How many use them? What experience do have with them even if you don't own one. :campfire:
I love mine!!
God bless,Mudd
yeah i love mine too. just ask roy "mudd" .its a cheetah. i love this thing lol. and i shoot pretty well with it. really smooth draw. feels like its 68" inches long, but its only 66"
Hunted with Hill & Hill style only for the past 32 years including today for that matter. I have 6 & might sell one but only to buy another. Prefer mine in straight grip, heavy, & longer 68"-72". Get with Ben Kleinig in Australia. He's shot some sweet bows to be sure after some scary animals. Bet his Hill tops the list.
I had a wesely special and it shot great. unbelievable quiet. Very light. The only reason that i got rid of it was because i prefer recurves and I needed the $$.
I have a HH Half Breed,it is a sweet shooting longbow,one of my favorites.I think they are solid shooting bows.
Thanks for the replies keep it coming. I had a good feeling about them just feels better when it is confirmed. I have a Bama bow made in the same style as a Hill shoots great. I shot the cheetah once about 6 arrows and what I remember most was how quick I was on target and the arrows went where I was looking. :thumbsup:
Forrest is too kind. Compared to others, my Howard Hill longbow shooting / hunting experience is quite limited, and amounts to three billy goats with a 66", 70# @ 29" Redman, and two boars / one sow with a 70", 75# @ 28" Wesley Special. I really do prefer the longer length. I mostly shoot recurves, but at some stage in the future will likely invest in a lighter Hill. I made my sweetest shot ever with the Wesley Special: a dead plastic milk bottle at 80 metres. For some reason, I could shoot that Wesley Special better than my 62" Black Widow longbow of the same draw weight.
They are an acquired taste, I love my Big Five 48# @28" 66"
I love my recently aquired take-down cheetah.
I love my HH Halfbreed. Once I stopped shooting it like a recurve (i.e. incorrectly) it stopped kicking me. Now all I notice is how light it is, how smooth it is, and how much fun it is to shoot.
If you are on the fence and have the funds to buy one, buy one. Don't like it? Sell it - they go quickly enough on classifieds here.
I'm a one bow guy, but if something happened to mine, I'd buy another in a heartbeat.
(http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff187/GingivitisKahn/20100220_ac_d04.jpg)
I have a "BIG5" 75lbs. @30"--they take a while to get used to and you have to "MAN-HANDLE" them but hit where you're pointing!!
I find HH longbows to be outstanding shooters and easy to carry. I have five ranging from 64" to 68"(53# to 57#). My hunting bow this season will be a 64", 53@28 TD "RedMan". At my 27 and 3/4 draw, I would not recommend a HH bow less than 64". I would also highly recommend talking to Craig at HH Archery before making your purchase. He will not steer you wrong. :thumbsup:
I've got a Tembo that I first purchased back in 1978. It's a lot of fun to shoot and they are very accurate. I use a Super Shrew as my go to bow, but the Hill bow isn't collecting dust.
I have had a bunch, my favorites from Hill archery are two that I tillered myself from the blanks. A 68" Half breed model and a yew. I like to make the grips so they are biased to the bow hand, left/right, not symmetrical, and I like to get more action in the tips to accommodate my under 27" draw.
If you don't shoot a straight gripped longbow like Hill would teach you to use it, you perhaps would not like them. Bent bow arm, low bow shoulder, swing draw, canted bow and minimal holding time are the keys to getting along with them. Do not over bow yourself, there is no point to that. I have seen a number of times guys getting heavy bows just because a whimpy guy like me had heavy bows. My son shot two arrows through a 244 pound dressed weight buck with a 47 pound at 27" Big River Hill style, that shoots exactly like another lighter Hill we had. One arrow while standing twenty-five yards, one on the run up a steep hill at 55 yards, which turned the deer and the last one when the deer jumped full speed off an embankment at 15 yards, which angled up and forward and cut the spinal cord. He shot the fourth arrow after it was down and hit the top curve of the rib with a rounder broad head and that one skipped off, but deer was already dead.
Been using them exclusively for a couple years.
As long as you remember the Hill grip and the bent bow arm, they're downright awesome.
