The Rack

Handmade bows for sale

These handmade bows are for sale one at a time: each is one of one, and each is built to be shot. If something here speaks to you, get in touch and we will talk draw weight, draw length and where the bow is headed. No carts, no checkout, just a conversation.

Pacific yew longbow with horn nocks

Aara Aara

Pacific yew "english" longbow · 55# @ 28"

Natural Backed " English" style longbow, horn nocks, stone arrow pass

$900 CADEnquire
Osage recurve

Osage Recurve #1

Recurve · 55# @ 28"

Truly osage just wants to be a bow. A fast short recurve, shot off the hand.

$1,000 CADEnquire
Pacific yew longbow

Ara

"English" Longbow · 55# @ 29"

Pacific yew " English" longbow with horn nock and stone arrow pass

Price on requestEnquire
Rawhide back yew flatbow

Iwin

Rawhide backed flatbow · 52# @ 28"

Classic flat bow with gently reflexed tips. Cutout horn arrow shelf. Horn tip overlays. fish leather grip. Smooth draw, dead quiet.

$1,000 CADEnquire
Pacific yew recurveReserved

Ogun

Pacific yew recureve · 55# @ 28"

Personal hunting recurve, made from an eceptionally dense stave, natural back, quick and quiet.

Price on requestEnquire

Sold bows stay on the site as part of the record. Commissions are open.

How it works

Handmade bows, sold one at a time

There is no cart on this site on purpose. A bow is fitted to a person the way a pair of boots is: draw length, draw weight, how you shoot and what you shoot at all change which bow on the rack is the right one, and sometimes the answer is that none of them are.

So an enquiry starts a conversation. Tell Christopher your draw length if you know it, roughly what weight you are shooting now, and whether the bow is for target, for stump shooting or for hunting. If a bow on the rack fits, he will say so. If it does not, he will say that too — a bow sold at the wrong weight gets shot twice and then hung up.

If you are shooting in British Columbia, note that the provincial hunting regulations set minimum draw weights by species, which is worth checking before you settle on a weight.

Payment is by e-transfer or card once the bow is confirmed, and bows ship from Salt Spring Island or are picked up at the workshop — most people collect theirs in person and meet the bowyer who built it at the same time.

Before you enquire

What should I know before buying?

What does a handmade bow cost?
Prices are listed on each bow on the rack and vary with the wood, the design and the work in the backing and overlays. A commission is quoted after the conversation about what you actually need, not before.
Can the draw weight be changed?
A finished bow can usually come down a few pounds, and never go up. That is why the conversation about draw weight happens before the bow is chosen rather than after it arrives.
Do you ship outside British Columbia?
Yes. Bows ship from Salt Spring Island across Canada and to the United States. Get in touch with your location and Christopher will work out the shipping before anything is confirmed.
What if nothing on the rack is right?
Then it becomes a commission. Christopher keeps seasoned staves on hand, so a bow built to your draw length and weight usually starts from wood that has already been waiting years for it.

Not seeing it?

Commissions are open

If nothing on the rack is right, a commission starts the same way: a conversation about how and where you shoot.

Ask about a commissionTell Christopher what you are after↗