# What's the best vintage recurve bow for hunting?



## Frostbite

I started bowhunting in the 70's and now the bowhunting bug has bitten again. I have several compound bows now but, something is missing. 

I want a recurve for hunting. How many pounds do you suggest for deer, elk and black bear?

I have been looking at pictures of old recurves and on e bay and I see some beautiful (to me) bow but, I don't have clue which ones are the better bows.

I love the look of the Wing bows (which ones are preferable), the old Bear Grizzly and Kodiak. I thought I saw one by "Shakespear"? that looked awesome to me. I like the basic wood bow with a varnish type finish.

I shoot left handed (because I am left eye dominant) so that may limit my options.

What older (because I don't want to spend much over $100) bows do you suggest for ease of shooting, durability and maybe even collectability?

Thank you for any guidance you can provide.


----------



## Ratdog68

A longer bow will be more forgiving to shoot if you make a form mistake while taking the shot. I'm a big fan of the Grizzly... I like my Kodiak too. Come to think of it... I shoot my Pearson Stallion well too. Hmmm... my Martin X-200 shoots good, so do my Martin Jaguars... I think you get the message. But... I likes my longbows even "more gooder".


----------



## Eldermike

Years ago I had a Grizzly, young and dumb I sold it. If I wanted to hunt with a vintage bow the Griz would be on top of my list.


----------



## Raider2000

I agree the Bear Grizzly is a hard to beat vintage recurve that has stood the test of time in quality, shootability, & ease on the pocket book.

I have 2 of them, get one in at least 45# for hunting.


----------



## Frostbite

Thanks guys! Great info.

How would a Bear Kodiak Magnum Glass Powered bow be?

Are any of the Wing recurves good? I see several models out there.

Are all the Grizzlies the same poundage?

What's this about longbows? All my buddies have them but, they just don't look as nice to me as the older recurves. I guess I have a picture in my mind of what a traditional bow should be and a recurve what I see.

I thought I read that recurves typically shoot more fps from the same poundage bows than a longbow? I'm not trying to start any urinary olympics but, is that true?


----------



## Kansas Jack

The bear kodiak mag.gets my vote , best bow i have ever owned.


----------



## Okie1bow

*Best vintage HB*

[IMHO] it's my 1968 Black Widow 1200 HB T/D, 45 #'s at 28" draw, 60" lg. I love it's "shootability so" I had it completely restored. I have shot many newer bows and the only one I felt was equeal was a Bob Lee.


----------



## Frostbite

Nice bow. Thank you.


----------



## lefty o

i prefer the bear grizzly. of course i may be biased, been shooting one for 26 years.


----------



## warped Arrow

Personally I would take one of the Ben Pearsons. Not realy expensive, good basic bow, almost industrctable(sp), and great shooters.

I will be shooting my Rogue during this season, wish me luck!!


----------



## Okie1bow

*Bears*



lefty o said:


> i prefer the bear grizzly. of course i may be biased, been shooting one for 26 years.


Lefty O, I do not disagree with you on Bear's..!! I've shot and owned Kodiak Hunters and Griz's. and they were great shooting bows. The only one I did not care for was the Mag. ! Even at a 29" draw it was just too short for me to handle well. Still, I wish I had 50 or so now! They're worth a fortune.
Bear did more than anyone in the 50's-70's especially, to grow this magnificant sport.


----------



## Okie1bow

warped Arrow said:


> Personally I would take one of the Ben Pearsons. Not realy expensive, good basic bow, almost industrctable(sp), and great shooters.
> 
> I will be shooting my Rogue during this season, wish me luck!!


"GOOD LUCK and shoot straight!


----------



## Okie1bow

*"Young and smart"*



Eldermike said:


> Years ago I had a Grizzly, young and dumb I sold it. If I wanted to hunt with a vintage bow the Griz would be on top of my list.


Hey Eldermike, that could have turned out well for you. In the 60's I traded my bow for my first girlfriend! Great deal; my scores went up and I got rid of her! It forced me to earn enough money to buy a Wing Presentation!


