Do I Mess with a Classic?

[mangonboat]

I recently acquired a 1966 Mustang. Not the car, the Ben Pearson recurve. The Mustang was BP's top of the line bow in 1966 outside their Sovereign line, intended as hunting bow. The bow is 64" AMO and marked XX60@28", which should be 58# under Ben Pearson's marking system at that time, but it feels like its put on some weight over the past 49 years (like me!). The bow has a zebrawood heartwood I- beam riser and sight window with slabs of freijo on the outside, built up near the fades so the peripheral mass of the riser makes it really steady in hand. The finish has yellowed and darkened some over the years but is in very good shape overall and the limbs are immaculate. The bow was missing the rug rest and sideplate when I got it . It has two properly and cleanly installed brass bushings in the upper and lower riser for a long bolt-on quiver.
 So, my questions are 1) whether to refinish the bow and 2) whether to re-do the tips to make it FF compatible. Those old BP's had wood tip laminates but very flimsy by modern standards. It 's not a coveted collectors' bow even though it's a real looker and a tack-driving shooter, and at this weight it will kill anything on the planet that lives above sea level, so adding FF capability would get all the performance this bow is capable of. If I refinish it, I may use that occasion to radius the rest a bit and take a little off the palm swell..BP's all feel a bit "fat" in hand to me after years of shooting Bears. Thoughts?
 

[Roadkill]

Your bow. Your decision.  I would leave it as original

[ChuckC]

I rebuilt a different but very similar looking bow that I acquired.  I reduced the high wrist, reduced the points, refinished it and now it is for a nephew.  

Do what you want.  Even if it is the most relished collectible on earth, if it is yours, you get to mess with it as you wish.
ChuckC

[YORNOC]

It's a hunting bow, definitely rework and use it if that is what your gut is telling you. It's not a once in a lifetime find, they were mass produced and there are still plenty out there.
I do it all the time, usually sell them eventually and almost always make a few bucks in the process.
Have some fun.  

[bentpole]

I would not touch it! Especially beefing up the tips for fast flight! That bow with a standard string probably shoots as fast or faster than a lot of custom bows out there! Would you take an all stock 1966 Ford Mustang in great condition and turn it into a Hot Rod!!?? Well if you would then hot rod the bow. I wouldn't. Thast bow will bring a lot of Oooos and Aaaaahs at 3 D shoots.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Refinish it ... no problem... but i wouldn't touch that shelf except to build up a radius shelf pad. Updating the tip overlays is a great idea if you know what you are doing. If not, send it to a bowyer to do the tips. Often as not it's the shape of the tip notches that make a bow fast flight friendly more than the overlay material.

[zepnut]

Seeing its not a high end collectible I would re-do it.

[Biathlonman]

I'd make it my own.

[cacciatore]

Do it and then let us know how it came out,so I'll can decide for mine!

[MnFn]

Of course, do what you want but I wouldnt.
I think I can say that because I have been down that road. I had a Bear Super Mag 48, 45#, a  Shakespeare Wonderbow and a American Archery Cheeta.  I radiused all of them. But did not do anything to the tips.

How did it work out? Actually pretty good, they all shot OK, my son still shoots the 60# Cheetah. But I moved on to other bows sold the Bear, kept the Wonderbow because it was a birthday present from my parents about fifty years ago.

About all I can say is it was an experiment. At this point, I would rather just buy the exact bow I want instead of making something into something it was not designed to be.

But, go ahead and do it if you want.  It was kind of fun at the time.

[mangonboat]

I got it out to take some photos of the tips. The bow really is in good shape. Those tips are so pretty but the laminations are very thin.
 
 

On the refinish issue, I realize that the only reason to refinish it is that dark square on this photo. Somebody must have put a piece of tape or a sticky label on the bare wood before it was finished and didn't remove the tape residue.
 

[gnome]

I would refinish it,no problem. It will look sharp with a fresh finish. But Would not rework the tips. especially at 58#. With that bow, the benefits of a fast flight string might not be that much. Reshaping the handle, totally your call.