McCullough 59'r

[Ray Lyon]

One of the finest shooting bows I've ever sent an arrow through........
My buddy Greg bought one of these from Ron LaClair, who was selling a few bows for the now retired John McCullough at the Kalamazoo expo last January. Greg was telling me it was the best shooting bow in his arsenal and continued to rave about it. I happened to see one on Fleabay and couldn't resist. I'm glad I didn't. Not only is is gorgeous, it truly is an incredible shooter.  Fast and smooth. I have a Super Shrew Samurai that John built for me as well and it's a fabulous shooter, but 13 years after he built that bow, he made this 59'r and like a fine wine, I think John got better with age.  Grateful to have a few of his bows in my collection, because second hand is the only way to get them now.  

 
 
 
 
 

[PBNJ]

Beautiful bow Ray! I've always eyeballed Johns 59'er curve, I love the simple lines. Good lick with it. Paul

[Bernie B.]

That's about as good as it gets!  You're a lucky man!    

Bernie

[Ray Lyon]

By the way, this bow is almost 4 years old now. It looked like it wasn't shot. No silencers on string and the nock point is the original that John put's on the string. There was no visible wear on the rest either and not a mark on the bow.

[Biathlonman]

I've had a couple, they were no doubt great bows.  He was a tough bowyer to work with though, and I found bows I liked equally so went a different direction.  It takes a little luck to find one of his bows in a length and weight that works for you.

[Rando]

Owned a couple of Griffins that became a bit heavy for me, still have one that'll stay with me. Really like John's bows and I enjoyed dealing with him - sorry he's retired as a 59er was definitely on my "next bow" list!
Randy

[smokin joe]

That bow is a beautiful piece of craftsmanship -- just excellent.

[FITTER]

Thats a beauty!!!

[Jwilliam]

Great find Ray !!! John built some great shooting bows.  

[Gator1]

Very nice ray congratulations.

[catman1]

That was a 60" 45@28 correct? I almost jumped on it. Nice stick..

[M60gunner]

Yes in indeed a nice bow. I was sorry I waited so long to realize I wanted one. I opted for another maker. I believe the bows design has a lot to do with its shootablilty. I have not heard to many negative remarks about the design no matter who the maker is. I am intrigued by the grip design on your bow. I have not shot a grip of the design and wonder if it does help with hand placement for each shot? What do you think?

[Ray Lyon]

Catman1, yes, that's the bow.

M60, this has the same grip that John put on the Super Shrew bows when he was making them for Ron LaClair. It is absolutely about hand placement. The thumb rest and palm swell put the hand in the same place every time. The interesting thing about this bow is the shelf is slightly higher off the hand. It seems to put the arrow a little closer in my vision (I don't gap, but I'm cognizant of the arrow in my sight picture) and 'on target' in my brain seems to be easier. This bow is physically heavier than my original 1959 Kodiak, but they're both super smooth in the draw and on release (the original only uses b-50 and John's bows use fast flight materials for strings). I'm very pleased with this bow.

[catman1]

I'm waiting on my Kodiak 59'er 60"45@28 from Ed Holcomb, It should be ready any day. The only thing I had Ed do different was to put a little more radias on the shelf from front to back like the McCullough. I'm a Toelke Classic longbow guy and hope it fits me well. I did talk to John a couple of years ago about one of his, but I was light on the coin. Ed's a great guy to deal with.
You got a very nice stick there for sure...

[4dogs]

Well Ray, I gave up on trying to find a 45#er. I shipped mine to Mr. Coffee today for a reduction and retiller...should be good.