Bow and arrow care instructions

CARING FOR YOUR BOW AND ARROWS

Modern bows are designed to be low maintenance, water resistant and very durable. However, the bow should still be treated with care to ensure a long life. 

A traditional bow that uses wood in its construction and therefore requires a bit more care and maintenance to ensure it doesn't wear down over time.

  • Should the riser or limbs get wet, wipe them dry with a towel to prevent water damage. 
  • Our strings are pre-waxed; however, it is also recommended to rub them occasionally with an approved bowstring wax to keep them from drying out. 
  • If your bow is wooden, rub bow wax or paraffin oil on the wood at least twice a year to avoid decay.
  • A traditional longbow uses a string that differs from most other bows. This string,  called a Flemish string, will eventually begin to fray and unwind after prolonged use. Wax the string after every few shoots to keep this string in top shape, and replace it once the string begins to fray or unwind.
  • If replacing a string, ensure that you replace the string with one of equal length – we are more than happy to assist with this.
  • Store your bow in a cool dry location when not in use. While it is okay to store modern recurve and longbows with the string attached, it is safest to unstring the bow when it’s not in use, so others cannot misuse the bow.
  • Keep an eye out for cracks in any part of your bow. 
  • Inspect your arrows before each shot to detect any cracks or damage & never use arrows that are damaged or too short.
  • Always string your bow properly and carefully using a bow stringer.
  • Never dry fire your bow. That is, never pull back and release the string without an arrow nocked as this will damage the bow.
  • Unlike Carbon arrows, wooden arrows will warp due to changes in temperature and humidity. This is normal. However always try to keep wooden arrows as dry as possible and keep them store in a warm dry location for best performance.