Everyone ought to have at least ten of Grayling's finest at all times...I kind of let my numbers slip for a while but they have a way of taking care of that...I know there are only nine in the picture but I have things under control

DDave

Beauty collection. Hard to argue with your premise, I've got one, so I'm just starting.
I see one lefty in the bunch, specs on him?

Nice collection.  I'm curious about the second one from the top.  The color on the limbs is interesting.

The second one from the top has garnered much attention in pictures over the time I have had it...many consider it to be one of the ugliest bows they have ever seen...that is actually a gorgeous 1961 Kodiak Special that I bought off the big auction site for 66 bucks because the seller really focused on all of the limbs stress...when I got it I decided to simply cover up the stress with some sticky back polar fleece camo I had around from the nineties when we used it to quiet the sight window area on our compounds...I never have even trimmed it up so it looks kind of scabby but that bow also shoots 175 fps with hunting weight arrows for me...another time I got a little carried away with some 40 year old deer hide and completely covered the shelf, sight window and grip with it, again not being all that careful...all of that can be stripped off easily enough and the plan is to sell that bow to a friend who is going to make it her first refinish job...I have a much nicer one in the works anyway, with a predominantly dark piece of zebrawood...the lefty is a 55 pound 1960 Kodiak that fits with my small 1960 Kodiak collection and the fact I shoot both sides...I also bought that bow off of the big auction site for the tidy sum of 918 USD back when our dollar was worth more than yours...the shipped price in CAD was actually just a bit less than the USD price...that bow is about as good as it gets when it comes to shooting quality...at my 30 inch draw length it chronos at 185 fps with 9 gpp arrows and a dacron string...I currently run it with an HMPE string and would imagine it will easily top 190 fps when my left shoulder gets back to normal and I get conditioned to that draw weight again...pretty good for a 54 year old bow with a 62 year old operator

DDave

You know when I got into traditonal archery in 2009 I would never have guessed where my buying would be headed...it was just a casual mention by Joe St. Charles that sixties bows are where it's at when it comes to nice woods than got me started down the Bear road...my first was the 1963 Kodiak Special which I paid way too much for off the big auction site...but it is about to get a refinish job and trust me, when it is done it will pop your eyes out...that is some of the nicest bubinga and Brazilian rosewood in existence on that bow...the refinish is a wintertime project but I will keep you guys in the loop on it

DDave

Great project Dave!
Those old bows have such a great appealing and feeling.

Actually our dollars are the same, Dave. I'm on the other side of our country.
I'm a fan of Grayling Bears as well, but am interested in that quote about the woods on the 1960's versions. I have a '66 Grizzly that fits me great and shoots the same. I will have to get a few more, but not a big collection. He says...

How about a little love for Detroit?

Speaking of '61 Kodiak Specials...I am in the finishing stages of restoring mine.  That glass was a booger bear to get looking nice.  I am going to go check to see if the finish is cured enough to final wet sand and buff out.  Should have some pictures posted in the next few days.

I am about to go moose hunting at the beginning of September and my consecutive number pair of 1960 Kodiaks will be going with me...I cannot imagine having better mojo than those two will offer...for this year I will hunt with Full Metal Jacket arrows but by next year I will be hunting those two with woodies

DDave

Great collection. There's something about those Grayling bows for sure!

AJ

I was just shooting my new 1962 Kodiak Magnum and admiring the great refinish job Jerry Karbon did on it when the light came on...that is an i beam bow...the i beam is so well done it is just about impossible to see so no use even attempting to take a picture...I really liked that bow before and now things are kicked up another notch...of course it is also the start of another quest, the search for one with butcher block

DDave

Absolutely fantastic collection.   I'm new to the traditional world after 27 years of hunting with compounds and I find myself absolutely drawn to the old Bear bows.   This form is proving a fantastic learning resource but also motivation to start buying more.

dnurk,

Welcome aboard and not a bad place to make your first post ever. The old Bear bows are addictive, but the new ones are fun too. I've restored a 1955, 1957 and 1959 Kodiak as well as a 1971 Super Kodiak.  Loads of fun and very rewarding.  I also picked up a 2014 version of the two tone A handle take-down and love that I have a brand new piece of Bear Archery History.  It's a great shooter.  

Good people here with a ton of knowledge.  I like hanging out on this forum as much as the Pow Wow main forum.

I just noticed that I posted my Kodiaks would be going moose hunting with me...well that is just wrong...the Blacktail wants in on the moose hunt and I just cannot say no to that gorgeous creation...the Kodiaks were a little put out at first but when I said they can be my elk hunters they perked up and are looking forward to the task...I had never really shot that Super Kodiak much but after putting it to work and running a few over the Chrony it appears that bow will be my deer hunter this year...just thinking about taking the shine off it with some Eastern Diamondback skins...to me nothing looks better on black limbs than Easterns and that bow is way too shiny to hunt the way it is

DDave

how do you know you have the finest?

The only way to know for sure is to keep buying and testing!

Nice bows Dave!

Yes...there are a few Bears I have had that moved on...there are times I wish I had them back but at the time someone else wanted them more...and they have good homes with people who like to shoot them...nothing wrong with that

DDave

Just made a deal on my first Gainesville Bear...the devil made me do it

DDave

Ddave,, what have you done now,a B riser takedown?

The devil has to make you buy a Grayling wood some day ;-)