Picked this beauty up on the auction site...think it's a 1956.

Only thing missing was the decal with the result it slipped below radar...seemed no one noticed it.

Five lams in the limbs and five more on the tip overlays. Tips are in perfect shape.

Beautiful condition. I don't believe it was shot very much, if at all.

At 65# at 26" I'll need to eat my Wheaties!

This is a bow with loads of soul!

The lams...

Tips...nice work.

Nice hooks on the recurve...can't wait to get a string and shoot it.

Last pic...the whole bow. Am I correct with the year?

The only difference between 1955 and 1956 models is that the Bear decal is on the 1955 and the 1956 had silkscreens.

They are generally considered to be one of the quickest Bears ever produced.

Great find and in a rare weight.

65@ 26 so with 3#/inch thats 71@28. Wow suprized that bow hasn't broken yet! I've love to shoot one of these, live some real history. Out to be fun for you!

Neat bow... I wonder if it was an in-house special?

Had a '57, brown glass, 55@27. Great bow but too heavy for me. I'll have another one day! Eric

I have a 56...60" 50@28. Great shooting bow, one of my favorite recurves

Hunt with mine every year. 1956 60" 49#.

I had a mint 56 that was my pride and joy. I picked it up from raptorarchery. All original and hardly shot. 67@28. I absolutely loved that bow. One day it just snapped in half while sitting on the rack in my basement stung. My basement is not hot or cold. I guess it was just it's time. Glad it didn't happen while shooting, but I sure do miss that bow. Yours is a beauty. Good luck with it. They never pop up in those weights. I'd love another if you ever decide to part with it.

They are great bows! That will be a true flame thrower at that weight;-)

Got one too 1955 47# Nice Bow too !!!

I have 5 1955-56 Kodiaks, 3 60in & 2 64,s, they are some of the fastest recurves I have shot, very accurate,& light in hand,todd I still hunt with that mint condition one I got from you-randy

COPicasso You are really on a steep incline there. Reminds me just how tough those CO mountains are to climb... Nice jacket as well.

You guys are brave. I shoot a 71 kodiak hunter and I'm afraid of it breaking because of its age. Its an unreasonable scare for me, don't know what I'd do without it.

they were made to shoot

I aged out of the 65# range some years ago or there might have been a real bidding war there. It's a hell of a bow, got a 51# at the Chamberlin Ranch shoot in 2014. Great,fine & beautiful shooter.

If anyone out there has 47#, 64" model they want to get rid of, I'm listening.

Here's mine:

True, but paying some odd dollars that is 1/3 of a new bear, but to have it break is not appealing to me.

Think it really depends on what it is. I much rather own onw and make a reproduction of it later in my life.

I always wanted to shoot a deer with a Grumley Deerslayer and an aluminum Kodiak.

If a guy were to make one of these, how much material is left between the site windows??

Quite a bit. The shelfs resemble longbows. I find them pretty unique in that aspect. They are small shelves.

I have one that is 51# at 28" and it's in amazing condition. These double shelf bows feel "petite" but they are quite robust and I have to admit that mine shoots hard and fast and that it's probably quicker than any of my customs.

The double shelf Kodiak is, IMHO, one of the nicest offerings that Bear ever produced and I would love it if Bear, or some of the great custom bowyers, would reissue that bow.

I've never measured the degree of centercut on the dual shelf Kodiaks, but considering how left of center the '57-'58 single shelves are, I'd bet there's not much difference. Probly tune to the same arrows, or darn close.

The small shelves are great for those of us who are used to, or prefer to shoot off our knuckles (I was raised that way!). Also for those of us who shoot & train ambidextrously. Changing sides without having to change bows. Also if you happen to be one of the thumb release shooters who needs to shoot off the "wrong" side.

Good for you Pete, I saw her too but too much wt. for me! I peak at 60#. Enjoy your shooting time. More pictures when you get her strung and shooting, please. Lance.

The majority of the bows I shoot are from the mid 50's to mid 70's.

They were made to shoot and they were well constructed.

I have shot hundreds of arrows through them without mishap...if one breaks then it served its intended purpose. It can go on the wall then. Shame to retire it before.

It's interesting to compare this bow to the other mid 50's recurve I have and see the variation in design and build.

I had heard these were fast bows and that's why I'm glad to have finally found one. Wonder of it is a custom as there's no sign of a decal or silkscreen and the 26" draw weight reference is different.

The layup and five limb lams probably account for the speed...that and those great hooks.

The glass on it is the same as my Firedrake...skookum mentioned that Drake used some Bear glass...the Kodiak only has one longitudinal stress crack.

Pete, I just checked my Bear 1956 catalog and your bow has a draw limit of 30" according to the info provided. The bow was available up to 75# at no extra charge and up to 100# for an additional $10. Your bow had a price of $49.95 when new. The 26" draw length was std./max on the special order 56" Kodiak, available to 60#. Have a good one...Lance.

Thanks for the info Lance...I draw 27 1/2 so no problem there. I have a 70# Swift Wing I shoot quite a bit so should be fun! Paid $1.05 more than the original price so guess I did OK!

Yep! You did real good. Lance.

Pdiddly, is it possible for you to post a picture of the bow riser from the front? I'd like a closer look at the arrow shelves. Thanks! Richard

Shot a Black Widow LB 59#@28 and my 56 Kodiak 59#@28 and the widow whipped it's butt by 1 foot per second, 660 gr arrows thru both, 186fps, and 185fps. I love the 55,56,57's have 4 right now!

