So I don't know if I missed it, but I would like to see a close up of the mechanism on the schnepper bow.

Those pom-pom's are clearly a sign of how many cheerleaders the nobleman has managed to score with.😋

I would say the poms are just for decoration as they thought it looked good at the time. People always underestimate just how much culture valued bright random colors for no reason other than they liked it.

I hadn't realized the single set trigger was invented for the crossbow rather than early rifles. You learn something everyday. Thanks Tod.

2:10 always wondered why the trigger bars were so long! If I had the means, I’d own one of everything Tod makes 👌

it's a suppressed, competition crossbow with a match-grade trigger and adjustable sights.

What a terrific craftsman Tod is, it shows in every piece.

Can we just stop for a sec and appreciate the beauty of Tod's pieces?

The pom poms are clearly the 'fox tails for the car antenna' of the renaissance huntsman 😋

I can't tell you how many weapon encyclopedias and such I've read over the decades and you just explained this in a few minutes better than any of the ones I ever read. Well done, sir!

One thing I can always count on Tod for is an interesting well presented idea wrapped in a video. It's Christmas for your brain. Thanks again!

Hi, I'm Todd Cutler, here at Forgotten Weapons we are looking a sportified crossbow....

Pom Poms to match your scarf and bobble hat for those important away games. He Shoots He scores!

Well now I'd like to see a collaboration with ForgottenWeapons.

These pom-pom's are used to clean the bolt-tips (instead of the trousers) and are still used in '3D Competitions' to clean the bolt-tips so the mud doesn't get to the trousers. In German these crossbows are called 'Schnäpper'.

"I hope you enjoyed it." Indeed, sir! Sharing your knowledge is loved more than any language can describe.

I ordered a rondell dagger and i cannot wait to recieve it!! New fan and subcriber to your channel.. we need more passionate guys like you during this time.. thanks for your work tod 🙂

weeee ohhhh. That's an amazing bit of craftsmanship .

I was really hoping to see the trigger mechanism, and how it compares to the older designs. I'd love to see the guts of the Schnepper crossbow in a future video.

I think this is my number one favorite channel. I don't think there's anyone else I love to listen to more, the videos are top quality, the insight and experiments are amazing, not to mention the expert quality of production of medieval weapons and gear. Truly a masterpiece, thank you!

What a piece of art from tod, such a piece of beauty

Remember pom-poms are a large part of German folk wear especially in south western Germany. The Black Forest.... they are quite obviously just stylistic. You have your Pom-poms maybe in the colours of your family crest or locality based or guild like you say is possible.

Now I want to know how the mechanism of these works. You don‘t happen to have the mechanism out of bow for demonstration, do you?

I must say, I really enjoy your channel. You present information in a wonderfully straight forward manner with a great take on the history of it. You have inspired me to make a great number of things, none of which get close to your quality. Not to mention the anxiety my wife gets every time I give my sons a new crossbow. Many thanks to you sir.

I think the pom-poms were there to help get your bow noticed as there's no point spending all that money on it if nobody notices it. I'm only surprised there wasn't bunting and flags as well. Maybe that would be taken off before the hunt though 😅

Your channel is great. I could watch you shoot things all day.

I admit, I saw the pom-poms and though "that's to muffle the sound", so I'm glad you addressed that. Seeing the schnepper crossbow is interesting. I've heard that crossbows used by the Chinese during the warring states period had advanced trigger systems as well. it would be interesting to see the difference between the two types of cross bows.

This piece really shows the evolution from medieval crossbows to the ones that now have an ar15 lower.

That is probably the most beautiful crossbow, I've ever seen...

A new thing! I never heard of that before. Thank you. I like days when I learn something new.

Would love to see a little more on the mechanics of the trigger and the nut if you ever find he time Tod

The tag on that crossbow is so strategically placed xD

the pom poms could be a way to differentiate your friends from brush in the hunting games. Kinda like orange jackets.

That’s a work of art.

Looks like nice Xmas decks on the bow!

Do you think you will ever make and test a Chinese single-shot crossbow? A lot of the innovations like trigger guards and an easier crossbow trigger seem to have been on those as well.

Thank you , Tod .

ahh the iBow 11 - a perfect way to demonstrate that you have the money to your friends. Also, if there is footage of the making of this piece i think many of us will be keen to see it. Thanks Tod!

Keep up the outstanding work Tod, watching your videos re-kindled my passion for crafting bows.

