Fell in love with.......... a horsebow

[Flying Dutchman]

Last friday I met on training a guy who bought a horsebow. He took it with him. After our training he asked me if I was interested in shooting it..... stupid question! I thought he would never ask it!

I never shot one, so there I went. Started at 10 yards to begin with. The bow was 50#@28"and I draw 30 at least on that bow, so it would have been close to the 55 lbs.
However, a silken smooth draw and smokin' arrows. Handshock? Strangeley enough I thought the first three arrows the handshoch was terrible, but I must have done something wrong, because afterwards I never felt it again.
Soon I was shooting at 20 yards and right in the killzone. Like I was shooting this bow for years, in fact i was shooting it even much better as the sadly looking owner....
Oh well I gave it back and mailed a friend of mine. He owns I think over 20 horsebows and I nicknamed him Atilla. I asked him some advice, because i wanted to buy one. Instead of that he offered me one bow of his, a 48#@28" and a total lenght of 62 inches. A Hungarian bow which he pimped up with furr and leather, a real looker. The brand is Grozer, which has an outstanding reputation and make high quality bows. Only 1.5 years old and brandnew. Made in Hungary. I can testdrive it and he asks only € 180,- ! I simply couldn't resist and hopefully I will test-drive and pick it up next week. he send me some pics which I would like to share with you guys. Isn't she pretty?

BTW the pics aren't great, so the black "things" on the limbs is furr......

     

     


     

     

[GREATBROWNKNOCKEMDOWN]

Very cool looking bow, i have not yet shot one but a have seen them before.  I'll have to give one a try now.

[Swiftspeed10]

I want a Saluki Scythian so bad, 52", 43# @28"!!!

[LONGSTYKES]

Ad:  Very ,Very cool looking. I have never shot one. Some day. Enjoy Don

[Flying Dutchman]

Well, the benefit of a horsebow is you shapren your instinctive skills. You draw it fast, and when reaching your maximum drawlenght, you let the arrwo go. This goes very fast, so you have no time for "aiming", You shoot it very instinctively. And the "FUN"factor is high. Nevertheless, these are serious bows, real rocketlaunchers and I think the are suitable for hunting too.

[Flying Dutchman]

And besides of that, it is very good for your GBD! (General Bow Development)

[Pat B]

Are you using a thumb ring with your new horse bow.  James Parker(huntworthyproductions) makes incredable horse bows with all natural materials the way they were originally made. He has a few in PA's "Bow of the Year" competition right now. Actually one of these is an Egyptian angular(chariot) bow and the other is a American Plains style horn bow but in the last year he has made one of each of 6 or 8 types and most are still curing. James even made one a few years ago that had carbonized bamboo belly instead of horn.

[loneviking]

I've been wanting to get my hands on one of these to see how they feel when shooting. They look like the tips move a lot more than the tips of a recurve/longbow.  What difference did you notice in how it shoots?

There's a YouTube video that compared an English longbow and a Horsebow to see which one would punch through armor better.  The Horsebow won with no problem. With the short length, they should make a great hunting bow.

[BSBD]

James Parker does make an incredible bow compared to the Grozer's but I think the Saluki's are on another level entirely.

I shot a Grozer similar to that one that was wrapped in leather and I thought the hand shock was terrible too. Maybe I should have given it more time.

[Pat B]

James and Lukas worked together for a short while when Lukas moverd to NC.

[Flying Dutchman]

Originally posted by loneviking:
I've been wanting to get my hands on one of these to see how they feel when shooting. They look like the tips move a lot more than the tips of a recurve/longbow.  What difference did you notice in how it shoots?

First of all, the grip is very small. The grip is not cut and has no arrow-rest so you have to shoot the arrow over your hand. Also the grip is very bended, so you really have to get used to how to place your hand.
The bow I shot, had an extremely smooth draw, but delivered a terrible handshock. However, after searching for the right position of my bowhand and shooting a few arrows I didn't feel it anymore. It seems that you get used to that very fast, at least I did. The way of shooting is very different; you pull the bow and the arrow flies. This movement is much faster as you do with your long/recurve bow.I use the split finger technique to shoot it and that works fine for me.
I liked shooting the horsebow a lot and it putted a big smile on my face!
I think I will buy the Grozer Hungarian Base bow, which is a good choice for beginners on horsebows.

Here you can find some more info:     http://www.recurvebowshop.com/Hungarian+recurve+bow+BASE+from+Grozerarchery.htm

[loneviking]

These bows were meant to be shot from horseback, so a fast pull and release makes sense. I wondered if there would be a lot of handshock as there just isn't any real grip as there is with most longbows or recurves.  

Post some pics and more feedback when you get the Hungarian bow. I might just have to add one of these to the arsenal.

[Flying Dutchman]

I think the Hungarian bow is not meant to shoot from the horseback, therefore it is too long (62"). You could consider it as a nomad recurve bow.
You are right, there isn't a real grip on the bow, so you really have to find out where to put your hand. But I found a sweet spot very quickly, it comes naturally.

If everthing goes right, I will drive tomorrow to the friend who sells his bow. I will test-drive it and when it feels all-right, I will buy it.

Later I will write a review with pics.

Here is an interesting link concerning the Hungarain bow, the "Magyar":   http://www.grozerarchery.com/index_b.htm

Click on "Magyars-Hungarians", below "Who were they?". Have fun!

[Night Wing]

The only nomadic asian bow that catches my eye is the Saluki 64" "Genghis". I would love to demo shoot this bow.

[straitera]

Lucky you FD! Very beautiful bow! 62" is long for a horsebow but most perfect IMO, horse or not.

[JamesJamison]

I've never seen a bow built like that one, kinda neat.

[Mudd]

Ad they are definitely different and as you found out they are shooters too!

I owned a little Korean horse bow one time. It had all carbon limbs covered with birch bark.

I always felt as if I were holding a toy, that is until I loosed the arrow. It proved to me that you don't have to be big and heavy to shoot a heavy arrow with authority.

Congratulations Ad! Now put on your "Robin Hood" hat grab up that Mongolian bow and shoot some arrows and pictures...lol

God bless,Mudd

[Flying Dutchman]

Nice to hear from you Mudd! I hope to shoot some pictures coming days....
I only don't know If I can wear a Robin Hood hat with a Hungarian bow... I think it must be some kind of Tartar hat.....

[Jhoneil1]

The first "Horsebow" I bought 13 years ago was similar to that one. I still have it but don't shoot it anymore. I could not get use to the handshock but it's was pretty and learned a lot from it.
I learned to make my own since then  
 

[Flying Dutchman]

Handshock? What handshock?????