Has anyone ever had a BW blow up?
Nope just 3 super kodiaks
Have had Widows since the the Wilson boys built them and into the present. Have never had one blow up. Never say never, but would be a total surprise.
Got a bad batch of nocks once causing 3 dry fires while at a 3D shoot. Still shooting that widow to this day. I consider it battle tested and bomb proof.
Are you just curious or did something awful happen??
I do not persoanlly know of any BW failures, but I'm sure it has happened from time to time. They are all made out of wood, and even though it sucks rotten eggs, **** happens sometimes.
I hope you did not have one blow up, but if you did, I am very sorry for your loss!
Bisch
Widows are darn near bombproof. Never any issues here!
I always liked the old video that came with a new widow. I liked the scene where someone stood on a limb, and raised the bow up backwards. It is hard to describe without seeing it, but it was very impressive.
I had one develop a crack in the riser and had it repaired. They also built me another bow at a huge discount so I had a backup. Im still shooting both almost thirty years later. And both have been dry fired more than I care to admit. They stand behind there product. contact them if you have an issue.
I had a dry fire due to a bad nock on my 68# PMA limbs. It destroyed the limb tip on the top limb, and the string pulled through the string grooves about 3" down into the limb.
This was not Black Widow's fault.
Pulling any bow at that weight out to 31" and letting it go without any resistance would probably be bad medicine for any bow.
Edit: I should mention that Black Widow was very helpful and accommodating when I needed to replace the limbs. Great folks there.
fryflinger, no a friend said he thought every bow would blowup sooner or later. I own a widow and never have had a problem.
My PAII has been dry fired twice. (Dont let glove shooters touch your bows). I have shot it many thousands of times since then without issue. 57#s
No sir, never. And I've shot a bunch. Great quality bows.
Broken arrow nock with a TFV, 51@30, and the subsequent dry fire resulted in a 1" crack in the riser running horizontally down from the shelf. Sent it to Black Widow and they repaired and refinished the bow. Never had an issue with it after that.
Nope.. never knew anyone who has had a problem
I had a MA for some years. Had 80# limbs that got dryfired a couple times. Never had a blow up. But did a stupid thing one day, caught the limb tip in the tail gate. That broke the tip.
I had a MA II lower limb delaminate once.But there is a story behind it.I had saved and saved money to buy my first custom bow,a 62" 65@28 MA II.I was in my early twenties and so proud of that bow.We were in south Tx hunting hogs and javelina and I had built a brush blind along side a corned road.It was cloudy that mourning so when we decided to go back to camp for lunch and a nap,I figured I would just leave my bow in the brush blind till the evening hunt.Well the sun came out in full force and was shinning on my bow for a good 3 hours or so.When we came back I picked up my bow to take some warm up shots and you guessed it.When I drew that hot bow the bottom limb made a 90 at the fadeout.I was heart broken could not believe I had done such a stupid thing.
I called Black Widow when I got back home and Mr.Ken Beck answered the phone.I told him what I had done and that I wanted to order more limbs.He told me he had a set of 70# limbs in stock would those work for me.I said sure that will be great,I said hold on while I go get the credit card.I will never forget what he said,there will be no charge for the limbs we all have done stupid things to our bows.
That was in the early eighties,they are still a great bow company with great service and their bows super tuff!
Top notch folks at Black Widow!
I consider them friends and the absolute top of the line in terms of bows, service, company, and overall character/integrity... You can bet they will stand behind anything in their court & beyond. If they offer a remedy for free or for pay, it is the right judgement call. I trust them completely....
Nothing but A+ with me since 2001.
My 14 year old loves my PCH. He drags it through the snow and brush. It's been bounced off rocks and walls, trees and trucks. He took his first animal with that bow, and I hope he keeps the passion. I know the bow will survive.
Have never had the privilige of owning a Black Widow (yet
I had a lower limb on a MAII completely delaminate. I bought the bow used, and it was my third or fourth shot when the limb went. I couldn't afford a new set of limbs, and eventually sold the riser. Although I never bought another Widow, I would not let that experience prevent me from buying one. As a matter of fact. This year I will be 65, and celebrating my 50th year of bow hunting. I'm giving some consideration to a 62" PSA in honor of that.
I have 2 Black Widow bows, both recurves. I consider them the best built bow available. "Bomb Proof" is a good description. Unless you do something foolish, they will last forever.
Think about how many vintage Bear bows are still hunting after 50 years....BW bows (partially thanks to technology advances) are easily 5X the quality of those bows.
No, despite my best (unintentional) efforts. I've dropped my PSA from my stand, smacked the lower limb tip on the seat of my stand, and shot the string off the bow when a nock split and the bow's still in perfect condition.
I'm not saying it can't happen...but brick S**t Houses aspire to be built like Black Widows.
I have two..they are both excellent and one is 30 years old.
Been shooting them for over 22 years never had a problem. I've had dry fires and I messed up stringing and had one turn inside out. That was my original and its still going strong.
I forgot to mention that my 1987 HS60 is still going strong without any issue throughout its life span... It is now 30 years since I bought her new in Early Spring of 87. As well, my new 2012 KB is awesome...
Dry fired 3x in a row transitioning from tab to glove a 90's model 73@28 MA2...no problem! Still hunting it today...
Way back in 1980 or 81. I had a metal handled version just a few weeks old and had the top limb just explode. No dry fires or broken nocks...she just blew up a full draw.
It was quickly replaced by Black Widow with an entirely new bow...not just limbs. So excellent service. Have had other widows come and go in my arsenal since then, and know others that have them, and never any other issues.
I have had a bunch of them......not that big a fan, BUT if someone said to me, " I want to buy a bow once and have it forever what should I get?" I would say there is only one.....Black Widow!!!!!
Had my riser crack on the back just above the rest. The crack went down towards the narrow part of the grip. Replaced the handle. Have another one that's older and no issues.
I have owned 2 Widows. Never had an issue with either bow. As others have said before, there customer service is top notch. :thumbsup:
I had an LAG that I shot for 13 years. Always hung it from the string, on a set of moose antlers. One day I came home and the antlers and bow were on the floor. I checked the bow over and couldn't see a mark on it. The next day I went to a 3d shoot and about half way through the bottom limb came apart. I think the brow tine from the moose antlers hit the limb when they fell and loosened the glue, because the fiberglass split and pealed from the belly side of the limb pretty cleanly. This was a learning experience, I bought another BW after this, and just bought a 3rd at Kalamazoo, but no longer hang them on the moose antlers.
I got my first one in 94 and had several since. I've never had a problem with any of them and several of them saw really hard use.
I have a PSR X. It is my favorite hunting bow. Plus I got it used for half price.
I had a SA III delaminate the upper limb about 3" down from the tip on a brand new bow after about 20 shots. BW sent me a new set of limbs same day.
Excellent company and bows. Wish I still had that bow.
I had a black widow delaminate back in the mid nineties. It was a SA, after a morning hunt, I pulled it back at the truck and it felt like I was pulling 15 lbs. looked down and the whole bottom limb separated. Monday morning, I called BW and they sent me a pair of loaner limbs until they could make me some. I remember they were a lb difference in weight. The limbs came and I made sure they would shoot the same arrows. The next day was on a Friday and I was off work and I arrowed a buck without incident. When I was in my twenties, I was hard on my widows.
I have 2,well sort of, a PMA and a PLX longbow. A PSA hit my credit card this morning!
Have had a BW on and off since I was a teen in the 80's. Never an issue. Excellent bows! My PMA is my "if I could have only one" bow. BW customer service is top shelf!