A longbow is one of the simplest  form of bows which were used for hunting and warfare. They originated back in medieval times. The country of origin for the longbow is England and one of the reasons for this is the longbow is not susceptible to bad weather conditions and are easy and cheap to make. The longbow name originates from the fact that the bow itself is as long as the archer that uses it. The shape of the longbow is basically a D shape when you take a side view of the bow.

Traditional Longbows are made from a piece of wood called yew. The inside of the bow contained the heartwood of the yew and the outside used the sapwood of the yew. The natural makeup of the yew meant that the heartwood was very strong and restricted the amount of compression allowed while the sapwood tended not to stretch.

As yew itself can be very knotty in its make up that this means that no two yew bows are every the same and thus will take an archer a while to get used to his/her bow as it will fire differently. Don’t be put off by a lightweight yew longbow as it is in effect very tough to break. Dependant on what gender you are and/or your physical strength, you should probably stick to the following draw weight guidelines

Men’s Longbow Draw Weight – 30-50 Lbs

Women’s Longbow Draw Weight – 20-35 Lbs

As Longbows today are more of a specialist archer passion, people who are thinking about purchasing a longbow for the first time must realise that the accuracy levels using a longbow will require more work than a normal recurve bow. You will be required to develop a certain style of shot and it may be worth your while to get some lessons from an experienced longbow archer. Also check out some you tube videos for a few hints. This will speed up the process of becoming an expert longbow marksman.

If you are looking to upgrade your longbow or even just to add to your traditional archery equipment collection then you should consider having a look at longbows for sale on line. You can find great discounts on certain brands and I would recommend checking out this site to see if you can find a longbow you like and at a price you like.

What does traditional archery equipment consist of? Well when you think of traditional archery equipment you think of longbows and recurve bows.

Traditional Archery Equiqment – Longbows

Traditional Longbow

The longbow first originated in Medieval English times around the 12th Century and continued in use until the 16th Century. The longbow was made from a single piece of wood, more often then not yew was used and the limbs are narrow  to ensure that they are  D-shaped or circular in the cross section. These days, materials such as fibreglass are used.

The length of a longbow is typically around the same height as the user. This is to allow for the drawing back of the string which is retracted as far back to at least the jaw before release.

The advantages of using a longbow in medieval times was fact that they were quite quick to make and they did not break easily during the cold and wet weather conditions that prevail in Northern parts of Europe. The advantages it holds over the recurve bow is it is quicker to prepare for shooting, quieter and also lighter.

In the early 20th century the American flatbow was introduced which was a variation of the longbow but instead of being a self bow it had relatively wide limbs with a rectangular cross-section. This proved to be a more accurate bow from the longbow family and to this day are used in archery events.

Traditional Archery Equiqment – Recurve Bows

Traditional Recurve Bow

The end of a recurve bow extends away from the user when the bow is strung. The official difference between a recurve bow and a traditional english longbow is that the string touches a part of the recurve bow limb when it is strung compared to the longbow limb.

A traditional recurve bow is made from horn, wood, and sinew laminated together. Historically users and makers of recurve bows orginated from drier climates and it was bow of choice for the Romans, Huns, Greeks, Turns, Mongols to name but a few.

A recurve bow is said to be more efficient in energy delivery and therefore supply more speed and accuracy to an arrow when fired. It also requires less drawback and therefore is perfect weapon when on horseback or for awkward landscapes like jungles and wooded areas.

Traditional Archery Equiqment – Arrows

Traditional Arrows

In 2010 a 64,000 year old stone arrow head was found in South Africa so we can samely assume that the bow and arrow is the oldest hunting weapon of all time.

Traditional arrow shats are made from Traditional arrow shafts are made from lightweight wood, bamboo or reeds. The arrow heads are usually made from  from metal, horn, or some other hard material. There are different types of arrow head and are used depending on the function of the arrow.

• Bodkin points are short and hard points and made from unhardened iron It could penetrate chain armor but useless against more rigourous armor worn by knights in the 14th century

• Blunts are  arrowheads without any edge which are sued for training purposes and for hunting small game as it stuns the prey rather then kill it unless its a direct head shot.
• Judo points have spring wires which come out the side of the tip. Thisis to stop the arrow fro getting lost as it sticks to he top of grass, bushes etc. Again these are used for practice and stunning small game and prey.

• Broadheads are the arrows that caused the most damage. It consists of 2 to 4 baldes on a stel arrowhead that unpon impact will penetrate and cause major bloodloss and is entended to kill the prey/victims quickly. The arrow also designed so that more damage is caused when trying to remove the arrow. This are expensive to make and so are not used for training.

When you decide to take up the wonderful sport of archery, there are a number of items or materials that you must purchase. The main things to look out for in my opinion is good priced longbows and arrows for sale but read on for a more detailed view of the things to buy.

1. Firstly you must decide whether to be a buy longbow or re-curve bow. As you are reading this article on my website you probably will know which one I will recommend:-) A Longbow of course! Once you have purchased the bow you must then gather up all the rest of the materials to complete your longbow package.
2. Next you must buy the bow string if not already supplied. Bowstrings are made from a variety of fibers that include animals and plant fibers among others and the more expensive a string that you can afford the better as it will allow for greater accuracy.
3. Of course to actually hit a target or kill some prey you will need arrows next. The type pf arrow you buy will effectively tell us what you will be using your bow for. If you are starting off then buy some cheaper training arrows. If you are taking archery more seriously and are already a pretty good shot, you will want to buy some top quality arrows to again increase your accuracy. To attach to the arrow you will need a shaft. As all modern bows now use a centre shot your range of arrows does not have to have spines all of similar nature, as the centre shot will hold he shaft steady. In the olden days when the arrow was shot around the limb, a more rigid set of arrows with similar spine structures was need to retain consistency. You will also need to own a quiver which holds the arrows.
4. When using a longbow you must of course be dressed for the part. Dependant on what you will be shooting you will have to dress appropriately. If you are hunting then you will need to wear camouflage clothing and wear all the protective clothing such as  slings, arm and chest guards. These protective guards should also be worn when target shooting.

If you are new to archery and do plan on buying a longbow then keep an eye on this blog as I intend to review the best priced longbows and arrows for sale online when I can get a chance.