Curious about (Non-Reflexed) Horn Bows?
Hi there,
I'm curious to know if anybody has any info or pictures of these (non-reflexed) composite horn bows? The only one I've been able to come across is the one in Dr. Grayson's archery book.
Thanks
I'm curious to know if anybody has any info or pictures of these (non-reflexed) composite horn bows? The only one I've been able to come across is the one in Dr. Grayson's archery book.
Thanks
Which bow are you thinking about? I remember some very odd bows in the collection.
Actually, northern Chinese (Manchu Style) bows are not reflexed. Unstrung and at rest, they are quite straight. Over time, they can gain a reflex due to excessive drying of the sinew.
Stephen,
I think the Chengdu bow shop was building reflex into the bows as they manufactured them. The older Qing bows have a profound amount of reflex.
The hypothesis that a bow could attain reflex by drying over a long period of time is hard to substantiate. It is easier to assume that the bows with little or no reflex were either braced and used too early in their manufacture or left strung for very long periods. The former case would be likely in the late Qing Dynasty when the effectiveness of the bows was no longer a military issue. The latter case is the unfortunate fate of many bows hung strung on walls as decoration or in museums.
Reflex returns to bows that originally had it during their manufacture. Rarely does it appear later because at the end of the manufacture period the moisture content in the sinew should be very low. In the process of manufacture of Qing bows, the addition of the handle to the back of the core produced an initial reflex. When sinew was added, more reflex was produced by the drying and shrinkage of the sinew. I suggest that the particularly good adhesion of the sinew to the core in Qing bows indicates they were further reflexed in manufacture.
This does not invalidate your point about Qing bows appearing without any existing reflex because there are many of them surviving. There are even more with a slight reflex. However, it is a big step to suppose that those with a large reflex are the product of some post-use degeneration of the material.
It would be very interesting to see if there are old books with post production pictures or descriptions of unstrung bows. Bows without reflex would have been easier to string and would not have needed the elaborate measures to brace them that have existed.
What I have seen in Qing bows with bamboo cores is the degeneration of the core through drying out which leads to the death of the bow.
I think the Chengdu bow shop was building reflex into the bows as they manufactured them. The older Qing bows have a profound amount of reflex.
The hypothesis that a bow could attain reflex by drying over a long period of time is hard to substantiate. It is easier to assume that the bows with little or no reflex were either braced and used too early in their manufacture or left strung for very long periods. The former case would be likely in the late Qing Dynasty when the effectiveness of the bows was no longer a military issue. The latter case is the unfortunate fate of many bows hung strung on walls as decoration or in museums.
Reflex returns to bows that originally had it during their manufacture. Rarely does it appear later because at the end of the manufacture period the moisture content in the sinew should be very low. In the process of manufacture of Qing bows, the addition of the handle to the back of the core produced an initial reflex. When sinew was added, more reflex was produced by the drying and shrinkage of the sinew. I suggest that the particularly good adhesion of the sinew to the core in Qing bows indicates they were further reflexed in manufacture.
This does not invalidate your point about Qing bows appearing without any existing reflex because there are many of them surviving. There are even more with a slight reflex. However, it is a big step to suppose that those with a large reflex are the product of some post-use degeneration of the material.
It would be very interesting to see if there are old books with post production pictures or descriptions of unstrung bows. Bows without reflex would have been easier to string and would not have needed the elaborate measures to brace them that have existed.
What I have seen in Qing bows with bamboo cores is the degeneration of the core through drying out which leads to the death of the bow.