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A cable-backed bow is a bow reinforced with a cable on the back. The cable is made from either animal, vegetable or synthetic fibers and is tightened to increase the strength of the bow. A cable will relieve tension stress from the back of the bow by raising its neutral plane: the border between the back of the bow that stretches and the belly of the bow that compresses when bent. A good cable-backed bow can thus be made of poor-quality wood, weak in tension. The material, the diameter, the distance from the back of the wooden element, and the level of stress (tightness) of the cable determines how much it relieves tension stress from the wooden element of the bow and increases the power of the shot.
The
A cable-backed bow is a bow reinforced with a cable on the back. The cable is made from either animal, vegetable or synthetic fibers and is tightened to increase the strength of the bow. A cable will relieve tension stress from the back of the bow by raising its neutral plane: the border between the back of the bow that stretches and the belly of the bow that compresses when bent. A good cable-backed bow can thus be made of poor-quality wood, weak in tension. The material, the diameter, the distance from the back of the wooden element, and the level of stress (tightness) of the cable determines how much it relieves tension stress from the wooden element of the bow and increases the power of the shot.
The Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
of the Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
used sinew cables on their short bows of driftwood
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Driftwood is wood that has been washed onto a shore or beach of a sea, lake, or river by the action of winds, tides or waves.
In some waterfront areas, driftwood is a major nuisance. However, the driftwood provides shelter and fo ...
, baleen, horn or antler to make them unlikely to break in tension, and to increase their power. The cables are attached to the bow at several points on each limb with a series of half-hitches and then tightened by inserting a small toggle in the bundle of strings and twisting. These bows could be reflexed, deflexed, decurved, or straight.
One variety of cable-backed bow is the Penobscot
The Penobscot (Abenaki: ''Pαnawάhpskewi'') are an Indigenous people in North America from the Northeastern Woodlands region. They are organized as a federally recognized tribe in Maine and as a First Nations band government in the Atlantic ...
bow or Wabenaki bow, invented by Frank Loring (Chief Big Thunder) about 1900.The Penobscot War Bow. Gordon M Day. Contributions to Canadian Ethnology 1975. Canadian Ethnology Service Paper no. 31. ISSN 0316-1854. Ottawa 1975. It consists of a small bow attached by cables on the back of a larger main bow.
See also
*Flatbow
A flatbow is a bow with non- recurved, flat, relatively wide limbs that are approximately rectangular in cross-section. Because the limbs are relatively wide, flatbows will usually narrow and become deeper at the handle, with a rounded, non-bend ...
*Longbow
A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross ...
*Composite bow
A composite bow is a traditional bow made from horn, wood, and sinew laminated together, a form of laminated bow. The horn is on the belly, facing the archer, and sinew on the outer side of a wooden core. When the bow is drawn, the sinew (stre ...
References
Further reading
* ''The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 1''. 1992 The Lyons Press. * ''The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 2''. 1992 The Lyons Press. * ''The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 3''. 1994 The Lyons Press. * ''The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 4''. 2008 The Lyons Press. Bows (archery) {{Bow-stub