I've owned and hunted with a Toelke Whistler, Shrew Classic Hunter (Coffey era), Caribow Wolverine, Centaur triple carbon (60"), and multiple Thunder Child(ren?) 56 and 58".
I got my Whistler last winter just after I'd finished up most of my hunts but rotated it with a few other bows all winter and into the spring for daily shooting. When it was time to commit to one for some high stakes hunts, I chose the Whistler. At my draw length (30.5") it's the smoothest of the bunch, has the least hand shock and Dan made the grip just to my liking (resembles a Jager or BEST style grip in some ways). Pound for pound, the Toelke isn't the fastest but it is the smoothest and most comfortable and the one that I consistently shoot the best. It also seems extremely well made and has already held up better than most to some very tough mountain hunting conditions. All the above bows are excellent and I've happily carried them all into the mountains but I'm stuck on the Toelke at the moment. The Thunder Child would probably be my second choice. That Classic Hunter was my least favorite for a variety of reasons but the bow I had may not be at all representative of the current generation.
Also, for what it's worth, at this point in my archery path, I am not interested in any bow that can't be built with a flattish, Jager feeling grip and I don't believe Shrew will do that for you. Big Jim, Toelke and Centaur will happily accommodate that and other grips requests but my understanding is that custom grips are not an option with Shrew.
PS. I have demoed but not hunted with an all glass 58" A&H one piece that was also very impressive and handled my draw well. There might be one of those on order someday for me. Even with the all glass construction it was remarkably quick with a heavy arrow.
Topic: 58” Shrew vs 58” Toelke Whistler (Read 3559 times)
