Pass around Tuktu Ex TD

[V I Archer]

I was fortunate enough to receive the Tuktu mid last week.  Picked it up at the post office at lunch, peeled it out of the box and just had to fire a few rounds through it before returning to work.  

I have never been much of a recurve guy, much prefer my longbows.  The Tuktu has not changed that, but she is a fine bow for sure!  

I absolutely love the handle on this bow.  I now know that I will for certain have a beavertail grip on whatever my next bow may be, heck I may even retrofit one or two that I currently own.  Beyond the beavertail though, the palm swell and thumbrest of the Caribow make it a pure joy to shoot.  Naturally pointing and repeatable.  Your hand falls so naturally into the grip.

The takedown system on the bow is well thought out and goes together seamlessly.  There was no struggle to pull it apart either.  Once together it is solid with no movement or flex.

The bow was shockingly quiet!  I expected much more noise, especially given my bias to dead in the hand, heavy limbed longbows.  Granted I was shooting some pretty heavy woodies from it, but it was among the quietest, most dead in the hand recurves I have ever shot.

I took the bow for a walk in the woods and a few hours of stumpshooting after church on Sunday.  Remeber my comment about naturally pointing and repeatable:  
 

A quiver full of thumping arrows built for my 60 pound longbow.  Shots were all within 25 yards, but I only lost one arrow all afternoon.  

This bow is a winner.  It shoots so well "out of the box", I can only imagine the perfomance one could achieve with time invested in proper tuning.  I have found only one fatal flaw in the bow, having shot it, I now want a Caribow!

While not converted to the recurve club, a 2 piece featherhorn is definitely on my radar.

[Longbowlogan]

Well I just got the bow today and plan on shooting some local 3d shoot's with it this weekend!!

[nineworlds9]

Awesome.  Been following this thread since the beginning.  I unfortunately did not make the list, and though I'm lefty, I can shoot righty well enough.  This particular model bow, ever since Abe first released it, is to me one of the most beautiful designs out there...the lines are just perfect!  I have been biding my time reading all the reviews and I'm pleased to report I just purchased a brand new lefty one that was a recently offered stock bow on Abe's site.  The bow is arriving this coming Tuesday and I can't wait to unpack it!!  This thread had a lot to do with my decision.

[Longbowlogan]

Well I just shipped the bow off to James Class, the bow was a joy to shoot! I was really liking this bow and was trying to figure out how I could come up with the money for a new one. I wish this bow was 60 pounds but the 54 pounds felt like I could hold it back all day. The bow was nice and quiet with a great grip that I really liked. This bow had a great cast and I was shooting out to 50 yards and still hitting my deer target in the kill zone most of time. I just wish this bow would have came to me during turkey season! Overall I really liked this bow, I'll be on the look out for one in the low 60 pound range. This was the second Caribow I've handled and both of them shot great, you can't go wrong with a bow from Abe!! Thanks for the chance on this pass around bow!

[johnnyk71]

Chuck, if you don't like it (fat chance!) let me know!

[Sockrsblur]

Thanks Logan... I'm watching out the window!

   

[Sockrsblur]

Love that brown truck!

 
I think this package has done some traveling  

[Sockrsblur]

Well the Tuktu is carefully packed and boxed for its trip tomorrow morning to go visit Nathan in CO. The bow is beautiful, no doubt. I have to say pulling those static tip limbs out of the box was impressive, the design of those limbs is amazing. The beaver tail grip I could not say enough about. It's contoured in all the right ways and places. Comfortable and easily consistent. I never shot a 2 piece so that was neat. I thought the take down system was great. After the bow was strung I would have never known it was not a 1 piece.
Drawing and shooting the bow was very interesting to me. My actual draw is about 27". In the beginning of the draw it felt like there is a lot of weight waiting there for you but then it gets so smooth out to anchor. The bow shot fast and hit hard. I have to admit I expected it not to be so smooth and well mannered but it was very nice to shoot.
Abe thank you Sir for the opportunity to spend some time with one of your bows, I am grateful.

[Homebru]

 

homebru

[Keith Zimmerman]

Hey Jim, meet up with me and Logan at Denton.  U going this year?  We can shoot again.

[arrowlauncherdj]

Just got the pm from Abe and Nathan that the bow is on its way... Can't wait to give her a whirl! Not to mention johnnyk71 who's chomping at the bit to see it!

Dave

[el greco]

Hey Dave ,are you getting the Tuktu you lucky dog?I might have to come back in AL and visit you!!

[Sockrsblur]

Hi Keith, just saw your post. Had a really great time at Denton with you guys. I planned the time off again this year, would love to get together.

[Cari-bow]

Would  Logan Tippett  from Alabama please email me. I need a little more info, and your coming up soon.
Abe

[Homebru]

Well, I had the great pleasure of taking this bow for a test ride.  I eagerly opened the box on the end marked "open this end".  I slipped out the bow sock and discovered that Abe had even made "bow socks" for each limb out of bubble wrap.  Pretty cool.

