We all know costs are continuing to go up on everything, but that being said, if you were in the market for a new self bow, what would you think a fair market price for one would be. No brand in particular, just a nice self bow by a known bowyer?

Well remember twisted limbs? Ryan Gill. When he first started making selfbows he was asking like $350.00 now his bows are quite a bit higher in price. He has made a name for himself though.

A well know bowyer of selfbows charges in the neighborhood of $600.00

I intended to say well known.

Ryan’s Osage hunter goes for over $2000.00 now. Yes that includes shipping.

Mike Yancey at Pine Hollow starts at $1,200...

Ted Frye at Raptor starts his Yew flatbows at $750.00.

Wow. That’s a lot of money. But good for him. The American way. Get what you can.

good grief...... I had no idea, hadn't looked in ages. I'll have to do some research.

I do understand that the making of a truly excellent self bow takes not only exceptional skill, but is also an Art. An Artist is free to ask any amount they want for their skills and time, and there are always some people who will pay any price. Or you can put it on EBay starting at $.99 and see what happens. Personally I view the Uber-Fancy wood custom bows as jewelry and have no use of it, but I am just a Deplorable. There must be a huge market for this Art as all the custom bowyers are backed up at least a year. Good For Them!

If you knew how much work went into building a good selfbow you would understand the high price commanded by a reputable Bowyer. I was talking with John McCullough about his career building bows. He started out building selfbows and said he had too much labor into them to make a living so he started building laminated bows. He said he had roughly 10 hrs of build time into a laminated bow.

I used to dabble at making my own back in the early 90's. I may have to have a go at it again. May even have a stave or two tucked away somewhere. Got more time than money now days anyway.

Ryan got fame and fortune, that’s why he charges so much.

Well Ryan sure but his heart and soul into a bow. Heck he use to start a fire for the bbq only with a bow drill. Pretty hard core;)

I have never owned a selfbow but thought i read they only last a few years if shot a lot. Seems that be a price killer to me if its true.

Every selfbow maker will put his heart and soul into his or her bows, especially those destined for others. Fair price? That depends on what the maker asks actually, and what you're willing to pay. A well made selfbow will last you a lifetime but there's no guarantee with a 'selfbow'. It can blow up in five shots. And about the only thing they can logically warranty is workmanship.

Guys with loose pockets don't mind spending bundles so those are the guys custom bowyers lean to anyway. Us Goodwill shoppers, eh...not so much. :) I'm glad I have all the bows I need, including a beautiful selfbow that was gifted to me. It is awesome and superbly made. Spend what you have and what you think is fair, not someone else's idea of what is or what ain't. :)

Boker a well made selfbow will out last any of us.

If i were you Bruce i would go back to making your own. I just finished a hickory bow today. It's a lot of work but very satisfying.

It's hard to put a price on that many hours of labor.Having said that most ~$200-400.Ive sold several Torges bows that were for sale awhile at $600.

I once sold a red fox quiver with a sinew backed and snake skin back Osage plains native bow with 3 arrows made from scratch for 400 bucks. If you break it down I was working for less than 5 dollars an hour. Wished I had it back, but at the time I needed the money.

No selfbow is worth more than $750.

About a week's wages

"I have never owned a selfbow but thought i read they only last a few years if shot a lot. Seems that be a price killer to me if its true."

It's not. Guys on here have bows shot often for decades.

What people are willing to pay however high that might be. At least that's what they teach in economics. Apparently it works for gasoline, why shouldn't work for bows?

Practically any person can make their own bow. Few can make their own gasoline.

I wish I had something smart to say. This is a bit of a new question. Jeez I would never buy one. The personal "self " is so much cooler than the literal backing definition. Go build one or pay to learn. It's worth every penny. It's an awesome experience.

Runner you make me laugh. What would a record braking flight bow be worth. The record alone should be worth something. Heck it cost me thousands to get there and back . Not to mention the time in the bow and all the time in other bows to get to that point. Yes there are bows worth more than $750. But I haven’t charged over $800 for one. No I don’t have time to build anyone a bow right know. I building my house.????????

Was looking at Ryan Gills site and he has 2 models listed for over $2700 and nothing less than $1200.

"What's a fair price" when both parties are satisfied when the deal is done.

Right! In many regions there are good amateur bowyers who do it as a hobby. Find one and he may sell you a bow for a modest price. - lbg

Master bowyer John Strunk is selling various bows on his website for $515 - $550 plus shipping. You can't do much better than that!

SD

I agree Strunk bows are a bargain at $550.

Go to different shoots, try many bows, find the one you can't live without and meet the asking price. Or try to dicker it down.

