Hand shock longbow?

[Pat B]

Shoot as many different bow that you can and ask each bowyer if they have arrows you can use to test the bow.
 What kind of wood arrows are you using...spine, length vs. draw, physical weight, fletching, etc.?

[bradsmith2010]

i think he said he was shooting an arrow that was about 300 grains,,, he is not shooting wood,,

[PlanB]

700 spine with feathers sounds good for the 30 lb bow. You had that covered, then.

[Nance]

Hi Pat,

My wooden arrows have all snapped of behind the arrow head. I have only two left. Most of the time I shoot at stramit. The length of both carbon and wooden arrows was 28". My draw length is 27",sometimes a little bit more. They all have feather fletchings and the wooden arrows have 100gr points. I think they are pine shafts. Spine matched the bow but not a very well matched set. Hitting the stramit has also influenced the flight paths of the woodies.
I only shoot carbon now.

[Pat B]

 Have you attempted making your own wood arrows? Wood bows disserve wood arrows! A well matched bow and wood arrows is a pleasure to shoot and is plenty accurate enough whether you shoot target or hunt. Making your own arrows and learning arrow dynamics can be as addictive as bow building and like bow building can be very time consuming...but very rewarding.   

[Nance]

No not yet. I've planted a hazel bush and am looking for English privet bushes to use as arrow shafts. I have experimented with dyeing feathers but splitting them is rather difficult.

[bradsmith2010]

Nance, you are making it way to difficult, just get some hardwood dowels and make some arrows,, while you are waiting for the other ones to grow,,

[DC]

Or maybe this http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,28697.0.html

I find these to be almost bulletproof.

[Nance]

Haha I haven't started on making arrows yet because I have to make other equipment like a spine tester etc. Furthermore I'm a mother of two small children (2 and 4 years old) so time and energy are an issue for me too. I did get a fletching jig and I'm currently collecting tools etc. Arrow making will be a summer endeavour. Until then, my carbon arrows will have to suffice.

[PlanB]

Wow, amazing you get to do any archery at all. Hat's off to you!

[Nance]

Haha thanks. It just takes some careful planning to make it work. And a healthy dose of realism. I get to shoot one evening a week while my husband (thumbring archer) stays home and vice versa. Our range has two training days so we each get one. On competition days we try to get a sitter or grandpa/grandma but it's not always possible.
We started shooting in june last year and even though we show a lot of progress, it pales in comparison to the archer that started with us who shoots an Olympic recurve. Oh well....
Bow building is kept to the weekends when one of us can keep the kids busy.

[PlanB]

It's great that you both share your archery and bowyery interests. Maybe the kids will be interested in building bows in a few years, too. Good luck to you all!

[Lumberman]

"Healthy dose of realism", so important! Props to you and your husband, I am so blessed to have a wife who bow hunts, so much fun to even go to the range and shoot, except when she outshoots me!!