Hugh Soar's interesting article on bow string grooves in the latest issue of the Journal got me to thinking about the actual tools used by bowyers and arrow-makers in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries to craft traditional long-bows and wood arrows. Obviously, bowyers used draw knives, spoke shaves, toothing planes, various other hand planes, saws, wood chisels, scrapers, rasps, files as well as hatchets and hand axes to rough out staves. What other tools did they use?

Some of these bowyers probably developed special tools or devices to assist them in their craft. The same is likely true of arrow-makers as well.

James Duff in his book "Bows and Arrows" speaks of some of the tools used but isn't expansive. Stemmler and some other writers have likewise commented on tools but not in detail. I am sure that many of these bowyers and arrow-makers used tools they developed for their own purposes and may have been reluctant to share this information with others [competitors].

I wonder if anyone has seen an operational or abandoned traditional bow-maker's and/or arrow-maker's workshop with the tools and equipment still intact in it and could comment on the principal tools the bowyers and/or arrow-makers used. I am very curious as to the principal tools used as well as any unusual tools that were employed.

My father was a mechanical engineer, always interested in tools and shared that interest with my brother and me. He inherited his grandfather's woodworking tools that had been used by my great-grandfather in his occupation as a wheelwright in Northern Vermont.

My dad was a woodworker in his spare time. My brother and I were fortunate to inherit our great-grandfather's tools from our father; consequently, I have had an interest in woodworking tools for some time and how these or similar tools might have been used in bow-making and arrow-making.

How very interesting Dave - and how lucky that you were able to "save" those old tools.

Randal Holme in his Academy of Armoury mentions - amongst many other things - the tools and also the terminology - of the various trades. By inference many trades used similar tools. One such was the Coopers or barrell makers who seem to have shared similar tools with the bowyers. You will be very lucky if you can access Holme, and if you do you will find it extremely difficult to "navigate" as there does not seem to be any logical layout.

Almost everyone seems to know abut the bowyer's 'flote' - a sort of ancient 'surform' if that means anything to you. It appears on the arms of the Worshipful Company of Bowyers

I think it would be very exceptional if someone were to come across an abandoned workshop with items still intact; but what a find that would be ! Sadly we live in a throw away society and we lose so much history to the black bag and the rubbish skip.

What I can offer is the members of the Craft Guild of Traditional Bowyers and Fletchers, one or two of whom might be prepared to tell you what they use. If you e-mail their Clerk (me !) she will ask around, although I think that nowadays they are as likely to use a bandsaw as anything.

There is still an ancient bowmaking workshop at Meriden, home of the Woodmen of Arden, and we have memories of the equally ancient bowyer who used to work there. I have no idea how many of his old tools survive. We do however have an image of the bow press and when I can find it (!) I will try to send it to you. In the meantime have a look at Ned Thompson, an early bowyer for the Woodmen (before our time) outside the said workshop. Sorry it is so out of focus, it was taken through the glass of the picture.

Hi Veronica, Enjoyed the photo. As Clerk for the Craft Guild of the Traditional Bowyers and Fletchers, I would like to take you up on your kind offer to make an inquiry of this organization concerning the tools [old tools versus modern ones] they use. I would be most appreciative. Is there anyone who I can contact at the WOA who might also shed some light on this topic. It's too bad that Ned Thompson didn't write of his craft!

Thank you for the information on Randal Holme -- I may, however, have difficulty accessing his work. Your point though is a good one -- woodworkers in different professions shared many of the same tools.

The bowyer's "flote" is a new term/tool for me [I guess that I am one of the few who hasn't heard the term -- is it an English term?]. I am familiar with surforms that are made in America. They are tools, like rasps, that are designed to rapidly remove and shape wood.

Thanks for your thoughts and any additional help you can provide will be most appreciated.

If we go back about 1500 years an interesting find was made in Denmark dating from that period. A small wood plane was found, unfortunately the iron was missing, but it was clearly a plane. On the sole there was a lenghtwise small concave channel so it had clearly been used to plane round dowels, perhaps arrows. 2000 year old planes cast in bronze have also been found.
This is of course not from the time period David mentions, but still interesting ,I think.
There is supposed to be a book named; The History of the Woodworking Plane. Oddbjørn.

I made a copy of that plane some years ago.
If you search on google picture for "vimose bog plane" you can see pictures of it.
Ole

Ole, Oddbjorn, Thanks for the information on the plane -- very interesting. I didn't know planes went that far back.

Dear Dave, Sorry for the long wait. I am afraid I have spent the last couple of months working almost solely on Hugh's latest book - dealing with an Americam editor who did not seem to know anything about anything - but then he was a newspaper journalist. He also assumed that all Americans were as ignorant as he was and could not understand anything which Hugh had written, requiring (often lengthy) explanations of just about everything. Phew !

Anyway, it is now - for better or worse - with the publisher, so I can catch up on other things.

I shall be writing the latest news booklet of the Craft Guild soon and will place your request in there. Don't hold your breath waiting for a reply, however, my members are notorious for not responding.

One thing I gave just acquired, which you will I am sure find interesting, is an old arrow weighing balance scale. The kind which has a half tube suspended on one side, for the arrow, and a small pan on the other for the silver coins. It is not quite complete and I am endeavouring to locate one which is in its original condtion so that this one can be restored. I am not very hopeful, as they are quite rare. No doubt most of them went into the bin when more modern technology took over.

Regards Veronica-Mae

Curiously perhaps the word 'flote(float) is not immediately descriptive of its purpose. contra 'rasp, 'file' which are. Plasterers use a 'float', and in this sense it has some connation with the act of plastering since one floats on the plaster and then smoothes it. The word 'float' may have some connection with smoothing but that's a long shot.
Concerning thumb (dowelling) planes, those recovered from the 'Mary Rose' are illustrated on Page 703 of 'Weapons of Warre'.