I admit this will likely cause some to stir but is traditional archery getting more like technical traditional archery. I don't mean this as a negative in any way. We all have our shooting choices and no matter what they are, it's all good. But it seems that more shoots I go to, the more likely I'll see more ILF/Metal riser bows and more advanced shooting methods than I have seen in previous years. I agree we all look for that edge, whether it's a new performance enhanced bow or carbon arrows or whatever we think is going to make us more successful. And I guess my point is are we losing our passion for the simpler bow, the wood arrows and the acceptance of our limitations of our equipment. I'll say it again more power to you if you are using every available advantage to make you better either on the line or in a tree. But for me as I sit and look over a classic bow of mine that is not made anymore and I wonder, will a day come where the simple pleasure of traditional archery will be lost. I certainly hope not. And yes I realize that everyone has their own definition of what that means. I guess I'm getting old.
For every shooter that goes the metal route, we gain at least one into the more traditional side. If you need to see it for yourself, you should come to the Tennessee Classic.
I shoot both but my wood has soul[emoji16]
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Nope. You really need to look no further than this site. The "HH Bug Got Me-Part Two" thread is up to 254 pages now and this is part two. The first HH thread was archived as it was too big. I shoot a league occasionally and don't think I've seen a metal ILF rig there yet. In regards to those bows though I will quote a Seinfeld line, "not that there's anything wrong with that". Different strokes for different folks. I may even own one someday.
I really don't think it is so much what the riser is made of as it is that we're still pulling one string and holding full weight.
Metal risers have been around for a long time and ILF has also, its just another bow. Look at the string materials we have and let's not forget carbon arrows. They all have their place it's just more to enjoy.
I think my old metal riser compound warfed into an ILF is pretty sexy:)
(http://i.imgur.com/2Kh4fmX.jpg) (https://imgur.com/2Kh4fmX)
But I make BBO bows and have a bunch of wood riser bows.
And this old wooden bear TD is a favorite..
[attachment=1,msg2856877]
I have and love an old Bear mag riser TD. It isn't wood, but the utter nostalgia of holding it in my hand makes me feel a connection to our history that is utterly romantic. While I am not personally a fan of the new generation of metal risers, if folks like them, I see no harm in them.
For me, wood bows have heart. They come from living trees, they are meticulously crafted by real artisans, and they are as gorgeous as they are lethal.
While there will always be those who experiment with or prefer the newest bow material out there, I believe that there will also be many who choose the allure of a gorgeous wood bow. Either way, I think traditional archery will remain alive and well.
Claudia
The other way to look at it is as a challenge. Learn to beat more hi-tech bows with your wood bow. There's really no downside. Everybody expects the more hi-tech bow to beat you anyway; if that happens, nobody notices. If you beat them, people notice! Rick Welch used to do this regularly when he would enter competitions with his wood recurve against compounds and win. I doubt that I could do it, but as I say, there's really no downside....
Nah..... I don't recall anyone having a Metal riser in the camps I've been in the last 20 years.
Aesthetically, I don't like the metal riser bows as much as I do the "more traditional" bows, but other than that, they are just fine. I know that some of the guys I see at shoots do very well with them. I don't know if there is a technical advantage, or if these guys just do their work as archers. Shoot 'em if you like 'em, I won't complain.
Taking over? ...definately not. Taking a share of the trad world?...absolutely.
The metal risers and modern materials are technologically superior to the older ways/materials. This will serve to give options to the techy oriented people and gearheads who have an interest in traditional archery as well as provide a natural and comfortable transition away from the compound world. Also, ILF rigs make a TON of sense practically speaking for those who want multiple limb weights for various uses or those who are trying to grow into a heavier weight bow. They have their place and I feel in all honesty it's a good thing to have these options available and it can only help broaden our sport that we love so much.
However, common aspects of traditional archery that most people involved in the sport like is the nostalgia, simpler ways of doing things, the break from technology, the intrinsic beauty of pretty woods, the graceful forms of various bows and the craftsmanship displayed by bowyers, and handcrafted arrows/quivers. Mass produced, metal ILF risers just aren't going to ever appeal to this side of the sport and it certainly isn't going to satisfy those of us who want to make their own equipment.
I don't think anything is getting lost from the sport as a result of technological improvements. The trad archery world is just expanding a bit and therefore we see more "new" technology but it isn't actually squeezing out the old in my opinion.
