Shot my Mongol Bow Today

[Dave Markowitz]

Back in 2012 I bought this late Mongol, Manchu-influenced horsebow from "handmadebow" on eBay. It draws 50# @ 28". The riser and siyahs (limb tips) are wood while the limbs are leather-covered fiberglass.









About 2 weeks ago, I ordered a half dozen bamboo arrows from another Chinese eBay seller, "arrowmaker2013." They are 28" long and I asked the seller to send arrows spined for a 45 to 50# bow. I don't know if he did any special selection or not, but they fly very well from my bow.



The arrows are well made and straight. They have some kind of varnish or shellac finish and are nice and smooth.

You can get these arrows with field points or bullet points, but I went for the 150 grain "broadheads," which have three edges. They are very pointy but the edges are dull, which is fine for target shooting.



These points should work well on small game. Or zombies.

The feather fletching is glued on and also secured at the leading edge with thread. The self nocks are reinforced with thread. The thread goes up to the back of the fletching but is just decorative at that point.



I've been wanting to try bamboo arrows for awhile now. Some people refer to them as "nature's carbon fiber." They fly very well from this bow, at least as good as my Port Orford Cedar shafts from 3Rivers Archery.

 

[equin]

Nice bow and arrows. I like those points, too. I shoot a longbow and recurve. I've made my own bamboo arrows from Home Depot garden stakes based on a write up on of the traditional archery sites. They were fairly easy to straighten with heat from a torch, but I have no idea what they spine at. They're also heavy, but haven't broken yet. I use them for stumping.

 

[hso]

Very cool looking!

 

[GLOOB]

That looks nice, but I was hoping too see a real mongol bow.

From what I understand, the authentic sinew and horn composite construction is still superior to any modern synthetic (or wood) regarding arrow velocity (at least with wood (lighter) arrows). But they have to be seriously hand-crafted, they will take a set if you leave the string on, and water will damage them. The secret sauce seems to be the sinew and the fish glue.

I want to shoot a real mongol bow before I die. Lots o people went through a lot o trouble to make bows this way. Takes so long, each mongol archer had to learn to make and maintain his own bow. They must be good. Seen a few really old guys are still making bows this way.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

As much as I'd like an authentic composite bow, that's a bit out of my price range now.

A couple more pictures. First, this is how far the arrows penetrate into the McKenzie ShotBlocker from a measured 40 feet:



That's about 9" or so. That ShotBlocker stops crossbow bolts at 10 yards. I don't think a whitetail would do as well.

And yesterday I was out at a friend's place. We decided to take a couple shots at the woodpile near his fire pit from about 12 - 15 yards. The arrows from his 38# recurve bounced off. Not the 'boo arrows shot from my bow:



The one on the left buried itself pretty well, while the one on the right slid between a couple logs, blew through a half-rotten log about 3" in diameter, and then stuck in another log behind it. Thankfully, I was able to wiggle both out fairly easily and neither was damaged.

I like these arrows enough that I have another dozen on order.

 

[glistam]

Very nice! I bought from that same arrow seller and I also have enjoyed mine for a few years now. Only one of a dozen lost because I stepped on it. I shoot a kassai but might get one of these some day.

I'm friends with a guy who currently is teaching Mongolian immigrants here in the states to shoot "the old way," with many bows like this and thumb rings.

 

[1KPerDay]

Very cool. Makes me want to get a fun bow again.