Howard Hill Longbowmen's Web Site
Howard Hill Longbowmen, HOWARDHILLLONGBOWMEN, howardhilllongbowmen, Howard Hill
This site is maintained for the benefit of members of the Howard Hill Longbowmen email list and any others who enjoy shooting this classic, simple American longow. The site is not affiilated with Howard Hill Archery, makers of Howard Hill bows, nor does it represent them in any way. If you wish to contact Howard Hill Archery, their web site is at:
Enjoy the site. Questions or comments can be directed to the Webmaster at:
The following links will take you to specific Howard Hill bows related pages:
Howard Hill Longbowmen Email List - This link takes you to instructions on how to join the Howard Hill Bows email list. Members exchange informaton on their bows, shooting and activities.
Howard Hill Longbowmen Patch - Years ago, Howard Hill Archery offered colorful embroidered patches. These have not been available for a long time. We worked with Howard Hill Archery and Stadri Emblems and now these patches are again available.
Archery Bulletin Board - This is a special bulletin board serving the Howard Hill email list. Material changes often.
Howard Hill Bows Showcase - These pages showcase some of our member's Howard Hill bows.
Howard Hill Bows Classified
Ad Page - This is a page where members of the Howard Hill Bows Email List
can list traditional archery items they have for sale or trade, or are looking
for.
Finishing a Howard Hill Bow Blank - Howard Hill Archery offers bow blanks. These are bows, any model, that are tillered and have the nocks cut in, but the shelf is not cut in and they are unfinisished. Marty Thompson got an Owl blank and carefully documented his work process in finishing it. He did a beautiful job and was kind enough to allow me to post the whole record here. This is a great way to go if you want to dabble in a bit of bow work and save some money. Marty worked from a standard blank. Several others are doing likewise. I am going to do one that is not standard, but based on the Project X concept. I'll post a few additions covering mine when I get it done. If others finish blanks, please send me pix.
Howard Hill Bows Grip - Achieving a proper grip is a common problem for new shooters of Hill bows. This page attempts to present both a narrative and visual presentation of the grip used by members to shoot their Hill bows.
Howard Hill Bows Brace Height - The question of correct brace height for Howard Hill bows seems to be a recurrent one. We had a discussion of this on the email list. This is the information that came out of that discussion.
Weight of Howard Hill Bows - Someone considering a Hill posted and asked me what they weighed. Other than "light", I didn't really know, so I weighed mine. Here are the results.
Identifying the Model and Maker of Howard Hill Bows - Howard Hill bows have been around for some time and appear fairly often on used lists and auction sites. Folks who get them are sometimes not sure of the model, how old it might be or exactly which bowyer working for Hill Archery may have made it. Information on this page can help.
A Visit to Howard Hill Archery in Hamilton, MT. - I decided to have one of my little "adventures" and following a favorite 3D Trad shoot in Eastern Washington, I drove over to Hamilton, MT to meet Craig Ekin and actually see the shop that Hill bows are built in. If you like Hill bows, you'll enjoy this trip with me.
A Visit to Howard Hill's Grave - One of our list members hunted up Howard Hill's grave and visited. He wrote a rather nice piece about his impressions.
2008 Howard Hill Bows Calendar - In 2007, I made up a Howard Hill bows calendar in Word format and sent it out in individual emails on requiest. The list has grown and this approach is no longer practical. For 2008, I am learning (and still just taking baby steps) to use .pdf files. This link will take you to the intoduction page for the 2008 calendar, which has a link to the .pdf file. You are welcome to download and print this file for personal use.
Chronograph Results on Howard Hill Bows - I don't have a chrono myself, so when Frank Vaccarro posted this chrono information on another site, I asked for permission to use it here.
"The Longbowman's Choice" - The "Longbowman's Choice" is a special series bow, the design of which was worked out by polling the members of the Howard Hill Longbowmen email list. the bow is availalbe to members This is a very new development. The first bows have not even been built yet, but this link will take you to the page with details as they exist right now. Pictures will be added as soon as possible.
A Visit to Bob Wesley's Whispering Pines Shooting School - Learning to shoot a Hill properly has been my goal since I started. I was finally able to get myself organized and arrange the chance to go to Bob Wesley's school and have the opportunity to do that. I want to than Bob, and I want to than Tom Ireland, who kind of goaded me into saying, "Well. if you do, I will". This link will take you to a complete report of our adventure. Following the narrative and pictures, the page includes contact links to Bob Wesley and to his school's home page.
