Hey everyone, I have been shooting a compound for 4 years. I love it and hunt with it well.

I HAVE BEEN BITTEN BY THE RECURVE BUG BAD!!!

This spring during bear season a group of recurve hunters came up and a few of them let me shoot their bows. I was suprised at how well I could shoot without sights using the instictive method (only 10 yards, I did not want to loose anyones arrow) A few guys had widdows and I fell in love with them.

I am thinking about a PMA II
ANY SUGGESTIONS FROM WIDDOW OWNERS???

Thanks

I don't shoot a widow--but you can't go wrong with them. A lot of guys poo-poo them, probably the same people that don't like chevy over dodge etc. One thing a widow is heavy, it makes them a pain to carry but they are very stable when you shoot them. Hoyt makes some fine shooting bows too, fugly but good shooters.

the chef

Black Widow is a beautiful bow. Check out Mathews, they make a new longbow and recurvre.

There are dozens of quality makers, of which Black Widow is but one. Be sure to shop around enough to know whether you are bitten by the recurve bug or the Black Widow brand recurve bug.

i have shot many and i mean many traditional bows

great plain bow compana from pampa tx makes a superior bow to black widow and at a cheaper price...not by much mind you....

and my favortie long bow is the howard hill westley special 5 laminates with a babinga riser at 90 pounds. and a elk hide handle.

I have several bows traditional, compound and yes even a crossbow. I have to admit that the one I love the most is the black widow I have owned since the 80's. Somehow I always seem to go back to it. It is heavy but shoots great.

Black widows rock and hold there resale value! Also i agree 100% with nitro 700...Great Plains bows are super!I love mine!Good Luck and good shooting! Lots of quality bows out there.

You wont make a mistake with a BW, but take a look at Bob Lee recurves. I love mine!!
You may not have heard of Bob Lee but you may have heard of WING Archery from the 50's. That was Bob.

I have hunted sucessfully with recurves and longbows for the last 15 years and have owned or shot most of the custom bows out there. The truth is most of them will get the job done and it really comes down to what feels righ for you. Black Widows do not impress me that much. I prefer several other recurves over them. One recurve I paid $300 for new back in 92, and have taken several critters with, cronographs 10 fps faster and is more quiet than the BW's of equal draw weight that I have shot. I also own a Great Plains take-down and can attest that it is an excellent choice. Another fine bowyer is Lone Wolf located in Michigan. My advice is to shoot as many bows as possible before you lay down that cash.

gymrat

I agree with gymrat.....shoot as many as possible before you buy. You may find that the BW fits you the best or maybe one of the 1000+ bows from custom bowyers around the world.

I have been in traditional archery off and on for 40+ years. There is no best bow out there for every shooter but there are bowyers that consistently produce bows that perform better than others. Some names to check out are Blacktail, Morrison, Black Widow, Shrew, Bob Lee, DAS (metal riser performance hunting bows), Bighorn, Ballistic, Brown Recluse, Hoyt, Schaffer, Thermal, ....the list is realy near endless. Try site like Tradgang or Stickbow to research these bows and make it a point to visit one of the many Traditional Archery Rendevois (sp) that are held around the country. These event afford the archer the ability to shoot more custom bows in a day than any other method. Living in Maine you might even want to check out Canadian Bowyers like Checkmate.

Good luck on your journey into the world of stickbows......there is just something unexplainable about shooting a stick with a stick. I myself like the challenge of the longbow and cedar arrows though I do own recurves as well. You will find out very quickly how the bow decision making process in traditional archery will not be as easy as in wheel bows: there are just far more excellent bows to pick from.

Pick up a copy of trad bowhunter. there are literally hundreds of bowyers out there that make beautiful handcrafted pieces of art. I chose a man named E.T. Williams who made a bow for for me that fits like a glove and i've been using the bow he made for me for almost 10 years now. made for me and to my specs....makes every day in the field a dream.

Thanks Guys, the more info I get the better I feel when I finaly make a decision and drop some cash

I have had a BW Silver Anniversary since I was a teenager and got rid of the "training wheels". That was 15+ years ago and I've flung alot of arrows with it. I upgraded to a new set of heavier limbs, but it is still going stong.

Uglystick, BW's point extremely well, and are well balanced. I have never noticed mine as being heavy, and I have several other recurves, Schaeffer, Scott, and a Great Plains. I always end up going back to my Black Widow--and I shoot a Black Widow tab too.....

I think a PMA II is a fine choice, you sure won't be disappointed.

Good Luck--Don

O.L. Adcock longbow. It smokes most recurves and is forgiving as forgiving gets. You may have to wait a couple years or so to get it. I have one of his TD recurves, zebrawood riser with walnut limb laminations, it is excellent.

www.bowmaker.net/