A beautiful combination of woods and a wonderful matte finish.  Looking at the bow in person, I was "shocked" at the hooks at the end of the limbs.  This bow has some serious recurved limbs.  

Abe sent along some "assembly" instructions on how to put the two pieces together and recommendations for brace height, nock height, etc..  I put the stringner to the limb tips and thought "this will never work".  With the amount of recurve in those limbs, it looks like it'll never string.  Never fear.  The amount of "pull" on the stringer necessary to string the bow was way less than I expected.  

I stepped back to look at the bow from a distance.  Certainly shorter than my "go to" D/R longbow.  The riser on the Tuktu looked huge.  I shoot a 3-pc takedown on a regular basis and the Tuktu riser looked huge.  

I reached out for the bow and wrapped my fingers around the riser and said "oh my".  Abe has done a fantastic job refining the grip that he puts on his bows.  Despite how large the riser looked, it fit in my hand perfectly and did not, in any way feel as large as it looked.  Honestly, it fit like a glove and the beaver tail leather was a very nice touch.  Out to the range.

The bow points very naturally with that grip.  It has a hearty initial draw weight.  Not quite as high as my "go to" bow but close.  A smooth draw and consistent increase in draw weight as the string comes back to anchor.

This bow delivers that arrow with authority.  I found that this bow has very good "shootability".  I could pick it up and shoot it nearly as good as the bow that I shoot on a regular basis.  

The 2-piece takedown system is really nice.  It assembles and disassembles with ease.  When the bow is put together, you cannot see that it's a two-piece bow.  When you shoot it, it feels just like a 1-piece bow.  I can't make any "well informed" comparisons to existing 2-piece systems because I'm not an engineer and I haven't owned any 2-piece bows.  

Overall, I was very impressed by this bow.  The woodwork on this bow was beautiful.  The grip fit my hand very naturally.  The bow draws and shoots as good as anything that is out there and comes in a very compact package, both in overall size but also in it's 2-piece portability. I have to admit the I really like the 2-piece functionality and appearance.  Despite owning two 3-piece takedowns, I've always preferred the look of a 1-piece bow.

A special thanks to Abe for making this opportunity available to me and the other shooters here on Tradgang.  If not for this, I may not have had a chance to try out one of Abe's bows.  Now that I have, I'm confident that I'll have Abe's name on my list of "bows I would like to own".  Thanks, Abe.

Warmest regards,
homebru

[arrowlauncherdj]

The bow is here!! Mail lady dropped off this evening. Can wait to get her shootn and fling some arras.

[johnnyk71]

don't want to step on Dave's toes, as he is the "official" reviewer, but i wanted to give my thoughts while they are fresh. we took the Tuktu along to a 3-D shoot yesterday, and i got to shoot it some.

first off, i am a lefty, all the way. this bow is a righty, so it took me a few shots to get dialed in. it draws smoothly, even "backwards", and delivers an arrow with authority. was very curious to see and hear it perform alongside my RER Retro, which is very similar and is my go-to bow. both bows showed the superior design of the static tips. you simply cannot convince me that there is a better design out there. i would have to give the quietness edge to the Retro, but it's essentially nitpicking since both are really quiet, especially for a recurve. the Tuktu simply thumps an arrow with authority too.

the fit, finish, and craftsmanship are absolutely top-notch. i own some nice bows, and Abe's work is right there with the rest of them. just superb! really beautiful. the beaver tail grip was outstanding, and i liked the locater style grip in the riser. it's a bit beefier than the RER's grip, and i am genuinely curious as to whether the take-down feature necessitates the increase in size, and whether a one-piece Tuktu has any slimmer of a grip (i imagine this Tuktu is similar in grip to the RER Arroyo, which is a bit more substantial than that of the Retro). Abe, can you elaborate? the take-down feature is a marvel of design, and was so rock solid that you'd never know it was there.

this is one outstanding bow, and Dave is right that i have been hotly anticipating getting my hands on it, haha! i look forward to shooting it some more before it's time for Dave to pass it on. i have often been accused (by my wife!) of only wanting "the best" of things, and after shooting this bow, i would clearly place it in that category. i would be proud to own a Tuktu, and likely will at some point.

i really appreciate the opportunity to test drive it, especially since i wasn't "officially" on the list. it's a rare treat to get to shoot a bow of this caliber, and i have enjoyed it greatly.

[Cari-bow]

John
The standard circumference on the Tuktu Ex and the Ex TD are the same. Now with the Tuktu Ex TD I add the beavertail wrap which will add about 1/4" - 3/8". You may think that's not enough to make a big difference, well you will easily tell a 1/4" added to the circumference. I would say measure your bow and see what the difference is. Before the wrap goes on the Tuktu is  4 5/8".
Thanks for taking the time to write your views on the Tuktu Ex TD.
Abe

[johnnyk71]

Thanks, Abe!

[arrowlauncherdj]

Im gonna keep the bow a few more days to work out my bow lust. I'll write a review as soon as I get my fill  

Abe when you get the next person in the pass along's info ready, please email me so I can get it packed up and straight to the PO.

Dave