I'll post a pic when I get home Richard..

I've got what I believe is a 55. It's brown glass and 39#. It's a very sweet shooter and very fast for only 39#. I'd love to have one in the 50# range.

I have a 1955 that I'm going to hunt with this year 49# 60" bow. Pip

I've got one too. Dont shoot it, just hangs on my bow rack. Its marked 64" cs47 #52. has the original price still visible and sold for $49.90 :). Mine is also missing any decals, except for the patent sticker, but the tips look just like the ones pictured in the original post and is straight as an arrow , no limb twist. Shoulder tendon issues keep me from enjoying shooting my bows much anymore. Might just let it go if someone was interested. PM and we can discuss.

I picked up a 1955 a few years ago. It is 60 pound and a very nice shooting bow. The draw for me was I was born in 55 and wanted to hunt with a bow as old as I am. They are a great example of just how good some of the old bows were made.

The 55-58 Kodiak's are at the top of my list for favorite Bear bows because of being one of the best preforming Bear Kodiak bows. No Fred Bear fan shouldn't have a few of them.

As requested by Nemah, here's a couple of pictures of the rest front and back.

It's 5/8" on the back and 3/8" on the belly.

Thank you, Peter. I already have a riser ready to go! I'll be gluing up the bow this weekend. Richard

So, finally got out and shot this bow after cleaning it and adding some seal to the shelf and thin leather to the site window.

Fletched some 2216's cut to 28" and used a 145 grain tip. I draw 27 1/4".

Brace was a hair over 7" to belly side of grip, not to deepest part. Does that seem OK?

No problem drawing and holding at all...glad I'm "stocky!" ;>)

First impression was the bow is whisper quiet. Truly amazing with no hand shock as well.

Second is I have to get an arrow puller!! Buried those big shafts in a compressed fibre butt...a scrap of rubber will fix things.

Third is I hit left consistently...arrows might be stiff or I am used to cut to centre site windows. Fletch stroked my grip hand a couple of times so held the bow a little lower but don't know if that did anything...I could have been torquing the bow as well.

Would like some feedback. 2216's might be a tad stiff. I will try 2117's next time.

Peter, I'm glad that bow ended up in your hands! I bet that one will hit like a sledgehammer. I looked at it a long time but, once again, discretion was the best course and I continue my search for one in the 53-56# range. I've also been looking at Halloween bows as a second-choice alternative for an ambidextrous "back-up" hunting bow, but I've yet to find one of those heavier than 48#.

TTT Would like some feedback on my shaft choice two posts above...is it the sight window or the arrow?

I literally just bought a '55 yesterday!! Love these bows!!

I was watching that one...good deal!

I thought so...now I need to find an era correct Bear quiver

Pete, As to your arrow question, I find that a slightly heavier spine shoots better off of my dual shelves. I'm not the best person to give advice with the aliminums that you shoot, seeing how I shoot woodies, but maybe if you play around with point weight on the 2216's and the 2117's you will find your answer. There isn't a lot of arrow shelf as I'm sure you have discovered! Let us know what you find out. Lance.

I frankly don't understand people being afraid to shoot those old bows. That's about all I shoot and have for a good while. Jim Fetrow (direwolf) shoots the old early 50's static recurves and uses modern bow strings. So I'm not sure what it takes to convince someone that those bows are very serviceable and functional. And, with modern strings, will shoot with modern bows, and better than many modern bows.

Those so-called old glues put us in space....created the objects and materials that took us to the moon and back safely. I think some folks believe that what is available to day is so much more advanced; that may be true when looking at some technological advances, but you can't argue with the success of those old materials.

The 55 and 56 Bear Kodiak bows are likely the best shooting ones they made, as far as performance goes. To not shoot them, to me, is a travesty. They were made to be bows....not wall art. I'm shooting a 1957 Sanders, and a 1971d Black Hawk...both have modern strings on them and both are great shooting bows. If one ever breaks, then it becomes wall art...but most certainly not while there is a bend in the limbs and life in the bow.

I made similar comments above George but your observations on the materials and glue is right on. Like you said, they are built well and they were made to shoot arrows out of. Do you have any thoughts on my arrow selection and impact issue? Have wanted to get to the range to try some 2117's but busy with life.

Thanks for the comments Lance...not much shelf at all but similar to a couple of old 50's bows I have.

I had one and shot it for a long time. Very fast bow, due to its narrow limbs and aggressive fish hook recurve. The experienced users I knew always recommended a good bowstring when stringing this bow up. TLM

My son just asked if he could start shooting my 48# 56 Kodiak. I think next year we will do an elk hunt with both of us shooting 56 Kodiaks. His will be 48# 60" and mine will be 49# 60". Looks like my new St. Charles Thunderbird will be back up this year. This will be a hunt that memories are made of. One proud papa.

My son just asked if he could start shooting my 48# 56 Kodiak. I think next year we will do an elk hunt with both of us shooting 56 Kodiaks. His will be 48# 60" and mine will be 49# 60". Looks like my new St. Charles Thunderbird will be back up this year. This will be a hunt that memories are made of. One proud papa.

Peter, with a FF type string, 2117 will work well from that bow. I had to use Dacron to shoot my 2016 at 28" long, and I draw 27". It will tolerate 2018 also very well which worked for me with the FF string also at 28" length.

46#-signed by The Man! 1955

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