Dr. Ashby on Papua New Guinea's Bow hunters

[Fanto]

http://www.alaskabowhunting.com/PR/Ashb ... Arrows.pdf

interesting read

[bigbob]

Very interesting! 2000plus grains! Maybe we should make our arrows out of reo bar! Still cant imagine using a 4 foot arrow and hitting any thing.

[Stickbow Hunter]

Thanks Fanto. I have read that one before and it is interesting reading.

Jeff

[Fraser]

Very intresting read, it poses some questions about about the direction of development of modern archery, and not just arrow FOC. If a 60lb bow and an arrow tipped with a 1 1/4" broadhead are all you need to take medium game, why are these guys going to the extreme with they are with thier equipment? Given that the PNG hunters are in a true survival situation, the extra effort and resources that goes into using a 90lb bow, 2000gr arrows tippied with 2" wide broadheads, can't all be for show. The terminal performance of this set up would have justify the extra effort.

There's no point in being the most macho guy in the village if your going to stave to death in the process!

Cheers,

Fraser

[Dennis La Varenne]

The long fletchless arrow of the Papuans and many of the South American tribal peoples do not need fletching because the length of the tail of the arrow IS the steering mechanism. We need fletching on our arrows BECAUSE they are so short. The longer the arrow, so long as its balance point is reasonably ahead of the middle, the easier it is to steer it in a straight line. The shorter it gets, the more erratic its flight becomes and the more necessary it is to have to induce some degree of tail drag to keep the head in front of the bum-end.

You can get your arrows to steer quite well just by tying a few small bits of rag to the nock end of a shaft. It will fly reasonably well so long as it is reasonably weight forward and stabilise more the longer it is in flight.

Our aboriginals achieve exactly the same thing with their long spears. When they make them, they always test them for spine by balancing them on their woomeras and assessing how well they are weighted forward. They fly straight because of the drag effect of the long tail behind the head. Notice that the heads of aboriginal spears is always markedly thicker and heavier, tapering towards the tail end. It is exactly the same principle as our FoC principle.

There is nothing mysterious about heavy Papuan arrows which are effectively short spears launched from a bow. They could also have been launched from a Woomera or an Atl Atl just as effectively and they have all the inherent garden variety benefits of a HEAVY projectile.

It is just that the Papuans, Vanuatuans, Amazonians and other similar peoples have not lost the knowledge about these implements and we have. A heavy projectile is a heavy projectile. The only difference is the method of launching. Nothing mysterious about that.