Questions About 64", 36# Kodiak Special Deluxe just purchased

[eidsvolling]

I had a new Grizzly when I was 14 ... that would make it a 1967. Lost track of it years ago when, as an idiot teenager, I quit doing field archery with my dad. (That's his selfbow in my avatar, made for him in 1943.)

So no, you're not quite yet a vintage person.    

[2ndTimeShooter]

That's interesting... I think a lot of guys our age got a Grizzly when they were 14 or so. On Jeff Kavanagh's site he says he got a 45# Bear bow around then too. I don't think it was a Grizzly but he loves the one he has now. Only difference is he kept shooting.

If you want to collect another bow, and maybe do some shooting with a grandchild or other kid, there's an unusual one on the auction site now. A 1969 62" Alaskan, only 20#s, with bright light green limbs and a beautiful medium dark wood riser, maybe a type of rosewood. It would make a great bow for someone who needed a very light bow.

[2ndTimeShooter]

The Kodiak Special Deluxe is finally here... and so is the Kodiak Hunter. The hunter arrived in excellent packing, bubble wrapped, secured in the box, more bubble wrap. Unfortunately I cannot say the same for the Deluxe. It came in a box that was too small to add much packing, it just had a few foam peanuts in it, and one of the tips was sticking out of the box. Fortunately it did not seem damaged. It also had not been cleaned at all, and looked a lot worse than in the photos, with wax all over, smudges, specks of paint or something like it, and old glue where the strike plate and worn out feather rest were peeling off. Not sure what to do... should I write a bad review for the seller on the auction site? Just send him an email? It was a sacrilege, but on the other hand he seemed to think it was just an old bow so the price was low.

I think we can also settle the question of whether this bow can be strung and shot or not. Whoever had it obviously used it. Sadly, the string I had custom made for it has not arrived yet so I'll have to wait to shoot it.

The good news is it cleaned up well. A little denatured alcohol, careful scraping, and patient rubbing have gotten almost all the junk off it. And it is a beauty! There's no clouding in the clear glass. There's one or maybe two very small  stress cracks in the limbs. I'll have to use a magnifying glass to be sure. There is no delamination. The riser is in great shape, except a slightly worn area in the finish where the bow hand grips it.

I was impressed with how well the ow feels in the hand... to use the old saying, it fits me like a glove. No wonder people love these models and similar ones. And I didn't even shoot it yet. The riser is much wider and more massive than I thought from the photos. I'm already in love with this bow.

While I'm waiting for the string I'll look it over again and put a new feather rest and strike plate on it. Any advice is welcome.

[mangonboat]

Shandor, one thing you can do while waiting on your string is give that newly-cleaned KSD a coat of high quality paste wax to protect it.

[2ndTimeShooter]

Thanks, that's a good idea. I have some Daddy Van's beeswax furniture polish that worked well on another bow. I got the old feather rest and side plate off and all the old glue, I'll replace those first. I'm wondering whether to repair the couple of stress cracks in the limbs first with Loctite 420. I also found a small gap between one of the tip overlays and the end of the limb lamination which looks like a candidate for Loctite. The only problem is I don't know how to apply it without some of it getting on the rest of the bow and not just in a crack, and since it doesn't need refinishing I don't want to have to sand it off. Any ideas? Guess I'll do some research on that.

[eidsvolling]

Originally posted by 2ndTimeShooter:
I was impressed with how well the ow feels in the hand... to use the old saying, it fits me like a glove. No wonder people love these models and similar ones. And I didn't even shoot it yet. The riser is much wider and more massive than I thought from the photos. I'm already in love with this bow.

There is certainly a progression in the Bear risers through the years. My '58 Kodiak has the smallest grip in my collection (excluding the non-Bear selfbows). I don't have a '59, but the Paxton Talon Swift I have was modeled on the Kodiak of that year and the grip is a tad bulkier. The De Luxe carries this on in about the same increment. The '66 K Mag is what I would call nearly massive but still eminently shootable. I recall that '68 Grizzly as being even a bit bulkier. My non-shootable '70 Super Kodiak hearkens back to the '59 and '60 versions.

The odd thing is, I find all of them a pleasure to hold and shoot, notwithstanding their differences. OTOH I've hated the grips on the Gainesville bows I've held (which obviously have not included the newish '59 replica or anything of that ilk.)

There are plenty of folks here who know way more than I do about this riser history, so I'll clam up now.

[2ndTimeShooter]

I've only had the pleasure of holding a few bows, my original Grizzly, a 2014 Super Kodiak, the Kodiak Special Deluxe, the 1968 or 9 Kodiak Hunter, and the 1968 Bear Cub. You're right, they all fit well and are nice to hold. I guess the human hand is quite adaptable. So far though I like the feel of the Kodiak Special Deluxe best, I can't explain why.

On another subject, has anyone used wax on a limb around a stress crack, before injecting it with Loctite 420, to keep the overflow from getting on the limb? I thought of it and then did a search and found that people who repair old wood smoking pipes use wax or oil for that purpose, as well as some who repair guitars or furniture. If it works it could be a good way to repair a stress crack without having to harm the finish, or having to refinish.

[damascusdave]

Loctite 420 is designed to flow easily which is what makes it wick into cracks so well...the first thing one needs to do, and I learned this from experience, is use a small needle syringe to place it...certainly your idea of using wax around the crack has merit as well

DDave

[2ndTimeShooter]

Thanks DDave. I have a syringe and Loctite 420 but when I looked more closely at the cracks in the limb, there is not even a gap to insert a needle. I would have to remove all the finish first, which I'm not going to do so I'll just leave it the way it is. I've been shooting it and love it... although it's taking some time to stretch the new string, and the correct spined arrows I ordered are not here yet.

Meanwhile, I found a 1961 63" 30# Kodiak Special w/zebrawood riser that I'm buying for $125. The riser is of course beautiful but will need some refinishing of the varnish, which I can do. It's being sold by a hunter who had to hang up his bows due to an injury... another one (same story with the Kodiak Special Deluxe I got). I plan to use it to replace my 29# cub for practice shooting, it also has a zebrawood riser but is not nearly as pretty. Anyone want a Cub?

Maybe I am lucky finding nice vintage bows. Or it's beginner's luck. I'm not really collecting, just looking for a few of the type of bows I like (1960-62 Kodiak models) in different weights, for shooting. But at this rate I may wind up collecting if I'm not careful! Seems to be addictive. How do all you guys find the great bows you have?