New NM Shelton followed me home

[wv lungbuster]

Very nice, love those elm veneers.

[David Mitchell]

I can't tell a great deal of difference between the Classic and the Shelton, both are great, smooth shooters.  The Shelton just has a feel to it that is hard to explain--a bit tamer in hand, easier to string and unstring due to string follow, and quiet and forgiving.  I may never get any other type of longbow!  I see nothing lost by the string follow design and a bit sweeter shooting bow in the process.

[Mudd]

Oh yeah! David....

Yes sir, you're helping me a lot..."NOT!" lol drool, drool, drool...

I'm going to have to mix up some Nutra Sweet and brush it on my bows to catch up to you from what I read about the comparison of your Sheldon and a Classic.

I think I'll copy this pm and post it so the whole world can see how helpful you are....hahaha

Thank you for sharing with us!! Seriously, thank you!

God bless,Mudd

[SpankyNeal]

The only disadvantage to string follow that i've found is that they are harder to put down    Definately the best shooting Hill design and Steve's is as fine as any!

[WESTBROOK]

David, are your Shelton and Classic the same weight? If so will they shoot the same arrow? Steve always told me, all things equal, the Shelton will take a lighter pine.

The Shelton feels different but hard to explain, the last thing you feel is the string leaving your fingers.

Eric

[David Mitchell]

Eric, My Classic is 52#@28", the Shelton is 51#@28". Both are 68" long.  They shoot the same arrows just fine with the same sight picture at the yardages I normally shoot--out to 25-30 yards.

[cahaba]

Beautiful bow David. Congratulations. I just got a Classic and love it. My next bow will be a Shelton.

[WESTBROOK]

Thanks David, I was just curious. Mine are 56 &58, and they shoot the same.

Eric

[AdamH]

Eric & Dave, is there much difference between the Dish grip and the straight grip ? Thank You ...

[Mudd]

Thanks Adam for asking that question. I'd sure like to hear their take on the differences also.

God bless,Mudd

[David Mitchell]

I think there is a good bit of difference but it depends on how mnuch the grip is dished.  Some bowyers barely dish it--I have a 40 year old Hill Tembo that was built when John Schultz was making them for Hill and it has the tiniest bit of dish.  Other bows I see have a more pronounced dish.  I don't mind just a touch, but I find that a dished grip is falling away from my hand at the wrong place if you get my meaning. I prefer the more solid feel of the straight grip against the base of my thumb.  If shot the way a longbow actually should be shot there is very little contact of the palm with the grip any way except on the side.  The way Hill hiumself said to grip the bow is to have it hang down by your side string up, hold the grip as you would pick up a suit case or bucket of water.  That puts the center of the grip right across the knuckles of the fingers.  Then simply wrap your thumb around the grip.  That will position the large knuckle at the base of your thumb just BARELY right of the center line of the grip for a right handed shooter.  You are essentially gripping the bow on the sides.  It will feel strange at first, but I found that after shooting that way for just a bit no other grip feels as good or shoots as well.

Eric, you can give us your take on this        .

[WESTBROOK]

My take is...listen to David.

All my Hill style bows are straight grip. I like them, I think I would like a dished a little better though. I'm thinking an uneven dish, where the deepest point is about 1/3 the way down the grip, instead of in the center. I have an old Robertson Mystical LB that has this style of grip and it is the most comfortable/natural grip I've ever shot. I think I hold the bow just like David, my thumb knuckle is just past center, the fat/meaty part below the knuckle is dead center in the grip, the middle joint of the index finger is in the center front side of the grip(if the grip is the right size). Steve showed me how to grip the bow when I shot/ordered my first one 2.5 years ago. I'd never shot a straight limbed bow before and was just starting to shoot LB's. Also, the right sized grip does matter. I have a big hand, but I'm a tall skinny guy with boney hands and a dished grip just feels a little more comfy to me. I would only go 1/8-3/16"max deep on it.

David is right on the way to hold the bow, but it varies a tiny bit from person to person because everyones hand is slightly different. Some handles are to small for me to grip "properly" but I always just put my thumb joint just past center and the meat of my thumb on the center and it works. It feels awkward at first but that changes quickly.

Hope some of this makes sense.

Eric

[AdamH]

Thanks Dave, I understand exactly what you're saying .... Makes Sense to me ... You my friend, are a World of Knowledge ...