Forget those things, however, and they won't impress.
It was awkward for me for a few months because I have a tendency to overdraw, and using the proper bent bowarm necessitated a decrease in draw length. If [old habits kick in and] you start locking your bowarm or heeling off the wristbone instead of the meat of your thumb, accuracy will suffer, frustratingly. Note, this has been my experience--results may vary.
I have a HH Big 5. 66" 55@27. I just love it. Light, fast & no handshock. Shoots right where you look & gets there quick. Can't ask for more.
I have enjoyed shooting them and would like to some day own a Redman and a Grouse.
Pound for Pound best value around. A very simple tool that simply works as well as any other bow.
You either love them........or you hate them...... I had a Cheetah, liked it but traded it off. I will buy another when a good deal pops up. I like the dished grip!
I bought a used cheetah earlier this year. It's 66" and 50lbs @ 28". I really like the lightness of the bow and the feel of shooting it. I haven't spent enough time tuning or shooting it to commit to it yet. After hunting season(I'm using my 21st Century), I plan to shoot it extensively to see how it will work for me.
I have a couple of Hills, a 68"Tembo and a 64" Wesley Special love shooting them but just not consistent enough to hunt with them.
I love my Hills. Hunting with a Wesley Special this year, used a Cheetah and a Big 5 last year. Great bows, great value compared to a lot of the others out there. You just have to adjust your style a bit.
Own five of them.....great bows! This is my newest gray Big Five string follow.
(http://i796.photobucket.com/albums/yy241/davidmitchell_6466/Hill%20string%20follow/BigFivestringfollow001.jpg)
Nice Big 5 David, other than having the shelf on the wrong side ;)
Kevin
Hills simply cannot be beat for pointability and forgiveness! Once you learn the technique for shooting them they become VERY addictive! After shooting recurves and R/Ds for years they are all I shoot now. I've owned a bunch of Hills and Hill styles and have settled on the string follow design, and the Sunset Hills specifically, as my favorite but Craig and others build really nice bows at a very good price as well. There's nothing that suits me better than roaming the woods with a Hill bow and a Hill backquiver full of woodies :archer2: ...it just seems natural!
Spanky
when they are shooting very and I mean very heavy arrows they demand much respect!!!!
I shot other straight longbow brands (strunk/maulden/St.Charles) but the Hill to me is among the the Best!
I rarely meet a bow I don't like but the HH bow is special.Overpriced but I love them.
I have 2 Wesley Specials, both at 65#. This is my preferred hunting weight. I also have 2 Cheetahs, one at 55# and one at 40#. Lastly, I have a Big Five at 50#. Hill bows are all I have used for several years now, and really like them.
You have to grip them firmly on the heel of the hand if using the straight or dished grip, a pansy grip just won't work. But if you hold it well, hand shock will not become an issue.
All mine draw smoothly and are light in the hand. Hill bows are like fine Scotch whisky - its an acquired taste but one that you will savor from now on.
Love my Wesley Special, although I have put it down this year to give another bow a chance.
Overpriced? Hmm.. ain't gonna go there.
I've had something between 30 and 40 Hills, mostly back when I was collecting. I still have four, including one of Howard's own. I became so fascinated with them that I started trying to build them to understand them better. As everyone has noted, they do shoot exceptionally well if you take the trouble to learn them. Once you learn and understand good D bows, they're almost scary. I finished shaping one yesterday and took it out for testing before finish sanding. At 17 yards I nocked an arrow, first arrow ever on its shelf, and hit a X on my javelina. The next five were another X and four more kill zones. That's with a new, untuned, unfinished bow. They're just natural shooters. I've had or still have good customs, but all I shoot are the Hill styles.
Dick could you explain the best way to grip them? Thanks.
Got to put in my $0.02 as well. I have two of them, a 66" 53#@28" Big Five and a 70" 63@29" Wesley Special and are by far my favorite bows. I have owned, and still own, some of the very popular recurves and longbows common to this web site, but hands down I will pick up either my Hills before either of them. It did take me awhile to learn how to shoot it properly initially, but I gave it some time, and now I'm consistently more accurate with those bows than any of my others, and I do not notice any handshock. In fact I've tried to detect it and I can't. Both bows were built by Craig.
