howzit

[snowbeast]

Howzit all,

I'm Bruce from Kwa-Zulu natal South Africa.
I currently shoot a bow with more than one string and two wheels.

I'm really interested in going back to basics and learn Traditional Archery.

I once owned a bow made by a bushman in the traditional way. it was unfortunately stolen in a break in.

Nonetheless, I am very interested in the world of Trad Archery, maybe even making my own bow one day.  

Cheers,

Bruce

[KentuckyTJ]

Welcome from Kentucky!

[ChuckC]

Welcome to the site.  You can gain a lot of knowledge by attending and asking.

CHuckC

[Wudstix]

Stay tuned you'll learn alot.

[fujimo]

i saw the howzit, and knew exactly where that came from   :D  
i am originally from Weenen, in KZN- we have been living here for 7 years now!
welcome aboard.
Bruce, i also went down the whole 'progressive regression' path . guiding in the bushveldt, then turning to compound, then to percussion muzzle loaders, and finally to trad archery, and i must say once i got to trad - i hit a wall- there seems so little knowledge, or at the very least a huge reluctance to share knowledge. i got over here, discovered Trad Gang- and that was a huge game changer for me-i met a lot of great people, some in person. i struggled with my release for years-got that sorted out on here.
got all the help i needed with starting out at building my own bows, and there are  "real archery shops" over here- i could get all sorts of supplies right over the counter!!!
but there are a few trad guys that are around over there
Derek Norse, from norseman archery, on the south coast has a lot of stuff, there is also a guy from limpopo- check him out on the african chapter of this forum. there is PeeZee as well, and i think tradtusker too, and probably a few others that i am missing.
i will be coming out again soon, and would love to meet up with you there- maybe do some hunting- got some great friends and contacts in namibia- so might just also head over there for a month and hunt hard.    
that is probably the only advantage of having a safa passport, not having to pay the exorbitant rates these other poor folk have to pay    :D   . but that being said, i have always refused to pay for hunting in sa, always had lots of places to hunt. like the nam trip, i wont be paying anything, or maybe at the very least a very nominal sum- the one and only advantage maybe!!
if and when i do come over i could bring you things that you need, or at the very least ship some stuff over to you.
if you are interested in building your own wooden bows, there are some pretty good bow woods there- there is some osage there, white stinkwood, all the fruit/nut trees- pecan nut, apple, mulberry etc etc.
i could even send you some wood if need be. there is a strong safa medical community here in canada- and maybe could even try and get a pair of billets over to you, when they travel home( no i am not a quack- into the construction sector).
and for building glass bows, it doesnt really matter- but some beautiful red ivory, and wild olive especially will make beautiful veneers under clear glass.
building a one piece glass bow( recurve or longbow), is the quickest and easiest way to get a great shooter, building wooden bows is a greater skill- in some respects, takes more patience and verges on a "lot of feel" type skills- that take a little time to learn.
glass bows take a higher investment in set up and material costs, wooden bows take a greater investment in time and skill.
i love to build and shoot both.
fire any questions you have right back here, lots of great folk to help out!!
also check out the bowyers bench chapter on here- if you are keen on the building etc!

cheers
wayne

[Sam McMichael]

Welcome! This is a good site to learn all about trad archery.

[Stump73]

Welcome!

[snowbeast]

Thanks for the welcomes  

Thanks for all the info Wayne, I'm originally from Winterton, just down the road. I actually dated a Lady from Weenen. Awesome area. Love Zingela!

It would be good to meet up and maybe shoot a bit.
I've got a warthog waiting for me. As I don't have a Trad bow or any experience ill use the other one.  

Thanks for the offer, if I can't find anything here I will give you a shout. To be honest I just want a simple bow to start with.

[KyStickbow]

Welcome brother!

[hitman]

Welcome from wild and wonderful West Virginia!!

[fujimo]

yup, know mark and linda from zingela very well- mark was best man at my wedding- even though he is 20 years my senior! great folks- i used to guide for them on the river, and did a little hunt guiding for them too.
who was the gal from weenen, i will know her for sure! only a few hundred people in town, if that!
chat to derek norse- he  builds both glass and wooden bows.
good luck
stay in touch
cheers- ekse^ bru!       :D

[calgarychef]

Yes, the Howzit was a dead giveaway!  You'll find lots of good  information from the people here and the search function is great for mining information.  If you need anything shipped over there are lots of folks who can help you out myself included.

I know Wayne from his time in alberta when he was a cattle baron/outlaw cowboy.  Mark and Linda at Zingela are some of the best, if not the best Hosts I've ever encountered and their hunting area is good too    ive been recommending their outfit ever since Wayne took my family and I there.

Africa is perfect for your new love of traditional gear, there's less to go wrong with it and it's easy to fix compared to those wheeled contraptions.
So I guess you've found a new home to come to and discuss "things traditional" welcome.

Welcome from Texas!

Bisch

[Mudd]

Welcome to the Tradgang family.

I look forward to watching your growth on your journey.

God bless,Mudd

[snowbeast]

Thanks for all the replies.
There is a huge wealth of knowledge here.
Thank you.

[Stump73]

Welcome

[Jayrod]

Welcome from Pennsylvania!

[Cyclic-Rivers]

Welcome.