This discussion is intesting. I would favor the bow over the cross bow for simplicity, but as has been stated, it takes longer to learn/master the bow. The English archer started training at the age of five or six. By the time they were of age for war, they were pulling 100 pound plus warbows and could have three or four arrows in the air before the first struck. It will take a generation to meet that, and practice.. practice.. practice. The King decreed that yeoman archers were to practice weekly. Many shot everyday as a matter of pride, others only the minimal amounts.
Wooden self bows are relatively easy to construct with minimal tools. A decent, not a master piece, can be done in less than a day with a knife and hatchet.. add more tools like rasps, shaves, etc, and time speeds, but speed can ruin a bow before the first draw. The stave is only one aspect of the bow as well. The string is a crucial element.. duh. Linen and hemp were the prefered for longbows, though aboriginals have used sinew and rawhide as well. You can't equip a force with archers without having at least one person around that is a good boyer that can teach others to make the bow, the string and finally the arrow.. which is typically a fletcher's job.
Hardwood shafts for the arrows must be rounded and straightened. Fletching is important for accuracy as well. It's a tedious job often done in the winter months when field work is done. Arrow heads are of two distinct designs for them, though there are more. The broad point, made from iron or steel unless you're going to work stone or bone. The stainless steel spoon makes a good point with metal working. The bodkin, a chisel tip designed to pierce armor, is basically a shaft of iron/steel.
SO you have woodworkers and metalsmiths, as well as cordage makers, to make the necessary elements of the system. I could see the settlement/s with cottage industry making bows, arrows, arrowheads, and strings, as well as leatherworkers to make the greeves and quivers.
Cross bows, with modern technology, would be built with 'quick load' ratchets or cranks. Bicycle gears or some such, or jacks, providing the reloading mechanism. Those types of gearing can be fired prone and reloaded prone.
In general though with the train of thought, I think there would definately be an increase in the use of the bow, as much for hunting as anything else. They are quiet, you can reuse the ammunition (if it's not too battered or lost), and as I said, relatively easy to make. Most places, in the US at least, have at least one archer around, though many/most of the modern archers can't build a system such as discussed, as they are hooked on the modern compounds with wheels. Fine weapons until they break I might add, as a person that's has problem drawing a 65 pound self bow can draw and hold the 80 pound compound much easier.
It was mentioned the 'women and kids' would be the archers.. The draw they can use would not be much, perhaps in the 20-40 pound range, which will NOT reach the 200 yard/meter range desired with much penetration. They would be harrassing fire though.
Just some of my rambling thoughts on the subject, one which I really like.
grae
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