Samick SKB 50 - The Perfect Trekking Bow?

[Manveruon]

Hi guys!

Tonight at the local SCA archery practice, I walked in to discover one of my fellow archers had gotten a fascinating new bow. It's called a Samick SKB 50, abnd it's a Korean style horse bow. I was fascinated by it, and asked the owner all about it. In the end, I was hooked. I haven't made the purchase yet, but I think I can safely say that in the next month or two, I will definitely be getting my hands on one of these.

First off, let me just say, this thing is TINY. When I first noticed it I thought it was a kids bow, but it turns out it's a full-sized adult bow, tested to draw lengths up to 32". Seriously though, it's itty bitty - even for a horse bow (50" tip-to-tip). Otherwise, it's a very nice little recurve, with a highly pronounced reflex-deflex shape. Totally symmetrical, black fiberglass limbs with a wooden core, no shelf, overall an extremely simple, functional design.

Now for its applications as a ranger bow - honestly, I think this thing would make the perfect trekking bow. My reasoning behind this is that, first of all, it's tiny, as I mentioned above, so it's the ideal size to strap to one's bedroll or quivier while hiking without totally getting in the way. Secondly, it's incredibly lightweight (I read somewhere online it's only 13 ounces, and trust me, it feels like a feather in the hand), so it would hardly add any heft to one's overall load. Thirdly, the fiberglass limbs should be extremely durable, so moisture shouldn't be too big of an issue, and theoretically it could be left strung for quite a while without doing much harm to the bow. The only real down-side I see to this bow is that it would need a little bit of modification to really fit the bill as a ranger bow. The fiberglass limbs are a little obvious, and sadly they come with big white lettering on the limbs that say "Samick SKB" and the draw weight. Personally, when I get one, I plan to wrap the limbs in a lightweight leather, similar to most production horse-bows, to disguise this somewhat.

Otherwise, I have to say it was a joy to shoot. The draw and release were both exceptionally smooth, and the arrow speed seemed really snappy. The draw-weight didn't feel nearly as heavy as it was listed, and apparently this has been a complaint before - people weighing their bows and realizing they were actually drawing lighter than advertised, but honestly, I think it was mainly just because of how smoothly it drew. I still plan on ordering a slightly higher draw weight than usual, just to be safe.

Anyway, I just wanted to share my experienced with it. I've posted a link to the bow below. Does anyone out there have any personal experience with these bows? I'd love to hear other opinions of them.

http://www.lancasterarchery.com/samick- ... ead_review

[Eledhwen]

Horse bows, that sort of bow, are excellent bush bows. I have a Grozer Scythian bow that I like to use hunting in heavy brush. I simply say I took it from some unlucky Haradrim or Easterling. Make a bow quiver and you can carry it strung for short periods...even a composite bow will take a set if left strung too long.

Eledhwen

[Udwin]

I don't know about this bow in particular but would like to add that in Ch 15 of The Hobbit, Thorin uses "a bow of horn" to shoot at a messenger during the parley at the gate of Erebor. So Dwarves were apparently familiar with composite bows in the Third Age--and they're probably much more willing to trade with than wicked Men of the East and South!

[ineffableone]

There are a lot of horse bows you can get that don't have the fiberglass or white letter branding on them.

Something to note however, stringing some of the composite horse bows can be difficult. It can entail having to sit on the ground and using your legs to flex the bow while pulling the string back with a belt system. If they are extremely reflexed like the one from this image.



A good site for more traditional nonfiberglassed horse bows http://www.horsebows.com/bows2.htm

As for the bow you mention specifically I don't have experience with that particular one. I do own a Samick Sage however. Samick is a very well respected bow making company. They make a lot of high quality bows. In general I would say if it is a Samick bow you can expect at the least decent performance, and most likely excellent performance. Samick bows are some of the top choices for competitive target shooters.

[Taurinor]

Something to note however, stringing some of the composite horse bows can be difficult. It can entail having to sit on the ground and using your legs to flex the bow while pulling the string back with a belt system. If they are extremely relexed like the one from this image.

I don't mean to get off topic, but could you elaborate a little more on this, or point me to somewhere that does? My fiancé has a horsebow, and while it's not as reflexed as the one in the picture, it still tries to kill me every time I string it.

[ineffableone]

Something to note however, stringing some of the composite horse bows can be difficult. It can entail having to sit on the ground and using your legs to flex the bow while pulling the string back with a belt system. If they are extremely relexed like the one from this image.

I don't mean to get off topic, but could you elaborate a little more on this, or point me to somewhere that does? My fiancé has a horsebow, and while it's not as reflexed as the one in the picture, it still tries to kill me every time I string it.

Here is a video of how to string a 110 # horse bow, not super reflexed like the picture, but similar technique as the one I described.

