Ain't talking about some old man split--I could touch the ground if I did it nekked (ain't doing that either, and sure as heck ain't taking a picture!).
And we're all eternally greatful for THAT![8D]
Another note about how much traditional stuff costs.... You can buy everything you need. That's one extreme. On the other hand, it's entirely possible to not need to spend a single penny on archery gear.
Get out in the woods, cut wood and let it season. Learn to make cordage from natural materials. Keep the feathers from the turkeys and geese you hunt for making fletchings. Keep the hides from the animals you've taken and make brain tan leather for your quivers, armguards and tabs. Keep the sinews from those critters for sewing thread, bow strings and bow backings. Learn to knap flint for your broadheads or scrounge up some steel and grind them out. Make your own bows, arrows, strings, broadheads.... That's the other extreme.
I enjoy making as much of my own stuff as possible. Often, I find I want something that's not commercially available - or, more often than not, costs a lot more than I have money to spend - so I just make it myself. It's a nice little side hobby to archery.
For instance, I was watching the previews of the 'Digging for the Past" episode about Ghengis Khan (it aired on the History Channel last night) where they showed the Mongol horse archers. I wanted to give the Mongolian thumb release a try, so I made myself a leather thumb ring. Now that I've got a pattern, I'm going to make one from some leftover wood from my longbow's riser - and yes, I made the longbow too. That's how I got leftover wood.