You can put a $1600-2200 tag on them, but that doesn't mean they are moving off the shelf. That's often how you curb your bow sales because you don't want to build that many and if somebody "ignorant" enough to pay 2k for a stick of wood comes along, well then stuff those pockets. $500-600 is comfortable. A self bow can easily be built in the same amount of time a glass sandwich can be. 6-12 hours of hands on, with experienced hands, will make a self bow.

“Fair market price” assumes all bows are basically equivalent which we all know is not true. Each bowyer establishes what they consider to be a “fair” price. You can agree or disagree by voting with your wallet.

I guess for me it’s a personal thing.

I don’t sell a lot of bows and the only ones I’ve bought were at benifit auctions.

I’m not a good salesman. I don’t really want to make it a job either. I think there are a lot of guys and gals like me out there.

I think selfbows are as individual as the bowyers that make them. And even selfbows made by the same bowyer.

I know some just by looking at them. The tips. The tiller, the finish.

Some very fancy, with hours of extra work put into skins, leather work, details, overlays and arrow passes. Artwork.

Some are very simple and their beauty is in their simplicity and function. They are made to be shot and enjoyed without worry of scratching them.

Some are replica and built to specific dimensions and from specific materials. Made with authentic tools.

Some are combinations of all the above.

Some are also junk.

It’s all very personal for me. I don’t really have a what’s a selfbow worth price.

I would give it a range of $0 to whatever it takes to get it if you really like it.

I don’t see any reason they can’t be valued like any other art.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and in this case the hands of the beholder to.

Bjrogg

Guess that doesn’t really give you a $ amount, but it’s my answer to that difficult and often asked question.

Good point Pearl. John does have some very nice looking bows on his site in a reasonable price range.

I remember about 10 years ago I and a friend were walking around an archery expo and ran across a well known wood bowyers booth. I was shocked at the total lack of quality and attention to detail the bow had, only second to the insane price tag. Sadly, the reputation that bowyer promoted of himself sold those bows. I feel bad for the buyers, but it's their money. Hind sight is 20/20, hopefully they learned something about self promotion and how it equates to quality.

Every year we see modern laminated bows come unglued....along with their owners. :) Value is a personal thing so it's basically your call. Frankly I find myself grabbing my osage bow when I hit the woods, mainly because it's so simple and so dang accurate, and of course light to carry all day. Now that I'm closer to 80 than 70, I find it even more delightful on a long day's trek. And, it will probably be here and usable when my old arse isn't around anymore.

I have made a few self bows in the past. I have also made a few laminated bows, although not really fancy or what you would call professional. When I compare the amount of time spent on each, the self bow took much longer. Now I am sure a professional bowyer would be much faster, the point is, it takes a good deal of time to make a self bow that is pleasing to the eye, and shoots well. When a bowyer sets a price on his work, the decision is easy; you either pay the price or pass.

Only you can answer the question of what is reasonable. If you think something is worth a certain amount, who is anyone else to tell you otherwise. With all things though remember this. Just because something costs twice as much, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s twice as good.

"Runner you make me laugh. What would a record braking flight bow be worth. The record alone should be worth something. Heck it cost me thousands to get there and back . Not to mention the time in the bow and all the time in other bows to get to that point. Yes there are bows worth more than $750. But I haven’t charged over $800 for one. No I don’t have time to build anyone a bow right know. I building my house.????????"

So you're saying I'm right? lol

Nobody cares much about all that other stuff when buying. A record flight bow is already second hand too.

Yes runner I would not pay $500 cause I can build those kind of bows . I have paid more than $800 dollars for a glass bow before but it’s been a long time. Now mine are faster anyway. The answer has been given . Pay what you think it’s worth. If you get screwed. You will learn a lesson. I think we all have learned a few lessons in buying at some point. Some used bows are worth more than $750!! Lol

Yes runner I would not pay $500 cause I can build those kind of bows . I have paid more than $800 dollars for a glass bow before but it’s been a long time. Now mine are faster anyway. The answer has been given . Pay what you think it’s worth. If you get screwed. You will learn a lesson. I think we all have learned a few lessons in buying at some point. Some used bows are worth more than $750!! Lol

I can build them bows to and I don’t have a very big budget for myself.

When I first started I had zero interest in buying a bow. I only wanted to learn how to make one myself.

Now I know several bowyers I would love to buy a bow from if I had the funds. I don’t so I just admire their work the only way I can. If I had the funds though I wouldn’t hesitate and I would certainly value some of their work pretty high.

And then you see what people pay for the latest and greatest compound. Plus all the accessories.

Bjrogg

I do think certain things make certain bows more valuable. A baseball is worth a few bucks . Somebody hits it and it’s all the sudden worth thousands or more. It’s just a used ball.

There was a guy in Maine that built and sold Penobscots for $1700 that was about 18 years ago.

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