Vintage Hobson longbow

[Jim P.]

I had and older man give me his longbow.  It appears to be one piece, yew, horn nocks, unbacked. It says fine oregon yew on it, along with Van Pattons'(owners name) it has malibu written on it above and below the grip as well, along with Hobson Salem (Salem, Or). No draw weight or length. It's about.... 70 years old. The man who gave it to me lived near Salem and he got it when he was a teenager. His eyes glowed when he told me about shooting a "china rooster" with it when he was young. It came with some arrows marked Hobson as well. Anyone have any ideas about it? Is it collectable? Is it worth having a bowyer fix it? It's the bow of my dreams but I feel it's too old for anything other than a decoration. Thanks, Jim

[Waterhole-Ike]

Harry Hobson advertised in the 1927 October issue of Ye Sylvan Archer Magazine. He made very fine archery tackle. In December of 1935 he moved to Salem, Oregon according to his advertisement in the Ye Sylvan Archer. My guess is that "Malibu" refers either to where Mr. Van Patton resided or it might be that he belonged to the Malibu Archers. Either way you have a tremendous piece of archery history. You mentioned that the bow needed fixing but you failed to say what was wrong with it. If you would like more information email me at [email protected].

[Jim P.]

Thanks for answering. I forgot to mention the lower limb takes about a 1" bend to the right and it has a very slight twist. A mouse chewed on one of the nocks just a little. Other than that, it's in good shape the finish is shiny, no scratches.
Thanks again, Jim.