Anatomy of a bow
Arrow rest: a thin piece of plastic or metal which guides the arrow for minimal friction. Some rests are designed to fold flat against the side of the arrow window in order to minimise feather impact. For some traditional bows, the arrow rests on the bow hand.
Arrow window: sport bows have a part of the grip removed, so that the arrow is moved through the center of the bow and not to the side. Traditional bows do not have a window and exhibit an Archer’s Paradox. Back: the side of the bow that faces the target. Belly: the side of the bow that faces the archer. Ears/loops: the parts of the string which attach it to the body of the bow. Some primitive bows have the string tied to the body with a knot. Grip: the middle part of the bow. A grip can be as simple as a rounded and smoothed part of the body or it can be finely sculpted to precisely fit the archer’s palm. Limb tip: the very end of the limb. Limb: the elastic pieces on either side of the grip. Depending on construction, they can be part make one whole piece together with the grip or they may be taken apart. The potential energy of the drawn bow is stored into the limbs. They are usually flat, for maximum elasticity. Nock point fixator: a loop made of brass (more common) or thread (string material) which allows the arrow to always be nocked at the same place. This is different from the nock point, which is a part of the arrow. See the anatomy of an arrow for more information. Serving: an additional piece of thread, tightly wound around the string. Its function is to protect the individual strands of the string from mechanical damage due to arrow nocking, drawing and releasing. Shelf: the horizontal bottom part of the arrow window. An arrow can be shot from here, but the friction of the shaft and impact of the feathers may influence the flight. Strand: an individual component of the string. Depending on the strength of the bow and the preferred shooting technique, a string can have as few as 10 and as many as 25 (or more) strands. String notch: a groove in the limb where the string is attached. String: connects the limb tips and allows a projectile (an arrow, a stone or a metal bead) to be propelled into flight. Some bows can have some extra pieces attached to them. Compound bows have their own set of unique parts. |