Black Hunter Bows - Updated

[Burnsie]

Updated in posts below:

I know I'm late to the party with the whole Black Hunter craze, but a couple of my friends have bought them and have nothing but good things to say. I'm online and I'm finding Black Hunter bows made by Obert, Glurak, and Sino-Art. Is there one that is the "original" or better than the others? They all seem priced about the same within $5.00.

[McDave]

Black Hunter bows seem to be made in a number of different factories in China.  One I bought for a grandchild was made by ZSHJGJR Archery.  I corrected a sloppy interface between the shelf and the strike plate with a file, but the bow otherwise functions adequately as an entry level bow.  I know 3-4 other people who have bought Black Hunter bows for themselves or others from different "companies", and all seem to be performing satisfactorily.

Aside from the bow itself, everything else they sent was junk: the string, the shelf rest material, and the stringer.  The stringer was downright hazardous.  Once these things were replaced by items of my own choosing, everything was fine.

I purposely bought mine through Amazon, because I thought (rightly or wrongly) that Amazon would be my first line of defense if anything went wrong with the order or with the bow after it was delivered.  Amazon has had my back for several other mishaps, none related to archery, and I have been impressed with their customer service.  I have no idea how I would fare dealing directly with ZSHJGJR Archery, and I would just as soon not have to find out.

[TGbow]

My son had one a few years ago. Great shooting bow. Some of the best bows I've ever shot were production bows.
Like most bows I've ever bought, even custom bows,  I usually change the strings out.

[The Whittler]

I bought one from Eric at Hitman Archery. Great guy to deal with. I bought the BH Stealth and it shoots as good as my customs and it looks great also.

[PrimitivePete]

I have the Obert original I got from Amazon. The bow in my opinion is worth every cent. It's not a custom bow, but it is a bow that shoots extremely well, very portable and the cost is very recession friendly. There are a ton of bows made better but I'm not sure you find any that will shoot as well at this price point.

[Steve Clandinin]

I've got three risers and four sets of limbs all are the original black hunters made by junxing archery with bamboo cores. I bought mine when they first came out and paid 70.00 for the complete bows. I put limbsations on the back and replaced the strings with SBD strings. They shoot every bit as good as my custom bows. Try to get the original black hunter you won't go wrong.

[TGbow]

Another great shooting bow is the Stealth Hubter or Black Spitfire..under $260.
Great shooting bows.

[buckeyebowhunter]

I would never tell anyone how to spend their money, but I try to buy as much American made products as I can. And I'm not saying there is anything wrong with the black hunters, I'm sure they're fine shooting bows. But I'd much rather buy a used bow from a reputable American bowyer for a couple hundred more dollars, or buy a used Bear if I were buying a bow for someone just learning to shoot a traditional bow. I see too many guys that "have" the money to buy an American made bow using the China bows, I know this isn't the case for everyone. I apologize for being brash, I'm not trying to knock anyone that enjoys the Black hunters, but I felt like giving my input. 

[PrimitivePete]

I'll agree that most of us want to support our country in every way possible including buying American made products. But I think the point that a Black Hunter allows someone new to the sport access to a solid bow at a great introductory price. Someone who can later make a better decision on a custom bow is an underappreciated fact. I see many who are new to the sport, they are coming over from the compound side and are used to spending high prices on bows only to spend the same on a custom bow they are not even sure of. You see it all the time on the classified sections in popular forums.

[SS Snuffer]

I bought mine thru Amazon for the same reason mentioned, Sino-Art and it came in spot on for weight no flaws at all except the string like all said. I bought the longbow and have shot two deer with it. There good bows. I bought mine after my shoulder replacement for a lower poundage while I reworked the bows I had. I just bought a TOP Archery (Black Hunter riser) for my grandson but it is a recurve. Not quite the quality but shoots very well and nice looking! They have their place, but my Kanati still has my heart.
Longbow-Sino Art - from Amazon, would be my choice!

[Burnsie]

Believe me, I have thousands of dollars worth of American made custom bows on my rack (ask my wife), plus thousands more that
have come and gone over the years.  Blacktail, Tolke, Fox, Rose Oak, Brackenbury, Zipper, ACS, Super Kodiak, 59'er......
I figured for about $100 I'd get a lower weight Black Hunter and use it for form work, plinking stumps, and to let beginners try out.

