Custom vs production

[Crittergetter]

As a bowyer I’m always interested in people’s feed back and am curious as to what motivates people that buy a custom bow vs a production bow. I understand both sides but am curious to what y’all s thoughts are.
Ready, set, go!!

[bigbadjon]

I generally shoot production bows these days. Right now I shoot a Hoyt Tiburon and if a limb breaks I can get a Hoyt replacement in days. When my A&H limb broke I couldn't wait months for a replacement.

[azhunter]

I really don’t care if it’s production or custom. Made all by hand or with a CNC machine. I just want a bow that I like the way it shoots. Also the grip is very important to me. If I don’t like the grip I’ll sell it right away.

[bigjohnmissalot]

more options in handle shape & material, limb length & material, veneers, finish options also all the special touches they can add to the performance and beauty.

[SAM E. STEPHENS]

I have owned and shot many many custom bows , some fit me great others not so much. Now days I just want a solid bow with good performance and reasonable price. The bows I’m shooting now do that for me , I can buy 10 of them for the price of one high end custom bow. And my tournament scores haven’t changed shooting a production bow and neither has my hunting success.

 Now that being said I would love to have a wall full of custom bows but my wallet says no...

,,,Sam,,,

[Gdpolk]

My sole motivation in choosing a bow is hunting performance. When I say that realize that I don’t mean chronograph numbers. I’ve owned and shot hundreds of bows over the years and to be honest I really don’t have a strong preference in general for production vs custom. I try to buy used bows if possible to try out a makers work before committing to a custom bow because I’m picky about the grip and how the bow feels during the draw and shot cycle. Buying used is more cost effective for those that might only be shot 10-12 times before moving on. That said, I’ve got a custom on order now that should be done within a week or so and as I was ordering it cost wasn’t a consideration at all. The cost of admission is what it is on custom handmade products and I truly don’t think most craftsmen supporting this industry charge enough for their skilled labor. What I am looking for in a bow is:
[[/li]

• a grip that fits my hand perfectly and naturally that is consistent and repeatable over time without me having to think about hand placement or wrist angle
• a bow that shoots to the point of aim naturally and intuitively and is also fairly forgiving of form when hunting...the kind that seems to shoot itself so to speak
• a bow that is fairly quiet but most importantly can be tuned for a deeper pitch with a more natural sound quality. Soft thuds spook animals less than high pitched thwacks or snaps or cracks. Sound quality is more important to me than the volume of the sound but ideally I can have both quiet AND natural sounding.
• comfortable to shoot. This means not a lot of vibration after the shot, a good grip,no finger pinch, a smooth and even draw, no stacking, and a bow that feels lighter and springier at a given draw weight than a bow that has the subjective feel of being heavier at a given draw weight
• fast flight capable, even if I don’t wind up using fast flight I want the option because it gives me more options in string build for tuning the sound quality of the bow
• acceptable fit/finish. The more expensive the bow the more critically this will be judged. I don’t expect a Samick Sage to look like a $1000 hand built bow. Minor streaking in the glass or similar flaws from the build don’t bother me at all but sloppy craftsmanship and poor tolerances do bother me. I don’t need perfection on a hunting bow but I do expect it to look like the craftsman who built it took his time and has pride in his work
• build specs that are what I’m looking for in design, size, poundage, and tiller

For what it’s worth, I currently only own custom bows. I have thought about adding an ILF rig sometime too though. Production bows have the advantages of cost, availability, and often longer product support because large companies (like Hoyt, Black Widdow, etc) tend to last longer than one man shops who eventually close when the owner retires. The custom world offers customers different designs, niche products, levels of fit/finish not able to be bought from production shops (silver/gold inlays, relief carvings, checkered grips, exotic leather grips, wood inlays, etc), a wider selection of materials and looks, the ability to customize the features and appearance, a wider range of draw weights, the ability to send in sentimental materials to be incorporated into the bow (Bob Sarrels is putting antler overlays from one of my bow kills on my custom being built now), and in my opinion a better and more personal experience.

[Sam McMichael]

I only have a couple of custom bows, and they are not really different from stock bows. I got a Wesley Special as a custom order so I could get the color glass, type of grip, draw weight, etc. at the time I wanted it. I got a Northern Mist Shelton on custom order to get the color and the yew limbs that I wanted, Granted, there's not much here that I couldn't get in a stock bow if I shopped around, but I didn't want to make the search, so I talked to the bowyers and they made it happen.

[kennym]

I don't buy many bows, but quiet, then  the grip and clear glass are the big requirements. Good performance without being too radical to where it unstrings itself are also nice!

[GCook]

I had a popular model of bow for a short time that I loved the grip and I could shoot it but the noise was intolerable.   A friend had bought a Primaltech and really liked it.  Did a bit of checking and nothing but positive feedback on them.
The quiet was what intrigued me.  Randy had been very helpful as well working out tuning and stuff on other bows as I got back into traditional archery the last couple years. 
I know so little about the availability of what's out there but did know what I wanted as far as center cut, draw weight at my draw length and I like a bit faster bow as well.  Finding that in the used market was tough and after a few buy ad sell attempts I just decided to give his bow a shot.
It was worth the time and money for me.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[Kopper1013]

I personally don’t believe a production bow should have a custom bow price. If I can choose my grips, my own matireal and look for a bow with a price close to some of these production bows why would I buy one of them.
When I’m in the market I generally don’t have a huge budget so price tends to a bigger factor than some of you guys and If I can get what I want I’ll go custom.

