Even after all the updates and patches I'm still finding it impossible to get followers to use the 'better' bows and crossbows I give them.

They will only use the enhanced crossbow not the better enhanced dwarven ones, and they refuse to use any bows at all except for their starting default bow.

ughhh frustrating. How do you folks get round this, is there a way to get them to use the better gear?

*xbox user

there is a follower bow bug.
It was supposed to be fixed in 1.9
I never had the bug until 1.9 and Now my followers have a crap bow.

Aye, 1.9 was supposed to fix this but it doesn't seem to have worked. If anything it has gotten worse because I can no longer force my follower to use the better bow that I give em At least before as long as I kept them stocked up on better arrows they would use the bow I gave em but even that doesn't seem to work, my follower will only use either the enhanced steal crossbow or their default hunting bow

Odd, i gave Feandal an elven bow and he used that instead of his crappy hunting bow.

I gave Jordis a Nordic carved bow smithed to legendary and she still preferred her crummy ol'hunting bow over the carved bow Which is why I gave her the enhanced steel crossbow, twas the only thing that she would actually use.

Bummer. Funny how people's skyrim copies vary so much in terms of these weird little bugs.

I started a new character 20 levels ago, and I am still able to do what I've always done:

I take away anything I don't want Lydia to use, and I give her just 1 of my best arrows. I can see her equipping the newer bow as I give it to her.

Also, I periodically check her to see if she's been hit with any inferior arrows, and I take them away from her so that she always has just 1 of the best type of arrow possible, and doesn't default to an iron or falmer arrow.

Give them daedric/dragon arrows to compensate. Is it like their armor, do followers prefer a certain side of the Smithing tree for bows? If Faendal accepts Elven bows then see if he also will use a Glass bow and then maybe that's the issue

Isn't it

I think it has something to do with the follower more then an actual bug per se, I think it is that if your follower is one that can deplete their arrow stores that they are the type of follower that will only equip the default hunting bow once they run out of the good arrows, which just so happens to happen pretty fast. But if the follower is an archer build they won't deplete their arrows then they tend to keep the better arrow and bow. Alea is an example of a build that includes archery along with Lydia and Fendal(SP).

So I think it has more to do with follower selection, not saying that it's working as it should because it's not. A follower should equip what ever you give them as long as it's better then what they have.

That could be as well, or it could be a combination of what I said and what you just said. Followers do prefer different sides of the smithing tree, if the follower is a heavy armor wearing goon then yes they will prefer the heavy side of the smithing tree and if they prefer light armor then they will most likely like the light side of the tree. But there are followers that will run out of arrows as well and once they run out they revert to the default hunting bow with iron arrows. So you have to make sure to keep them stocked up on supplies.

I've had a bunch of different followers with other characters: Lydia, Erik, the Solitude guy, the Riften guy, Erandur, the Whiterun gal, others....

I always only give them one arrow---the best that I have at the time----and they never run out. Looting corpses is how I stock up on good arrows!