any of you guys or gals have one of these
looking for the good bad n ugly on them
thanks for any n all info
I purchased one mail order 2 years ago when I decided to get back into traditional archery and bowhunting. It's a low cost, no frills path for that. I like the long (68") mild reflex-deflex; it draws very smoothly. The show bamboo under clear glass, a look that I personally like a lot. The riser and grip are nothing exceptional to look at, but as I said, low-cost, no frills. Without silencers it's quite twangy, especially coming as a compound convert. It has been very sturdy and has held up well to daily shooting. My main gripe is not with the product per se, but I wish I had bought one at 45 or even 40 lbs instead of 50 - I think this one is even a little more than 50 # @ 28". Come to think of it, I'd be willing to sell or swap if you're looking for something along those lines.
Never owned but shot one saturday morning, a guy had a Red Stag and the Solo with black glass. It felt pretty good to me. Hit where I wanted it to. The reiews online are down the middle, some say it broke within a week, some are still shooting them years later.
Buy from a good dealer and your covered if you get a lemon.,
b44,
As it happens, there's a thread in this forum, "economical longbows" that has an endorsement. Brian is right, there are, or were a lot of reviews about breakage (limbs de-laminating) a couple of years ago, but I've seen less of it of late - might want to be careful to determine the year of manufacture if you go this way.
I really like mine. In fact, I just came in from a walk along my feed sack trail and a bit of stumping, I had to deal with the pain of watching the Penguins lose to the Flyers. :(
As I PM'd b44, I reworked the grip with a rasp, electrical tape, and a rubber sleeve which made for a much improved feel in the hand.
I haven't heard of a delamination problem with the black model, but plenty about the bamboo.