----------



## Two Blade

I would love to find an old Damon Howatt Hunter that is lh.


----------



## Teucer

*New Bow*

I know you are looking for a vintage bow but there are a few new bows made by some really good guys that have that old look and give outstanding performance. For example Chastain will build you an exact dupe of a Bear Kodiak that will have you drooling. There are other guys as well, especially ones that make 50's style recurves.


----------



## Eldermike

Okie1bow said:


> Hey Eldermike, that could have turned out well for you. In the 60's I traded my bow for my first girlfriend! Great deal; my scores went up and I got rid of her! It forced me to earn enough money to buy a Wing Presentation!


Oh yea, it did turn out well, things seem to work that way.


----------



## Frostbite

There is a bow builder at work. I will speak with him today if I get a chance. Perhaps this could be really easy. However, the lure of true vintage is tough to overlook.


----------



## trapperDave

there's mojo in them old bows  Nothin like nockin the dust off an old wallhanger and puttin meat in the freezer with it,,,and wondering how many before you have done the same with that bow.


----------



## ravensgait

The Wing bows are great , good looking bows and they shoot as well as most modern recurves. Old Bear bows are shooters for sure..Browning made some good ones as well as Pearson ETC.. They might take you a bit over the hundred dollar mark but worth it.. Randy


----------



## Okie1bow

*Mojo....ya.*



trapperDave said:


> there's mojo in them old bows  Nothin like nockin the dust off an old wallhanger and puttin meat in the freezer with it,,,and wondering how many before you have done the same with that bow.


Mojo is correct. To paraphrase Viper 1; "they had style; functional style".The best days for classic HB's [IMHO] were the late 50's to 1974. Most all bows were at that time, truly hand made. Todays HB's are well done for the most part and many are paradigm's of the classics. So, if you can find a "fine" Bear, Hoyt, Wing, Pearson, Black Widow or a couple others at a reasonable price today you should consider buying it if possible. These were all "high end" bows; hand built and lacking for nothing. Why, do you suppose we are still enjoying them, 40-50 years after they were made? I love Black Widows
[I have 5, even though I can shoot only one at a time]. BW's are a fine example of a great riser design that has stood the test of time. My oldest is an X-89 [early 60's], but it's riser design is very similar to a new MAIII.


----------



## AKRuss

My personal favorite has always been the latch system Bear T/D. I love the feel of this bow in my hand and they shoot where I'm looking. The old Super Kodiaks are right there too. A Black Widow MA is hard to beat. I think one of the most overlooked hunting bows was the Wing Thunderbird, especially in the 62" model with phenolic riser. I try to post some pics this evening.


----------



## Frostbite

Wow, great responses!

I spoke to the bow builder at work and he suggested buying a used inexpensive bow to see if I like traditional archery before having him build a bow for me (good call). 

I shoot left handed (I'm left eye dominant) so I'll be looking for a lefty.


----------



## AKRuss

Hmm, since you're a lefty - there's a left handed long Wing Presentation II riser on eBay right now. Not sure I'd call them a hunting bow but they're a prime example of the bowyers craft of 40 years ago. I don't know what you'd do for limbs as they're no longer made anymore either and you can't have any of mine, LOL. If I was a lefty, I'd snap that riser up in a heartbeat. Just a thought ...


----------



## AKRuss

Some of my favorite hunting recurves: in the back is an all phenolic riser (prototype that was never marketed) 66" Black Widow MA with shiney black epoxy finish (not a hunting bow); 64" Bear Super K with phenolic and rosewood riser; Wing Thunderbird w/ 62" limbs and all phenolic riser; recently manufactured Bear T/D riser - probably the best they've ever made, IMHO.


----------



## jmvargas

if you really want to take advantage of all the technology advances in recurve hunting bows since the 70's may i suggest you take a look(look only---don't buy yet) at the current crop of risers that can use ILF limbs....AFAIK these include the warf, das,tradtech, pinnacle, and the morrison risers......... you might like what you see....


