the point of aim until the arrow is flying towards its target.
If you have any further questions or want more of the topic covered. Please do respond on the thread!
