Reflex Bow Specifications

The bow is an ancient weapon, and many different types of bows, including the reflex bow, have been used throughout history for both hunting and warfare. While there is no solid set of specifications for a reflex bow, they do share a few distinct features.

Identification

The reflex bow is a style of recurve bow, a style where the tips of the bow bend away from the archer, giving additional energy and power to the bow. The reflex bow, also known as a double recurve bow, takes this approach one step further -- it curves away from the archer at two additional points when strung, creating a serpentine shape. When unstrung, the bow flexes entirely away from the archer, creating a "C" or semi-circle shape. This makes a reflex bow very hard to string if you don't know the technique.

Advantages

The primary advantage offered by a reflex bow is its massive amounts of stored power versus its relatively small size. This allows archers to shoot with tremendous power quickly, as well as from horseback. A reflex bow, because of its energy potential, also offers exceptional range. Several historic texts, including Genghis Khan's stone script found in a river basin in Eastern Siberia, that Mongolian archers could regularly hit targets at a distance of 500 m.

Construction

The reflex bow is typically constructed from a composite of several materials, technically making them a type of compound bow. Historically, reflex bows were made from cured woods, horn or bone, sinews and a type of binder such as fish glue. Making reflex bows was not a short process, as the wood needed to be cured, bone and sinew boiled and fitted to the bow, and sinews prepared and applied to the bow to add tensile strength. At each stage of the process, the binding agent, normally fish glue, was applied to the components to bind them together. Modern reflex bows can be constructed using traditional or synthetic materials.

History

The reflex bow appears all over the course of history. For instance, it was the weapon of choice for the ancient Mongols who fired their bows from horseback. The reflex bow was also a traditional weapon of the Huns, the nomadic tribe best known for being led by Attila. In addition, it is hinted through several descriptions in Homer's "The Odyssey" that the bow wielded by Odysseus was a reflex bow. The reflex bow is also depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, where it is being wielded by Norman archers at the Battle of Hastings.

References

• Mr. Sedivy's Highlands Ranch History: The Entire Bayeux Tapestry - Part VII
• Awesome Stories: Attila the Hun
• Poetry Translation: Homer: The Odyssey Book XXI
• Óbudai Egyetem: The Statics of the Traditional Hungarian Composite Reflex Bow
• ATARN: What is the Script on this Chinggis Kahn's Stele About?
• Cold Siberia: The Mongolian Bow