WHEN CAN YOU CALL YOURSELF A BOWYER

[DCM4]

You can call yourself a bowyer regardless of your skill or experience, if you are engaged in making a bow.

The trick is when others consider you to be a bowyer.  I'd argue there's guys that have made hundreds, perhaps thousands of bows, and ain't got a clue what it takes to make a selfbow (think about fellows assembling compounds in a factory).  Even lam bow guys have a much different skill set than we do.  I like the idea that bowyer is a term best used to describe another.  And like Justice Potter said wrt obsenity "I know it when I see it."  I also appretiate the soup to nuts consideration, including tree selection all the way up to finish, string and leather work.

[Lombard]

A friend called me last week. We had not talked for some time now. So he asked me what had I been doing.
I replied, "trying to be the best bowyer I can be, considering my lack of experience."
To which he responded, "Jeez Dave, I thought you were straight."

[Del the cat]

A friend called me last week. We had not talked for some time now. So he asked me what had I been doing.
I replied, "trying to be the best bowyer I can be, considering my lack of experience."
To which he responded, "Jeez Dave, I thought you were straight."

LOL

[gmc]

I call myself a factory worker. I started calling myself a factory worker when I started making a living at it. There are a few factories still left around so I work in them, been doing so now for 17 years. If you ask anybody that knows me, they too will tell you I'm a factory worker. If I needed a car worked on I'd call a mechanic or even a plummer for a leaky pipe. Now some of this I do myself, but really I'm still a factory worker. Now If somebody needs a good bow made, like everything else, they always know who to call. Those people getting the calls are the bowyers. And I bet if you were to ask them, they would tell you the same. As for me, I'm just having fun building bows. 

[Gordon]

When I go hunting, I'm a hunter. When I go skiing, I'm a skier. When I'm gardening, I'm a gardner. And when I'm building bows, I'm a bowyer.

[George Tsoukalas]

Gordon, I agree wicha. You're a bowyer. LOL. Some people get touchy about who gets the title as if we have bowyer's guild to which we apply for membership like they did in England when they were busy fighting the French for 100 years. I kind of agree with Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind who said, "My dear, I don't give a damn."  I'm just a guy who likes to garden, snowshoe, read, hunt, fish and  make bows and arrows. Oh ya and I like to watch movies. Jawge

[Blacktail]

MAN,what the heck did i start here...i hope there is no fire or flames going on..lol...john

[Del the cat]

Gordon, I agree wicha. You're a bowyer. LOL. Some people get touchy about who gets the title as if we have bowyer's guild to which we apply for membership like they did in England when they were busy fighting the French for 100 years. I kind of agree with Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind who said, "My dear, I don't give a damn."  I'm just a guy who likes to garden, snowshoe, read, hunt, fish and  make bows and arrows. Oh ya and I like to watch movies. Jawge

Bowyers guild ... I looked up their website, I was completely unimpressed, you can sended 'em a few pictures and some cash, they send you a certificate. It looks like a sorry con trick to me. I don't need a piece of paper to prove anything. In fact one of my favourite sayings is.
"What's written on a piece of paper doesn't necessarilly effect reality". I see plenty of guys with paper degrees who couldn't tell a cows backside from a letter box.
It just seems like a money spinner...
On this website people freely share their knowledge and experience, no one screws money out of us or expects a subscripion or trys to sell us. 'Certified member of the august Primitive Archer society' badges...
Send me the money, I'll print you a certificate for any thing .
Del (sorry ... rant over)

[Lombard]

I like Gordon's definition.

[half eye]

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet