Survival Hunting - Making a cheap Long Bow/Arrows/String - Back to Basics!

I think people rely too much on firearms when considering a long term survival scenario. Although firearms are reliable, ammo is the real issue.
It’s a relatively simple task to fashion your own Bow, arrows and string and can be made from materials scavenged our purchased at your local hardware store.

How to make bows:

poorfolkbows.com...
Of course this method would take a fair amount of time you can use the basic steps shown to make a simpler bow out of wood or branches from the backyard.

This is a cheaper version:


Perfect if you need to hunt small - medium animals for a long time period.

How to make arrows:

www.howtomakearrows.com...

How to make strings:

When it comes to the string if your a survival enthusiast id suggest just buying one..

reply to post by ShortMemory


The normal human would not be able to draw a "Long Bow" You need immense strength. You need to call it a "Bow" :-

en.wikipedia.org...

Thanks for posting. I had been thinking about how to make bows and arrows recently instead of relying on the shop bought varieties, which obviously might not be accessible in a survival scenario. I love the pvc pipe bow!

The wooden bow would take some time but the plastic one seems a lot quicker and less involved. It's on my list of things to make now.

Originally posted by alldaylong
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

The normal human would not be able to draw a "Long Bow" You need immense strength. You need to call it a "Bow" :-

en.wikipedia.org...

i called it a long bow cause of its shape and constructure

Originally posted by DrHammondStoat
Thanks for posting. I had been thinking about how to make bows and arrows recently instead of relying on the shop bought varieties, which obviously might not be accessible in a survival scenario. I love the pvc pipe bow!

The wooden bow would take some time but the plastic one seems a lot quicker and less involved. It's on my list of things to make now.

yeah, even in a normal scenario they are good fun to make
the pvc pipe bow looks mean as, im going to build it soon.

even tho the wood one would take a while its still pretty simple and straightfoward which is good

you should definetley build one its a good skill to have

Originally posted by alldaylong
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

The normal human would not be able to draw a "Long Bow" You need immense strength. You need to call it a "Bow" :-

en.wikipedia.org...

Yes you're right. The red oak bow in the tutorial is technically not a long bow. Whatever type of bow is made someone who has never drawn a bow before is likely to struggle with it anyway, unless it's a very low draw weight. The PVC pipe bow at 60lbs would require a great deal of strength also, probably too much for most.

Surely the principles on the tutorials could be used to make bows with lower draw weights for those of us that need them, myself included

reply to post by ShortMemory


I would like to build a wooden bow. I suppose it's just a matter of finding the time.

Originally posted by DrHammondStoat

Originally posted by alldaylong
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

The normal human would not be able to draw a "Long Bow" You need immense strength. You need to call it a "Bow" :-

en.wikipedia.org...

Yes you're right. The red oak bow in the tutorial is technically not a long bow. Whatever type of bow is made someone who has never drawn a bow before is likely to struggle with it anyway, unless it's a very low draw weight. The PVC pipe bow at 60lbs would require a great deal of strength also, probably too much for most.

Surely the principles on the tutorials could be used to make bows with lower draw weights for those of us that need them, myself included

its all in the wood traditional english wood like yew would provide a heavy draw weight..still the same process to make it.
most adults and strong teens would be able to pull 60lbs

reply to post by ShortMemory


I might be a bit confused here as I've not been shooting long When you talk about people being able to draw a 60lbs bow easily are we actually talking about 30lbs on the fingers?

The reason I ask is that as a petite, female novice archer I shoot 28lbs and was told by my instructor in the UK that most women shoot around 30-35 lbs when more experienced.

So the 60lb pipe bow is something I thought I would need to tailor to my strengths. Also if you made a wooden bow, how would you know what poundage it would turn out?

Originally posted by DrHammondStoat
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

I might be a bit confused here as I've not been shooting long

When you talk about people being able to draw a 60lbs bow easily are we actually talking about 30lbs on the fingers?

The reason I ask is that as a petite, female novice archer I shoot 28lbs and was told by my instructor in the UK that most women shoot around 30-35 lbs when more experienced.

So the 60lb pipe bow is something I thought I would need to tailor to my strengths. Also if you made a wooden bow, how would you know what poundage it would turn out?

well im not to sure how much of that force goes on your fingers but its not too bad depending on how long your shooting..you can use finger pads or even a quick release which allows you to hook the string on a handle like device and click a button when you want to release..
yeah its really up to you, im sure most women do shoot something like that but i think most would be able to shoot a lot more..once again it depends on how long your shooting, it sucks for everyone having to shoot a high poundage bow for a long time..unless its a compound bow which takes a lot of the poundage off when you reach full draw.
personally i dont think the pvc pipe bow would be 60lb, probably 35-45lb but im not sure. i think youll be able to pull it.
in regards to wood it really depends what wood you use..
this link gives you an idea of poundage in relation to wood type:
www.woodbowworld.com...

take care

Good post, good info.

Have a backup to hunting as a means of survival.

Snares work the best because they work even while you sleep,
just know that they are illegal unless its a survival situation in most states.

Snare wire is my choice, but there are other traps that can be made as
illustrated in the SAS survival guide and other survival books.

Snares and traps are mostly illegal as they work too well.

In the past areas of North America were considered trapped out
due to how well the traps worked for the trappers.

Thus my ultimate recommendation is wild edibles and a seed kit
in your pack wouldn't hurt either.

Know your plants and consider planting a few fruit and nut trees if
the soil and climate is right for them in your area.

In the desert prickly pears can be eaten if prepped right.

Prickly pear

Amaranth sprouted makes a complete plant protein, as does Quinoa and Buckewheat.

Amaranth is the hardiest of the bunch and is even considered a nuisance by mono-croppers.

Amaranth

One ways to prepare seed for guerrilla gardening is the seed ball.

Seed ball

Guerilla Gardening

I only advocate guerrilla gardening on stolen land such as BLM land or
that which has been seized by shady means such as condemning, etc etc...

With wild edibles, seeding, nuts, wild fruit, and if you got the stomach for it insects
you will not starve.

If you rely solely on meat protein from hunting you likely will starve.

As with most good planning, have a plan B or C.

Good Luck to all the good ppl !!!

Originally posted by alldaylong
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

The normal human would not be able to draw a "Long Bow" You need immense strength. You need to call it a "Bow" :-

en.wikipedia.org...

'Longbow' refers to length and cross section more than draw weight. :-)

reply to post by khimbar


On a traditional long bow the draw would be 150-160 lbs. Bow's of today have a max draw of 60lbs. Most would find that an effort.

reply to post by ShortMemory


I would rather use a simple re curve bow, which arrows can be made for after the stores stop opening.

It also seems like the pvc would crack eventually. It's flexible, but it wasn't intended to flex that much over time.

reply to post by ShortMemory

The skills shown here are good! To make bows, and arrows would be handy if the SHTF was to happen. The only problem I see, yes ammo would run out but with no power, how does the person making the arrows finish his work without his band saw and belt sander? I would like to see him make a video making the same arrow but without power tools. That to me would be Survival. Again not putting down his skills, they are better than mine at that, but when talking survival we most likely would not have power tools..

Originally posted by oldshooter1979
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

The skills shown here are good! To make bows, and arrows would be handy if the SHTF was to happen. The only problem I see, yes ammo would run out but with no power, how does the person making the arrows finish his work without his band saw and belt sander? I would like to see him make a video making the same arrow but without power tools. That to me would be Survival. Again not putting down his skills, they are better than mine at that, but when talking survival we most likely would not have power tools..

well you could do what he did easily with softer woods..it would just take a bit longer, the techniques you would use are the same as the ones used to make the wooden bow.

Originally posted by Evolutionsend
reply to post by ShortMemory

 

I would rather use a simple re curve bow, which arrows can be made for after the stores stop opening.

It also seems like the pvc would crack eventually. It's flexible, but it wasn't intended to flex that much over time.

edit on 13-10-2011 by Evolutionsend because: (no reason given)

a re curve bow would be quite hard to make in a shtf situation
you can make arrows for all bows just need to choose your wood carefully in regards to bow poundage
yeah the pvc bow wouldnt last too long but its still a good idea i think..definetley a cheap and effective plan even if its a shorterm solution

Originally posted by alldaylong
reply to post by khimbar

 

On a traditional long bow the draw would be 150-160 lbs. Bow's of today have a max draw of 60lbs. Most would find that an effort.

you can still get bows of that draw strength, most people dont go much more than 60lbs tho..most people are capable of pulling that poundage and if you needed to find food im sure you wouldnt be worrying too much..its when people shoot continusly for a couple of hours that its way too much

reply to post by Ex_MislTech

thanks for the info, they are all great methods but sometimes a bow can provide immediate food, plus it provides protection..adding a simple broad head forged from metal scraps can be enough to take down a large preditor.
eating plants is obviously a nesceary thing, but you have to be sure you know what your eating.
its not hard to set up a fertile garden in your own backyard, you can do it cheap as now a days.
gardens like this:
www.abc.net.au...

reply to post by ShortMemory


Eventually anyone with the skill to go from a piece of wood, to a functional bow, would be sought after. I like to learn the "end game technique". Take away everything except a blade and the wilderness, and what can I make? Right now, that answer is nothing. If I were to learn how to make a recurve bow, that would be awesome.