Course included in the
Primitive Technology
NCFE accreditation

   
Bow Making  
 
Dates
Availability
Cost

15-18 July 2010

FULL

 

2-5 September 2010

1 Place*

£295.00

* Due to recent cancellation - Please contact the office with an email address and phone number. We will be out of the office from the 19-31st August 2010 teaching in France and may not be able to post the details in time, hence email required.  
Dates 2011
Dates
Availability
Cost

5-8 July 2011

Yes

£325.00

 
  • Bow history
  • Wooden bow design
  • Factors effecting bow efficiency
  • Wood selection
  • Bow woods
  • Tillering
  • String materials
  • String construction
  • Arrow design (including primitive methods)
  • Arrow woods
  • Fletching
  • Archery techniques
 

Click here to take
a look at our
bow making course.

Why choose us?
Our bow making courses are led by John Rhyder who made his first ‘grown up’ bow in 1990, a lemonwood/ hickory backed longbow which promptly broke, as did the next three. The disappointment and the expense led him to seek out Chris Boyton for help and armed with sage advice he has never looked back. Over the past 19 years John has made many, many bows of a variety of woods and designs. Since we began teaching the art of bow making we have taught around sixty people a year which averages at more than one bow per week. Even the keenest amateur would have trouble sustaining this work rate! What this means to our students is that John and his staff have seen and dealt with pretty much all possible problems you as a student are likely to come across. Choosing a bow making course with Woodcraft school therefore gives you the best chance of producing something to be really proud of.

© 2004 - 2010 Woodcraft School Ltd. All rights reserved
Tel: +44 (0)1730 816299
 
What's it about?

Bow making is one of the most enjoyable and satisfying of all bushcraft activities. There is a saying that ‘a great bow is nine tenths broken at full draw’, but by understanding the properties of timber and with skill, we can take timber to its limit (and return!) to produce an implement of incredible beauty and practicality. The start of your journey through the world of primitive archery starts by exploring aspects of bow design, how this relates to bow making and the woods that can be used. We will look at the elements employed in the eight thousand year old Holmegaard bow and compare these elements with the English longbow many of us are familiar with. The bow making then begins in earnest, using the design elements discussed and working with the properties of the individual stave. You will make your own bow and join the ranks of primitive archers with a choice of making either a Traditional English Longbow, or a Flat bow from a variety of laminated timbers or a prehistoric recreation from Wych Elm or Ash.

Those students attending the Primitive Technology course must produce a prehistoric recreation.

Details
 
  • Tutors: John Rhyder, Nick McMillen
  • Camping is optional
  • Location : Midhurst, West Sussex
  • Course size: 12
 
Before you join see the following...
 
Important Course Information
The course Kit List
Our Terms and Conditions [adobe document]
And our Booking Form [adobe document]
 
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Contact us if you would like to ask any questions.
 
 
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