----------



## Bowjack

Keep an eye on craigslist, Ebay and garage sales. Some great old bows can be had there in your price range if you know what your looking for. On Ebay left handed bows are less common but often bring less as there seems to be not as much competition in the bidding. I bought a really nice newer model R/H Super Kodiak a couple of weeks ago that I found on craigslist for $165 that came with a bow quiver and case. Bought a nice Kodiak Magnum for $100a couple of months ago from a guy that found it in a garage sale for ten bucks. He was happy and so was I. Also this year I found a Shakespear Wonderbow for twenty dollars that cleaned up nicely and shoots surprisingly well. 

There are many fine old bows like Browning, Wing and Hoyts out there to name a few. I'm kind of partial to the old Bears probably because they were made here in Michigan. I remember visiting the factory when I was a young boy in the early sixties and seeing Fred Bear's huge Brown bear mount in the loby when you first walked in. Like many young boys of that time Fred had a profound influence on why I started bow hunting in the first place and why I returned years ago to the same type of equipment I used as a youth.


----------



## shamus005

Just about any vintage bow will work fine, as long as it's not broken. It all depends on what works best for you.


----------



## cody roiter

AKRuss said:


> My personal favorite has always been the latch system Bear T/D. I love the feel of this bow in my hand and they shoot where I'm looking. The old Super Kodiaks are right there too. A Black Widow MA is hard to beat. I think one of the most overlooked hunting bows was the Wing Thunderbird, especially in the 62" model with phenolic riser. I try to post some pics this evening.


Same here the Bear T/D is by far one of the best.. As you only need one riser and have as many set of limb's as you can buy.. One bow will get it all done...

Cody


----------



## I'm Not Ted

"What's the best vintage recurve bow for hunting?"

This question has a broad range of answers being as different people like different things. In short however, any bow that is in good condition, looks good, is the appropriate poundage, and won't fall apart in your hands, will do just fine. Go with what you think looks good. It's something thay YOU will be shooting so it should be something that YOU want to shoot. Just my .02.


----------



## Frostbite

When I asked the traditional bow guy at work about what poundage he said "at least 50# for hunting". So that's what I am looking for now.

How many pounds of draw would a Bear Kodiak Magnum Glass Powered bow be? moast of the other bows I was looking at earlier were in the 43-45# range.


----------



## The Great Jashu

Frostbite said:


> When I asked the traditional bow guy at work about what poundage he said "at least 50# for hunting". So that's what I am looking for now.
> 
> How many pounds of draw would a Bear Kodiak Magnum Glass Powered bow be? moast of the other bows I was looking at earlier were in the 43-45# range.


Its hard to pin a poundage on what is minimum for hunting. If you shoot 45 lbs very well and shoot 50 terrible..... The higher poundage isnt always in your best interest if you cant shoot it well. 50 lbs isnt a minimum requirement. There have been a lot of animals killed with 45 or less pounds. 

There arent a lot of older bows in poundages past 50, because 45 lbs was considered a heavy hunting bow. 

As for your reference to a K-mag,- If you have a draw length past 28", you wont like it. They are hard to shoot well in my opinion. This is mostly due to them only being 52" bows. I dont totally understand your poundage question though about the K-mag.... They came in all different poundages.


----------



## The Great Jashu

Frostbite- I sent you a PM


----------



## Frostbite

Thank you for the offer Jashu. I certainly appreciate your kindness.

The reason I asked what poundage a Kodiak Magnum came in is because, the one one E bay doesn't have the poundage listed and the seller doesn't have any idea what the poundage might be. 

So, I thought I'd ask if the "Magnum" version came in a specific poundage. I guess it did not?


----------



## Jamesw

The Ben Pearson bows seemed more overlooked than some of the others on the auction site so pricing often refects it.

The truth is any old bow of 45lbs or more will work fine shooting deer.It don't take very much to kill a deer and success is always in the setup,tuning and shot selection much more than the bow.


