leather grips on longbows

[skinner biscuit]

#7316

What is the purpose of the leather grips on longbows?

[Bruce Smithhammer]

#60496

A smoothly-finished wood grip on a bow can be slippery, especially when your hand is sweaty, etc. The leather allows for a more secure hold on the bow. Slip-on rubber grips accomplish the same thing, but because they are easier and quicker to put on/remove, it’s a good way to experiment and see if you like it or not.

I’m having a beavertail grip put on a bow as we speak.

[James Harvey]

#60520

Skinner, I’ve always been curious about this too..

I was taught to shoot with an open bow hand and I figure a slippery grip that allows the bow to pivot and align with your string hand is desirable.

Or are you talking about it being too slippery just to carry around in the field Bruce? As usual I am definitely missing something 😀

[skinner biscuit]

#60569

Wouldn’t the palm sweat absorb in the leather and create a stink on the bow? What about getting wet and shrinking? I could see it needed on a straight grip, old school bow but the ones with a grip like a recurve? Just curious.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

#60650

ausjim wrote: Skinner, I’ve always been curious about this too..

I was taught to shoot with an open bow hand and I figure a slippery grip that allows the bow to pivot and align with your string hand is desirable.

Or are you talking about it being too slippery just to carry around in the field Bruce? As usual I am definitely missing something 😀

I think it’s largely a personal preference thing. Though I don’t shoot with an entirely open hand, I don’t think that a leather grip will prevent the bow from aligning properly within your hand. Personally, I tend to like the additional texture and “feel” of a leather grip, but it depends on the bow and the grip style as well.

skinner biscuit wrote: Wouldn’t the palm sweat absorb in the leather and create a stink on the bow? What about getting wet and shrinking? I could see it needed on a straight grip, old school bow but the ones with a grip like a recurve? Just curious.

Leather will absorb sweat/moisture to varying degrees, depending on the leather. Something like untreated suede will absorb more, and shrink more, than treated leather. I prefer the latter, and something like beavertail (or stingray, or…) allows for weather-resistant treatment, while still maintaining a grippy texture.

skinner biscuit wrote: I could see it needed on a straight grip, old school bow but the ones with a grip like a recurve? Just curious.

I think that’s largely why leather grips are more commonly seen on longbows than recurves. But again, it all comes down to personal preference.

[wahoo]

#60681

I have 2 self bows with leather on them and all the rest of my bows are without ??? I have never thought there would be a benefit but I really like the looks of having leather ??? Maybe someday

[Charles Ek]

#60754

“It depends on what your definition of ‘longbow’ is.” 😉 I have leather grips on both my Hill-style bows and find them very useful.

“Many folks come to a Hill bow from years of shooting recurves. The two grips are entirely different, and trying to use a recurve style grip simply won’t work on a Hill bow. A recurve is usually nestled into the thumb joint with the wrist straight. This grip shifts the hand to the left (for right handed shooters), staightening the arm and putting the force in line with the long forearm bone. The balance of force is on the joint and arm bone, and a loose grip is both common and advised. With a Hill-stle bow, this grip will not work, and can cause hand shock and difficulty in controlling the bow. The appropriate grip for this style of longbow, which usually has a straight riser or one that has very limited shaping to it, is a grip that places the force on the heel of the hand, below the thumb joint. The arm is slightly bent at the elbow. The grip is defintely firm throughout the hand, but not clenched. This transfer of the force in the grip helps to control the bow and insures that it flexes appropriately for the design. The slight flexing of the elbow absorbs shock and, incidentally, reduces the need for an arm brace. Some longbow shooters do not use a brace unless they are wearing loose clothing.”

Proper Grip of a Hill Bow

[James Harvey]

#61003

Bruce, I just had a quite illustrative experience. I went out to the yard to shoot my longbow. First 6 arrows were fine. Then, no word of a lie, the skies opened up in a downpour.

That long contact with the hand to the bow of the low heeled longbow grip obviously requires a bit more control than the quite neat joint of a high wrist into a welcoming recurve riser. I was suddenly and sharply aware of why slippery is not a good thing with a long bow 😉

It’s also testament to my lack of experience with the longbow (I’ve only had one for about 9 months or so) and this years long and drawn out dry season, that I’m pretty certain that’s the first time I’ve shot a longbow in the rain ❗

So, ahh… where’d you get that leather grip from buddy? 😉

[Stephen Graf]

#61351

Leather grips are easy to make yourself. 3Rivers has a nice video tutorial on it.

I put leather grips on all my bows up to the last one I made. I started goofing around with a dished grip and really like it.

With a dished grip, it fits the hand perfectly. I found I no longer needed a leather grip. Which brings me to my point… If you add leather to the grip, it will make it significantly larger than it was. This may change the way it shoots and feels. When I made straight grips I made them thinner knowing I would be adding leather.

Which is why Bruce’s beaver tail might be a good option, as it is way thinner than any leather you will find.

[mgerard]

#61512

If you wanted something in between you could have the grip checkered or stemppled.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

#61630

ausjim wrote:

That long contact with the hand to the bow of the low heeled longbow grip obviously requires a bit more control than the quite neat joint of a high wrist into a welcoming recurve riser. I was suddenly and sharply aware of why slippery is not a good thing with a long bow 😉

BINGO.

ausjim wrote:

So, ahh… where’d you get that leather grip from buddy? 😉

Big Jim

[William Warren]

#63100

I like leather grips on my selfbows and on many of my recurves I use the “Bow Saddle” which is a half wrap. The half wrap gives just enough traction to my hand to eliminate slip, esp when wearing gloves in winter. I recently joined the ranks of the Hill style shooters when I got a used HH Big 5. It had a rubber grip which was OK but I felt it deserved the traditional leather grip with the rough side out. I had some thin wrap material in my kit so this past weekend I added the leather grip. It did increase the size slightly over what the rubber handle did but the feel is much better to me. I just like a leather grip on a long bow.

[Author]

Posts