Types of Archery...
Longbow
In various forms, are among the oldest styles of bows known to man.
They are more truly in the category of "straight" bows, descending from
their shorter ancestors used by early man and still prevalent in many
tribal civilisations.
Straight bows grew longer and more powerful in the need to reach
farther and hit harder as it became more of a weapon than a tool for
hunting. The English longbow is perhaps the culmination of this type of
bow. Its mark in history places it at the highest rank of respect in
the world of archery.
The Medieval English longbow was a superb weapon, and used most
effectively by the English from the end of the thirteenth century to
the beginning of the sixteenth, many battles being won on its
deadliness. It was particularly decisive in the battles at Crécy and
Agincourt against the French. Its long range and armour piercing
qualities made it a formidable weapon.
Traditional style longbows are difficult and time consuming to
master, but have their benefits. Modern longbows utilise advances in
design that make them more efficient with greater speed and accuracy.
Many people have turned back to longbows because of their inherent
"pointability" and instinctive accuracy. The lack of a "cutout" shelf
is less distracting to the vision and helps bring the shooters focus to
the mark, thereby reducing the time between target acquisition and
release to a scant few seconds.
The English longbow can be made from several different types of
wood. It can be crafted from either a single piece of wood (self bow)
or from a mixture of different woods glued together to form a laminate.
Recurve (Olympic or Take-Down bow)
Target archery bow.
The recurve bow, as we know it, traces its ancestry to the
Mediterranean region – Turkey in particular. The Turks were among the
first to put a double bend in their bows, although this design could
also be found in ancient Japan and other Asiatic countries. The recurve
design is a stroke of genius for the age of its conception – some
thousands of years BC. The “recurve” is simply refers to the shape and
the way the limbs are constructed.
Building the limbs pre-curved at rest (hence, "pre-stressed"), the
energy is gained rather than lost when drawn. This enables a bow to be
compact, but with very great power. Recurve bows typically give greater
arrow speed than longbows of equal strength.
A modern Recurve bow provides the shooter with more easily
attainable accuracy and is therefore a good choice for both beginners
and experienced archers’.
Other equipment can be added to the bow to help improve shooting accuracy, such as sights, stabilisers and clickers.
Compound
The Compound bow was invented in 1967 by Holless Wilber Allen, from
Missouri, USA.
Originally developed for hunting, Allen spent six years developing this
revolutionary bow.
The compound bow relies on a range of cams and pulleys positioned at
both ends of the limbs to provide its unique characteristics.
Basically, as the bow is drawn to its full extent the “draw” weight is
absorbed by this system of cams and pulleys. This means that at full
draw the archer is required to hold significantly less weight on their
draw arm, obviously allowing for a much more comfortable and controlled
aiming. It also helps to offset the effects of fatigue, especially when
a large number of arrows are being shot.
Similarly with the Recurve bow sights and Stabilisers are usually added to the Compound bow in order to improve accuracy.
Also a special release aid “trigger” is normally used to release the string when shooting the bow.
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