7 Lakes U Finish Longbow...Anyone Ever Done It?

[Nala]

Hey all,

I came upon the 7 Lakes Longbow site where you can buy an unfinished R/D Longbow blank and with the instructions provided you finish it yourself.  It appears that there isn't any complicated work involved in finishing one, just sanding and filing.
After looking over the site a bit I wondered how many people have done this.  Are there any of you out there that have bought one of the 7 Lakes UNFINISHED Longbows and finished it yourself?  If so, how about sharing your experience?  If you have any pictures how it turned out it would be great if you could post them so we can check out your bow.

Any information would be appreciated.

Thanks

Nala

[EASTERNARCHER]

I was just on that site last nite too!

[Jeff Strubberg]

I bought one that was finished and then stripped it to fine tune it for myself.

The glue lines and such on the 7 lakes are great, but I didn't care for the tips or grip at all.  A few nights with a rasp and sandpaper fixed both problems.  I've shot that bow exclusively for the last three years.

[Shawn Leonard]

Mike makes a great bow, I mean really nice. I have not done a a U-finish one but owned several of his bows and they are sweet shooters. Shawn

[Benha]

I have one but I didn't finish it the bowyer did all the work. I love the bow.

[T-Mac]

I agree with Shawn, Mike "wingnut" at dryad bows makes a great bow blank to be finished. It comes with a dvd on who to do it. I finished one and it was a great experience. The bow shoots really well.

[R.W.]

Nala,
I have just such a bow blank on order. Mike Bellanger has been good to deal with, and I am looking forward to trying my hand at finsihing off this bow.

R.W.

[Nala]

Thanks for the responses everyone.  R.W. I would be really interested in seeing how yours comes out and hearing about the whole experience.  Remember the MAN LAW about posting pics....

Thanks again.

Nala

[String Cutter]

I bought one. Turned out pretty good. paid the extra for him to put on the tip and riser overlays. About 3-4 hours of hand sanding and glued on some rattler and she was done. Shoots great. One work of caution though.... Stay away from the power tools if you aren't use to using them. It's easy to take material off and ya can't put it back on.

[Nala]

String Cutter, do you have any pics you could post of your bow?  I'd really like to see it.

Nala

[R.W.]

Nala,

Well, I would post pic's if I could, but I do not own a camera, so I would have to borrow one, to upload pictures.

My semi-finished bow should be ready in about 2 weeks, I believe.

This bow is not for myself, but I am giving to my hunting partner. This is my gift to him, for all our excellent hunts that we have shared.

R.W.

[String Cutter]

Nala, Wish I could but I don't have a camera right now.

[Doug S]

I have one and like it alot.  

[outback2]

Hi, I have 'finished' two of Mikes bow blanks with good results - he is a nice bloke to deal with.

[Nala]

They sound like a good deal for those of us on a tight budget.  I sure would like to see some pics of these finished bows though.

Nala

[suttoman]

I was very interested in getting one of these bows and was corresponding with Mike via email.  He even said that he could do one with the full-grip that I wanted.  He said it would only be about $49 to ship a bow to Austrlia that was 62" or under!

I was even more interested then but told him to go and check the postage - I didn't want him to be out of pocket.  I have had several full-length bows from the States and the postage was always over $150 US.

That I am sad to say was that - I never heard back from him again.  

If he had bad news on the postage - that was fine - but he should have had the courtesy to let me know.  

Sorry to sound negative but you all know I am a straight shooter - I like to call the shots as they come.  I am always giving praise on here to those who give great service or those who have treated me well.  Conversely - we should have the right to say if the service has been less than satisfactory.

I am probably a bit more ruthless than you local lads.  If you are dealing with a company that is a bit slack in their service you can give them a local call or even drive and see them.

I live on the other side of the world and could tell you some horror stories of slack companies in the States that I have had to deal with.  The cost of long distance phone calls - getting up at strange times to call - emials that aren't returned.  What I am saying is any slack service is exacerbated by the tyranny of distance!

On a more positive note - most folks have been awesome to deal with - like Dan Toelke, Chad of Chekmate bows, Dave of Renegade etc.

To give the benefit of the doubt -maybe he did send an email but I "aint seen nothin yet".


Sutto

[Longbow Tom]

You'll love a 7 Lake blank.  I've finished two now.  A Long Night and a Short Night.  

Both came "Roughed In" to a stage where they were simple to finish.  I wouldn't even call it "Roughed".

Get Mike to put on the tip overlays and string grooves.  Well worth the little extra.