It all just goes in cycles. When I first started bow hunting around 1975 I was using a garage sale Darton Magnesium handle recurve. Two years later I was shooting a Howard Hill Shedua handle bamboo limb long bow. There were several magnesium handle recurve hunting bows from Bear, Groves, Etc. back then. The eighties and early nineties were held by a thread with the Robertson/Asbell/Great Northern/Bear/Martin wood handle bows along with a few smaller dealers. We then came back around with the WARFED compound handles and then the machined aluminum handles with ILF fittings. I'm pretty sure it'll cycle again, so hang onto those wood handles 😆.
I don't know what answer is best. When I had a takedown bow build for my water buffalo hunt, the Bowyer didn't feel comfortable with wood for the weight, and the first phenolic riser that he built broke when he strung the bow. We both felt more comfortable with a bulletproof aluminum riser. I have acquired one more aluminum ilf riser, and just picked up a set of recurve limbs for it and a special adapter for a hog light for hunting hogs at night. Honestly, I think it is the best setup I have seen, with the exception that longbow limbs would be more quiet. I probably wouldn't use this bow other than for the purpose of hog hunting at night, but who knows. I sure like handling and looking at my pretty wood bows more, but for me I don't feel that I have to be limited to one or the other. They had metal riser trad bows before I was born.
I have a selection of both, all shoot well and I enjoy my metal risers as much as my Hills......it's all good. :thumbsup: :campfire:
Quote from: Sam McMichael on March 11, 2019, 08:47:58 PM
Aesthetically, I don't like the metal riser bows as much as I do the "more traditional" bows, but other than that, they are just fine. I know that some of the guys I see at shoots do very well with them. I don't know if there is a technical advantage, or if these guys just do their work as archers. Shoot 'em if you like 'em, I won't complain.
This.
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It's all good - and all traditional.
It all goes in cycles and locations. Over the years Ive seen short bows hot for a while, ILFs have been for a few years now for those that like to constantly play with limbs weight/length/brands/cores. Widows,Palmers,ACSs etc, will get popular in an area if one person gets one and shoots well, others follow. You will have one group that leans vintage Bear,Pearson, whatever. The self bow guys. Old English or horsebow group. And some like me that find bows we like and shoot well and keep for 10 yrs or more. Its all good..................
I have one metal bow. It's a Bear T/D Mag built in the early 70's. Everything else I own is, and always will be wood.
The Bear magnesium TD risers are pretty traditional. I have 2 and I like them. But, if I were buying something new I would probably stick to wood.
Quote from: hvyhitter on March 12, 2019, 11:53:25 AM
It all goes in cycles and locations. Over the years Ive seen short bows hot for a while, ILFs have been for a few years now for those that like to constantly play with limbs weight/length/brands/cores. Widows,Palmers,ACSs etc, will get popular in an area if one person gets one and shoots well, others follow. You will have one group that leans vintage Bear,Pearson, whatever. The self bow guys. Old English or horsebow group. And some like me that find bows we like and shoot well and keep for 10 yrs or more. Its all good..................
Same thoughts I was having.
Started shooting in winter of 69. My bow was the only bow in the club that wasn't a metal riser. I recall only seeing one wooden riser that whole winter.
"traditional" archery implies wooden stick and a string and complimentary wooden arrows. do bow and arrow materials really matter? to say that true traditional archery/bowhunting requires selfbows, hemp strings and woodies would mean that 10% of trad bowhunters are traditional and the rest are not.
let's face it ....
1. most of us like WOOD bows, but they're not all wood and at the very least incorporate space age components such as glass, glues and resin finishes (yeah, there ARE all wood selfbows, but they are in the strict minority)
2. the vast majority of bowstrings are made with HMPE, which is a total "space age" material
3. arrows - do i need to say more?
so literally, threads like this are counterproductive and attempt to make objective out of something that's totally subjective. there is NO need to argue over "what's traditional archery/bowhunting?" because it's always about a .....
STICK and STRING. that's all that matters. pick wood, pick metal (yuk! :) ) or have a bow made of some unobtanioum "space age" material, whatever - as long as it's a stick and string longbow, recurve, or some combination of those two styles.
