Dating Staghorn Bows

[Mike Shaw]

If anyone is interested I found information on Staghorn bows. These would be the early Bill Pyle bows from 1957 to 1981. The information includes how to date and identify by serial number. If anyone is interested, I can email the info to them.  

 

[d. ward]

Hey Mike that would be great.I'd love to see it.Would it be possible for you to show it on this thread for all to see maybe.   bowdoc

[Mike Shaw]

Hey Don..Will give it a try from a pic. I will send you out a copy of the article I found if you give me your address...Mike

[Mike Shaw]

[Mike Shaw]

[Mike Shaw]

[Mike Shaw]

My Staghorn is a 1968 xp model...Great shooting bow and what a hunk of rosewood!

[d. ward]

Thats a trip Mike...I have some notes myself on middle aged Bear bows like those straight limb rangers FJ was 60 pounds F being the 6th letter and J the 10th or 0 ..FJ = 60 pounds.Cool old codeing system.bd

[NumPls]

Mike -

I sent you an email, but forgot to ask you about the document/article that you picture. Is that from a magazine, or is it from a book? Regardless, do you have the reference information?

Thank you.

Ray

[Mike Shaw]

Hi Ray..Sent you an email...This article came from Instinctive Archer Magazine summer 1997...

   Mike

[PAPALAPIN]

Gotta wonder what the numbers indicate...no way bill made 1234 "C" models in April of 1967

[Mike Shaw]

Hey Doc sent you a pm...Mike

[Blackhawk]

Yeah, numbers of bows made can be deceiving...and sometimes it's intentional.  I've collected Ruger firearms for years and research shows that Mr. Ruger would intentionally mislead his competitors by beginning certain models serial numbers in the thousands instead of 0001.  

I suppose it's a way of having the competition think you're a big time company.

[Kelly]

My guess for the serial number, ie 1234 is that was the number of total bows made to that date. I knew Bill Pyle very well and even was a dealer for Staghorns in the late 1960's/early 1970's. Great bows way ahead of their time.

[d. ward]

Bear Archery started with serial number 1000 on the first set of take down limbs in late 1969.Bear wanted us to think they already sold a 1,000 sets of limbs.When actually they had not sold any.One collecter told me that Bill made 7,000 or so bows total.I was also told by Joe StCharles there's no way he did.Joe said Bill skipped several hundred numbers if not 1,000's....1,234 C apr.67...maybe 234 bows for 1967 but not 1,234...234 complete bows in one year is even a bit hard to believe ???????? Stags are cool bows no dout about it....bowdoc

[d. ward]

Rich I'am with you.One man would play hell makeing 200-250 bows a year.Yikes that would consume you.I'am sure Bill made plenty of great bows but 7,000 ?? bowdoc

[Mike Shaw]

The article states that Bill made somewhere between 300 to 400 bows a year. That is also hard to believe, if so he was one busy dude!...Mike

[Kelly]

My comment of 1234 bows was a running total from the time he started building bows in the 1950's while still living in the Northeast, MA or NH. In the late 1960's he easily was selling/making 200+ bows a year. His shop was behind the house and he literally worked 14+ hours a day, 7 days a week during the busy season and his wife, Ellie took care of all the other business and paper work associated with Staghorn bows. In 3 decades of building bows I'm sure he made more than 3000 bows. I'm not sure of 7000 though.

Twisted limbs were a by product of bows from that era unless the manufacture left them wide and shortened the recurve. I and most of my customers never had any problems with twisted limbs on Staghorn's. Sure some of them twisted but nowhere near as many as the Groves did. Both of these bow lines were really not production bows perse because the designs were maxed for performance. Harold Groves told me once that when his bows were finished they were 95% broke because his limbs were stressed so much. Bill Pyle's higher end models incorporated the dual wedge design, which were tapered lams not only in length but side to side.

[d. ward]

14 hours a day 7 days a week 200 bows a year times 30 years somewhere around 6,000 total bows...wow busy busy man....bowdoc

[xp]

Bill told me this numbering system too, but I have found some sales receipts that disprove it.  Another confusing thing is he made bows with practically no identifying numbers.  I believe these fall into two categories, early models before he stamped them (a couple of my old leather handle Speedflights have no stamps), and others that were experimental bows. He was constantly trying new things and built bows that were never cataloged.


Also, Bill was not always a one man operation.  At times he did have employees who worked for him. Even then he would check the bows personally and fix whatever needed fixing before they would ever leave his shop.  

I'm constantly finding new stuff and learning more.  I just acquired a 58" Sportsman that was flocked and had cool finger grooves cut into the riser.  Now this is a bow I never even knew he made.