Traditional Bowyer's Bible

The amount of information in this book is staggering. I never knew that there was so much to know about turning a piece of wood into a bow. This book covers it all. It contains very detailed information about different woods, wood selection, tillering, wood grains, bow physics and theory. This book seems to be focused mostly on flatbows. But, the information is invaluable regardless the style of bows you intend to build.The amount of information in this book may be a little daunting to the beginner, but I would highly recommend it to anyone thinking about building a quality bow of any style.

I am very new to bowmaking (I've done it for about 3 weeks). I recently bought this book and WOW it is absolutely great! It could use a glossary, but they explain their terms very carefully in the text as you go through. Starts out with a few stories, lets you know that even pro's occasionally hit stumbling blocks, and tells you how to avoid them! I am very excited by and about this book and would highly recommend it to anyone seeking to learn about the history, lore, and how-to of bowmaking.

I'm at a loss for words. Absolutly fantastic. I searched and I searched for scraps of information on this subject, and finally ran across this book. I was completely overwhelmed by all the well-presented information the authors managed to pack into 300+ pages. Two sleepless nights of solid reading passed and now I seem find my way into the forest to cut bowstaves every time I leave the house.

The Traditional Bowyers Bible is the best book on the subject I have read so far on this interesting subject. All 3 volumes are worth having, but this one, the first volume, offers the beginning bowyer a complete course in building a wooden bow. I disagree with an earlier reviewer of this book on its value to the beginner. I am a novice bowyer (bow-builder) if not a novice archer, and I thought the book was especially valuable. In fact that seems tobe exactly the person Hamm and the other contributors to this book seem to have had in mind....All three books come under the heading of "don't miss", but this one in particular is a "DON'T miss"...

This book starts by teaching you the basic knowledge of wood and how it will affect the bow's performance. From there it will take you into building a couple different types of bows and the best way to accomplish it. The only better way to learn is to have someone teach you. If you don't have anyone then this book is your best bet!