By some incredible stroke of luck I was able to get a spot on Jim's list not too long ago.  I'm a big fan of pretty bows that are also performers but I opted for the most performance focused model I could get this time, the triple carbon (60" 55@29). I attempted to source several different crazy pieces of wood since the handle would be the only "pretty" part of the bow.  Unfortunately, I ran into multiple set backs and finally told Jim to just pick me the best looking cocobolo he had.  I also asked for a modified standard grip.  I was wanting a thumb groove on the thumb side and a swell on the shelf side.  Here's the first pics he sent me.  

 

 

It looked to have good character but it's always hard to tell from the unfinished wood how it will turn out.  

Within a day he sent the following pics

 

 

I thought it looked nice but I was a little concerned it might have more brown than red tones to it.  Jim assured me that it came out a nice red.  I also asked him to go with a slightly more satin finish.  I didn't want it to be shiny but I wanted the coco to pop a little bit.  What he came up with is what I would call a "splatter" finish that allows the wood to pop but with a texture that keeps it from being shiny. The red tones were exactly what I was looking for.  They glow in the sunlight as shown here but are dark and subtle in low light.  You can see for yourself how it turned out (forgive the phone quality pics).

 

 

 

 

One more request, a toned down ink on the black carbon. He used a "ghost grey" that appears to fade from grey to black, another very cool look.  



I was thrilled with the look of the bow and was absolutely pumped with how seamlessly the grip fit my hand.  He had nailed every aspect I requested. I was blown away by how well it performed.  It felt like a bow 3-4 pounds lighter to me and performed like one 5-10 pounds heavier.  In fact, I went up 50 grains in point weight (575 to 625) because I could hardly tell the difference between the two.  There is always the temptation to feel like your new bow is faster than all the others but the proof for me (which I had no need of after watching the arrow flight) was how hard my arrows hit.  They were going through my block (and not the shot out center but the side) and my horse stall mat backstop hard enough that it took two hands to pull them out.  It was incredibly quiet and shock free from the start.  My first group was right on



Now let me tell you the best part.  I was only able to snap off a few rounds of shots and thought I'd wait to get back to Jim until I had a few under my belt the next day.  Well I received a voice mail from Jim that sounded a little worried and asked me to call to talk about the bow.  I wondered if something was wrong with it that I just hadn't noticed yet.  Jim said he was concerned that maybe it hadn't turned out like I was hoping.  He said he knew I had received it the day before and was worried I hadn't called because I was upset and "hanging back" for a bit.  He felt the coco was losing some character as he was shaping the grip and before I could say a word he offered to build me a new one.  I told him I was thrilled with it.  He was curious about how the finish and grip was for me as well.  I guess this kind of customer service shouldn't be completely unexpected when it's a custom bow but this was above and beyond in my book for him to take the initiative and reach out to me. I couldn't recommend a bowyer more to someone interested in a custom bow.

Nice stick
That grip looks excellant!

Gorgeous bow! And looks to be a great shooter as expected coming from Jim!

Sweet!

Nice...!! Jim's the best !!!

Beautiful Bow!

Jim is a stand up guy,always looking for customer
His bows set a standard hit hard and with accuracy.     nice addiction.

You done good Tex!!  Jim's one of the best.  One of my favorites.  Can't wait til I can have him build another.

Very nice that looks like a keeper for sure.

Sweet bow there !

Another stellar finished artistic display of Mr. Jim Neaves' creations....

Congrats!

I'm thinking I need one! Gorgeous!

Jim could become a business consultant on how for companies to handle their customers from start to finish. And I believe he would do well at it. The best customer service I guess I have had to date.

Lanier

Nice looking bow Zane...can't wait to shoot it  


Dealing with Jim is a pleasure.

Jim is the man. That coco is awesome!

Very nice, Jim is top notch!!

Beautiful coco...love the colors!

Thanks guys.  I've been shooting it every night and I have to say I'm still very impressed with how easily it throws my 625 grn arrows.  I can't wait to try it out on a nice sized hog.  I feel like I've been shooting it for years already, just feels natural in my hand.

Very nice!