Any thoughts on them thinking about buying one
It's a good bow that has stood the test of time. I, and some other people I know, have shot them for a while and then moved on to something else. I don't think you'll find anyone who regrets buying one, even if they find something they like better later on.
Thank you McDave shot one today a 50lb draw and I was impressed for the cost of it
nice smooth bow for the money.don't own one but have shot one.
I think it has shock. Of course most my longbow are hybrids.
Try an Rer longbow or a big river and you will see what I mean. Just an opinion mind you.
Lou
Matter of fact my friend bought one and moved on to a Vortex. #50 montana as new I know he is looking for a buyer. Pm me if your interested. I can get you in touch. Respectable gent.
Lou
∆∆∆∆ Sounds like a good bow opportunity there!
I have shot a Montana 50#@28 for the last couple yrs. Its a nice bow. Light in the hand . but as far as bear bows go, I always wanted an ausable.
This yr I picked up a HH Wesley special. 50# a 28. Probly won't shoot the Montana anymore.
I think you'll like one. As has been said, I haven't meet anyone that didn't .
GO LIONS...
I have one I like it when I'm in a longbow mood its a good starter longbow there are better shooting ones but it will get the job done on anything.
Good working man's longbow, I wouldn't hesitate to hunt with one at all. Had one for a little while early on, very easy to shoot. Does have a little bump on the shot but not shock, lol. A well made skinny string wakes it up a little.
i think the bear montana is the best of all commercial production hybrid r/d longbows, a good bang for the buck and an excellent performer. if it matters to the aesthetic minded, it will not perfectly brace to a classic "D" shape - but really, who cares? this longbow can do it all and if that was the only longbow i was allowed to shoot from now on until i pushed up daisies, i'd be a happy camper. :D
Good bow. Especially good bow for the money. It's really pretty smooth and I don't notice the shock others talked about. The only thing I would change is the grip, but that's me. I still got used to it.
the montana grip, as with most wood risers, is easy to reshape with a small 6" rasp and sandpaper in grits from about 60 to 320. when done, clear coat with a wipe-on or spray polyu, or do a wipe-on "massey" finish of acetone thinned epoxy. you'll have a custom grip that'll feel so much better in the bow hand than any other bow's grip.
another montana tweak is to lighten up the massive limb tips ....
http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=000056
I have had a couple of them.....great bows that will perform with the best for 1/3 the money. I did rework the grip and tips to suit my taste, but just a great bow......bomb proof!!
All the above. Shoot a while but before super tuning change the string to an SBD or Champion and you will be impressed with a major performance improvement both in sound reduction and speed. They are sponsors here. Now tune with the new string.
yes, almost all of these production bows come with overly heavy strings, some are even polyester (dacron).
so, yeah - replace with any decent hmpe bowstring of about 12 strands +/- 2 strands.
Try a Maddog Archery Prairie Predator. My custom made 60" model is 54# @ 28" ... Bubinga riser, Red Elm cores under black glass cost 274.75 deliverd to my door ! This bow screams an arrow and Mike Mecredy is a great guy to deal with !
QuoteOriginally posted by Tradcat:
Try a Maddog Archery Prairie Predator. My custom made 60" model is 54# @ 28" ... Bubinga riser, Red Elm cores under black glass cost 274.75 deliverd to my door ! This bow screams an arrow and Mike Mecredy is a great guy to deal with !
yep, mike's bows are top notch and at price tags that are competitive if not cheaper than commercial assembly line bows.
I've got one, it's my second. The one I had before was an older one and had a blocky grip. This one has a nicely contoured grip. Not as nice as a custom grip but it is comfortable. It's a nice slender very shoot able bow. It's pretty too.
Get one, you will like it.
I bought one several years ago, and shot it a lot at first. I guess I'm fickle, so I moved on to a ILF setup, and sold the Montana.
I missed it almost immediately, so I bought another one. I'm keeping this one.
I'll have to do the tip mod, Thanks Rob for the info.
I have an older Montana (1999) yes the grip is a bit chunky but not to bad. I did the mod on the tips as the stock limb tips could be used as a walking stick. I have shot the newer Montana with a better shaped grip. It feels better than mine. Mine is still back at our home in San Diego, I do not have to carry one with me every time we visit.
QuoteOriginally posted by M60gunner:
I have an older Montana (1999) yes the grip is a bit chunky but not to bad. I did the mod on the tips as the stock limb tips could be used as a walking stick. I have shot the newer Montana with a better shaped grip. It feels better than mine. Mine is still back at our home in San Diego, I do not have to carry one with me every time we visit.
rework the grip - it's really too easy, and so is the adding a few clear coats - it's like having a new and far better montana ... promise! :)
I have hunted with one all deer season this year. It's a great bow! Add a skinny string to it to juice it up a bit and it gets even better. Love mine!
I see your from Michigan. May want to wait till the end of January and go to the K-ZOO trad expo and shoot a Montana and other long bows. I would look at a New Wood Longbow, they run about $500.00. Very nice bows for the money. I bought one at the show last year and love it!!
I have one and hunt and shoot with it often and like it a lot. I bought mine from Big Jim's bow company. It was one that missed weight so I got a good deal on it. So for what I paid you really can't do better for the price. As some one said replace the sting that comes on it with something better and you'll have a shooter. The one con I have is the grip cover and the rest. They are really cheap. But they were easly replaced so it's not a deal breaker for me. If mine broke or was stolen I would call Big Jim and order another without hesitation.
