Custom recurve makers

[Ari]

Hey I'm new to tradgang and was wondering if you guys could help me out. I'm looked to buy a new custom wood takedown recurve and would like the get a list of some of the best makers. So far Ive had my eyes on the new PCH black widow but before I rush in id like to get an idea of what is out there.

[Night Wing]

I own two Blacktail take down recurves. I'd never sell my two Blacktails even if I was desperate for money.

  http://www.blacktailbows.com/

[Coonbait]

Pittsley Predator makes a fine wood takedown!
GLENN

[Robert Honaker]

Oh man did you open a can of worms.lol

Been thru a bunch and I can honestly say I will never sell my Schafer Silvertip. Ever!

If I had dropped the bucks on one in the first place I would have alot more money in my pocket now. I spent a bunch on several high end bows and they were good, but was never completly happy till the Silvertip.

[Robert Honaker]

One more thing. I should have bought used from the beginning. Nothing wrong with a used custom bow and most of the time half the cost.

[legends1]

Take a look at my website,if i can help you contact me.

[Steelhead]

Thier are so many excellant bowyers really.Some have easily recognizable names and great reputations and some get little to no recognition publicly but build very high high quality bows that compete head to head with the more popular brand names.

Some of my best bows have been from very low key bowyers who do not advertise at all.

Some of these bows have very long wait times till you receive a custom bow.You may not be that patient and need a bow sooner.

You mentioned Black widow.The wait time is short,the product is of high quality and customer service is excellant and you have a choice of different grip styles.I am sure one would be to your liking.

Many other good ones like I said.Schafer and Blacktail were mentioned.Both great bows but your looking at a long wait.

Being in Australia limits your chance to try all these great bows in the States and finding your perfect fit before shelling out the money.

I like Widows,Schafers,Blacktails,Robertsons.Tall Tines,Wes Wallace.Brackenbury,Whippensticks,Morrisons,Rivers Edge Recurves and many others.Too many to list really.

Get the right length,poundage and grip and I am sure you could be reasonably satisfied by a multitude of bowyers.

[Ari]

Wow thanks for all the responses, I didn't expect such fast reply's.

[cacciatore]

Most of the modern bowyer are very talented and make some really fine bows,you can't go wrong with most of them.If you make a search here on PowWow you'll find a lot of reviews and imputs.
Some of them require a pretty long time to be delivered,this can tells you something.You can always look on the classified here,buy something that turn you on and then order a new one,when it is next to be ready,you can sell your used bow for almost the same price you payed for.

[Benny Nganabbarru]

G'day Ari,

There really are so many good options. Your best bet is to spend hours and hours looking at the TradGang sponsors and searching PowWow for pictures and comments. Nearly all comments will be overwhelmingly positive for any given bow, and this is only right and proper, because most of them really are that good. In fact, you're hard-pressed to find a bad one (although it is possible to find the occasional bowyer who, due to whatever stresses in his life, has lost the plot; but this is extremely rare).

Now, as a fellow Aussie, I will say a few words about Black Widow. Their service is excellent, as is their product. Once you decide draw weight and know your draw length, you really won't go wrong choosing whichever design takes your fancy and fits the draw length criterion. Further, their shipping costs are about the best there is for a one-piece bow (should you want one). There are many of us Aussie bowhunters who've taken loads of game with Black Widow recurves, so they really do work and they really do provide prompt and reliable service. They have a short turn-around time (only two months), too, which is cool on your first custom bow. Also, they really are quite robust and darn-near bomb-proof. There are plenty of wonderful bows from the USA which I wouldn't hesitate to own, but that if you listen to the Aussie bowhunting scene you will find a disproportionately-high number of failures / breakages compared to Black Widow. I don't want to name names, as it could and does happen to anyone, and it would be rude, and in every fair case that I've heard of the bowyers have made it right, but Black Widow just don't have much or any down-time due to coming unglued. The new PCH is really cool, too. By the way, I shoot (or have shot) Black Widow, Martin, Howard Hill, Bear, Schafer Silvertip and others, and I like them all. I even like my Silvertips better than my PCH, which is hard because the PCH is perfect. But, for the Aussie first-timer into the world of custom bows, I strongly recommend Black Widow.

Cheers,

Ben

[Ari]

Yeah Ive just started to realized what a hard choice I have.

I'm really gonna take my time to pick as it is a lot of money to me, and hopefully I get something I love that lasts me a life time. Their is no rush as I already have a Perfectly fine 40# 1960s Kodiak magnum but I am still wanting to upgrade to a modern recurve at around 50#.

Thanks for the help so far.

[PA-Spot]

I have 2-Robertson Styk Bows, 1-Blacktail & 1- on order, 1- Blackwidow, 1-RER I lean toward the Robertsons. Great people to work with.

[Bowwild]

I have several recurves and 4 more on order. For great quality and lower wait times, your Widow idea and the Pittsley predator would be good ones.  I own both.

If you don't mind 9-15 month waits the Blacktail and Schafer Silvertips are terrific. The Rose Oak bows are great too -- I have a Super Wildcat due next month.

This is difficult for  me to do but if I were advising my best friend:

Call Pittsley Predator and see what they have in stock. Many times they have risers ready to go and only need limbs which don't take very long.

Order a Schafer Silvertip as soon as you are sure of your draw weight and bow lenght preferences.

The advice to search classified for used bows is terrific. Some of these fellows have perfect bows they will sell because they are trying many different bows.  I tried this a couple of months ago but it didn't work out for me, the bow I wanted is rarely resold, I need a Lefty, and the draw weight/length combination I want isn't the most popular (52# in a 58" bow-46# at  my draw).

[snakebit40]

I LOVE my Schafer Silvertip! So smooth, quite, and very fast. I haven't shot very many because I can't get away from the Schafer.  

[cacciatore]

I get 90 bows,but if you stay with a single bow you can only improve and be more confidentand accurate;here we say: beware of a man with a single bow!Belive in the bow you have when you have choosen yours,most mistakes are just yours.
Remember you can droll since you have your money in your pocket.

[rick7]

assenheimer  none better.

[MERGANZER]

Check out whisperstikbows.com and see what J.D. Lund can do for you.  He is a great bowyer and his turnaround is pretty quick while his prices are very reasonable.

Good luck

Ganzer

[Sixby]

Check these out. I build three models of custom recurves and sometimes one of a kind bows . God bless you, Steve

[Burnsie]

This might be helpfull.
http://www.tradshops.com/shop-list.php

[owlbait]

Zipper and Stalker are my 2 favorites right now. I've shot a lot of bows and attended many expos, gatherings, and rendevous, so that is the experience I bring to my decisions.