Making a medieval style English longbow

Here are some instructions I wrote recently on how to make yourself a medieval type English longbow
I think it will suit this site as it does away with traditional tools in favour of an angle grinder :-)

you can view the instructions here
http://www.alanesq.com/bsb.htm

BTW - see www.englishwarbow.com for more info on this type of bow

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Step 1: Pic2

pic2

admin says: Aug 18, 2008. 11:31 AM

This project looks awesome but there isn't enough documentation of you actually making it to be a full Instructable. There are two things which you could do. 1) If you happen to have images of you making your project you can create some more steps, add those additional photos into your Instructable and then republish your Instructable. 2) If you don't have any more pictures of you working on your project, that's ok too. That just means that your project is better suited to be submitted as a slideshow. Your images are already in your library, and you can use the same text that you have already written for your Instructable so it should only take a few minutes to create your slideshow and show the world what you made! Thanks for your submission and let me know if you have any questions along the way.

Imcrazydude says: Mar 6, 2013. 9:10 PM

Do you know dimensions for 20lb-30lb bow thanks.

aweis says: Jun 25, 2011. 2:19 PM

wait a second. Are you the back street bowyer? because that picture is in the back street bowyer guide. pic2

arrow shot says: Jul 17, 2009. 8:15 PM

hmm.. in that picture, it looks a bit awkward how you hold the bow... you elbow is bent... hmm... I can see why you have it bent though, that arrow looks pretty short

alanesq (author) in reply to arrow shotJul 18, 2009. 12:11 AM

shooting a warbow is very different to other types of archery and requires a very different technique - see http://www.englishwarbow.com for more info and a great video clip
the arrow in the pic has a draw length of 32" but I was still struggling a bit when the pic was taken and there is still another good 1" to go

karlpinturr in reply to alanesqJun 5, 2011. 7:32 AM

Just a note to say that the www.englishwarbow.com site has, essentially closed down. The link's still valid, but the page 'only' gives links to other pages, including http://www.englishwarbowsociety.com/ which I assume is pretty-much an upgraded version?

Still, well worth taking a look at all of them.

Anhan12 says: Dec 12, 2010. 5:14 PM

These are the detailed instructions I've been looking for!
I just finished making my bow using your instructions and it works brilliantly! Surprisingly, it only took me about 2 hours to shape the actual bow out of a 6 foot long, 2 inch wide, 1 inch deep maple stave, and it kept its shape very nicely after bending and allowing it to set.
The only tools i had to use were a ban saw, a belt sander, and a rats tail file for the knocks. i also made two arrows using dowels modeled after English longbow arrows found on the Mary Rose, but i will not be firing these due to the instability of the dowels.
Also, i wrapped a long piece of leather rope from an old jump rope around the six inch handle area, which gives the bow a feeling of authenticity.
I also included a picture of my unique way of stretching the bow by putting it on top of a door and hooking the string on the lock. I just tied knots in the string to adjust the tension.
Thank you so much for these wonderful instructions!

ineverfinishanyth says: Sep 11, 2010. 8:03 PM

WOW i've been looking for directions this in-depth for years! Those are some sweet bows....anyways definitely next on my "to-do" list....

Aaronius says: Jul 13, 2010. 6:42 AM

Nice Bow! I'd like to see more on how you made it!

Kryptonite says: Apr 5, 2010. 3:12 AM

Maybe a slideshow with the pictures and a link would have been more appropriate here, awesome job by the way!

That Inventor Dude says: Feb 25, 2010. 12:51 PM

i agree with arrow shot and your leaning forwards.
also if you where using a normal longbow made from modern materials (99% the same except collapsible) I would say your techniques a messed up but that's probably the arrows which look really short

tydeus says: Jan 30, 2010. 8:46 AM

I read the .pdf instructions and I just want to let you know that after a fair amount of time spent searching for similar instructions I have to say that this is the most complete set of bow-making for beginners instructions I have seen. For those of you who want something more to look at I found one person on youtube with a 9 part video instruction. The video is grainy but his tillering videos are the best. Here is the link to the first one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHhGjRdE9Zc

Also, thank you for a link to bowstring instructions. I figured I would buy the strings but I might refer back to this later.

lmuli3 says: Jun 3, 2009. 8:12 PM

there's no instrustions plz tell how you made it

alanesq (author) in reply to lmuli3Jul 18, 2009. 12:05 AM

you can see the instructions at
http://www.alanesq.com/The-Back-Street-Bowyer.pdf

qtm says: Oct 31, 2008. 11:56 AM

Hah, finally, a "bowyer" who actually knows how to tiller. Another great resource for making your own bow is "The Bent Stick" by Paul Comstock, should be able to find it at 3 Rivers Archery. The Traditional Bowyer's Bible by Jim Hamm is of course standard reference.