Old bears.... who's with me!!

[Ronnie Newell]

My '69 50# Tigercat that I usually hunt with.

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[Petrichor]

My '69 50# Tigercat that I usually hunt with.

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Another beautiful tigercat

[Roy from Pa]

I've never had a problem with the bow.

Latches still work like new.

[Doublegun]

When I was a kid I would look at the Bears hanging in the rack at the local sporting goods store and look forward to the day I was strong enough to hunt with one. They weren’t just bows, they were works of art. My dad ended up giving me a beautiful Been Pearson “Hunter” for my birthday in 1975 (also a beautiful bow) but the old Bears have always been special.  Someday I’ll find one with multiple different woods in the riser pulling ~ 50#’s and I’ll buy it.

[Petrichor]

When I was a kid I would look at the Bears hanging in the rack at the local sporting goods store and look forward to the day I was strong enough to hunt with one. They weren’t just bows, they were works of art. My dad ended up giving me a beautiful Been Pearson “Hunter” for my birthday in 1975 (also a beautiful bow) but the old Bears have always been special.  Someday I’ll find one with multiple different woods in the riser pulling ~ 50#’s and I’ll buy it.

Although I dont date back to the 70s but my story is much the same. I dreamed of the day that I would get my first grizzly and it was all I hoped for. Then the custom bug bit me and I have been trending back to these beautiful and reliable bows. I like my customs but except for one do not hold the special place in my heart.

[Doublegun]

Where can I find a listing of all of the different Bear models. I’d like to understand the different models offered and how they differed.

Thanks.

JDG

[Petrichor]

http://www.vintagearchery.org/catalogs-by-year.html

Enjoy.

Was just looking at the bear 1970 catalog for my tiger cat and I found something interesting. It says the draw weight was at 28 inches from front of the shelf. I draw 26 from back of shelf good info to know for arrow ordering.

[Captain*Kirk]

It couldn't hurt, especially on a 50-year old bow, to scale it and see what it actually pulls today rather than just assuming its still " 50@28". It's wood, after all.

Dave, thanks for that link! I could get lost in there for days.

[Doublegun]

Nostalgia aside, how do the new Bears compare to the vintage ones in terms of performance? Their new ‘59 Grizzly looks really nice and the pro at the local shop (who shoots trad) speaks very highly of them.

[Petrichor]

I like the new bears just fine.

[Petrichor]

It couldn't hurt, especially on a 50-year old bow, to scale it and see what it actually pulls today rather than just assuming its still " 50@28". It's wood, after all.

Dave, thanks for that link! I could get lost in there for days.

Me too Kirk.

[Paul/KS]

My '69 50# Tigercat that I usually hunt with.

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Looks just like the one that I still have. 

[Dave Pagel]

I shot my deer this year with a 1975 B Mag riser takedown with 50# number 1 limbs, 1916 arrow and Bear Razorhead.  They all performed great.

D.P.

[Doublegun]

Kirk;

Thank you for posting a link to the old catalogues. It was exactly what I was looking for.

Best,

Jay

[Petrichor]

Upgraded the strike plate on my bear today. Love the vintage look of this plate.

[Sam McMichael]

When I was younger, I loved the Bear recurves, but never had the money to buy many bows. I had a Ben Pearson, and it was about all I could afford. Later, money was a bit more plentiful, but by then I was hooked on Hill bows. Therefore, I have only wound up with 4 Bear bows. I have 2 Black Bear recurves, a Bear Super Magnum (which I hi-jacked from my son), and a Royal Safari that I won in a raffle. I like 'em, but I'll stay with the Hill styles.

[Bryan Bondurant]

Ive had some bad luck with old bows, mostly from moving around and drying them out. Im pretty good with wood and old guitars, as far as storage and even repair. Whats the ideal moisture and temperature to store bows at? Do you store them in a special hydrated closet or something in a dry climate?

The pictures and stories about old bows were great, just wishing I still had some the ones that passed through my hands over the years, a couple were left in a hunting camp in Alaska.

[Huntschool]

I am down to 1.  A Super Mag 45@28 One of the black ones which I think I bought off someone on TG a number of years ago.  I had a Super Kodiak same vintage same black color that was 50@28 but in a flight of stupidity I traded it in for one of those newfangled wheel things many years ago.....  Bad decision.  I loved that SK bow.

[kopfjaeger]

Here is the one I'm bowhunting with this year. It's a 1972 factory camouflaged Bear Super Kodiak. I'm shooting cedar arrows off of it.

[The-Crow]

http://www.vintagearchery.org/catalogs-by-year.html

Enjoy.

Was just looking at the bear 1970 catalog for my tiger cat and I found something interesting. It says the draw weight was at 28 inches from front of the shelf. I draw 26 from back of shelf good info to know for arrow ordering.

The-Crow

Thanks for sharing that site!!! Now I know the Bear Kodiak Magnum that I picked up Friday is very likely a ‘72 model!
Also interesting that they are scaled from the front of the shelf! Am I wrong in saying my 27.5” draw make this 45lbs bow scale more like a 47-48 pound bow from the back of the grip?