Why such a long wait for bows?

[Johan van Niekerk]

O.k. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who had to wait for more than 2 years  :D

Here's my only REAL complaint. If you make custom bows for money. Please manage your customer's expectations. I think it is wrong to promise a bow in 3 months and then take 28 to deliver. Overshooting the estimated delivery time by up to 20% is not a big deal, but any more than that should at least warrant a phone call or email to inform them up front whats happening. Once I order a bow I'm like a kid waiting for Xmas. If I know up front to not get overexcited its just better for my health in general!

I'm not throwing stones here either. I am TERRIBLE myself with deadlines. Which is why I don't make bows or knifes (my other hobby) on order. I'll make it and then sell it once its done OR I'll make it as gifts to friends. About the only deadline I've ever made was the tradgang bowtrade last year  :D

Anyways, to get back to the point. I believe you should rather underpromise and overdeliver, than the other way round.

[daniel boon]

capt eddie, I was not putting down $500 bows,I have 2 in that price range, and they are as good, and shoot as well as any, and better than some high $ bows.I was trying to make a point, that a bowyer would have to  complete one in 1 day to make a reasonable living. I think that it would take them a LOT longer than that.Meaning what Great value you are getting for your $.

[overbo]

References,references,references,
Do your homework on the bowyer and there will likey not be any of this,I was promised this and got that stuff.Heck,just come on this site and ask about a bowyer.
There are too many avenues in todays world to find a bowyer that works for you.

[JParanee]

Welcome  to the wold of custom anything    

I have waited years for a knife or gun or bow I have ordered

[USN_Sam1385]

Originally posted by Johan van Niekerk:

Anyways, to get back to the point. I believe you should rather underpromise and overdeliver, than the other way round.

I am a General Manager of a store on a daily basis. I can not agree enough with what Johan has said here. When I have customers arrive I give them an estimated wait time on their service, and I always set it higher than I expect. I will tell them 45 minutes if I predict 30, and this has always worked out quite well. It seems as though they lucked out when we get it done in 30 or even 25.

[Sixby]

How did any of you get sold on the idea that its ok for a bowyer to go over the delivery date on a bow? Especially so by many months. I had one bowyer do that to me a long time ago and honestly even though he was a great guy and built me a nice bow I would never reccomend him or do business with him again.

If a man cannot keep his word then there at least should be a valid reason and perhaps even an offer to fully refund the customer.

If I do not get your bow to you on the time agreed I have a standing offer of a full refund unless we change our time agreement due to an energency or mutually agreed circumstance such as a change in bow wanted ect./

As a general contractor for over 30 years I never renogitiated or raised the price of a contract and in my estimation it is unethical to do so. It is also un ethical to tell someone you will build a bow in a certain time, Take their money , then go way over that time.

To the subject though, Rome was not built in a day and neither is a great bow./ Perhaps if you do not count grinding laminations,. overlays,. glue setting time ect you can shorten the time but I firmly believe that you get what you pay for or at least should. Question is are you paying for a reputation that is not now being adhered to or are you really getting what you pay for?
Overbo made a good suggestion. Research the bowyer and read some of the reports on his bows/ Ask his customers how He has treated them?

God bless you all, Steve

[iohkus]

I don't necessarily "LIKE" long waits, and don't know anyone else who does, but there have been a lot of good reasonable responses as to why there are.
   If I had a 28" draw I would never buy a "custom" bow, as there are lots of "in stock" and "used" bows that I would love to have ..........but, to get maximum performance for me personally, I'm willing to wait, and I understand WHY.

[Bladepeek]

I think this thread has been pretty well beaten to death, but to continue flogging a dead horse, I make knives. I'm not a professional. I'm a 71 year old retired engineer and have no intention of working for a living any more. If I do something now, I do it because I enjoy it. If somebody likes my product and wants to buy it, I'll sell it for a reasonable price and sometimes a bit cheaper than reasonable. The only time I will agree to a delivery time is if someone asks me "Can you get this ready for my son's-husband's-wife's birthday/anniversary-etc" If I believe I can do it, I will agree to it and then bust my butt to make it. Otherwise, I'm in this for the satisfaction it gives me making the knife. I work on it when it feels right. If I don't like the way the handle scales came out, I grind them off and start over. If the plunge line isn't right and I can't get it straight with another attempt, the blade goes in the trash. If you want one tomorrow, go to one of the many on-line shops, pay with PayPal and pay the freight for overnight shipping. You will have it in a day or two.

I've ordered a custom bow, been thrilled when it came in early, but would have enjoyed it just as much if it had come in late because the limb veneers weren't what the bowyer thought they would be, or his hand twitched on the bandsaw or whatever. I ordered a bow from him because I admired his work - not because I needed a bow for the upcoming season.

