 At the weights more usual for modern amateurs, the greater density of horn and sinew compared to wood usually cancels any advantage of composite construction.For most practical non-mounted archery purposes, self bows can perform as well as composite; "the initial velocity is about the same for all types of bow... within certain limits"

In many parts of the world including much of Africa, the Americas, northern Europe, and Southern Asia, the great majority of traditional bows are self bows.The first bow artifacts, the Stellmoor and Holmegaard artifacts of Northern Europe, are self bows.