Quote from: PrimitivePete on March 11, 2019, 05:09:10 PM
I admit this will likely cause some to stir but is traditional archery getting more like technical traditional archery. I don't mean this as a negative in any way. We all have our shooting choices and no matter what they are, it's all good. But it seems that more shoots I go to, the more likely I'll see more ILF/Metal riser bows and more advanced shooting methods than I have seen in previous years. I agree we all look for that edge, whether it's a new performance enhanced bow or carbon arrows or whatever we think is going to make us more successful. And I guess my point is are we losing our passion for the simpler bow, the wood arrows and the acceptance of our limitations of our equipment. I'll say it again more power to you if you are using every available advantage to make you better either on the line or in a tree. But for me as I sit and look over a classic bow of mine that is not made anymore and I wonder, will a day come where the simple pleasure of traditional archery will be lost. I certainly hope not. And yes I realize that everyone has their own definition of what that means. I guess I'm getting old.
in a word to all you've posted -
NOyer making argumentative statements that have no validity in the world that most of us are steeped in - traditional stick and string bows.
the MATERIALS used to make these bows and arrows are SUBJECTIVE and will only satisfy YOUR taste. not mine or anyone else.
but yes, i prefer a bow who's core material is wood and not cold metal. :readit:
so what? :dunno: :wavey: :campfire:
Agree Rob - 100%
are metal riser stickbows on the rise? i don't know or care. :dunno:
is there a reason to be concerned about metal riser stickbows as opposed to wood composite bows? not from my perspective. :nono:
do some folks think that metal riser stickbows are in some manner a "heresy" to the sport of traditional bowhunting? probably, but so what? :dunno:
do i like metal riser stickbows? not at all, and that's just personal preference. :nono:
do i think lesser of trad bowhunters who use metal riser stickbows? hell no! :nono:
can we all sit by the campfire, get along and sing "kumbaya"? :campfire: :wavey:
:deadhorse:
Metal has been around a very long time.
I put down bows with metal risers, (wheelie bows), over 25 years ago and with no regrets. For me, metal risers lack character and soul. Take any wooden bow, even though it may be the same model, they all are different due to the wood grain. There is a huge difference when you grab a wooden riser verses a metal riser on a frosty morning.
My compound doesn't have a metal riser.
I think maybe a part of his question was geared towards competitive shooting as in does they give better performance thus an edge with all else being equal. Do they provide a consistency from shot to shot that wood cannot?
Like groups not allowing string walking or crawling as an aiming method.
Personally wood just "feels" better to me in the hand and in the soul.
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I'm shooting a metal riser right now and I hunted with it this past season. I'm still shooting it off the shelf like my wood bows. I went metal simply because I wanted to try and ILF bow simply for the availability of good limbs at an inexpensive price. It's nice to be able to call Lancaster and have a set of limbs in a matter of days. This allowed me to get multiple sets of limbs in multiple weights. Light limbs for working on form and heavier sets to hunt with. I could have had a wood ILF riser built and I probably will but the metal ones are more inexpensive in comparison and I wasn't sure if I'd really like the ILF setup. The advantages I've perceived with the metal riser is as follows: 1. Weight. I like heavy mass weight bows. The heavier the better. I'm shooting a WF19 riser and it weighs like 3.6 pounds riser alone. 2. Grip. I can shoot with a medium wrist grip that I have altered and it is fantastic. Also because of the strength of metal the grip can be thinner which helps me a bit for accuracy. 3 is just simply durability. I can spray paint it. I can drag it across screw steps, throw it out of the tree when I miss, etc. and I can't hurt it. As far as shooting, I shoot it exactly the same as I shoot my wood bows so not much difference there. The metal riser bows are probably more accurate due to how stiff they are but I doubt it's much more than your average bowhunter would notice. John Demmer can shoot a score with his Timberpoint longbow that can leave your jaw on the floor! The ability to shoot different grips on the metal riser has allowed me to find out what the perfect grip is for me. In fact, I am sending my favorite wood recurve in to a bowyer to have him reshape the grip to these specs.
So who is going to decide what is traditional and what is not? Do we get to vote?
Personally, I don't see a lot more metal riser bows at archery shoots or in the woods. Certainly no more than back in the 1970's when Bear Archery, Ben Pearson, and many other major companies offered metal riser bows. What I see is that traditional archers today have many more choices to pick from. There is also a lot more information online regarding equipment choices and shooting technique. Seems to me that Bear Archery and every other archery company for that matter was constantly looking to improve their bows and equipment. Do you really think that ole Fred would want nothing to do with carbon limbs, supercurve limbs, and carbon arrow shafting?
