Yes, I meant bash. And thanks, I'm gonna look into this.

Whats the purpose of switching out to melee weapons when you can keep firing bows from melee range? RP?

The bashing perks do work with the bow,the problem is getting your block skill high enough to get those perks.
Since you can't block with the bow and bashing doesn't level your skill up very fast at all,you will need to buy training in block to get to the required level.

Works ok for shotguns, not so much for clunky-aiming single-shot bows After they start horizontal flight, time to heal up and await the next landing.

Each follower has a different set of specialties. Faendel is archery/light armor/sneak/one-handed. So he would naturally prefer a sheild and 1H weapon for melee, given that choice. You left a pickaxe in his inventory, and that's a 1H weapon, so....

But, you are always better off equipping your followers with the weapons and armor they are preset to specialize in. Give him the best 1H weapon and small shield you can get for him, along with the best bow and leather-class armor. Then he will be the most help to you. Giving him a big 2H weapon is the worst thing you could do, as he won't be able to do squat with it.

You can always look up everything you need to know about any potential follower, on the wiki. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Faendal

Check the 'primary skills' section to see what he works best with.

Sneak is one of Faendal's primary talents. Unlike Lydia (or most of the rest of the followers), whose heavy, noisy armor and lack of skill will alert the enemy a mile away. Although once you get sneak to a really good level, and if you have your melee follower buffed up pretty well, this can work to your advantage- she will alert them to her and charge in, while you can stay hidden in the shadows in lurk mode and pick them off easily without being seen, still getting the 3x damage from stealth bonus. Not always, but frequently.

And for many of us, that 'more time to accurately aim' is what makes or breaks our survival and success. Personally, not being a 15 yo COD twitch kiddie, I find it invaluable.

And dont' forget to choose the Warrior Stone quickly, to boost it's level up speed another 20%. I chose the Thief Stone my first runthrough, but Sneak levels up so fast even without using that stone, that it's not really needed. Warrior Stone FTW.

Thanks for the tips.

Umm...because aside from a follower/insta-trainer he is also a mule; is he not? The better question would be: Why is a pick-axe classified as a weapon?

Well it can do some damage but IMO giving it to character like Faendal is a big mistake.