BVAS
A molly is short for mollegabet. It is an old bow design similar to the holmegaard. The bows are named from the archeological sites they were discovered. Some heated debates can be had about the actual differences of these, but in general holmegaard designs have thicker and stiffer outter "levers", and molle levers will tend to have slight movement. I believe holmegaard bows date back 8-10,000 BC and Molly have been dated back to about 12,000 bc. Sometimes they are used interchangeably.
The design is typically a white wood such as elm, with wide straight to pyramidal shape for 50-60% of the limb then tapering to a very thin nonbending lever. Historically/developmentally this makes sense as a transition from atl or spear throwers to bows developed. In the modern age the design is impressive as the wide working limbs have less movement than ELB or most flatbows because the limb closest to the handle is bending a little more and the the outer limbs don't move at all where as most bows rely heavily on the performance of the outer limb.
With the associated lever action, a little extra movement at the handle is magnified over the limb length (30' for my 29' draw). This lever design also allows the outer limb to be significantly narrower (aerodynamic) and lighter (less dead weight = more performance). Also since the tips aren't bending, I feel there is improved string angles, but this is a personal observation.
The result is a properly built 14,000 yr old design whitewood self bow with perhaps a few interpretive liberties, will produce speeds that equal most glass reflex/deflex designs, and rival many modern glass recurves. And that is just Cool.
My disclaimer: this is just an overview, I've seen other forms become very worked up because of this topic. I am just trying to hit upon some of the high points for BVAS, and some of the appeal to this design is the mystery lost to history.
Topic: Molly tips (Read 1243 times)