Quote from: JohnV on March 13, 2019, 10:15:37 AM
So who is going to decide what is traditional and what is not? Do we get to vote?
....
if it's a stick and string i'll call it "traditional" .... or maybe "modern traditional" as opposed to "1950's traditional" as opposed to "1873 traditional" as opposed to "medieval traditional" as opposed to "before recorded history traditional".
this is all pretty silly stuff. :laughing:
I don't think they're taking over, but I'm certainly seeing more and more of them being used. I'm not a fan of the looks of them, but to me they're no doubt easier to shoot well. Heavier mass weight and so easy to tune translates into tighter groups.
We're a widely varied group of folks in this sport. Some of us are more attracted to the nostalgia of the old ways, some are more tech oriented. I still shoot wood arrows exclusively, yet I know the advantages to carbon. I just like them better. At the ranges I hunt wood works just fine. I like selfbows too, but I usually hunt with a glass longbow because I shoot it better.
I think the variety of bows and shooters is a good thing. Gives us lots to talk about. :archer2:
Quote from: Rob DiStefano on March 13, 2019, 10:24:46 AM
Quote from: JohnV on March 13, 2019, 10:15:37 AM
So who is going to decide what is traditional and what is not? Do we get to vote?
....
if it's a stick and string i'll call it "traditional" .... or maybe "modern traditional" as opposed to "1950's traditional" as opposed to "1873 traditional" as opposed to "medieval traditional" as opposed to "before recorded history traditional".
this is all pretty silly stuff. :laughing:
Rob I prefer the post civil war/pre-industrial revolution era traditional bow hunting myself.
What I see? a huge influx of IPA drinkers vs a "traditional" larger drinker either after a shoot or around the campfire! IPA drinkers are taking over!!
i think the main thing is to not splinter up traditional bowhunting into factions.
as time and progressive political cultures move forward with their radical agendas of change, we need to be one traditional bowhunting family to fight for our traditional bowhunting rights.
stick to yer subjective idea of what "traditional archery/bowhunting" is and be tolerant and respectful of other folks who may differ, as long as it's all a stick 'n' string.
:campfire:
Quote from: Rob DiStefano on March 13, 2019, 10:24:46 AM
Quote from: JohnV on March 13, 2019, 10:15:37 AM
So who is going to decide what is traditional and what is not? Do we get to vote?
....
if it's a stick and string i'll call it "traditional" .... or maybe "modern traditional" as opposed to "1950's traditional" as opposed to "1873 traditional" as opposed to "medieval traditional" as opposed to "before recorded history traditional".
this is all pretty silly stuff. :laughing:
....LOL!!
I have been amused with this topic since 8AM....still laughin!!!
:wavey:
ok...lets get serious....(I'll try but I'm still laughin...)
If yer bow riser contains more than 73.6 percent non-man made materials then..sorry but you don't qualify as a bonaified traditional bowhunter...
I hunt with a wood riser bow, a Wes Wallace Mentor, a pretty thing but it's 47# so for 3-D I shoot a Titan riser ILF with BF Extreme limbs. It's about 42# and I can shoot it all day without strain. And to be perfectly honest, if someone were to hold a gun to my head and tell me to pick the bow to make the shot or else, I'd pick the Titan any day.
At 70+ years old, one thing I have learned and compel myself to do, is not judge others who may use different equipment than I do.
And therefore I'd appreciate the same courtesy out of others I may meet along my path.
I knew this thread was going to cause controversy as soon as I read the first post.
Any bow with just a string fits my compliance just fine, as do other weapons another person may decide to shoot, but not I myself.
Yeah I can tell it's still not bow season
Tim B
Traditional archery is just a shorthand way to say shooting single string bows of various types. People have always upgraded equipment whenever new things became available and metal, sights and various aiming methods have been around for a long time.
Really the wood everything crowd are just bow hipsters... They "liked it before it was cool," wear plaid shirts, have beards, rave about their latest artisinally crafted toy, etc. :laugh:
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Quote from: cwegga on March 13, 2019, 02:46:26 PM
Traditional archery is just a shorthand way to say shooting single string bows of various types. People have always upgraded equipment whenever new things became available and metal, sights and various aiming methods have been around for a long time.