Vintage Howard Hill Broadheads - The vintage Howard Hill broadhead is the "Official" inlay for our Longbowman's Choice bow. Mike Kirsch sent in these great pictures of one.
Recreating the Robin Hood Quiver from "The Adventures of Robin Hood" - Errol Flynn wore a really neat quiver when he played Robin in the film. Both Ron Johnson and Mike G. have made copies of it, and Ron has provided a nice set of plans. Note: Ron found the original instructions for this quiver. His own are good, but this is the source. I have set the whole article up as a .pdf file, which you should be able to open with a current version of Adobe Reader.
A Gallery of Howard Hill Pictures - I've accumulated copies of a number of good photos and pictures of Howard. I've made a gallery of them on this page.
Information on Hill Archery Bowyers and the Hill Broadhead - I recently received a very comprehensive list of Hill bowyers from Bob Burton, plus some pix of an early Hill arrow and of similar broadheads made by Joe Compton, who made the jigs for them.
The Hill Bow from "Adventures of Robin Hood" - This page is a great study of the bow Hill made for Errol Flynn to use in "Robin Hood". It's especially interesting because, of course, it predates glass and is actually quite different in design from the Hill bows of today.
These are links that might be of interest to any archer, not specifically related to Howard Hill bows:
Wrapping a Nock Point and/or Thickening a String - Nocks and strings don't always match well. Especialy on lighter bows, the nock is often loose. Wrapping with dental tape is a common quick solution. It's also handy to know how to wrap nock point on in case you end up going afield with a bow and run into problems. I keep a small dental floss container in my kit.
Measuring Your Traditional Shooting Draw - We are indebted to Tom Ireland for the technical information that made this page possible.
Weight Training for Heavy Bows - John Martin, who devotes considerable effort to building up for heavy bows, has shared his weight training program with us. This is great material.
Targets and Backstops - Here you will see examples of target and backstop ideas used by members.
Lakota Quivers - I am unable to use a back quiver and have found the Lakota, or Plains Indian quiver very satisfactory. I made some up in 2006, using some leftover upholstery leather. I wanted to post a build-a-long eventually. While eventually was coming, Dennis Jackson posted a very good Lakota build-a-long and kindly gave permission for me to use his material here. I wanted to try building a heavier one, and went ahead and did that, varying considerably in technique from what Dennis did. This link accesses a page with three links: to my original effort, Dennis' build-a-long and the second quiver effort that I made. If you want to make a Lakota quiver, you certainly should get the ideas and information you need by reviewing all of these pages.
Making a Simple Hip Quiver and Arm Brace - I liked my Lakota quivers, but found that I like the simplicity of a regular hip quiver more. However, I wanted a hip quiver a little longer than standard and was due for a project, so off I went. Here is the process and result. I had a lot of fun and hope if you try it you will, too.
Restoring Wet Feathers - I hate shooting in the rain because of the affect it has on my fletching. I finally got a good suggestion for a way to restore the feathers to decent shooting condition. If this is a problem for you, check this out.
Shipping Longbows - Bows are particularly vulnerable to shipping damage. Here are some thoughts and examples of how to and how not to do it.
Dick Makes Arrows - "See Dick make arrows. Fletch, Dick, fletch". Yep, sounds like the Dick and Jane reader, doesn't it. It may come off that way, too. Here will be recorded one archer's first effort in arrow making, step by step, picture by picture. Hopefully, others can learn something from what I do.
Making a Yarn Silencer - Someone on a list raised the issue of making a yarn silencer and asked for pix. It helps that I'm an archer who also knits...
Answer to Burning Question - This actually has little to do with archery at all, but sometimes information is just too important not to pass on...
Dick Wightman's Personal Archery Pages
Formerly I put my personal archery adventures here on the Hill site. However, in the interests of reducing the site's size and being better able to manage it, and in consideration of the fact that some of my shooting is not Howard Hill related, I have moved these pages back to my personal site, at:
Once at that site, simply scroll down to "Archery"
Dick
These pages are posted and maintained by Dick Wightman, who, on archery lists, uses the handle "Dick in Seattle". They are meant purely to promote the use, enjoyment and exchange of information on shooting Howard Hill bows and as an information site for Dick's archery activities. No connection to Howard Hill Archery, the current producer of Howard Hill bows, is meant or implied. The site also includes pages covering Dick's personal archery activities. Any questions about these pages can be directed to the site manager at:
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