Traditional Archery Supply

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have a catalogue? What are your payment, return and shipping policies? I'm thinking of changing over from a Compound to a Traditional bow. What are the advantages? What's so special about it? How to measure your TRADITIONAL Draw Length and Draw Weight.
Question	Answer
Do you have a catalogue? (by far the most F.A.Q. of them all!)	No, we do not have a printed catalogue at this time. Our on-line inventory here at oldbow.com shows our current bow stock. Please email or phone (781-447-4520) for unpublished updates or unlisted products.
Other bows may be ordered from us. We are dealers for Martin Archery, Inc, Saxon Archery, Cascade Archery, Navaho Longbows & Recurves and the very special Compound bow, Oneida Eagle. You can view the online catalogues of some of these companies or request a printed catalogue of their products from us. We also have many fine quality used Longbows and Recurves that may be seen here on our site. Our stock changes frequently, and so a printed catalogue is impractical at this time. Stock arrows, custom arrows, custom Flemish bowstrings, pro shop services, and leather goods can be seen on the Accessories page. We also carry a full line of equipment for the Traditional bow hunter and target sportsman and sportswoman in our shop and through internet email order. Please see our "How to Order" page for ordering info and questions.
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What are your payment, return and shipping policies?	Please see Policies -Traditional Archery Supply
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I'm thinking of changing over from a Compound to a Traditional bow. What are the advantages? What's so special about it?	Ah! One of my favorite things to do is outfit compound guys with traditional gear when the bug hits them! I used to shoot Compound myself.
Think of the times you may have had a shot but couldn't take it because the time needed for "target acquisition" allowed the critter to walk away? Those are some of the traditional shots we enjoy. I certainly don't fault anyone for their choice of hunting weapon - the bottom line, in my opinion, being: do you have the time to practice and become proficient with a traditional bow? If not, then a well-tuned compound is the way to go. If you shoot fingers, you're halfway there anyway. I just can't compare the reward of hitting the mark by my own unassisted skill. I hang with a bunch of good Traditional shooters and we often leave the Compound guys scratching their heads as we stack arrow after arrow in the 10-ring at unknown distances. That's archery to me, and we welcome you aboard with open arms! Figure that the muscle energy spent in a traditional shot equals about three times the energy used in a compound shot (because of let-off), AND that you can get three shots off in the same time it takes to execute one good compound shot. This equates to NINE times the energy spent with a traditional bow to a compound for a given time at the firing line. My 51# longbow shoots a heavy arrow at 190fps. Some of the recurves we offer exceed 200fps with a good hunting weight shaft. Some of us shoot carbons and graphites off recurves to the tune of 210 - 219fps. Depending on your budget and degree of commitment, there are, of course, many choices. If spending a little dough is no problem - and you're the kind of guy or gal like me who likes to have "nice stuff" - I'd recommend one of the Navajo takedown bows. You can interchange recurve and longbow limbs on the same riser. Translation: enjoy comfortable lower poundage practice with the benefits of a longbow (smoothness and stability), and, throw on the higher poundage recurve limbs to go in the woods with. Using the same riser for both keeps things consistent. Very cool setup. Please see our Longbows and Recurves pages for many more choices. If you want to try it out in a more "affordable" price range, a good bow can be had for between $200 - $500. If "one bow" is the way for you to go, I'd boil it all down to a recurve that will give you your desired poundage @ 29". A longbow will run typically a little more for a good one. I hunt with wooden arrows because they are quieter to shoot, and if you get clumsy in the woods, they sound like a stick instead of a pipe! Tends to not scare off game as quickly. The choice of arrow materials also gives a level of personal satisfaction, whether it's wood, aluminum, carbon, or graphite. So, in a nutshell..."Why Traditional?"...It's personal to each archer, but to me it's the reward of my own accomplishment!
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How to measure your TRADITIONAL Draw Length and Draw Weight. Why are these important?	Draw LENGTH is a measure of how far apart your arms are spread in the full DRAW position. This will determine the arrow length that is best for you and help to determine the strength of your bow.
To measure Draw LENGTH, you will need a yard (meter) stick, a tape measure or any long, straight object: 1) Stand in a comfortable upright position. 2) Raise your arms equally to a straight-out perpendicular position, so that your body resembles an upside-down "L". Fingers should be outstretched and fingertips should be touching. Shoulders should be forward but not overly stretched and strained. 3) Hold the measuring device in your touching fingertips and place the other end in the middle of your chest. 4) Now, measure the distance (in inches or centimeters) between your fingertips and the center of your chest bone. This will be your TRADITIONAL Draw length. Most people have a draw length of between 26" and 29". Smaller people will have a shorter Draw length and taller people will generally have a longer Draw length. Everyone is different. Draw WEIGHT can be a bit more difficult to measure, as you will need to: 1) Try several bows to see what is comfortable for you, or 2) Go to a gymnasium or other facility that has pully-style weights, and see where your comfort level falls. A very strong athletic person may have a draw WEIGHT of 55#, a moderately strong person's may be 45# and an average person may be 35#. 30# can be a comfortable weight for many archers, too. It's not how much you can pull, but where you are comfortable in pulling without strain. Remember, you will want to pull this bow over and over again, not just once. Injury can easily occur with over-estimation and strain. The potential strength of a bow is always measured based on the Draw length (marked ") and the Draw weight (marked #). # means pounds of pressure (DRAW WEIGHT). " means how far the bow is drawn (DRAW LENGTH). A bow marked 40#@28" means 40 pounds at 28 inches. The use of 28" is simply a standard by which to gauge, and depends on the two measures to be accurate. The same bow could be measured at 36#@26" or 32#@24" or 44#@30". Think of a rubber band: the farther you pull it back, the harder it hits and the less you stretch it, the weaker it is. We can help you decide what bow and arrows is best for you. Please feel free to phone us at 781-447-4520 or email us.
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Traditional Archery Supply -- 659 Bedford St. (Rt. 18) -- Whitman, MA U.S.A. -- 02382 781-447-4520