Terms

Back Set
Handle set back towards the bow's belly when relaxed to increase pre-tension.

Backing
To protect the back of the bow and/or to increase the draw weight, a covering is applied to the back. This can be made of a different type of wood, animal sinew, linen, silk, etc.

Belly
The “inside” of the bow (facing the archer when shooting).

Feathering
Attaching the feathers to the arrow shaft.

Ticket
A half stave. To make a bow, two billets are spliced ​​together in the handle area. Billets are only used for stems that aren't long enough, but are so specialized that the effort is worthwhile.

Bow belly
The “inside” of the bow (facing the archer when shooting).

Bow back
The “outside” of the bow (points away from the archer when shooting).

Cresting
This is the name given to a ring-shaped painting on arrow shafts for better differentiation and for embellishment.

Dacron
Material for tendon production made from synthetic fiber.

ELB
Abbreviation for an English longbow. Unlike flatbows, they have a nearly square cross-section along their entire length.

Facing
Applying material to the bow belly for reinforcement.

Fadeout
The transition from the bow grip to the limbs.

finish
This refers to the final treatment by applying various oils, waxes or varnish to make the bow weatherproof.

Flemish splice
A technique for creating the tendon tubes in tendon manufacturing.

fps (also ft/s)
Abbreviation for feet per second . This unit measures the speed of an arrow. Conversion factor: 1 fps ≙ approximately 1.1 km/h.

Grain (gr)
A unit of weight often used to indicate the weight of arrowheads. Conversion factor: 1 g ≙ approximately 65 mg.

Handle
The grip of the bow. English: grip

Horn cam
Reinforcement at the end of the limb with horn material.

inch (in)
A unit of length (inch), also abbreviated with the inch symbol ". Conversion factor: 1 in = 1″ ≙ 2.54 cm.

Annual ring
A growth ring in wood. In non-tropical latitudes, most plants first produce soft earlywood, followed by hard latewood.

Heartwood (cf. sapwood)
Wood in the middle of a trunk, this is often colored differently from the outer wood and also has other properties (increased pressure stability) that can be used in bow making.

Kill
This is the name given to the innermost area of ​​3D targets, which gives you the highest score.

lb (plural: lbs)
A unit of measurement for mass (pounds) used to indicate the draw weight of a bow or the spine of an arrow. The abbreviation # is often used in archery. Conversion factor: 1 lb = 1# ≙ approx. 453 g.

Leading spring
The feather of an arrow's fletching, positioned at a right angle to the nock slot. This feather should point away from the bow when fired.

Center winding
Winding a thin thread in the middle of the bowstring to protect it from wear.

reflex
A bow that is bent backward (toward the back of the bow) when relaxed, the opposite of deflexion. Often, only the limbs are bent reflexively.

Roving
Refers to shooting at natural targets such as tree stumps, mushrooms, leaves, and grass swards (living objects (animals, trees, etc.) are not targeted). It's well-suited for practicing at different distances from different positions.

Back
The “outside” of the bow (points away from the archer when shooting).

tendon
The string used to draw the bow, or the (animal) sinews. English: string or, in animals, sinew

Tendon tubercles
The loops (eyelets) at the ends of the bowstring for hanging on the limbs.

Tendon board
Auxiliary structure for tendon construction in the Flemish splice.

tendon gallows
Auxiliary construction for endless tendon construction.

Tendon wax
A wax for the care and protection of the bowstring from the weather.

Spine tester
A device for determining the spine value.

Sapwood (cf. heartwood)
The outer wood of a trunk, which is often colored differently from the inner wood and also has other properties (tensile and compressive stability) that can be used in bow making.

Stacking
Stacking occurs when the bow's draw weight suddenly increases significantly toward the end of the draw. Stacking occurs especially with short bows.

Stand height
Distance between the bow grip and the bowstring when stretched (but not drawn). English: brace height or fistmele

Stave
A piece of wood of sufficient size and quality to make a bow.

TBB
Traditional Bowyer's Bible , a multi-volume book on bow making by various authors. German title: The Bible of Traditional Bow Making . The individual volumes are abbreviated TBB1, TBB2, etc.

Tiller
Bend of the limbs. Possible tillers include circle tillers and whip tillers, where the limbs form a circle or an ellipse when extended.

Tillern
Working out the desired bend of the limbs during bow building.

Tillerstock (Tillerwand)
Device for tensioning the bow during the tillering process.

Tips
The ends of the bow.WarbowBow with a draw weight as used in war (100 pounds and more).

throwing arm
The part of the bow between the tips and the grip that is bent during the draw.

Zebra tendon
A zebra hybrid bowstring is a factory-made braided bowstring made from at least two colored strand groups. It differs from previous single-colored bowstrings not only in its optical zebra effect, but also in its specially twisted and pre-stretched design. This ensures very little twisting when the bow is drawn.

Draw weight
The "weight" (actually a force) with which the bowstring must be pulled, usually to achieve full draw .