----------



## Frostbite

I missed out on the Bear Kodiak Glass Powered bow on e bay. I bid $95.00 and it sold for $132.50. I have a Red Wing Hunter and a Grizzly in my sights right now, wish me luck.


----------



## Logos

So what did you end up with??

I'm kind of in the same boat and found this thread helpful.

Update, please.


----------



## Frostbite

Logos said:


> So what did you end up with??
> 
> I'm kind of in the same boat and found this thread helpful.
> 
> Update, please.



I ended up with a 55# Bear Grizzly. It may be a bit too much bow for me. I seem to let the string go before I reach my anchor point most shots for some reason. Or maybe I just need more practice.


----------



## reddogge

Frostbite said:


> I ended up with a 55# Bear Grizzly. It may be a bit too much bow for me. I seem to let the string go before I reach my anchor point most shots for some reason. Or maybe I just need more practice.


Without watching you shoot the reason you are short drawing is you are overbowed by quite a bit as a new to traditional shooter. Keep that one for later on and continue the search for a 35-40# bow to practice on. We can only advise you here based on hundreds of years of combined experience on this site but we can't make you buy the proper equipment.


----------



## Frostbite

Thanks for the info. I have gone back to shooting compounds for now due to the quick releases.

So maybe a 40-45# Grizzly would be better for learning traditional archery?

Are there any other forgiving, competively priced, quality bows you would recommend?

I need a left handed version.


----------



## BarneySlayer

I think he said 35-40#. I would agree, knowing nothing else. Cheap take down, start 35#, move to 45# limbs when 35# feels like nothing. Get to 55# when you're feeling the same about 45#.


----------



## Logos

Yes, you can't rush these things.

I'm shooting a 62 inch, 20 lb. Wing Falcon and going to a 62 inch, 28 lb. Wing Falcon soon. I haven't even thought about my 35, although I'm watching e-Bay a lot.

I want beauty along with quality and I may choose Wing again, but it will probably depend on what shows up.......I love the look of some of the old Browning bows.


----------



## reddogge

I'd start checking things out on ebay for inexpensive LH recurves. Look under "recurve bows". Any of the older name brands will work, Bear, Pearson, Wing, Browning, Howatt. I don't know how tall you are or how long your draw is but unless you have a draw under 28" I'd opt for one about 62" long (AMO). Also you may have to spend a little more than $100 to get what you want, maybe $150-175. Good luck.


----------



## Widow's son

I think the Super Kodiak is one on the finest shooting vintage bows around. My '69 Super K 64" is sweet and always amazes me the way it stacks arrows in the target. I actually prefer it to my Black Widow. It's super quiet, smooth, and just a ***** cat to shoot.


----------



## jusoldave

Widow's son said:


> I think the Super Kodiak is one on the finest shooting vintage bows around. My '69 Super K 64" is sweet and always amazes me the way it stacks arrows in the target. I actually prefer it to my Black Widow. It's super quiet, smooth, and just a ***** cat to shoot.


I'm jealous. My (5'9") brother in law had one of the first, and loved the way it shot. I (6'1") tried his, and it pinched the livin' beejayzwax out me; couldn't handle that short ATA with that deep brace height with my length of pull.

_Still_ want one, in fact...


----------



## Long Rifle

Funny, someone mentioned the Kodiak Mag being too short for longer draw lengths. I bought a really minty '70 KMag specifically for ground blind shooting and stalking in thick brush. It's 45#, actually pulls 48# at my 29 1/2" draw length, and 8" shorter than the next longest on my rack. It's quickly becoming the bow I grab most often and I've never had a problem with it's length.


----------



## jusoldave

LR, you're right; I was just looking at a catalog and went "Oops...".

I was thinking of the old 52 incher, not the SuperK.

My bad.


----------



## Long Rifle

No buddy, mine is a 52"er too....maybe 3under makes the difference.


----------



## jusoldave

Huh. It might; I dunno. I am one of those Commi-nist split-fingers...


