LONGBOWS Richard Head Longbows, over 30 years of making fine tailor made English longbows, Longbow Arrows,how to youtube videos, Traditional Archery Accessories and re-enactment supplies.


	EMAIL: headbow@hotmail.com TEL : 01225 790452

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updated 1/02/21

01225 790452
Mon-Fri
9am-6pm
mobile
07951 668118

We at Richard Head Longbows have over 30 years experience in making quality Longbows (current waiting time 5 months for bows) and Arrows and supplying all the traditional archery equipment/accessories and materials via our fast (we are not a high street shop) mail order service. Items such as tabs, leather bracers, leather quivers, brass/steel piles, feather fletchings, 9/32 1/4 5/16 11/32 23/64 3/8 wooden arrow shafts, horn bow nocks, horn tips, knife blades, Archery books such as Hugh Soars new book out now Secrets of the English War Bow, plastic nocks, Lemonwood, bow staves, Longbow DIY kits, targets, fletching jigs, medieval replicas, Bodkins, Longbow strings, Longbow arrows and all Longbow accessories.
The Target bows we produce are The English Longbow based on the Victorian pattern (bows such as a Self Yew bow, Purple Heart Triple Laminate etc...) a time when the Longbow came into fashion as a sport for the upper classes.

A Recent Commission

A customer approached us to make a Triple Laminate Longbow with a gold arrow plate that has 3 diamonds set in it, the customer had the arrow plate made for him by a jeweler using a diamond ring the customer owned.

The Victoria and Albert Museum

Some of our workmanship has been on show in this commissioned piece of work at the `V and A` as part of the `uncomfortable truths` exhibition.
The exhibition has now closed.


Lindsay shooting a Victorian Style Bow	Richard Drawing a Medieval Style Bow

As well as The Victorian Longbow, the bow used mainly in competition shooting, we produce a wide variety of period bows, based on actual finds that have been examined at first hand. Such as the Mary Rose finds which we had the honor to examine at a behind the scenes visit to the Mary Rose museum, a visit we made with our fellow colleagues from
The Craft Guild of Traditional Bowyers and Fletchers, of which we are founder members

We also produce a wide variety of arrows, detailed museum quality arrows again based on actual finds and often incorporating the excellent work of Hector Cole's hand forged arrow heads, our years of archery experience goes into producing the matched sets of arrows for competition shooting, we believe in a well matched set of arrows, a variable most people don't take into account for accurate shooting.

Our Shooting Range

We are well known in the archery world, from the exciting simulated hunting techniques practiced in field shooting to the refinement of target archery and now more than ever the growing world of re-enactment.

We have been involved in all these variants of archery for many years, this allows us to understand everyone's needs and problems that may occur, from the complete novice who " just always fancied a "Longbow " to the experienced Longbow archer or indeed archers who have moved away from the Hi-Tec world of archery and have to come realise the simple beauty of owning and shooting the Longbow.

We have customers all around the globe from as far as Australia to the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, if your not that far away and able to make your collection (by appointment only) at the work shop please do, please be aware we are not a high street shop!(just give us a call first 01225 790452). We supply a range of extras for the traditional archer, from everything you will need to make you own arrows, to all you will need to make your own bow with our DIY Longbow kit or Longbow materials..

Our trading tent at an event in Bedford

If you visit to place your order, we can measure you up for your personally hand made Longbow and arrows, you can also collect your bow from us and try it out on our shooting range, this allows you to make the correct purchase and allows us to give first hand advice.

When we get free from the busy schedule at the workshop we can often be found at the various Re-enactment events up and down the country selling our wares dressed in period costume, we also have a small mobile museum where we talk to the public and give demonstrations of our Bowyery and shooting abilities with the Longbow. We also have given several successful seminars up and down the country in conjunction with Hector Cole who talks on the subject of medieval arrow heads and swords, along with his medieval bellows forge where you can watch him produce an arrow head, Hugh Soar also joins us and gives an excellent talk on the history of the Longbow in war and peace, he also brings with him his amazing collection of antique bows and artifacts.

Stages of the Yew bow

Richard in the workshop


Richard receiving his silver award for craftsmanship in Bowyery from the Master of the Worshipful Company of Bowyers	*Philip receiving his silver award*

At these seminars we bring along our knowledge of Bowyery and dispel some of the myths involved in making the self yew Longbow, from the selection of materials to the all important tillering to the final coat of varnish.

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