[ineffableone]

BTW stringing a traditional Korean horn bow, that is haevy reflexed. Can also be done like this.



Not a simple task, and one that can be quite dangerous.

[Taurinor]

Thanks! I'm definitely going to have to try that first method.

[Eledhwen]

Yes, stringing them can be difficult. With these, twisting the limbs as you string them is not good, not good at all. My Scythian requires me to put one curve over the thigh, the grip section under the other thigh, and using a kind of pull up with the left hand and upward movement with the right thigh. Kneeling, or close to it, is the way it is done. There are other ways, but this one is the recommended one for my bow...and in fact there are carvings of Scythian archers stringing bows in just this manner.

I have a Samick Sage takedown recurve...a *very* nice bow.

Eledhwen

[Manveruon]

It occurs to me that I forgot to point out one of the biggest selling points of this bow (for me, at least), and basically the entire reason I put this thread up - it's super affordable. There are certainly many other horse bows out there of similar designs, and a more "period appropriate" finish, but at only $170, this bow beats almost every alternative, hands down. The exception being, perhaps, some of those off-brand Asian horse bows, which in my opinion are of dubious quality. I know several people who own bows of that kind, and most of them have been satisfied, but I know Samick has a good reputation, and having shot one of these bows myself now, I can safely say that they are great performers.

Overall, it was a combination of qualities that led me to recommend this bow - low price, compact size, extremely light weight, durable materials, simple traditional design, smooth draw and release, and the fact that they are readily available and easy to order. And as far as stringing, this particular design is a lot simpler than many other eastern style reflex/deflex bows with siyahs.

Also, I love Udwin's logic! It seems to me one of these bows would be highly appropriate as a Dwarvish weapon!

I would still love to get my hands on a nice Grozer or Kassai bow someday, but until I can afford one of those a little better, I think one of these customized a little will suit my purposes marvelously. The only real danger I see with these is that, as some of you have pointed out already, limb-twist of any kind can be extremely bad for a bow of this kind. I've already read a couple reviews from people who said they had had problems with this - but only from accidentally catching the string on something, or otherwise twisting the limb in an unusual way. If this happens, the bow can basically turn inside out, and possibly delaminate, but this is a design defect of most horse bows and other extreme recurves.

[Eledhwen]

Indeed, Samick is very affordable and very good quality. I have a Grozer Scythian...wound up having it made for me specifically due to some ordering confusion, which is nice...but yeah, Grozer is expensive and Kassai is right at the top. Fine weapons.

I think you've chosen well.

Eledhwen

[ineffableone]

It occurs to me that I forgot to point out one of the biggest selling points of this bow (for me, at least), and basically the entire reason I put this thread up - it's super affordable. There are certainly many other horse bows out there of similar designs, and a more "period appropriate" finish, but at only $170, this bow beats almost every alternative, hands down.

Yes that price I can see why you might opt for that over a $500 or so more traditional made one. And you could always "defarb" the Samick bow. Cover the White lettering with some leather wrap? Paint over the fiberglass limbs with some ornate design, or camo like pattern?

BTW the Samick SKB is one of the bows Ravenswood leather sells (though out of stock right now) http://www.ravenswoodleather.com/index. ... ct&id=1171

But that would mean their bow scabbards will fit this bow. http://www.ravenswoodleather.com/index. ... ct&id=1288

[Manveruon]

My thoughts exactly! I personally plan to wrap mine in leather to "de-farb" it, as you put it, haha. Eventually though, I'd love to get a Grozer horse bow. I've heard great things about those.

[Shadowhawk]

I have one of those with homemade leather handle. Shoots really well, easy to carry around and looks pretty good customized. Still holds well after 5 years of shooting about 100-300 arrows a day. I highly recommend it.

[Manveruon]

Well folks, today I picked up my new toy! Couldn't be more excited! As you can see from the pictures below, it fits nicely into the straps on my quiver, and should stay put quite will with some minor adjustment (many of you were wondering, way-back-when, what the straps on the quiver were actually for... well here ya' go!).

It's just as light as I remembered them being, and seems to be in perfect condition. My only gripe so far is that I ordered a 55# draw weight, but the bow is labeled as #50. It's not a big deal really, it's just that I had previously heard people say that these bows are sometimes marked as being somewhat heavier than they actually are, so I wanted to compensate a little, just in case. However, after giving it a few cursory pulls, I'd estimate the 50# marking to be fairly accurate, so I'm happy.

It is my intention to wrap the limbs in leather (probably a super-lightweight brown pigskin, with a heavier leather for the handle), and tie the ends off with some waxed linen cord, similar to most commercial horsebows out there these days. I think the overall effect will be really nice, and I ca even add some embellishment that way.

Also, as you may note in the below pictures, I have another project starting to shape up, and I wanted to give everyone here a little sneak-peek

Cheers!