Any updates? I love his writing and obviously his bow making. I just visited his site and it hasn't been updated in awhile.
Thanks
Kyle
I also miss his writing. A really great gentleman and I am lucky to have one of his bows. I do not hunt with it anylonger, at 66 it is a little stiff for me now, but it is such a work of art it would be hard to part with. I feel guilty not passing it on to someone to enjoy and hunt with it. Perhaps on my deathbed they can pry it from my fingers.
Consider yourself very lucky, I would love to have one of his bows in my collection, something I feel will be the holy grail bow to haunt me forever.
I miss him too. I made my first selfbow at Denton Hill when Dean still had a booth selling bows. I would work on my Osage stave and run to Dean where he'd pencil in what I should take off next. What an experience to have him as my first teacher. I also have a very special Torges bow...PBS 2000 Torges bow. tippit
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v110/tippit/TorgesPBS2000003.jpg)
Nice bow, Tippit. I have one with the same lineage :thumbsup:
I too miss Dean on the message boards and at the shoots. Always a joy to be around, selfless, and he's been a big influence on my bowmaking. My mentor, whether he'd admit to it or not :)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Jeff_Durnell/Firestyx%20Longbow/Firestyx10_zps88b0b4c2.jpg)
Love my bow too , just afraid to scratch it.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v33/neven1963/photo11.jpg)
Is he now longer writing or making bows? Used to always enjoy his stories in TBM, he was always down to earth and made you feel like you were with him on the hunt.
Heard he gave up the bow building and hunting.
Health reasons? If so, I wish him the best. IMO, his best stories were about his hoghunts in SC and his article on elk hunting, called " Tag Soup"
I had email contact with him recently when I was looking for a squirrel dog. He didn't know me at all but was very helpful in helping me select a breed.
He also put me in contact with a breeder where I eventually picked up my mountain cur. Never gave any indication that something was wrong. Maybe just tired of writing? I too loved his articles and his website.
As many do, I call Dean friend. I miss his wry wit and infectious smile.
Last time I heard from him he had sent me pictures of some smoked meats he was doing... dang guy caused me to gain 10 pounds.
I hope he is fine and living the good life.
Dean is still kicking up his heels. See him on squirrel dog message boards about everyday. He still bowhunts as well. Great fella to talk with, met him at a squirrel dog association hunt last year.
I miss his company, have some special bows of his...to bad he's a reds fan :) :)
talked to him a couple months ago...he is still making a few bows and hunting and cooking and enjoying life.
i never was able to get one of his bows and he stopped selling them and only gave them away after I got to know of him. One day I hope to have the money to get one when it comes available....they are works of art but I would have to shoot it...maybe for squirrels for the first year only in memory of the squirrel hunts he would film that I would bust a gut watching. LOL
I just found this thread. I miss his participation, too. I always send him a birthday greeting and he always gets back to me.
I am fortunate enough to have two of his bows, one that he built for himself in 1994, the same year his book was published. It is the bow from the book, exactly. He re-gripped it for me, being a lefty, but left the right handed strike plate from when he shot it. Pretty cool. The other he built for me. It is one of his Ambush bows. I waited three and a half years for that bow. He wrote about my wait on the limb.
Boy, now I really miss him.
I miss his stuff.....always a good read. I also miss Ferret, both had great self bow tips and good hunting stories.
Was just using one of Dean's Bowyer's Edge tools to taper down some wood shafts today. Hopefully the chickens are keeping him busy and he's just not able to update his site.
A BBO of deans IS my holy grail bow!
I have learned so much from his book and video. I met him in Denton hill in the late 90s. I was camping with my daughter and he visited our site for a while and reviewed one of my early selfbows. Some well taken comments directed me on my path to improve my skills. I also enjoy his writing,quite the wordsmith.
I had the good fortune to spend a day with Dean and Jay with Scotty (if you read Jays book you'll know who I'm talking about) and had an absolute ball! Wish I could get them back up here!
Man some of you guys are super lucky to have even been in contact with him. Much less own one of his bows. I have his book and video I've watched the video a bunch. Read the book about 3 times. Some of you said "holy grail" of bows I would completely agree.
Yea, I need to finish my Torges seat. Really like his articles and teachings !
I really enjoy his writing, and check his site pretty often in hopes that he will resume. His recipe for lentil soup is amazing!
Yeah, Dean's bows were and are very special. It has a lot to do with his sense of design and finish work, but also with a certain soulfulness, a certain sense of hidden magic, something that is desperately missing from the CNC shaped, infinitely reproducible, plastic, metal riser, carbon, foam core world.
QuoteOriginally posted by ron w:
I miss his stuff.....always a good read. I also miss Ferret, both had great self bow tips and good hunting stories.
I miss Micky Lotz, too. Nobody has come on the scene to replace these guys, and as a result, it seems like selfbows get less and less attention every year.
There are some guys on the bowyers bench who are pretty cool also. Always there to give advice and encouragement. Don't think they have any published writings so maybe not as well known but right up there with Mr. Torges and Mr. Lotz.
That being said to own a Torges bow is on my bucket list. But I did meet him at Cloverdale and he gave me a strip of bamboo to back a bow with. Very cool guy! I have his book and it is all marked up as I actually studied it. I have the video also and refer to it on occasion if I haven't been building much.
I had the somewhat unique experience of sitting around a campfire a time or two with some extraordinary fellows! :)
Dean, Mickey and his brother, Mike and Jason westtvang, Mudd, Darren tyrrel... Man those early MOJAMs were something special!!!!
***edited: how could I forget Rusty & JD Jones too?
Just exchanged email with Joe Don. We have been friends a while. I have four of his bows, and his first Phenom, which is a killer bow and right there with Dean's. It's these guys that have made my experience in traditional archery so rich.