I'm guessing there may be some part-time bowyers out there that have similar feelings. I don't claim my product is better than anyone else's. I just want to know that it's the best that I can produce at my current level of experience and it meets my expectations however long it takes me.

Ron

[Bowwild]

I have only been back to recurves for a couple of years. Wait time hasn't caused me not to order any bow I wanted.

I do expect a pretty good estimate on when the bow should be finished and almost all are on time or a bit early.  

Actually, the only bow(s)I've ever ordered that were quite tardy (50% overdue -- 12-15 weeks instead of the 8 weeks I was told) were factory bows. Of course I was only mildly disappointed and not at all mad.

I'm near the top of a list now waiting for a LH version of a new bow that isn't even being made yet. I've been on another (different bowyer)list for 1.5 years and expect a call this fall about my turn coming. I'm also about to receive a bow from another bowyer in time for a special trip next month.

[kawika b]

I need to back and reread but... who said anything about bowyers going over their proposed wait time? I can understand a long wait time... but not one that keeps being pushed back. There are times when things pop up though.

[kawika b]

Ok found them. Any chance any of you guys with horror stories wanna name drop?

[Mike Mecredy]

I'll start it off;  I've had "stuff happen" and had to tell people it would be a few more weeks, added to the additional 12 - 14 they already waited.

[kawika b]

Originally posted by Mike Mecredy:
I'll start it off;  I've had "stuff happen" and had to tell people it would be a few more weeks, added to the additional 12 - 14 they already waited.

Sounds like good customer service to me... one would expect a call should things get pushed back beyond a projected date.

I actually enjoyed watching my name work it's way to the top of Bill Howland's on-line list... and keeping track of other's progress... maybe something's wrong with me, lol. There's a few familiar names on it right now!

[capt eddie]

That is probably the most annoying thing, is when a bowyer does not return email. Especially when they do it is from their Iphone. When they say it is all finished and will be mailed next week and next week never comes.

[Mike Mecredy]

That would be frustrating to say the least.  Especially if it came from one of those stupid iphones!  (I don't even have a pay as you go cel phone, I hate them)

[Tron]

Everyone who has posted on this thread should tip their hat to Mike for publicly admitting has gone over a promised due date.  And everyone on here has been through enough of life that they understand sometimes things happen and you have to push back projects to get them done to their satisfaction.  I have never once dealt with a bowyer I felt was rude or out of line in the way they treated me, their products, or the service they promised.  

Having built a few bows myself, I am 100% confident that any price a bowyer asks for a bow is a bargain to the customer.  The last bow I built I put at least 50 hours into, start to finish, and the end product wasn't nearly as beautiful as a custom bow from a professional bowyer.  

Bowyers will forever tinker and try to improve because they want to give their customer the best possible product.  That is the nature of the art they create that every one of us loves.  If it takes another week or month, hey, that's fine.  That's just one less month I have to mess up their creations.

"I've been called many names like perfectionist, difficult and obsessive. I think it takes obsession, takes searching for the details for any artist to be good." - Barbara Streisand

[Paul/KS]

Mike at Mad Dog stands behind his bows 110%.
He gives great service and better than great value.
 

[Roger Norris]

It's been my experience, that the bowyers that have long leads and miss a date once in awhile have full time day jobs.

That doesn't make them bad guys. They have to earn a living.....raising a family on bowyers pay is pretty darned unique.

Other factors are popularity....bow brands get hot and cold....Shrews, for example, tend to get a frenzy going.....we have never discussed it, so I am assuming a bit here, but Ron and Gregg love the business, but cringe a bit when the backlog starts piling up. But what should they do? Stop accepting orders? Thats a hard business decision, that is a serious risk. All they can do is inform the buyer up front that it will be awhile.

I have never had a date slip from gregg Coffey or Steve Turay.

[Sam McMichael]

There are many reasons for a long wait for a bow. Some may be valid, and some may not be.  Some archers will accept the wait time, and others will not, and there is no fault in either opinion.  But the simple fact is, that when you order a custom bow, it takes how long it takes.

[DVSHUNTER]

You know what's fun... Spending forty hours untwisting, carving, sanding, finishing, tweaking, and so on just to have your selfbow explode right before It's supposed to ship!
 As far as cost goes, very few people understand the time and effort that goes into making bows.  I can't understand how Mike can sell his bows for what he does! ... Oh yes, It's because he enjoys it.  Those people that have never sweated it out in July and August trying to make that bow for the upcoming bow season won't be able to understand the wait times or the price of a 1200 bow. All I can say is try it sometime. I give free lessons to anyone that asks me, how much would you charge me to make me a bow.