I still have a Montana. I don't have a lot to compare it to, but here are my thoughts:
Pros - As other's have said, it's bombproof! I'm rough on equipment, and it takes it all. I shot it well out to 20 yards. It's quiet (to my ears).
Cons - As other's have said, the grip is not that comfortable. I did notice some shock (never enough it was uncomfortable, and I kept the stock string on it). I didn't like the amount of arrow drop past 20 yards. Some don't mind this, but a slightly flatter shooting bow gives me a little more confidence.
If I was starting over with the info I have now, I would look into a Kanati or something like that( again, just me).
Go shoot one! Most of the two largest sporting goods stores carry them in stock (right handed).
the new models have a lot smaller narrower tips, as good a shooting working mans longbow as you can ask for, for the money.
And all that being said if the Montana doesn't float your boat there are alternatives like the Sky Trophy Hunter, which can also be had in 66" and only costs marginally more.
Mad Dog was a great suggestion also.
I bought my first trad bow 3 months ago and I went with the bear Montana in 45#. I really like it. It's been an easy bow to shoot, I don't notice any hand shock and my shooting has been steadily improving which is all I can ask for. Coming from compounds I had to get used to shooting with a low wrist grip, but that feels really comfortable to me now. Granted I don't have much experience with other bows to compare the montana to but overall I've been very happy with my purchase. For the money I think it's a great weapon, I'm sure there are nicer custom bows available but who wants to spend twice the money or more for a custom when you're just starting out and don't really know what to look for in a custom. Ive seen nothing in the Montana that will hold me back as an archer. Get a draw weight that's comfortable to shoot, fling some arrows and be happy.
The newer models have been slimmed down with regard to handle, limbs and tip. These changes result in a much better "feel" and performance. Real bargin pricing and the nostalgia of shooting a Bear bow.
Great bow. For me very quiet, no hand shock and accurate. Shoots as good or on par with my well known custom longbows costing 3times as much.
Shooting the Montana has provided much enjoyment over the years.
A great choice for many!
My Meg shoots one, and although she's a beginner she is really enjoying it.
I haven't shot one in many years, but threads like this make me want to try it again. The first ones that came out snakebit me on them.
Like most any bow, I figure a good string will make it better. 18-20 strands of BCY-X has been great for everything I've tried it on, from around 20# on up.
I've never shot one but I've seen others shoot them and they seem to be very pleased with them. They may not win a bow beauty pageant but they may be about the best performing low cost hunting longbow.
I ended up buying a 50# its a really nice shooting bow I traded a Roy Hall Navajo for it the Navajo was much a lot more money but it was a little much for me to shoot for any length of time so I traded for the Montana and some other things for traditional shooting. All is good now.
Thanks Mike
55# Montana for me. Newer style with the reworked handle and such. The only thing I really didnt like was the grip wrap which I promptly removed. It feels more secure in my hand now without that cheap leather held on by barge cement.
Just ordered all the fixins for wood arrows to put through it.
Tony was it easy getting the adhesive off?
The adhesive isnt hard to get off...dont know if its the right way but i put a little lighter fluid on a cotton ball and in about 2-3 minutes I had it all off. Im sure there are other things that would help remove the cement as well.
I replaced the grip with a sur grip...and put velcro on for the rest and side plate. A big improvment over the junk that comes stock on it.
Sounds good ky, I want to take the grip off and just shoot it bare for a while.
QuoteOriginally posted by Krex1010:
Sounds good ky, I want to take the grip off and just shoot it bare for a while.
that's a good, if not best, way to do it. remove the glued on grip. try some naphtha (ligher fluid) at first and if that don't do, get you some acetone (wear a rubber glove) and rub it where the grip was to get off that stubborn contact cement. then wipe it down with naphtha or alky and dry off.
get in a few shots and let yer bow hand tell ya where wood gets removed. then set the bow in a padded vise and have at it with a 6" rasp. just keep gripping the handle and rasping away a bit at a time. i took one down a huge amount, made a very slim grip with a small throat for the minimum amount of bow hand torque before, during and after the shot.
when the new shape feels right, go over all the rasping with a progression of sandpaper grits, maybe from 60 to 320. optionally finish off with 0000 steel wool.
there are lotsa good ways to quickly refinish that handle wood. the fastest and by far the easiest is to use min-wax gloss wipe on polyu, or any variety of clear coat sprays (mask off the rest of the bow b4 spraying). i did my 7 lakes longbow with helmsman spar varnish. a tough finish can be done the massey way - mix up some slow set epoxy in a cup, dribble in some acetone until the mix turns from a goo to a wet slurry. using a rubber glove and a clean piece of cotton t-shirt, wipe that onto the handle area. allow to cure, buff with 0000 steel wool, do it again. i usually do 3 coats max.
main thing is that you'll basically have a very custom bow that'll fit yer bow hand like a ... glove. :cool:
Excellent info rob! Thanks for taking he time to explain that all. If I decide to modify my grip I'll be trying that nekid for sure
My first traditional whitetail kill was with a Montana. Later gave it to my son.
ALSO ...
do not refinish the entire bow, only the area you worked on, and maybe about 1/8" or so on top of the existing finish. off those areas with 3m blue painter's tape. i just mask off and around the limbs and riser, about 1/8" above and below the worked on area of the handle section.