This is my first post on this forum, and I mention this because I used to post (infrequently) at the Primitive Archer forum. One reason I switched is because I am just not any good at making my own supplies.

I suppose if you asked me for my definition of a traditional archer, I would say that a traditional archer uses classic equipment, but he probably uses some modern materials in his gear. I would define a person who made their own bows out of unlaminated wood backed with sinew, and shot arrows with self or horn nocks and obsidian or flint heads as a primitive.

I respect those who can make their own supplies in the exacting details of our ancestors, but I enjoy shooting bows more than making them, and I have discovered that finding the right material to make these supplies can be difficult. I shoot a longbow (with AFB laminations?), but I use a fast-flight string; I shoot wooden arrows, but they have modern broadheads or piles and utilize plastic nocks. I'm thinking of switching to aluminum arrows because wood arrows are expensive. Not to mention that I've broken well over a hundred of them while stump shooting. I look at it this way, it's not what you shoot, or even how good you are with the equipment, it's a matter of enjoyment. A person should what he likes.