tell me about Zippers

[Otto]

Daggone those are some purty bows!!!!

[jomama]

CJONES, hope this is what you are looking for. Specs are on the riser pix. I have never strung this bow.

[Marblesonac]

Couldn't you get a lower serial #????   :p  

Wow!!! That is a collector bow if I've ever seen one.

[cjones]

Man that is awesome! Thanks. Any idea how many of the one pc. bows were made? I would love to find one of them.

Well guys i got to doo some shooting with Bill this evening to celebrate his birthday. I would wish him a happy b-day on here but since he ain't smart enough to turn on a pc, i won't!  :D       We gave him such a hard time about getting old that it really affected his shooting.

[cjones]

I talked to Bill last night. He was able to kill a doe with the new longbow limbs with only 10 minutes left in the season. He was tickled to death. He also said that he is now taking orders for the longbows! I can't wait to get a set.

[Izzy]

Heres a pic of my Zipper in its finest moment.First trad deer.I remember seeing someone here had an identical one, besides the quiver.Looking forward to the longbow limbs.

[bowmac]

Bill took my order this afternoon. Can't wait but guess I will have to. Ought to be real comfortable on my riser.

[bbassi]

This thread is still going? DANG! we better watch it or it's going to end up as an other Silvertip thread. LOL

[cjones]

Ain't nuthin wrong with that Brent!

Court, I'm glad to hear ya got your limbs ordered. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on them. If i don't get a set soon i'm gonna have a talk with Mrs. Tracy!     That should get Bill moving quicker!  

[Kyle Lancaster]

I don't mean this question to seem negative. I've seen Zippers at several shoots and the bows are stunning and perform very well. I've shot several and they shoot with authority. My question - with all of the highly intricate work that Bob and Bill do on the bows, it seems to me that the limbs don't fit seemlessly to the riser. From the bows that I've handled, nearly all had some riser or limb overhang. I'm probably overlooking something, but has anyone else noticed this? Again, the bow's are stunning and perform very well (and the bowyers are very nice), but I just haven't been able to get past this to purchase one. Again, I don't mean to offend Zipper or their loyal customers.
Thanks,
Kyle

[overbo]

Yes Kyle you are correct.I've owned several Zippers and some fit perfect and others w/ a slight lip.The exceptions are the bows built by Larry.I've had 3 of Larry's Zipper and all where flawless.I've had one of Bob's earlier bow that was flawless.Today I have a cocabola bow that Bob built that is also flawless.
Can't speek 4 Bills bows ,yet to see one.

[overbo]

[Ray Hammond]

the three I have are perfect..never see too many of them down here...but the ones I have seen have not had that issue Kyle.

I guess anything that is built by hand is going to be a lot less like CNC work and more art than science.

One good thing is that I believe if you are not happy with it you could always return it to get it worked on to your satisfaction.

[swamper]

it could be the limbs where ordered and the riser not sent back to get a perfect match

[Kyle Lancaster]

I'm being too picky on an otherwise perfect bow, but these were brand new, on the display table bows. Again no disrespect to Zipper or their fans. The inlay, wood selection and wood combination of Zippers has ALWAYS (and I used to attend the WVBA convention where Bob got started) drawn me to them. That aspect of these bows is unsurpassed, as one can see by the pics in this thread. Sorry for bringing this up.
Kyle

[swamper]

good to know these things.

[Woodduck]

I bought a used one, years ago and sent the riser back to Bob and got a second, lighter, set of limbs and both perfect....and really zip an arrow and aren't even the fastflight compatable limbs.
It's my favorite recurve to shoot.

[cjones]

I can give a little insight in to why some limbs don't fit just perfect. At cloverdale last year i went up to the table and picked up a riser that fit my hand perfectly. Since that riser fit better than all the rest, they just started pulling limbs off other bows until they found a set that i could shoot well. Since they do this for anyone who wants to buy a stock bow, you sometimes get limbs that weren't made for that riser. Being handmade each one is a little different. If you order a new bow they will fit perfect! The set on my first zipper are off just a little bit and it drives Bill nuts! He offers to fix it all the time and i keep telling him that he is the only one it bothers!

[overbo]

I've had other bow maker's  w/ the same issues and  some that alot of guys say they are the guru of bow building.I'm positive that any bowyer w/ self-pride will do everything in his power to correct it.If not, the internet will swallow them as we seen w/ other bowyers.
I sure don't want to see this thread harm Bill or Bob w/ possible customers.I feel the amount of responses to this thread shows a great following of Zipper bows.That alone should surpass any questions of doubt.

[Ray Hammond]

If someone decides because of that to not get a Zipper then they are missing out on a top tier bow over something silly.

What someone does with a bow after they get it- IE swapping limbs with other bows, or as Chad says buying a stock bow and taking what you can get from the table for limbs in a custom one at a time situation, is really beyond Bob or Bill's control.

All they can do is OFFER to fix it - I've ordered and seen about 15 of these personally over the last 17 years and every ORDERED custom Zipper has been PERFECT in every way..glue lines, fit and finish, and wood quality. If you are considering a Zipper the NON ISSUE issue mentioned in this thread should not dissuade you from buying one.

I am not endorsed by Zipper, I am not paid by Zipper, I get no special favors from Zipper- I've just used my 1989 Zipper to kill a ton of animals and would trust the bow with my life against dangerous game if need be, before ANY bow I have ever shot..because it gets the job done in every way possible, while looking great as well.

And Bob, and now Bill, like a lot of other folks in this business, are a class act that stand behind what they do 100%