Quote from: huckbuck on Today at 09:25:07 AMand he usually stained them to match the riser. I wish I had a couple of those bows back 

Yes me too.

I thought it looked like red elm but just not quite so that makes since.

and he usually stained them to match the riser. I wish I had a couple of those bows back 

should be "Flat cut" not Crosscut

Dale called it medicine wood but I think it was actually cross cut Red Elm.

Thanks everyone. The reason for the longer shaft is more weight for penetration, better flight stability, and ill be able to use that tip more easily for aiming. I figure if it's too weak I've got some room to trim it back a half inch or even an inch and it won't compromise the shaft for my setup. Also decided to go with Douglas for at 55-60. Seems to be a tougher wood than cedar.

Just curious if anyone knows the species of wood Dale used for his limb veneers. It's seems like he use the same wood on all his bow limbs but can't figure out what it is. Mostly just curious.

I've never shot the PCH against the pika, but have against the Whistler and the Whip.  I don't own a chronograph, so I have no real numbers, but just going off of feel, I would say the PCH is not faster then either of them, and definitely not as quiet as either of them either.  I found the PCH to be a very good looking bow and incredibly stable and forgiving, but ultimately sold it. 

Matt.  Measuring to the throat of the grip only is not the standardized way of calculating draw length. If it's 25.5-inches from the string to the deepest part of the grip, according to AMO standards your draw length is 27 1/4 inches. The AMO standard is to measure draw length to the deepest part of the grip, and add 1.75 inches to account for grip depth.  A lot of folks just measure to the back of the bow.  They yield similar and sometimes identical results.  If buyers, sellers and builders of bows use different ways of measuring draw length, it can lead to misunderstandings. That's the reason for the agreed upon standardization. 

I just chronoed my PCH a couple of weeks ago with the Garmin Chrono... which is very accurate.
My 60" PCH at 46 lbs is pushing my 465g arrows at 178 fps.
I have a long draw though... but it is 46 lb at my draw.
A bit over ten grains per pound... that is not bad.

Both my PCHs have been my fastest Widows by a few fps.

Howard Hill was clear about his preference for 3:1 heads based on his results but that pretty much died down until the Ashby papers. And, like JohnV mentioned, many misunderstood where Ashby was going with his work.

Whitetail deer don't need 24" of penetration. 12" or so gets a pass through on all but the largest deer. Black bears are not dangerous big-boned game. Pretty much any sharp broad head will do the trick on them. I've never hunted elk or moose but I'd probably be more concerned with arrow weight than what broad head I used.

I'll never hunt grizzlies or go to Africa but if I did I'd probably give more thought to my choice of broad head. But for my hunting Razorheads, Zwicky heads, Woodsman's, the old Magnus heads and similar heads work just fine. Maybe a wider head like a Simmons would give a better blood trail but that hasn't been a problem so far.