Are you searching for the perfect gift for the archery hobbyist in your life? If so, this article is for you. Below is a list of gift ideas for the archery hobbyist, listed in a decreasing order of 10, with one being the best.
*Note: I define the term “archery hobbyist” as one who makes his/her own bows, and who deals with ancient, wood, and compound bows.
10. Apparel
The average archery hobbyist is more than eager to share their hobby with others. What better way to start the conversation than with a tee-shirt, baseball cap, or jacket? There is a wide array of apparel for the archery hobbyist, ranging from logos to attitude to humor. You could also purchase some arm guards, if tee shirts aren’t their thing.
9. Supply Kit
Every archery hobbyist is in need of supplies. Making a kit full of small but useful supplies will make a wonderful gift. Some ideas to place in the kit are: bow strings of varying length, natural wood polishes and spirits, sand paper of varying roughness, sharp knifes, arrow fletches, recurve tips, arrow tips, leather, and cord.
8. Tool Kit
An advancement on the supply kit above, you could make a kit of tools used to make a bow. Fine and course wood rasps, files of varying size, planers of different size, a sharp hacksaw, and a jackknife are all hand tools used to make wood bows.
7. Sinew Backing
Sinew can get a little costly for the hobbyist, due to the shear amount they use from making bow after bow. Sinew is a wonderful finale to a beautiful bow, so why now purchase a nice bag of dried sinew? I recommend only doing this if you know the hobbyist will use sinew. Some don’t because of the difficultly it can produce, and others are appalled at the thought of animal muscle on their wood. However, most hobbyists are more than happy to receive such a gift.
6. Arrows.
If your hobbyist uses aluminum or fiberglass arrows, these would make nice gifts. If they use wood arrows, than I recommend purchasing long, ¼ to ½ inch thick dowel rods. When purchasing aluminum or fiberglass arrows, ask your hobbyist their arrow length; purchasing arrows that are too long or too short will be useless. If you purchase dowel rods, I recommend purchasing them 3ft long. This will allow the hobbyist to cut them to appropriate size and give them the freedom to vary.
5. Bow Case
Every bow made takes a lot of time, patience, sweat, and scars to make. Because of this work, it is particularly painful to watch a bow succumb to the elements. A versatile bow case is the perfect gift for someone with a finished bow just sitting in the corner. The bow case should be hard and secure, and come with leather or silk to wrap the bow in. If you want to go extravagant, a glass/wood display case that will allow the bow to be visible would make a particularly nice gift.
4. Leather
Several yards of good quality leather. Leather is a valuable object to the hobbyist, and a variety of colors/textures would be well received. Including a high quality, tough leather cord, also in several colors, would be a nice touch, if the pocket book allows. And if you’d like to take the gift one step farther, you could also include an owl punch and a couple of leather needles.
3. Heat Box
If the hobbyist doesn’t already own one of these, you could purchase a heat box for them to dry their staves out. It would have to be very long, usually about ten feet long. Be sure that your hobbyist uses heat boxes, however; some hobbyists prefer allowing their staves to dry in a corner or shed for a year.
2. Yew or Orange Osage Staves
Staves are cuts of wood that are rough and waiting to be shaped. While maple and ash can be easily obtained, yew and orange Osage, both of which make beautiful bows, are very expensive, and much desired.
1. Rare, Unique, or Display Bow
The number one gift to purchase the hobbyist is a beautiful, completed bow that is high quality and of a display standard. These bows should include a case, and possibly a certificate of authenticity. Be creative; find a unique bow, or a rare bow.
