Archery Equipment, Bows, Arrows, String, Protective Gear, Archery Targets, Bow Cases
Sponsored Archery Equipment Results:
Fita Archery » Archery Equipment » Archery Equipment

Archery Equipment: Longbow, Shortbow, Compound Bow And Crossbows

By:

Published: May 24, 2007

Archers are by nature straight shooters. Whether their weapon of choice is a longbow, a shortbow, a compound bow, or a crossbow, with a heightened level of dedication, they rarely miss their mark. An archer, like any sportsman, relies on skill more than archery equipment, though the two are intertwined. Archery equipment varies with each archer, as preference to style, height, and the type of mark often dictate the type of bow an archer will use.

A longbow is the traditional prototype of all bows, evolving mildly over the thousands of years they have existed. The long bow is tall, and almost proportionate to the size of the archer, with the most familiar model being the English Long Bow. Renowned for its strength and accuracy, the long bow has been the choice weapon for hunting and soldiers in the pre-heavy artillery world. Archery equipment has been deployed to armies world-wide with sections of the Koreas and the Arab nations practicing the sport of horse riding archery, as well as target shooting known as the impalement arts.

A shortbow is an obvious derivative of its predecessor, the longbow, with a decreased shaft length and less accurate. This piece of archery equipment is useful in close range combat and hunting, the shortbow's size and accuracy allow for an archer to have greater mobility and an increased arrow loading speed. In relation to archery equipment, the short bow is a resourceful weapon designed for up-close and personal shooting, wherein an archer has greater potential to miss a mark, but has the ability to fire more rounds per minute due to the lower amount of tension required for firing.

For its time, the crossbow is perhaps the most innovative adaptation of archery equipment, and arguably the first firearm. With the bow positioned horizontally and the string in a perpetual cocked position, the arrow is released when triggered by the shooter. This piece of archery equipment led to a revolution of close-combat for an archer, as the bow can be pre-drawn and locked in place, with the archer engaging his target with a simple pull of the finger. Though the crossbow is not ideal for distance shots, for close proximity firing it is certainly elite in the catalog of archery equipment.

For the twentieth century archer, the compound bow is the archery equipment weapon of choice. Designed to allow the shooter to pull back the string with greater ease, while simultaneously creating increased tension and torque on the bow, the compound bow offers additional distance potential with greater flexibility for the archer. The bows are fashioned with pulleys or elliptical wheels that help deplete the amount of strain upon the shooter's muscles, which allow for more aiming time. The compound bow is without a doubt the most advanced peace of weaponry in the archery equipment lineage.

The diversity of archery equipment is small but essential when studying the evolution of the archer. With an array of styles, an archer must choose his bow based upon his desired target and distance. For hitting a target at a increased distance, a long bow would be a suitable choice, while hitting a target that is moving and close, perhaps a cross bow or short bow would be apropos. With this in mind, would-be archers must ask themselves what sort of archery equipment they are considering investing in. Are you the type of archer that aims for the sky, or one who is quick to the punch?


Sources:
British Longbow Society. 22 May 2007.
http://www.longbow-archers.com/longbowsociety.ht m
Selected Historical Images. Ye Olde Bowe. 22 May 2007. http://www.solartracker.com/archery/historical.htm l
Bows and Accessories. 3 Rivers Archery. -2006. 22 May 2007. http://www.3riversarchery.com/Cat.asp?c=8&s=0& amp;p=0