I am a gun nut as many people here are. I have a good selection of firearms to fill my needs for hunting and some for fun as well. Part of my preparedness is to keep a good supply of ammo on hand. I reload my own ammo where possible, and have a good stock of reloading components. For .22 rounds which cost about 250 bucks for a crate(5000 rounds) I usually have a few crates on hand as well.

Needless to say, I will not run out of ammo any time soon. But...........IF there is ever some need for long term self sustainment a few things are certain. Eventually the ammo will run dry and things will break.

There are other means to collect meat in a situation other that firearms I know, such as snares or traps. But I can always fall back on my trusty bow if the guns stop working.

The disadvantages are the fact that you need two arms to draw a bow so one cannot be injured, and you need the skills necessary to get close enough to your intended meal to take a shot, OR the skills to remain silent enough to wait for it to come within ambush range. Not exactly good for the beer bellies I know who shoot from their pick-up truck with a beer in one hand and a smoke hanging out of their lips.

With a bow you can re-use your arrows for a very long time, or you can make arrows if you lose the ones you have, you don't need powder, primers, shot or other material that may be in very limited supply or impossible to get in times of emergency. It allows for easy maintenance that can be done at home, They are effective at taking down a broad selection of game, silent and deadly. With a few spare parts it will last a whole lifetime.

A bow was around long before a rifle, and chances are they will be around long after.

This is why I have more fun bow hunting than hunting with a rifle. I still use my guns, especially for sheep at long ranges etc but The skills that allow you be successful at bow hunting are great survival skills in themselves by default. The challenge is greater but so is the reward.

With all the talk about survival guns here on the forum, I would like to see who else here considers their bow as being equal, if not a greater survival asset (depending on the situation) over a firearm should its use ever be necessary in a true SHTF situation.

Just curious

Actually, to go along with the bowhunting skills, I place equally high value on the ability to construct a good bow from locally available resources, and arrows, including stone points. If you can do this and then shoot the thing well enough to kill something, then you truly have been blessed.

My favorite bow was a Colt Longbow I used to have, it wasn't the fastest shooter, but with it I felt confident on anything inside of 30 yards. No fancy sights, no cams, just good shooting. Making cedar shafts with big feather vanes has been a challenge to get right, but when it is, it is like a treasure.

I consider the bow to be a better survival tool, just as I do a knife. As 1 poster has already pointed out, to use your weapon for defense, you've failed to keep a low enough profile (usually but not always).

A defensive weapon, while bugging out, is to buy enough time to make a "quick getaway" OR to get out of a corner so one can make a "quick getaway".

Having a firearm will sometimes get the user to action when they could have stayed still and avoided detection altogether.

As always, much depends on the numbers and level of organization that one is escaping and evading from.

One can learn to make arrows and bows, one can learn to make and sharpen a knife, but one requires a factory for primers, casings, and for most: bullets or molds.

After a major EMP event, the factories probably won't be working for years. Life could, conceivably regress back to the days of swords, armor, and bows,,,for a long time, after the ammo has been used up, including those reloading supplies that are available.

The ability to make a proper bow from what is found in the bush is an art that very few people still have. I would love to have such skill but realistically if it came down to it in the bush, I'd likely go the route of the snare...or a spear.

There might be another options however...

Last week my wife and I went to the provincial museum here in Edmonton which has a huge area dedicated to our aboriginal peoples. One weapon which was used by some tribes to hunt (and I forget it's proper name so forgive me) was basically a giant arrow about 3 feet long with a proportionally thick shaft. It was hurled at it's target using a throwing stick which had a very catapault like counter weight stone attached to it....apparently it was quite good at putting the hurt on buffalo. It reminded me of short spears I've seen which I think are used in Africa and also thrown with a stick to assist but these are much more sophisticated as the throwing stick is counter weighted, and the arrow has a stone head and is fletched just like a regular arrow.

I think a person could make such a contraption in the bush without too much practice...and the larger arrows would be easier to find plus harder to destroy.

Makes me want to go find a good straight stick and test it out.

Atl-atl

My DS had the opportunity (me paying for the class) to learn the basics of bowmaking: self bow/longbow. The real trick is getting the right wood. Of course, extreme patience is necessary when it snaps in half when you are tillering it (archery lingo).

You can find tons'o'info on ArcheryTalk.com. My DS is on there all the time getting info, tricks, blah, blah, blah Just like this forum for us.

Perhaps you should consider a Crossbow? Preferably one that uses a windlass to cock it.

Classically, The Bow takes years to master. A crossbow can be mastered in a few hours. Effective marksmanship can be taught in a few days.


I actually carry nylon cord in my survival kits specifically for use as a bow string. Like all synthetic cord it will stretch, but not to the same degree as 550 cord. Nylon cord has the advantage over classic bowstring materials like hemp of not being vunerable to damp.

It should be pointed out that you cannot realistically hope to take deer or other large game. Small game such as wild fowl and fish taken from a hide, boat or other concealment is a much more realistic proposition. At ranges of about 3 to 25 feet.

As an exercise for the student: Read everthing you can about the Longbow. Talk to a Bowyer if you get the chance. It will help you gain a far greater appreciation of the subject. I suggest that you start with Robert Hardy's book "Longbow" ISBN-10: 1558212353 or ISBN-13: 978-1558212350

It is avaiable on Amazon (I just checked and no, I am not associated with Amazon).

Crossbows can be very problematic in certain parts of the U.S.

As a side: I carry B-50 string in my EDC.

Thank you!

Now that I know what to Google, I like this tool all the more. I love innovation that is so effective yet so simple...even if it's 5 to 7 hundred years old.

I have made my own bow using multiple lengths of alder lashed together and believe it or not I used hide strips from a deer skin to lash the sticks and to make the string. The arrows are the hardest to make (getting them strait is a pain in the ass) and the arrow heads take a lot of effort. The first time I drew back the bow the string broke and I ended up punching myself in the face by accident. Lucky for me, no one was around to see. By the third attempt I had a solid string which could place an arrow on target reasonably well all things considered.

I am an ethical hunter so I never attempted to use it on anything living out of fear of maiming the poor critter. It was fun to make all the same.

Currently I use a PSC typhoon with 60-70 lb draw, 75% let off, with a cobra 3 pin sight, quicktune 360 capture rest and a hurricane buckle fold back release. I use 125 gr broad heads and dropped a nice fat doe with it last year. It's a far cry from a home-made bow, and actually cost more than most rifles.

The technique however, does not change and much skill is needed to get to within that 30 yard range. The more I hunt with my bow, the more my guns stay locked up. It’s really starting to grow on me more and more. The meat tastes so much better when you work your arse off to get it as well.



Why the heck not?