Apologies, I should have shown more of the trigger system, but I made a similar bow and film a few years ago and you can find it here kzfaq.info/get/bejne/idV6ZKWdmq25lHU.html. I also posted up a thread on the very excellent 'My Armoury' chat room and you can find that thread here myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.37017.html

Note that ancient Chinese crossbows had many of these features that were novel in 16th-century Europe: complex trigger, trigger guards, grid sights, etc.

nice. thanks for making a better Sunday.

That is one beautiful piece of art you made there Sir, Beautiful and deadly

It would definitely be interesting to see the inner workings of the trigger mechanism on this crossbow.

That crossbow is gorgeous...

Beautiful craftmanship Tod! Love the video as always!

My guess on the green and white pom poms is that they started out as a form of camouflage that probably then became decorative.

So the arrow seems to pop nose up when you fire it. Is that a function of crossbows or is it a function of this particular system?

The difference between the Schnepper and an ordinary crossbow reminds me of the Harry Potter flying brooms compared to an ordinary broom

I think those pom poms are ornamental. They may also provide a means of distinguishing the crossbows so the owner could recognize it from a distance (CAS shooters do that to their long guns). They cannot supress the sound the way they are attached to the crossbow. With Tod´s sample it strikes the eye that the pom poms cover the corners where the bow is connected to the shaft and point where the rope on the bow goes from 4 strands to 2 strands and has a tie off. They may cover some "ugly" features on the weapon and enhance the looks of it. The buffer puffs on a bow are mounted on the string. They work differently.

I just wanted to say that I really liked the lock down longbow episodes, and would be very interested to see those tests replicated with a less powerful bow that regular people might have for hunting. Msny thanks for your work!

I love your works 😍. Absolutely Awesome 👍...I still prefer the rugged Military Crossbow

I'll silence my hunting bow so that the prey can focus on the thunder of my horses hooves

I can imagine in 1000 years time people will be asking the same question about Hello Kitty m4 furniture. It's just about showing off and intimidating your rivals with your crazy fashion imho.

I must say that my first thought about the pompoms was that they were just a matter of personal taste. We know people enjoy having nice looking things, and even to this day, some people will decorate their guns with various paint schemes. And, we know people in those days enjoyed some stuff that we might find a bit gaudy today.

Thanks for sharing

Hi just started to watch your videos.Very nice. My take on the ponpons and the cable along the bow are that they are for silencing them but not when you shoot them but from hithing trees and stuff on your way to the place you want to take your shot from. Hiting a ponpon on something is quieter than hiting with bare metal, so you do not scare the animal before you take the shot.

Informative as always Tod. Thank you for your knowledge and Tutelage sir. 👍👍👏👏💯 That trigger system is a very interesting design compared to older historical models you have showcased before P.S. I have a few yard shirts in similar condition 😁

Things I didn't realise I need to know always pops up on tods workshop

Could you show us a close up of the trigger system working?

Green and white are traditional shooters' guild colours in Germany as far as I know. There are many being between 300 and 400 years old (and still active!).

One reason I don't think the pom poms are string silencers is that they're simply not on the string, they're attached directly to the bow limbs which I don't think would have any effect on the noise it makes at all.

Cool bow! My father had these pom poms on his golf kit. He had a traditional scottish hat, and knickers with a pair of gaiters with matching pom poms. I believe these are purely decoration just like humans have always had fashion trends and decorated the objects we use since our origins.

Enjoyed your video Tod and I gave it a Thumbs Up

I would suggest the pompoms help to judge the wind speed and direction.

Beautiful.

Would be great to see how the trigger system actually works. Since effort is put on how good it was in comparison, it would be nice to see in what way :)

Extremely cool. I would have thought that the funky stock shape was to that you could fire it one handed, with the stock cradling your forearm

The gaffe (not sure on spelling) lever looks like it would be significantly cheaper and easier to make than a goat’s foot, being mostly wood with a hinge piece and metal end instead of a single piece of metal with a complex shape. That doesn’t really line up with the rest being a luxury item though.

Bow silencers are placed on the string, to soak up the vibration of the string. They don't as much as reduce the dB levels of the twang rather than they shorten it (doesn't vibrate as long) and in general make the niose more of a thud than a twang. Those pom-pom's are for decoration, imho. There's no way those would have enough of an effect on that hunk of steel.

I know I'm late to the party, but the french navy used pom-poms on their hats to dampen the blow you might take from smashing your head into the ceiling below deck. In a similar vein, it could be the pom-poms were to provent damage if you dropped the bow or something. Probably wrong, but possible.

Contrary to popular belief, there's only one key difference. The Shnepper is for shniping

What a beauty.

Balázs Németh (of Capandball ) says the pompoms were "the standard signs of the military Jagers of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy.”. That’s at least two centuries after this crossbow though.