Really the wood everything crowd are just bow hipsters... They "liked it before it was cool," wear plaid shirts, have beards, rave about their latest artisinally crafted toy, etc. :D
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
There are probably ways to convey your opinion without being insulting.
Quote from: cwegga on March 13, 2019, 02:46:26 PM
Traditional archery is just a shorthand way to say shooting single string bows of various types. People have always upgraded equipment whenever new things became available and metal, sights and various aiming methods have been around for a long time.
Really the wood everything crowd are just bow hipsters... They "liked it before it was cool," wear plaid shirts, have beards, rave about their latest artisinally crafted toy, etc. :D
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Hey hey now! I wear plaid, recently shaved my beard, have all wood bows and like craft beer! :)
My limbs have wood cores... but that is the only wood on my current rig.
(http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x409/manehonkie/20180723_204714.jpg) (http://s1180.photobucket.com/user/manehonkie/media/20180723_204714.jpg.html)
(http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x409/manehonkie/20180818_153314.jpg) (http://s1180.photobucket.com/user/manehonkie/media/20180818_153314.jpg.html)
I dreesed it up with a sweet camo paint job though.
Definatly not taking over and never will.Your always going to see lots of various sorts of more traditional longbows,hybrids,50s style recurves,60s style recurves selfbows made from wood and glass or all wood.
I think ILF really changed the landscape with metal risers becoming in vogue in recent years.They certainly have their benefits.I did ILF for awhile.Its a cool system thats very versatile for many reasons.
I am all back to one and 2 piece bows mostly now.I like the look,feel,light weight,aesthetics and how they handle.Sure they have more soul.
Its really all comes down to personel choice.Or no choice at all and you shoot anything and everything.
Quote from: Steelhead on March 13, 2019, 04:57:27 PM
....
Its really all comes down to personel choice.Or no choice at all and you shoot anything and everything.
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
I hate craft beer and can't grow a beard.
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I guess I really never paid attention to what other people were shooting. It really doesn't matter as long as I'm shooting what I want to shoot and enjoying it.
Quote from: pdk25 on March 13, 2019, 03:09:27 PM
Quote from: cwegga on March 13, 2019, 02:46:26 PM
Traditional archery is just a shorthand way to say shooting single string bows of various types. People have always upgraded equipment whenever new things became available and metal, sights and various aiming methods have been around for a long time.
Really the wood everything crowd are just bow hipsters... They "liked it before it was cool," wear plaid shirts, have beards, rave about their latest artisinally crafted toy, etc. :D
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
There are probably ways to convey your opinion without being insulting.
Agreed.. No need for the negativity. At 32 I guess I'm a millennial, but most of the wood bow shooting, wool/plaid wearing guys you are trying to scrutinize here don't even know what a hipster is.. That kinda talk can go to the "other" trad site or one of the western forums where a pissing match gets peoples rocks off.
I wear wool, I where sitka, I wear Kuiu, I where Walmart or on a fancy day Target! Whatever!
Wood bows, arrows and the traditional nostalgia aren't going anywhere.. I feel like the ASL craze is getting bigger, and with social media, the beautiful wood combination bows are taking on even more steam! Form, arrow set ups, clickers, etc may be getting a little more prevalent, but that's just folks wanting to shoot the best that they can, and having access to more knowledge through these social media outlets.
I think that things are advancing from a competitive 3d perspective though, and guys will take whatever advantage they see fit and remain legal in order to have the "edge." Metal risers, plungers, fancy colors, and Olympic style form may become the norm tom some extent in the big shoots. So be it! I go to shoots to walk a course with buddies and have fun anyway! There are a lot more people in our sport now that are not necessarily trad bowhunters anymore, and are simply competitive archers or weekend warriors that like the advantage of a smaller / less competitive class, and doesn't require a car payment to get involved in. So metal risers, plungers, fancy colors, and Olympic style form are going to be the norm here.
I personally have never gotten into the metal/ILF, but have friends that love it! I grew up working at an archery store, and went to trad because I got so tired of messing with everyone else's compound BS issues, so the last thing I want is to have to mess with more screws on my bow! Haha no, I guess im just an old soul and love beautiful wood bows and the life they hold within.
To each there own, and just keep loosing a string!
I don't know what the big deal is. Metal bows were a thing before most people posting here were even born. Same with sights, elevated rests and pretty much everything else that some people look down on in the name of not being "traditional."
