US2918049A - Archery bow and view-finding reel - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 22, 1959 H. c. STOCKFLETH ,9

ARCHERY BOW AND VIEW-FINDING REEL Filed June 3, 1957 ARCHERY now AND VIEWQFENDING REEL Harry c. Stockfieth, Chatham,- NJ.

Application June 3, 1957, Serial No. 663,113

1 Claim. cl; 124-2s The invention relates to bow reels for use with captive arrows such as are employedto shoot and retrieve fish or other game, to shoot a line across an inaccessible 'ravine :or from shore to a disabled-vessel, and similar purposes, and has particular reference to a large-diameter annular reel which encompasses the bow-holding hand of the-archer in a manner to constitute a View finder through which the target may be viewed in sighting the arrow.

I am aware of a prior art bow reel that is tubular in construction and just large enough in inside diameter to permit the arrow and restraining line to operate therethrough with minimum clearance. This device quite appropriately is called a spool and is attached to one side of the bow in the region of the handle. Due to the bulk of the solid portions of the spool, it is necessary to provide a special handle on the side of the bow opposite to the spool, which is undesirable. A further disadvantage of this spool is the fact that it must be moved from one side of the bow to the other in order to accommodate the bow to archers of different handedness, i.e. it must be on the left side for a right-handed archer and on the right side for a left-handed one.

With the above-enumerated disadvantages of the prior art bow reel in mind, it is the primary object of my present invention to provide an improved reel which is intended to occupy one fixed position on the bow in which it is constantly adapted for use by either right-handed or left-handed archers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a bow reel that permits free use of the conventional bow handle without obstructing it in any way.

To be more explicit, my improved bow reel is annular in form, is of comparatively large diameter, and is attached to the rear face of the bow (opposite to the archer) at points above and below the usual handle thereof with its axis intersecting the bow at substantially the location of an arrow while being held in drawn position ready for discharge at the target. Due to this construction and mode of attachment, the archers bow-holding hand will be inside the circle represented by the reel and there will be ample space on both sides of the bow for the archer to aim through the reel. The reel thus serves in the manner of a view finder and permits the archer to find the best aiming point under existing conditions of wind deflection and personal holding and releasing errors by interpolation of the target in different angular positions between the axis and circumference of the reel.

A further object is to provide means on the reel by which the arrow-attached end portion of the restraining line may be temporarily secured against becoming unwound from the reel until the moment of arrow discharge, at which time the line will become detached automatically from the securing means with minimum resistance to normal acceleration of the arrow.

Other objects, advantages and features of the invention will become apparent as the following specific de- 2,918,049 Patented Dec. 22, 19 59 scription is read in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a rear elevation of the reel in operational use on a how by a right-handed archer, the bow being shown partially broken away; and

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view on line 22 .of Fig. 1.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views, it will be observed that the reel'10 is annular in form and of sufiicient diameterto encompass the handleH of a bow B when attached to the latter at points above and below said handle by suitable means,

such as the perforated substantially L-shaped brackets'lI and 12 and related screws 13 and '14,"respectively.i In this location, the axis of reel 10 will intersect bow B substantially at the top of handle H. Obviously, some other attaching means, such as tape wrappings (not shown), may be employed instead to secure reel 10 to bow'B.

Due. to the size of reel 10, there will be ample spaces S and S on both sides of bowB to permit the archer to sight through the reel at his target.

Itis to be understood that, in the operational use of the reel in hunting fish or for any other appropriate purpose, the arroW-restraining line L will have one end attached to a captive arrow A and the opposite end portion wound in convolute coils around the periphery of reel 10 as at 15 and terminally attached thereto. During any delay in such operational use, the reel-wound major portion of line L may be secured against accidental unreeling by means of the device which will now be described.

A line clip device 16 is supported by reel 10 closely adjacent to its front edge. A preferred location for clip device 16 is on the uppermost portion of reel 10, where it may be engaged with line L in a manner to suspend the arrow-attached portion of the latter above the arrow and hand of the archer so as to avoid any entanglement therewith either before or during arrow discharge. In the illustrative embodiment of my invention, line clip device 16 is formed by bending up the free end of the horizontal portion of bracket 11 to provide a jaw 17 in diverging relation to the top surface of reel 10. The line L may be wedged lightly into the angular mouth 18 thus formed to secure, or snub, the line in the desired manner.

In the operational use of my improved bow reel to shoot live game which may be hunted legally in this way, such as carp or other rough fish, enough of the restraining line L is unclipped and unwound from reel 10 to reach to the nock end of an arrow A when engaged with the bowstring of bow B and drawn to the maximum bowtensioning degree in the act of shooting the arrow. Then, the line L at the point where it leaves reel 10 is re-clipped to the latter and the free end of the line is attached to the captive arrow A by suitable means (not shown).

After the foregoing preliminary manipulations, the

' hunter is ready to approach his target, such as the fish when visible at or near the surface of a pond or other body of Water. When aiming at the target, he looks through the reel, as a view finder, and may make allowances for elevation and lateral deflection by raising or lowering the bow and moving it to right or left by interpolation of the targets apparent position between the axis and circumference of reel 10 along a selected imaginary radial line in the appropriate quadrant of the reels circle to the left or right of the bow, depending upon whether he is right-handed or left-handed. The interpolated position of the target will have been determined by long practice in shooting at different ranges, and takes into account any personal bow-drawing and arrow-releasing characteristics of the individual archer.

When the arrow is released in any instance, the restraining line L will become disengaged from clip device constitute departures from the spiritlof the a 3 4 16 automatically and without any arrow-deranging effects.

To reel in the fish after it has been penetrated by the arrowhead, thehunter simply holdsethebow 13- firm1y with one hand and re winds' the line Lonto reel 10. iDue to the large diameter of reel 10, the number of turns of line L around the reel will be far fewer than when using the previously described prior art spool and therewill be less danger of accidental escape of the line from'the fingers during this re-winding, or reeling-in,-operation under the pull of the fish. .7 p

It is to be understood that the presentdisclosure of the invention is an illustrative example and that various changes, modifications and alterations may be made in the structural embodiment thus chosen which do fnot invention and scope of the appended claim. 3

-I'claim: W

An archery device comprising, in combinationi a bow having a central handle; a plain annular rim-flangeless reel body for the restraining line of a captive arrow mounted on the-rear face of the bow with its axis substantially intersecting the top of the bow handle, said reel body being of such comparatively large diameter that ample space is provided within the reel body on each u .7 4 side of the bow handle for holding the bow and for operation and sighting of a captive arrow and its line; a line clip device arranged on the reel body in a position to engage the line yieldingly at the forward edge of said reel body and thereby prevent accidental uncoiling, said clip device being in the form of a clip plate of resilient material affixed to the outer periphery of the reel body and having a forwardly and outwardly inclined jaw providing a forwardly presented line wedging mouth between said jaw and reel body; and attaching means located at the top and bottom of the reel body by which the said body is attached to the bow, at least one of said attaching means being a substantially L-shaped bracket of resilient plate material of which one arm portion is vertically disposed and attached to the bow and the other arm portion is horizontally arranged and constitutes the clip plate of the line clip device.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 736,051 Adams Aug 11,1903 2,504,525 Holderness Apr. 18, 1950 2,808,043 Lombard Oct. 1, 1957 2,812,756 Myers Nov. 12,1957

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