Who's Bow is BEST???

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:05 am

I have to agree that you value the bow by what you are using it for and how it performs that specific task.

A modern materials bow in bad weather and rough conditions is often the best choice. We cannot all replace composite bows in the way bowyer can unless we have a lot of money for our hobby. It is the same with arrows. I do not necessarily shoot nice wood or bamboo arrows when practising at my club. For practice, any well made arrows will do. I have seen some field shoots where it is sure that you will lose arrows. There is no point in using your best hand made arrows for that.

However, I do enjoy shooting my composite bows and I like to make better and more authentic arrows. It is natural to strive to do better. It is not the equipment that makes a good archer. A good archer makes the equipment look good.

mongolianarcher · Post by **mongolianarcher** » Mon Feb 23, 2009 12:10 am

Bede wrote:This thread is getting complicated. I can't help adding to it. I bought a Groser Chinese bow a few months ago and, though I am going to make some cosmetic changes (the string bridges), it shoots quite well. I am short so full draw is only about 32 inches. It doesn't appear to stack and it allows me to practise with a Qing cylindrical thumb ring at the drawlength and string angle that is appropriate.

However, I have drawn original Qing bows and they are smoother and more comfortable to shoot. In that sense we have to make compromises between what we can afford and what we want. This bow is a perfect practice bow for me, but there are differences in the way it looks and performs from the original. I make the compromise because, unlike Yokhua, I cannot make or repair an original, but I do want to practise in the Qing style because I find it to be very good exercise.

One of the people I shoot with has a Saluki bow like the one in the picture and it is very smooth to shoot. I am hoping to get some spare time to speed test and compare some of the bows I have and calculate their efficiencies, but don't hold your breath.

What type of model was your chinese bow, and was it manchurian?
Also what are the effiecientcies?

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Mon Feb 23, 2009 3:31 am

My bow was a standard Qing bow with sharkskin covered ears and a birch bark covered back. It has small fish skin mosaic decorations but was not as elaborately decorated as some of the bows we see from recent times.

jbl · Post by **jbl** » Tue Sep 15, 2009 7:20 pm

I know this is an old topic but I just wanted to put my opinion in: I have the Kassai Panther and I am really impressed with the bow. Unstrung it has a nice "C" shape. It has a very smooth draw, no hand shock and is fast. Shooting with the ring I am able to pull to 30" without any stacking. I really enjoy this bow. Now this is considered one of Kassai top of the line bows so I don't know how it compares with a Grozer top of the line or other bows such as Spitfire, or Saluki but I think it is a great bow. As I said in the begining just an opinion.

Dusan · Post by **Dusan** » Tue Sep 15, 2009 7:22 pm

If you can ,buy bow from L.Novotny.

Alan Flashing · Post by **Alan Flashing** » Wed Sep 16, 2009 10:20 pm

I have two bows coming from Lukas Novotny hopefully they should be here in the next 4 months give or take a bit, hopefully sooner .
One is his fiberglass composite Damascus with his "horsebow grip" and the other , the bow of my dreams a horn bow of the North Indian Crab bow style.
To say that I am totally jazzed about both of them is an understatement.
Alan

mongolianarcher · Post by **mongolianarcher** » Thu Sep 17, 2009 3:06 am

You finally getting your crab bow!!!!!!!!
I remember when you were first asking about it in old posts!!!
I am so happy for you! Now all you have to do is make some equally beautiful mughal arrows to match it! Be sure to decorate your bamboos with oil paints with indian designs, that really makes them breathtakers!

What are the specs of the horn bow?

Alan Flashing · Post by **Alan Flashing** » Thu Sep 17, 2009 3:31 am

I am not sure of the bow length fairly short, but it will draw 80# give or take a bit at 29-30 inches. I draw 271/2 " with my long bow and when shooting a bow with a thumb ring I draw 29-30".
alan

Paul Slawik · Post by **Paul Slawik** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:25 am

Alan,

I can't wait to see a pic of you at full draw with your dramatic looking bow! The Crab Bow design is really something.

Alan Flashing · Post by **Alan Flashing** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:38 am

Look forward to seeing your new bow as well Paul. Would really like to start making new arrows for it now , but think that I will put it off till I have the bow in my hands.
Alan

Jhoneil · Post by **Jhoneil** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:33 pm

I just finished a replica (fiberglass) bow and I posted the pictures up on...

jbl · Post by **jbl** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 7:17 pm

Jhoneil it gets funnier everytime I see that picture. Again my offer from the other forum stands if you get distracted with that beauty I will be willing to take that masterpiece off your hands.

jbl · Post by **jbl** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 7:11 pm

This past weekend three of my friends and I got together to "test" some Asian style bows and I just wanted to share the "results" (more opinion really) with you all. The bows we tested were: Grozer Crimean Tatar #55, Grozer Turkish Hornbow #45, Kassai Panther #40, Seige Work Creations Magyar #45, and a #50 Saluki Turk. The bows were judged on the following: trueness to the original Asian form, hand shock, noise, feel in the hand, and general "likeability" of the bow. We did not have a chrono, nor did we have a large enough area to test flight the bows. The bows were all shoot with the ring and with the same 30" arrows. The bows were shot on a rotation bassis so fatigue would not be a factor on some tests.

The following is our results: The bow with the smoothest draw was the Kassai Panther. The bows that we found the most true to form were the Grozer bows. The fastest was the Grozer Turkish hornbow. The Saluki and the Siege Work Creations bow were the lightest in the hand as their limbs are not leather wrapped.

The negatives were the bow that was less like a true Asian style bow was the Saluki Turk as it had a shelf on both sides of the riser and the grip made it difficult to perform the follow through properly. The loudest of the bows which was hard to tell was the Siege Work Creations bow. The bow with the most handshock was the Saluki this maybe because we were shooting with the same arrow for all the bows.

Overall WE decide that the Kassai Panther was the "best" in this group for the performance and money. The Grozer Turkish hornbow was the best performer overall but the money and care needed to tend this bow make it a less likely choice for the masses. We found the other bows to kind of "lump" in with the rest as they each had good points and bad.

Overall it was just a good time shooting bows.

Alan Flashing · Post by **Alan Flashing** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 7:20 pm

JBL ,
when you say fastest is this a subjective view or was there a chronograph involved?
alan

jbl · Post by **jbl** » Wed Sep 30, 2009 7:35 pm

Allan-like I said everything was subjective because we didn't have a chrono. It was more fun than anything else; and also sparked that whole thing of what do YOU look for in an Asian style bow.

Who's Bow is BEST???

bows

Crab bow

horn bows

best bow