Beginner? heck no, I did make an arm guard before attempting this.

I use hockey tape on my grips. Cheap and works well

If Im on a smaller farm , and an hours walk or so from the car ..... its a bow,  back quiver , knife and torch , snake bandage in summer ....

anything further out and I carry a possible pouch or small back pack - poncho, 1st aid kit , thermos , water , snacks , spare woollen thermal shirt , spare tab , string , Leatherman , firestarting stuff


But in general I carry the bare minimum .... way less gear than I had started dragging around . I started hunting with a bow , knife , arrows .... getting back to it

Very nice! Tell me you're not a beginner.
I started  leather working when I wanted a leather grip for my longbow.
Dave.

Richard I really admire your attention to detail! Well done.

If you are gonna use beaver tail or leather you can wrap masking tape around the handle a few times then with a sharp razor cut down the center along the back and peel it off. That makes a perfect pattern for your wrap.

You can also put four strands of weed wip string inside the shaft for 75-100gr increase.

I'm a tree stand guy, my mobile setup weighs 16# and can double as a pack frame. I wear the harness and carry a first aid kit with emergency blankets 6x6 tarp, compass, knife, pull cord, linesman rope doubles as a drag rope. In total this is eighteen lbs with tree stand and sticks making up most of it.

The backing is a northern water snake over cow sinew. I think I used super glue in the crack and TBIII for the overlay. It was about 4 years ago but I believe that's what I used.

Beaver tail