[Hatrick]

When I shot Steve's Shelton last weekend I thought I would like the dished grip the best so that was the first style I shot. Then I tried the straight grip. When I first picked up the bow I was gripping it all wrong. Steve discussed the proper way to use and hold that grip just about exactly as David describes above. It made a world of difference.

I just can't believe how much I enjoyed shooting that Shelton with the straight grip. Now the wait for mine.

David, excellent explanation of the proper way to grip the bow. Might you be the gentlemen I spoke to on Sunday at the NM booth about 11am or so. Tall fellow with glasses??

Dave

[David Mitchell]

Well, I'm sort of tall maybe (6 feet) and do wear glasses but I was not there Sunday so it must have been some other very good looking dude   .....Dave

[BaldingEagle]

I saw some of the bows that he made with the green glass. They are REALLY cool looking.  Not as beautiful as his wood veneers, but unique.

I met Steve about 8 or 9 years ago, when I was up in Grayling, MI for the MTB shoot. I was the vendor coordinator for the then, MATC (now the BBTC).  He came down and was such a great person that I wanted to try, and hopefully buy, one of his bows.  None fit me just right.  I knew they were great quality, and I really liked the uniqueness of his reverse grip, Whisper bow, but it just didn't fit me right.  He kept making the trip back down here from the UP and some of us got to know Steve and his wife, Donna.
About 3 years ago, I tried one of his Baragas and liked it so much that I told a friend of mine about it.  He liked it so much, he ordered it in take-down so that he put it in the "boot" of his car in England.  While talking with Steve on the phone about my "mate's" bow, I couldn't take it any more and ordered a 58" take-down so it would ride nicer in my 2 door Focus.  The first shot I took with that bow took the largest buck of my life.  Needless to say, I have shot the Baraga almost exclusively.  My friend from England was on that same hunt and killed a really nice 8 point with his, too.
At last year's BBTC, I just had to try his Whisper again and it fit me beautifully.  Steve told me later that he had made a few minor tweaks to make it a little better.  The tweaks sure did their job.  I then told that same friend from England about how much better I thought Steve's Whisper was and he shot it.  Later that Fall, one arrived for him.  Another friend ordered a three-piece take-down that shoots EXTREMELY flat - at 50#.  Mike won an open-class shoot with that bow - against mostly recurve shooters shooting target bows.
Needless to say, I shot a beautiful Whisper this last week and it too went home with me.
I doubt you can find a finer bow than a Northern Mist - especially at Steve's prices.

[BaldingEagle]

Originally posted by BaldingEagle:
I saw some of the bows that he made with the green glass. They are REALLY cool looking.  Not as beautiful as his wood veneers, but unique.

I met Steve about 8 or 9 years ago, when I was up in Grayling, MI for the MTB shoot. I was the vendor coordinator for the then, MATC (now the BBTC).  He came down and was such a great person that I wanted to try, and hopefully buy, one of his bows.  None fit me just right.  I knew they were great quality, and I really liked the uniqueness of his reverse grip, Whisper bow, but it just didn't fit me right.  He kept making the trip back down here from the UP and some of us got to know Steve and his wife, Donna.
About 3 years ago, I tried one of his Baragas and liked it so much that I told a friend of mine about it.  He liked it so much, he ordered it in take-down so that he put it in the "boot" of his car in England.  While talking with Steve on the phone about my "mate's" bow, I couldn't take it any more and ordered a 58" take-down so it would ride nicer in my 2 door Focus.  The first shot I took with that bow took the largest buck of my life.  Needless to say, I have shot the Baraga almost exclusively.  My friend from England was on that same hunt and killed a really nice 8 point with his, too.
At last year's BBTC, I just had to try his Whisper again and it fit me beautifully.  Steve told me later that he had made a few minor tweaks to make it a little better.  The tweaks sure did their job.  I then told that same friend from England about how much better I thought Steve's Whisper was and he shot it.  Later that Fall, one arrived for him.  Another friend ordered a three-piece take-down that shoots EXTREMELY flat - at 50#.  Mike won an open-class shoot with that bow - against mostly recurve shooters shooting target bows.
Needless to say, I shot a beautiful Whisper this last week and it too went home with me.
I doubt you can find a finer bow than a Northern Mist - especially at Steve's prices.

[Plumber]

my shelton is the nices longbow I have ever shot its my third.they will never be sold.when I die it will take two coffins to burrie me. one for myself. an the second for my northernmist bows. I will tey to post pics later.