Hurray! - After a little over a year and a half since a bad accident (and a lot of slow rehab), I'm finally able to shoot hunting weight bows. Happily, I've also learned to shoot left-handed as well as right, but left actually feels better with a longbow.
So the question (with money still tight- used is fine but left-handed are hard to find) --Anybody have experience with all three - Omega, Don Dow, and Bear Montana longbows?
I'm interested in especially smoothness, and lack of hand shock. I'll be looking at 64-66", in the low 40's# (since I have a true 29.5" draw length), and at least a locator grip- don't shoot straight grips well.
Thanks for the feedback
Haven't shot the three you mentioned...but glad you're able to shoot again...good luck on your search for a LB.
Out of those 3 I have only shot the Montana. It is a great bow. Little to no handshock and it draws pretty smooth. I like it enough I keep mine around as a back up bow.
2X Montana.
I have shot the Dow and the Montana. Dow was my go-to for a few years. A very underated bow IMO. I can't think of anything I didn't like about it. Wish I hadn't sold mine.
Rob
Another Montana fan here. In fact, here's a copy of a post I just made on another forum regarding it:
I just picked up a used Bear Montana longbow from the classifieds and have been really surprised by it. Good cast, good manners, minimal handshock, quiet...simply a pleasure to shoot. Good craftsmanship too. For the money, even if buying a brand new one, I don't think you could do much better than the Montana. I've bought several custom bows in the past - middle of the road ones and top-of-the line ones...ones that I just HAD to have based on everyone else's review of some new up-and-coming bowyer and his newfangled stick of wonder, only to be somewhat disappointed when the bow arrived because it didn't magically shoot whisper quiet dead-center on each shot. All this after waiting 6 months to a year to get it. Some were gorgeous works of art with beautiful veneers and perfect craftsmanship, BUT, none of them shot significantly better, to me, in my hands, than the Bear Montana. FWIW, I also had a Martin Savannah that was a great shooter too. Anyway folks, don't be so charmed by custom bows that you overlook those so-called "factory" bows. Those old folks at Bear and Martin seem to know what works pretty darned well. Custom bow? I don't need no stinkin' custom bow.... But, wouldn't it be nice if I could get Bear to make me a Montana with bamboo limb cores? Hmmmm....
This is in no way intended as disrespect to any custom bowyers here - in fact, I still have a few that I plan to try out over the next couple of years.
the Bear Montana is a good bow, have shot one several different times. Have shot a few Omega's too, in my opinion for the money the Omega is a sweeter shooting bow and little faster. The Omega felt little better in my hand and no hand shock like the montana too.
I've got a 66" Omega @42#'s and love it. I'm currently shooting axis fmj's (500 spine) with 50 grain brass inserts and 125 grain tips. This comes out to about 11.5 gpp and they are flying well, definitely get to the target with some authority. Handshock is minimal in my opinion once I found the brace height it prefers (about 6 5/8). I'm waiting on a SBD 6 strand ultra string which should be here any day to replace the endless loop string it came with. As far as smoothness, there is little to no stack @ my 28" DL. Kegan is awesome to work with and will go out of his way to get you the bow you want. I also liked (and ordered) the u finish option, it saved me a few bucks, and I was able to customize the grip to my liking.
you could NEVER go wrong shooting a Bear Montana. & for that matter...you could NEVER go wrong shooting a Martin Savannah. The Savannah will be quicker due to its reflex/deflex design. The Montana might be one of the most UNDERRATED longbows out there...it's forgiving,quiet and most of all,dependable. I especially like the newer ones for their looks. I shot a 40 # Montana last week and swore it was a 50# bow... God's honest truth
Hard to say. The Omega and the Montana are worlds apart. Kegan is claiming very impressive numbers with his hybrid design. Everyone who I have talked to really liked them. Dirt cheap too.
I am a huge fan of the Montana though. Looks do play a role in that decision and with that said, the Montana is hands down my choice
I LOVE my omega longbow, I have tried a bunch of different longbows and this one is my favorite. Very fast with heavy arrows and dead accurate. Kegans great to deal with. Next longbow I get will no doubt be a more custom omega, even all customed out they cust much less tehn others and in my experience perform better.
I can vouch for the Omega. I am friends with the Bowyer, Kegan, and shoot with hime often. I own a 58# Omega at 62", that will shoot around 190fps with a 500g arrow. I purchased the u-finish option which allowed me to sand the grip to my taste, then just finished it with minwax stain and spray on satin finish polyurethane. For the money I don't think you will find an R/D longbow that hits as hard as the Omega. Here's a pic of mine:
(http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc425/tdivec/omega3.jpg)