The truly artisan crafted handmade bows.

[longrifle]

Brandon,no doubt your bows are flawless,wish you still offered some of your other models. Some guys like yourself use high tech machines to get it done, and some prefer the the older methods. As you stated there is still alot of hand work involved after it comes off the CNC.

[Prairie Drifter]

Maddog Bows

[Peckerwood]

How do you define "hand Made ". Are you allowed to use patterns for sanding ? Jigs for drilling holes ?  These are primitive cnc machines use by most all bow makers.

I would think the only true hand made bows would be self bows .

[gregg dudley]

Originally posted by Peckerwood:


I would think the only true hand made bows would be self bows .

X2

[Hobow]

Ted Fry - Raptor Archery

Self bows and laminated bows, all individually hand crafted by Ted.

He's a Trad Gang sponsor as well.

[Sixby]

I would think the only true hand made bows would be self bows .
Not unless you worked the wood with your fingernails.

Read what Brandon wrote. He is spot on. We all use tools. I use a table saw, a drum sander, a belt sander, a line sander, a couple of bandsaws , several grinders and assorted sanders and drills ect.
There used to be a Korean man that posted that built bows with a hacksaw, a handsaw and a file. He built some really nice bows too. Still, he used tools. He would loved to have the tools that I have and I would love to have the tools that Brandon has ect ect.
The craftsmanship of bows should actually improve using cnc , not deteriorate.
God bless you all and merry Christmas, Maybe he will bring me a cnc. , Steve

[ti-guy]

Originally posted by gregg dudley:
 

Originally posted by Peckerwood:


I would think the only true hand made bows would be self bows .

X2 [/b]

...But was the tree cut with a hand saw    :D      

[Ghost Dog]

Several years ago I was a full time custom knife maker.  I worked with a well known knife maker who taught me how to grind and shape blades and handles and the many steps involved in making a custom handmade knife. I made over 3000 knives in the years I worked there, and had the chance to see how much our customers appriciated our knives.

Because of the community of artists, designers, potters, painters,  and craftsmen that being a knife maker brought me into, I grew to appriciate items that were hand crafted and one of a kind.

When it comes to bows I prefer selfbows, but I also appriciate glass bows that have the maximum amount of hand crafted elements, like hand shaped tips and handle sections, with the obvious differences from one bow to the next that come from the human factor. This is certainly true of selfbows and can be somewhat true of glass bow.

When Black Widow started using CNC machines they stopped writing hand crafted on their bows and started writing "precision crafted". Precision is a good thing, but I prefer as many hand operations as possible in a bow, which to my mind infuses a bow or a knife with special, undefinable qualities, hence my original question.

[Paul/KS]

Mike at Maddog bows is one and Mike Dunnaway at Wild Horse Creek bows is another. I own one from each...  

[Kevin Dill]

I completely appreciate Ghost Dog's perspective on this topic.

Truth be told, I think the issue (if there actually is an issue) is one of aesthetics and emotion. Knowing that something is primarily held in the hands, shaped through hand manipulation, and generally takes its form because of a man's hands...that adds a lot of value in the minds of those who value it. Hand-thrown pottery. Hand-blown glass. Hand-made knives. Hand-carved leather. Hand-cut checkering. Hand-engraved jewelry. Hand-painted portrait. The more actual handwork used during the creation of an art form, the (usually) higher its implied value, desirability and price. Not everyone will agree, but history proves it. How many of us own any hand-crafted furniture built by a recognized master artisan? Could the discerning eye find the difference between it and well-built production furniture? Still, the highest quality hand-crafted pieces will...on average...command more money initially, be harder to acquire, are slower to create, and will typically hold their value far into the future...this vs items which received less actual handwork throughout their creation.

For those who really do place a premium on knowing and seeing that a bow was crafted with the minimal amount of automation, there will thankfully always be people out there who persist in doing things in a bit slower and painstaking fashion. These are the bows which typically show the small irregularities inherent in handwork. They may show detailed inlay work or perhaps carving. Their grip could be custom shaped exactly to your hand. For some, it matters knowing that your bow's final appearance and qualities have the maximum amount of human contact invested in them.

Finally: No custom bow is even close to being built by full automation. There is inherently a serious amount of handwork involved in every fine bow built today...CNC or not.

Good to have choices from fantastic bowyers.

[Shaun]

Bob, I have admired your taste in bows and especially your beautifully photographed posts of bows and sets with arrows and quivers for years. I have often thought of these posts as a standard to works towards in my bow building.

I know many crafters of self bows. I meet them at MOJam and other gatherings and on line through this and a couple other sites. The Compton gathering in Michigan showcases some of the best in glass bow builders and they are there in person to visit with.

