Slice of humble pie.

[mikekeswick]

Av...it happens.

I usually go to great lengths to explain that this isnt glasfiber....that there will allways be an element of unpredictability and a risk of non-visible weaknesses...thats the charm of selfbows.

Getting people to not overdraw is allmost impossible....they wanna show of their new bow so they let others try it. When it eneitably ends up in the hands of and unexperienced archers/compound archer they will try and show that they are "strong enough" to handle "real bows"....so they engage in a muscle contest with the bow and pull it to their ears (I have seen it too many times).


+1
I think you have done all you can with propper tiller and drawlength for the customer.

Btw...I use the step-through method on my own bows....never had a problem with that (I am careful tho).

Cheers

[4giveme]

Hi all,
I am new to bow building, and know that it come time, a time when i will want to sell a bow or two. But i got to tell ya this thread is scaring the heck out of me. It seems that if you don't have a lifetime warranty and a hefty insurance policy its not worth it. I am all for customer service and keeping a good rep, but come on stringing it backwards getting 2 new bows and then almost blowing up the 3rd!!! i would think there comes a point that you have to say tuff luck bro. what is the standard replacement time for a bow?
and by the way i will tell you why it scares me, because Mr. Murphy rents a room in my basement, and when i think all is well, he delivers that humble pie to me personally. LOL
4giveme

[Bryce]

Step the ought puts alot of stress on one limb.

[Weylin]

Hi all,
I am new to bow building, and know that it come time, a time when i will want to sell a bow or two. But i got to tell ya this thread is scaring the heck out of me. It seems that if you don't have a lifetime warranty and a hefty insurance policy its not worth it. I am all for customer service and keeping a good rep, but come on stringing it backwards getting 2 new bows and then almost blowing up the 3rd!!! i would think there comes a point that you have to say tuff luck bro. what is the standard replacement time for a bow?
and by the way i will tell you why it scares me, because Mr. Murphy rents a room in my basement, and when i think all is well, he delivers that humble pie to me personally. LOL
4giveme

I think it's pretty standard to give a 1 year warranty with a list of conditions such as, you have to use a stringer, no dry fire, only you shoot it, etc. The problem is that it's always dependent on your customer being a decent person. It's just your word against theirs. They can tell you what ever they want about why it broke and it's hard to call them on it. If they insist it wasn't their fault then you suck it up and either give them their money back or build them a new bow and if you think they were screwing you then you just make a point to never deal with them again. I think that's the best you can do in this line of business. You just plan on dealing with that at some point down the road and factor it into your costs.

[rps3]

It is so tempting to sell bows, seems like everyone wants one when they see them. Generally speaking, just the fact that a person wants to buy a selfbow disqualifies them as a someone who will properly care for it, otherwise they would just make it themselves. The joy I get from building would be negated by selling one. I did it a couple times and wont anymore.

[vinemaplebows]

Been there, sold bows before. I won't make custom bows anymore, have not done it in yrs. "If" I sell a all wood bow there is no warranty...I explain to them that wood, even perfect wood, is not perfect. I have no way of knowing how they treat a bow...OR who they will let draw it...your friend big John trying to prove his manhood could in the long run cost ME MONEY no thanks!  (even worse a law suit)......as is, where is, period!

As to a yr warranty, prepare yourself for a pain in the A$$. I had guys that left there bow strung in the closet for months, and complained about string follow......just ONE stupid example!
VMB

[ionicmuffin]

this is one of the reasons all my bows except one have been given away. I give mine away(if they want to donate money to my cause thats cool.) and so far no failures, but ive only given out 2. I have a couple more bow that are still desired, so i will be working on smaller ones after i get my trade bow finished. I will say though, one kid i taught wont stop shooting his bow! hes been shooting it around 100 per day and up to 6 times a week. hes really getting into it, more than i expected.

[rossfactor]

Hey, you guys are too much.  Thanks for the  experiences and putting it in to perspective. 

Weylin, I agree with the way you summed it up.  There's some things that you can/should do e.g. guarantee your workmanship, provide proper instructions, but at the end of the day bows need to be used/treated properly or they can fail, and if someone buys one, they need to understand this.

Anyway, I think this situation will work out.  I don't sell many bows.  I stopped counting a long time ago so I don't know how many I've made but most have been given away, or are stashed on the property somewhere....

Gabe

[twisted hickory]

I was thinking after making 40 or so bows to start selling them..... Then after reading what some guys do to bows I will just keep it fun and gift the bow to just friends
Greg

[Easternarcher]

I have sold a few, but I'm done as well....no fun building under deadlines and on someone elses money.
If I wanna give one away, thats worth more to see the look one that person's face than what I would charge for one.

[blackhawk]

Im still an "amateur" ....only "professionals" sell bows

[ionicmuffin]

another thing you should consider doing is to take a piece of wood, turn it into a bow, get suited up, and overdraw it, string another one backwards, leave one strung, ect. Keep these on camera, show them that if they dont follow your instructions these things WILL happen and that they are really responsible if this happens.

[bow101]

Yup, they say it's hard to be Humble..!  But it's better to accept it for what it is, rather than denounce your failures as some people do.  It takes more of a man to admit his defeats rather than stand there and blatantly deny any wrong doing...

[rossfactor]

Well, if anyone is looking to get some humility, bow making is a good way to get it. 

[dragonman]

I agree with all the above. It seemed like a good idea to sell a few bows cos money was short and this is something I can do, maybe not perfectly but reasonably.....but what a headache...no-one but a bowyer understands wooden bows. This must be one of the worst ways to make money.
Yeh, there is always someone who wants to prove how far he can pull a bow....they are the worst
I heard in ancient china the warriors would often kill the bowyer if the bow broke in battle.....so its always been a bad choice of occupation....all respect to those who make it work......Maybe you have to not care too much, once its sold its no longer the bowyers responsibility. just dont sell bows your not sure of.