Quote from: GCook on March 13, 2019, 06:31:57 PM
I hate craft beer and can't grow a beard.
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Yeah, well I can't help with the beard, but when I come down to my place near Pittsburgh I'll bring you some of my beer. It may be too much for you, but I guarantee you won't remember not liking it !
Quote from: Yooper-traveler on March 13, 2019, 09:09:24 PM
Quote from: GCook on March 13, 2019, 06:31:57 PM
I hate craft beer and can't grow a beard.
Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk
Yeah, well I can't help with the beard, but when I come down to my place near Pittsburgh I'll bring you some of my beer. It may be too much for you, but I guarantee you won't remember not liking it !
And I'll put you on some pigs! But my place is near Abilene.
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I recently picked up a metal riser ilf setup to mess around with. While it doesnt have the feel or soul of a wood riser but it does offer many more tuning options and is more stable to shoot. Really it all comes down to what you want out of your shooting. If you want nostalgia or simplicity then by all means shoot a wood bow, but if your chasing tuneability, accuracy or the ability to quickly swap from one draw weight to another for different purposes while not breaking the bank then a metal ilf riser is the way to go.
Quote from: PrimitivePete on March 11, 2019, 05:09:10 PM
And I guess my point is are we losing our passion for the simpler bow, the wood arrows and the acceptance of our limitations of our equipment.
Another way to look at it is more and more bow hunters are losing their passion for
over complicated gadgets and are reverting to
simpler bows. A metal riser bow with a thin grip feels more "normal" to a convert than a beefy takedown recurve riser, and isn't quite as much of a change.
I remember reading "back in the day" that bows with aluminum limbs were marketed for a time. I even read that somebody bought surplus wings from WWII bombers to make them. Do any of you really old timers recall this, and, did it stir as much controversy over being non-traditional or too techy as we have seen lately?
In the end, a riser, be it metal or wood, is just a device to hold the limbs. The limbs are the heart and soul of a bow and define its performance.
Quote from: Sam McMichael on March 13, 2019, 10:21:11 PM
I remember reading "back in the day" that bows with aluminum limbs were marketed for a time. I even read that somebody bought surplus wings from WWII bombers to make them. Do any of you really old timers recall this, and, did it stir as much controversy over being non-traditional or too techy as we have seen lately?
That would have been Fred Bear himself. The only controversy really was that the idea ended up not working well as many of them delaminated and had to be replaced.
Quote from: GCook on March 13, 2019, 09:58:45 PM
Quote from: Yooper-traveler on March 13, 2019, 09:09:24 PM
Quote from: GCook on March 13, 2019, 06:31:57 PM
I hate craft beer and can't grow a beard.
Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk
Yeah, well I can't help with the beard, but when I come down to my place near Pittsburgh I'll bring you some of my beer. It may be too much for you, but I guarantee you won't remember not liking it !
And I'll put you on some pigs! But my place is near Abilene.
Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk
I'm the kind of guy to take you up on that sir!
Metal seems pretty traditional to me. My first two TD recurves in the mid 70's were metal riser bows. One was a Herters perfection magnum and the other was a Bear B riser. You can argue looks but "traditional? I don't think so.
I came to trad archery from shooting compounds for years.
My idea was to set up the most "BA" trad bow ever....short little thing, multipin tritium "modern" sight from my compound, release aid, carbon arrows, expandable heads....the whole deal.
Basically didn't even try to shoot it with my fingers.
Took me quite a while...but finally I decided to "simplify" my rig....in quotes cause it still wasn't all that simple...lol
Stripped her down and got my self a tab and some woodies.
....That's when it became FUN!
Everyone needs to walk their own path as the OP stated.
My point is..I believe many new trad archers are coming from high tech rigs and it's almost beyond them to think it could actually be fun to shoot without all the hype screwed onto their bows....I knew it was for me at 1st.
We all gotta do what makes us happy....but sometimes trying something you don't think you're going to like can be the 1st step in a new direction that is more fulfilling....but many will never take that risk....and lets face it...wood bows just aren't everyone's cup-o-tea.
my 2ยข
I prefer wood bows over metal bows. Last year I traded for a Striker RK 1, while it is a well made bow in its own way, it felt like I was holding a compound. Cold and heartless would be the words that come to mind. I also prefer 5 inch feathers over the short fletching craze.