Nice crossbow but also nice guns Tod's packing.

This is like the medieval version of a slug gun or 22lr and I love it

It's a beautiful looking crossbow, I would have loved a close up view of the string retention system though. You spent a while talking about it and how much more advanced it was, but didn't explain or show how it worked or the differences that made it more advanced beyond the bolt clip.

i have literally no idea what the pom poms are for, but my first thought was actually that they are a way to attach foliage similar to modern military ghillie suits, not string silencers. of course i am not a modern crossbow user so i am probably way off.

It was my understanding that for professional historians any unknown object or activity is, by definition, "ceremonial."

Some points. 1) I don't think this is necessarily a more advanced crossbow, just a more specialized one. Lot of those features, while nice to have, just weren't practical for military use, especially not when it came to cost. The bolt clip especially is, in my experience, an extremely fiddly thing when you need to move across woods, and tends to get broken easily. Finer trigger is good for hunting, but smaller parts before moder steel processing means greater chance of failing, and modern combat shows that even bad triggers (most military weapons, but especially bullpups) are good enough. The lesson in sights can be learned in WW1 when rifles had sights that went to ridiculous ranges, and everyone just used the first notch, because there was no way you could engage someone with a rifle at 3000 yards - and let's not forget that these weapons are affected by moisture and atmospheric conditions way more than the firearms, so even the best sights will not be that accurate all the time. A comparable weapon in modern times is a competition shooting AR, as opposed to military issue AR. The competition rifle is better in its niche, maybe even better overall, but is too expensive and finicky for too small an edge to be worth it for the military use. 2) Is there a source for that reloading position? Google search revealed nothing. It looks like it may be handier to reload the thing by flipping it so that the stock and reloading lever are horizontal and closing it like big boltcutters. 3) The stringy bits do break the silhouette of the bow if you are lying in ambush for a deer in some bushes and are sticking the front of the crossbow out to not be interfered with by branches. They also look a bit like flowers (for white, red etc) or bits of grass (for green color). Whether or not this was their purpose is impossible to prove, though.

i would love a review of the mechanics of the trigger

Nice video, and a gorgeous crossbow! Hope the winter-chill don´t cool your lust for making all these videos, they lighten up the drab of corona and soggy weather!

Next episode: Crafting with Tod, Making Pom Poms!

Looks nice, Though i think those pompoms are a safty feature. To make it easyer for fellow hunters around you to see what direction you are pointing your crossbow in. The more pompoms you can see the more danger you are in.

Very interesting! Thank you

Beautiful crossbow. Thanks for the vid

I wonder if they are a silencer of a different sort. If you're moving through brush and branches, do you think it's possible that those pom poms could be there to try and stop some of the sound branches scratching across steel? As in, they come in to contact with the branches first.

:O I was waiting the whole time for a break down of how the inerts work :( still enjoyed it tho.

If you were rich enough to have one of those bows, there was a servant to load it for you.

a suggestion: depending on the colors used the pom poms could have been an archaic attempt at camouflaged bows. the poms texture, placement, and dye would be used to simulate clusters of leaves on a tree limb, as well as matching the surrounding environment. with your bow out pointed ahead of you at the prey and if you were low to the ground the first thing an animal would focus on is likely the bow limbs, especially if the prey is used to be aimed at by bows. may or may not have been effective but that goes for lots of what our ancestors did to solve problems.

You should make a video that showcases the inner workings of the trigger and how it functions; maybe compare it to a more standard crossbow trigger as well

Those pompons are "silencers" and are still used on modern crossbows and even bows. It takes away this "ping" noise when bolt is released. On steel bow it does not make any difference- but on wooden ones you'll notice it.

Thanks, informative and interesting!

Are you gonna do a video on how the Schnepper system works? Like the internal bits? Ive built a rolling nut trigger system or two and had a lot of fun. Might be cool to try a different mechanism.

I would really love to know how the trigger system works!

Our predecessors weren't that different from us, I'd be hard pressed to think the pom poms were anything but fashion.

pom poms are obviously quite fashionable, but if they appear mostly on hunting bows it may also be used as an indicator that this bow is meant for sport or hunting. maybe even to the point where it's sort of socially awkward to walk around with a crossbow without these on. kind of like orange or red tip that may be required for airsoft in some countries.

A drawing of the trigger mechanism would be interesting...

You need details of the inner workings of that trigger system. Most interesting

Maybe the Pompoms are a means of breaking up the sharp outlines of the bow in stalking situations?? The Green of the Fir trees & the White of the snow in this case or could be changed to suit other hunting environments??