I admire a bowyer who expresses himself in his work, who is humble and who I like personally when I meet them. A few who come to mind are: Ed Scott of Owl Bows, Steve Turey of Northern Mist, Jim Reynolds of Thunderstick and Mike Yancey of Pine Hollow. There are many more builders of incredible and artistic bows that I look forward to meeting along the road.

Thank you for setting the bar high and lets see some  more of those inspirational photo posts in the future.

Shaun

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Whether it be hand crafting a bow from a stave and letting the nature of the wood determine the outcome......

 or laminating all wood bows with various backings.....

 or doing footed risers using a combination of composite materials using fiberglass and carbon composites in the limbs....

Regardless of how the joinery is done. There is a skill level required in the art of building bows that is a step above anything I've ever done in my 40 years as a craftsman.

It doesn't much matter if you are using a fancy egg beater or a wooden spoon when mixing up the cake batter.... the quality of the cake requires a perfect blend of spices and knowledge handed down from grandma to make it come out right.

i do all my joinery by hand with the use of power tools at this time. but if i could use a CNC to do my footed riser blocks, i could spend more time doing art work  and fine tuning than joinery.

look at the work that goes into building these blocks and sanding the joints to perfection....All the patterns are built by hand, and each lamination needs to be carefully fitted prior to assembly....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


If this isn't considered hand crafted.... i'll eat my hat.... Kirk

[JCJ]

Originally posted by Kirkll:
Whether it be hand crafting a bow from a stave and letting the nature of the wood determine the outcome......

 or laminating all wood bows with various backings.....

 or doing footed risers using a combination of composite materials using fiberglass and carbon composites in the limbs....

Regardless of how the joinery is done. There is a skill level required in the art of building bows that is a step above anything I've ever done in my 40 years as a craftsman.

It doesn't much matter if you are using a fancy egg beater or a wooden spoon when mixing up the cake batter.... the quality of the cake requires a perfect blend of spices and knowledge handed down from grandma to make it come out right.

i do all my joinery by hand with the use of power tools at this time. but if i could use a CNC to do my footed riser blocks, i could spend more time doing art work  and fine tuning than joinery.

look at the work that goes into building these blocks and sanding the joints to perfection....All the patterns are built by hand, and each lamination needs to be carefully fitted prior to assembly....


If this isn't considered hand crafted.... i'll eat my hat.... Kirk

I appreciate the work of Bowyers.

[Ghost Dog]

Kevin, very nicely written post. I can tell that you enjoy writing.  And yes, even a bow with a CNC production step still needs the human touch.

Shaun, I had no idea that you were making and selling bows. Where have I been? That Ambush bow is really nice looking. Dean Torges made me a bamboo backed osage Ambush bow. I cannot believe he did that for me. I never told anyone because I did not want people bugging him. I only had to wait three and a half years for it.  I also managed at one point to add one of his osage bows to my collection. He built it in the same year his book was published, so it is based on the bow from the book. He sold it to me for reasons that ultimately benefited someone in need. These two bows alone would make an incredible collection.

So yes, I am passionate about handmade bows. When I am shooting a bow a big part of the enjoyment for me is recalling who made the bow, what we talked about, what we laughed about, how they shaped the grip for me, the way they stitched the leather grip, the little differences from one of their bows compared to another.

 As I am writing this I am drinking coffee from a mug that a gifted potter friend of mine made for me. I can see from where I am sitting some of my Native American style flutes that are handmade, and a Tom Killian woodblock print of a scene from Big Sur over the mantle. On the end table next to me are three small drinking cups from three different studio potters from England which are seated on a raw edged ash platter with bark intact.  I could go on, but you get the idea. I am blessed to have such remarkable things in my life.

[Ghost Dog]

JCJ, truly remarkable. Wow.

[WESTBROOK]

Doesnt concern me too much what method the bowyer uses to shape the wood. I see a CNC as basicly a time saver and for repeatable accuracy in certain steps of the build.

Like Kirk said, you can start up the CNC and then go work on something else, thats a big plus in a one man shop.

The things that make the difference between a good bow and a great bow are still in the hands of the bowyer, not the CNC.

Eric

[Ghost Dog]

Kirk, you are an artist. Your hat is safe.

[V-Archer]

I use some electrical tools but it's still the "hand and mind" that guides the product.
And I fully agree what Kirk says.

Arnold

[Elk77]

James of JD Berry Archery. James has been building custom bows for along time, going on 33 years now. James it a true master bowyer, you can see it in all of is bows. What a work of art.   www.jdberryarchery.com

[Andy Cooper]

Yeah...y'all better not make Kirk sick! He's building me a Sasquatch. Besides, he needs his hat!