[Bowguy67]

Idk bout everyone else but I have zero production bows except one kids bow.  As a kid myself I had a few and on all of em the shelf was cut too high for my liking. I shoot off the shelf so it matters.
Now add all the cool wood, overlays, sheep horn, pearl, etc etc that can be added or subtracted and you won’t most likely have the same bow as your neighbor.
Than there’s performance. If the bow didn’t perform better than a factory bow I’d wanna weigh that too I’d guess. Truthfully though the second I pick up a production and the shelf is way up high I’m disinterested in even trying it.

[Rough Run]

For me, choosing any bow is a matter of trying different features - overall design, length, grip.  There are generally more options, and combination of options, with a custom bow.  Cost and wait time are important factors for me, so I have gone the production route, as well as custom.  I like them both for different reasons, but if I could afford it, I would go custom so I could incorporate the features I like most with chosen woods for the look I like, too.

[Oscar-eleven]

It doesn't really matter to me as long as the bow fits. I've had quite a few custom bows over the last 40-45 years and might do one more. I'm talking to a bowyer now and we'll see how it works out but if it doesn't I have a plan "B" for a production model. I'm more into function than fancy, my stuff gets used hard.

[Zwickey-Fever]

 It's how a bow fits, then how a bow performs. I have own numerous custom bows over the years, some great, some "not" so great. The most expensive bow I ever owned was a custom bow by a bowyer with a great name. The bow was the most unforgiving bow that I ever shot. If one little detail of my form, my grip, or my release was different or off in some minor way, my arrow flight was truly erratic to say the least. It was so bad, that I didn't have enough confidence to even take it hunting. I spoke to the bowyer numerous times, even sent the bow back to him twice, once so he can inspect the tillering and the second time for a set of limbs that cracked. After a year and a half of frustration,  I simply just gave the bow away, (free of charge),. It seemed the more money that I paid for a bow, the more frustration it gave me.
 For me, nothing fits me better than one of my one piece Martins. I like how quiet I can get them, how accurate I am with a Martin and I have never been to much on speed, but all my Martins are pretty zippy.
 Some like Fords, some like Chevys. It's all a personal choice and what fits the individuals needs the best.

[mec lineman]

For me, trying the different designs and styles made by trad bowhunters themselves is half the fun.  Ive owned 20-25 different custom bows and have had one bad experience. It was a bowyer that used to be on here. He has long been gone. i like the idea of my bow being made in some guys shop.

[McDave]

For me, the most important thing is the direct connection to our past.  Throughout recorded history, maybe 5,000 years, bowyers have been making bows in small shops for others to use.  If we go back further than that, maybe there were bowyers, maybe not, but people were making bows either for other people or for themselves as far back as 50,000 years ago.  Bows were the most advanced technology on the planet for 10’s of thousands of years until the advent of agriculture about 15,000 years ago.  Other than gathering nuts, berries, and insects, bows were the main way we fed ourselves for countless generations. You could take a traditional bow made by any bowyer today and hand it to a caveman of 20,000 years ago and he would know exactly what to do with it.  He probably wouldn't notice the fiberglass backing, but he would sure think it shot well. 

Of course, after the industrial revolution, many things that had been made in small shops were taken over by factories.  It's interesting that it's taken so long for that to happen with traditional bows. Compound bows, on the other hand, seem like a natural product for a factory to make.  But as long as I can, I will continue to support the efforts of the bowyers who make bows from start to finish, as a continuation of the tradition started who knows how many years ago by our ancestors.

[Crittergetter]

Some pretty interesting points made going both ways.

I personally have never bought a custom bow for myself. I have owned a few top name bows and have shot more than I can remember.
The main reason I never purchased a custom was because I simply couldn’t afford it. So I completely understand the draw to production bows and the convenience they offer. 
I’ve always been good with my hands and had a intuitive understanding of how things worked so I knew right off I could make my own bow and set out to do it.
Little did I know the course I was setting myself on. Nor did I know the depth of time and effort involved in making a one of a kind bow.

During conversations with a close friend and somewhat of a business advisor of mine he has mentioned that I should considered starting a line of “production” bows. Utilizing quality but cheaper than fancy or exotic woods and colored glass.
Also providing limbs sets that could be ordered without a long wait.

This is something I will have to take into deeper consideration as I do see there may be a market for it.
Thank you all for the feedback

[azhunter]

Crittergetter, I think your idea of offering bows with a slightly lower price with less exotic woods but of good quality is a good idea. I have had a lot of custom bows over the years. I have and ILF Apex riser coming in 10 days from South at Stalker and I did do some very slight upgrades on the wood choices but other than that the last two customs I purchased I just ordered the base bow with no upgrades and black glass. One of those bows was from Bryan at Tall Tines and to me that bow with the base grey diamond wood and black glass is to me an outstanding looking bow. Amazing what he can do with no upgrades. I'm getting where I'm not so interested in how good a bow looks with the fancy woods, but how it shoots. I am also getting to where I hate to take a fancy bow hunting as I'm usually in rocky terrain and hate to beat up a fancy bow. I'm just glad there are so many choices out there to chose from.

[bucknut]

For me if I can't just pick a bow up and have it hit where I'm aiming it's out the door regardless of if it cost $100 or $2000. The grip is what my main focus is when picking out a bow. So that rules out a lot of production bows. When buying a custom unless you live near the bowyer it is hard to get the exact grip you like on a bow that is custom for you. I do agree with your thoughts on having low priced extra limbs on hand to get someone out of a bind. If I were a bowyer, I likely would focus most of my time on stock bows so you don't have the issue of hitting customer weight and possibly charge a bit more for "Custom" work. I like to go to trad events and try all the vendors bows to see what grip works for me, that way I know their standard grip is good for me. I do not buy the over seas made bows as some do. I know they are cheap and function really well for their cost point and don't begrudge anyone who shoots them. I personally want something made in USA or Canada.

[Tooner]

IMO,all things being considered production bows offer a better value in terms of performance, durability, availability, tunability and warranty.