I am not an authority by any means, nor do I claim to be one. But let me throw some thoughts at you. There have been many discussions about the “White glass” “sunken bellied” Kodiaks as being either late 57 or early 58 due to the “sunken belly, (57 form)”, and the “white glass, (58 color). The argument has been fueled in part by the 1958 catalog showing an illustration of a strung view of the “sow Belly” Kodiak and an illustration of an unstrung view showing a “sunken belly” Kodiak. I believe neither the 1958 catalog’s “unstrung” illustration, nor the presence of “White’ glass to be evidence of the 1957 form being used to build “sunken belly” early 1958 model Kodiaks. My reasons for this belief are:
1. The unstrung Kodiak Special illustration in the 1957 catalog is wrong. The illustration appears to be that of the 1957 Kodiak, (sunken belly, also no chevron, and clearly wrong sight window for the Kodiak Special).
2. The unstrung illustration of the 1957 Kodiak is wrong it appears to be a “LH” bow with “sow Belly”. All the illustrations of the “single shelf” bows in the 1956, 1957, and 1958 catalogs are of Right hand bows. The 1957 Kodiak unstrung illustration when mirrored superimposes perfectly over the 1955 & 1956 Kodiak Special unstrung illustrations,( remember the 55 & 56 Kodiak Specials could be termed as being “sow belly and has no chevron), and I believe is the same illustration reused and turned to be consistent with the appearances in the 1957 catalog.
3. The unstrung illustration of the 1958 Kodiak in the 1958 catalog, when superimposed over, matches the illustration used for the unstrung 1957 Kodiak Special in the 1957 catalog,(reference #1 above), and I believe is the same illustration reused.
4. The Kodiaks I have seen built on the “1957 form” have white silk-screening, regardless of glass color; whereas the Kodiaks built on the “1958 form” have dark silk-screening.
5. The Kodiaks built on the 57 form have serial numbers beginning with “D” or “E’ up to and including “ED”; whereas the 58 Kodiaks have serial numbers beginning with “EE” and continuing on.
From what I have read it was common for the glass to remain the same through multiple design changes and model years. There were also times when the change in the glass color was considered the differentiating characteristic which signified a new model and was given the designation as the next years model. It is also evident there are models for multiple years during which neither the glass nor the design changed. There are also multiple examples of “experimental” or “transitional” bows which embody features of both the preceding model design and the new “next generation” model design. However, whenever a design change to a model was introduced by its inclusion and illustration in the next years catalog, the design became known as the year model of its inclusion in the catalog, and the older model’s designation ended with the previous year.
So, given the first appearance of the “sow belly” Kodiak form in the 1958 catalog, the discrepancies in the 57 & 58 catalog’ unstrung illustrations, the differences in silk-screen color, and the differences in serial number sequence; is it possible to conclude that all the Kodiaks built on the “57 form” are and should be considered 1957 model bows, regardless of the color glass. That being said, is it also possible a case could be made for the “Brown glass” 57s with serial numbers beginning with “D” as early model yr production and the “white glass” 57s with serial numbers beginning with “E” as late model yr production. or, could a case even be made for a designation of the white glass 57s with serial numbers beginning with “E” being given the designation of 1957 ½.
The history of Bear archery is also a history of innovation, and this tendency of innovation appeared to always move forward, not backward. I could be wrong, but I have not read or seen any evidence to prove the older 57 Kodiak form was still being used at the same time as or after the introduction of 1958 sow belly form. Nor do I recall any other model year designation where examples of the use of older model forms popped up.
These are just my opinions and observations. And I welcome any and all discussion and dialog which can substantiate or refute my statement of the Kodiak model line having a definitive model change from the sunken belly model 1957 to the “sow belly” model 1958
Topic: What model year is the "White glass" Kodiak (Read 541 times)
