Archery Bows

Types of Bows

A longbow is tall (roughly equal to or greater than the height of the user), is not significantly recurved, and has relatively narrow limbs that are D-shaped in cross section. The traditional English longbow usually has a thickness of at least 5/8 of its width. If the thickness is less than 5/8 of its width then the bow would be disqualified from most modern longbow competitions. Typically a longbow is widest at the handle. Longbows have been used for hunting and warfare, by many cultures around the world, a famous example being the English longbow, during the Middle Ages.

A compound bow is designed to reduce the force that an archer must hold, yet increase the overall energy stored by the bow. Most compound bow designs use cams or elliptical wheels on the ends of the bow to optimize the archer's leverage and to reduce the holding force of the bow at full draw in what is known as the "let-off." With less force needed to hold a compound bow at full draw, the archer can take more time to aim, and can hold the draw for as long as necessary — an advantage that comes into play when bowhunting.

A crossbow is a variation on the general bow design. Instead of the limbs being held vertically, they are mounted horizontally on a stock much like that of a firearm. The limbs can be either compound or recurve. The string is pulled back either manually or with a windlass and locked into place. The string remains in this locked position, held through mechanical means until released by a trigger, which launches the arrow. The energy stored in the shortened limbs is comparable to the longbow but packed into a smaller design that is easier to aim. Crossbows shoot quarrels or bolts, which are shorter arrows than those generally used for bows.

Additionally, there are the flatbow, which has non-recurved, flat, relatively wide limbs, and the shortbow, which is any shorter version of the longbow or flatbow design.