Great, classically simple bows that are like no other 'stickbow'. I currently have two (Big Five and Wesley Special), just had the Wesley out today. Like they say, shooting them well is all about how you grip them. This ain't your Mommy's target bow...and they don't need no stinkin' carbons!! (Sorry, always wanted to say that, lol).
Rick... Check out the Howard Hill Longbowmen web site:
http://www.howardhilllongbowmen.com/
One of the many entries is the grip:
http://www.howardhilllongbowmen.com/hillgrip/hillgrip.html
Thanks Dick... that helps. Gonna give it a try tomorrow.
QuoteOriginally posted by David Mitchell:
Own five of them.....great bows! This is my newest gray Big Five string follow.
(http://i796.photobucket.com/albums/yy241/davidmitchell_6466/Hill%20string%20follow/BigFivestringfollow001.jpg)
That is very nice. I have been thinking about a gray one myself. Maybe gray on the belly and black on the back...
captainkirk
Anyone else, I know there are more.
yes i own 5 great bows. 100# 125# 140# 150# 160#.
They do shoot Dick.
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/420W/100_0674.jpg)
I own 4 70" take-downs between 45 and 48 pounds at 29" draw and out of all my bows, psychologically, they are the most fun to shoot. They are simple, smooth drawing, and more forgiving than any of my other bows.
Good to see you Marlon. How about a pic of you & the Beast. Neow thet's a laongbow Mate.
I'm curious as to what spine arrow you guys are shooting out of your Hills. Particularly those of you shooting around 46-49 lbs.
I have a question regarding arrow spine as well. I took the plunge and called HH archery I have a Wesley Special 62" 60#@28" coming soon. She has black on the back and belly cocobolo riser. Double overlays on the tips of coco and horn tip combo. And silver inlay deer or elk can't recall they took the description off of the site after I made the deposit this was a stock bow I guess someone backed out. The grip is elk and is tan in color. I want to shoot wood out of her but may try other carbon or aluminum arrows as well. I pull 28" spine ideas? All the folks here helped with my decision, tons of good feedback.
I have Hill bows from 45#@29" to 48#@29". They all shoot 2016 aluminum cut 30"BOP with 125 and 145gr points. The wood arrows I have from Wisperingwind Arrows are footed hexshaft cut 30"BOP and are 60-64# spine @28" making them about 50-54# spine @30".
Sounds like a stellar combo SC Hunter. Pix asap + your take on it all after you shoot a few.
Anything with a point on it skoots along PDQ out of my Hills. Partial to woods myself.
about all i shoot...except for the wes wallace i threw in for good measure
I enjoy shooting my hill more than any bow i have. Its simple light will handle a wide range of arrows.It realy likes wood.
They are very resonably priced and you dont have to wait a year to get one.
I cant say enough about craig and his family.
Hey Roy, I was just talking to Cody tonight about which arrow he should be using and he mentioned how nice that Wessly you have shot his lighter spined shafts. He says that it is different than others he has seen.
S.C., Hill bows will generally shoot a 28" arrow with a 125 gr point that spines at or just under draw weight. For a 29" arrow and 125 gr point, I would recommend a 60-64 lb spine. Add spine for a heavier point.
Nice bow
They are a well made bow in the old longbow style. I feel that they have too much handshock BUT guys that shoot them regularly say that they don't even feel it once they shot the bow just a little. If I was looking for that style bow I would sure buy one. Frank
I have a new 68" Cheetah. It is my 1st. HH as I have been shooting reflex/deflex longbows for years. I found the HH to be very streamlined and light in the hand, not bulky as I had expected. I was pleasantly surprised to how well these bows shoot and how well the craftmanship is. It is a bow I really enjoy shooting and would recommend to anyone who appreciates the feel of a true longbow.
My biggest change was the straight "low wrist" grip. I had to rework a few 'form points' which helped me review my form which helped. I have the Wesley Special 66" @ 50 lbs. 165-8 FPS, B-50 string, using GT 500s, at 395-400 grains (whisper quiet). It compares equally to my Martin Savannah at 45 lbs, BCY string, using the same arrows.