[TGbow]

I like to buy American amd I do when I can. Sad truth is 99% of the phones n computers were typing on are made over seas...along with a lot of other stuff.

[GCook]

I know I'm late to the party with the whole Black Hunter craze, but a couple of my friends have bought them and have nothing but good things to say. I'm online and I'm finding Black Hunter bows made by Obert, Glurak, and Sino-Art. Is there one that is the "original" or better than the others? They all seem priced about the same within $5.00.

The OPs question was related to the best place to get the best bow of his choice.  He didn't ask for a lecture on buying American vs foreign. 

[buckeyebowhunter]

Gary, i wasn't trying to lecture or offend anyone with my post. Just wanted to give my 2 cents. It is mostly a free country still.

As a bowyer, with more than reasonable prices, i can't help but be slightly offended when the China bows are recieving publicity. It simply hurts guys like myself and there's no other way around it. If a newbie was serious about getting into trad bowhunting for the right reasons I'd probably just give them a bow and tell them to save their 200 bucks on arrows and broadheads.

[Kelly]

Why does it matter how someone chooses to spend "their" money?

[GCook]

This conversation belongs on a different thread.  I mean if everyone is honest we know there are no $175 custom bows.  New or used.  Now an old Bear or garage sale or pawn shop find yes.  But a new bow, with interchangeable limbs you can upgrade and sell as you move up, there are no American made ones, production or custom, for that reasonable of a cost. At least none I'm aware of.

[McDave]

The fact is that Black Hunter bows and US made custom bows are two different products, like the difference between wine that comes in a box and wine that comes in a glass bottle with a cork.  Not all wine that comes in a box is bad, and not all wine that comes in a glass bottle with a cork is good.  But they're marketed differently, and winemakers who sell their wine in glass bottles with a cork are not worried about how much business they're losing to people who prefer to buy their wine in boxes, and vice versa.

Actually, US custom bowyers might benefit from archers who got their start shooting Black Hunters.  Very few archers who start out shooting Black Hunters would be willing to shell out north of $500 for a custom bow as their first purchase.  Most of them will drift on to other activities after a while and their Black Hunters will gather dust in some garage or closet.  But a few will become really interested in traditional archery to the point that they will shell out $500-$1,500 someday for a really nice custom bow (or two).  What's the best way to generate that interest: to start with a Black Hunter that looks good and shoots pretty well, or to start with a pawn shop or garage sale Bear that shows its age and shoots like a dog that won't hunt?

[buckeyebowhunter]

Once again, I wasn't trying to tell anyone how to spend their money. That was actually the very first thing I said. Just giving my opinion on the matter whether it was popular or not.

McDave, I always like what you have to say. And I do agree with what you are saying to a degree.

One thing I cannot wrap my head around is how cheap these bows are, I cannot build a bow, using the cheapest actionwood, and the cheapest glass available for less than $150. Not to mention the limb bolts, string, shelf rest material, glue, shipping etc.

[GCook]

Yes but our economy is significantly different than those of the ones producing the cheaper products.  I'd venture a loaf of bread isn't $3 there or a dozen eggs $5.  Their economy and standard of living drives what they will work for and produce. Organic whole chickens are $15 at the grocery store.  Grass raised beef steaks, $15/lb or more.  A family in China would eat a long time on what we pay for a steak.  We cannot compete with how cheap they are because of how our economy works and the difference in our standards of living.

[Burnsie]

It has been almost a year since I first started this thread, and I just recently pulled the trigger and bought a Black Hunter.  Amazon had an Obert model on sale for $79 = I had $32 in Amazon points saved up that I threw at it - so with tax and free shipping I'm all in for $51. 
I have to agree with what almost everyone says about them.  For the price you can hardly go wrong - fit and finish is great, the model I got has nice shaped/fitted limb butts as opposed to the straight end models.  I have the side plate and arrow rest installed and its braced up - looks great. I hope to give it a good shoot-in and tuning over the weekend.
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