----------



## d_dial

I recently ran across a great deal on a Kodiak Magnum. After all I had read about it being short and the possibility of it pinching and not being a good bow for a long draw I had to give it a try. I sure wanted it to work, the bow was extremely light and just a beauty to look at in its Grayling Green colors. The bow just didn't like me shooting it terrible finger pinch and stacking. So I passed it on to a buddy of mine that has a much shorter draw than I. He loves her as much as I did but he can actually shoot it instead of just look at it.
I'm in the pursuit of a Grizzly or a Kodiak now. The only thing I dont like about the old bows is you cant shoot a FF string on them. I have a Samick Sage and after I took the Dacron string off and put a FF on it boy it sure woke the bow up. I couldn't imagine putting a Dacron back on it.


----------



## groove508

I just picked up a classic Wing red Wing Hunter and love it. It's a 52" 42# and I have no problems using it for hunting. I also have two Kodiak Mag's but are too much for me to practice with, weight-wise. You will hear alot that these are too short and not smooth or not forgiving enough. I personally love the short bows and if that is what you got, you will learn to shoot them well. I would like to find a nice Grizzly or super grizzly though.


----------



## groove508

Keep an eye out on craigslist, check the sporting every day locally, you would be amazed how they pop-up. Much cheaper than e-bay and you see what your buying. I went to look at that red wing hunter with a bunch of stuff to trade. The guy took an old muzzle-loader that was worth nothing to me, he had been looking for one......... Win, win! A little side note: put your emphasize on arrow selection, it can really make the difference.


----------



## thorwulfx

Hard to go wrong with the old Bears, but I'll put in my 2 cents and say Howatt Super Diablo. Great little bows.


----------



## JParanee

Go to pawn shops and look I picked up a 1200.00 dollars Bob Lee Bicentenial for 230 bucks

You can get good deals on bows on EBay but you are buying with out seeing the bow in person and there is competition


----------



## ibehiking

I have a nice Browning Safari I that is LH and 41#@28". The one downside for you might be that the AMO is 54". I find it shoots very niely for me, and I do not feel any finger pinch at my 28" draw. I am thinning the herd and would consider letting this one go for $135. Let me know if you have any interest.


----------



## Nokhead

When you first start shooting any weight bow, it might feel too heavy. Give it a chance. Just like lifting weights, work up to it, don't expect to shoot it well right away. In the past, the trend was towards bows too heavy, right now there's this trend towards bows that are too light, I think eventually opinion will swing back to a more realistic medium. A 50# bow is certainly not too heavy, unless the *ONLY* thing you will ever shoot at is paper or straw. Just shoot the bow and get used to it. !!! 

I sure liked the old Brownings. I have a Browning Fury II. It's the short one, and at 72# it does have a bit of finger pinch. At 54" and 72#, just too much of a good thing. But I used to shoot it all the time, hunt with it, and go to 3D shoots with it. Now I shoot a 68" 55# Long Bow. I still shoot a couple dozen out of the Browning about twice a month just for fun. One thing for sure, it shoots like a bolt of lightning...! Hard to watch the arrows in flight, it's really fast. Really sinks the arrows deep in the straw bales too. But again, I've gone to a lighter, longer bow now that I've reached the age of dirt.

I didn't see anyone address this, but very generally speaking, yes a re-curve will shoot faster than a long bow, if all things are equal. Equal length, limb width, draw, and weight. But, for instance, a 72" (just spit-balling here) long bow might shoot faster than a 54"-64" re-curve, but there's a million variables involved. I'm just guessing here, so anyone correct me if I be wrong.

As far as the length of any bow, I prefer long, I think a longer bow will most always shoot better than a short bow, all things considered, and of course if you are talking differences of one or two inches, perhaps no difference than can be told. But I'd always take a bow over 60" than one under....and in just my own personal biased opinion I'd not want any bow under 66", much prefer 68" or longer. (mostly talking long bows, but if I ever got another re-curve I'd get the longest one I could find)


----------

