After buying and selling many bows, I have one that I’ve pretty much settled on. Black Widow PLII takedown longbow 66″ 64@30.5″.
Here is a little about how I came to this bow.
Black Widow: I sure hope this doesn’t sound nasty, but I never really liked their bows. They seemed expensive, a little plain, and some of the people who tout them can be a little overbearing. For these reasons I fought against trying them for almost 3 years. At one point I sold all my longbows expecting my new custom to be delivered, but it was delayed for a week. My shooting partner handed me his 66″ PLV 57@29 to use while I waited for my new custom to be delivered. By the end of the first week I couldn’t give it back. It was the one Widow he wanted to sell because it was so long, and it was the only one I wanted to buy for the same reason. I am a very reluctant Black Widow fan.
PL 2: I shot the snot out of that old PLV and I killed some game with it. I really grew to like many things about the bow and it had pretty much turned into my “one bow”, that is until I had a chance to possibly fall into a last minute 10 day safari. I decided on the spot I would order a second PL as a two piece to be my go-to hunting bow, and move my PLV to my backup bow. The guys at Black Widow said they could meet my timeline with two weeks to spare so I sent in my deposit.
Since I wanted these bows as close to identical as possible, I gave the guys at Black Widow the serial number of my PLV and they pulled it up. They confirmed 66″, 57@29. Put on a digital scale, and drawn to my true draw length of 30.5″, these two bows build 6 years apart are only 4 ounces different. This was WAY closer than I expected!
With all of the functional parts being the same, I asked for a few things different.
- I wanted the PL2 to save money on the bow, since I planned to spray paint it I didn’t care about finishes.
- I took the money saved and ordered it +/-1 pound of the other bow. It came out on the money.
- I wanted a solid phenolic riser for durability, and I wanted them to put quiver inserts into it. I know, I know. “Longbows aren’t supposed to have those.” I’ve used every quiver mounting method, and I’ve owned all of the takedown systems. The 2 piece sleeve and bolt on quiver are MY combo. If you have something different that works for you, believe me, I am happy for you.
I’ve owned many faster bows, prettier bows, etc. I planned this bow out to remove as many points of failure as possible. I planned every piece to be resistant to as many environmental factors as possible. It has a rubber grip instead of the fancy beaver tail. I shoot D97 for cold weather, and BCY-X for hot weather. All silencers are rubber catwhisckers, rubber tip protectors on both ends, quiver has hand screw knobs instead of an allen attachment, etc.
Someday I’ll add a post about my journey with my old PLV. It’s a sweet story and it’s been a great bow. It hangs right next to my desk and it’s comforting to know it’s right there if I ever need it!
Oh and about the safari, it didn’t shake out. At least now I’m ready the next time the opportunity arises!