Does anyone have an idea when this Groves Spitfire was made?

Know quite a bit about them but not sure of the age.

Thanks

Peter

Try again with the right orientation...

Here's some more detailed pics...

Specs...

Last one of the tips...thanks for any help!

Peter

WAY cool Peter! I'd say more recent vintage. Not much help beyond that though...

J.

Mine is the same design, but it has the cross patterned glass and the black grip.

Sometime in the mid to late '70's my guess from looking at the riser. Does it have short "power lamination" type lamination on the belly side at the fade outs, or just the one single lamination?

Nice looking bow. Had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Grooves at a Arizona Bowhunter shoot one year. He was going to let me shoot a round with a bow I liked. He did not even ask my name or ask for something to hold while I was shooting his bow. I wish I could have bought that bow but at that time money was scarce for us. I hope you are enjoying your bow.

fdp...it's a single lamination and now wedges at the fades as far as I can see from the pictures. I can't check as this bow was packed into a box tonight for shipping. I just swapped this bow for one from a fellow Leatherwaller and he was wondering, as was I, when it was built.

Thanks Peter

I had Jim Elrod build one for me in the mid '90's and I think it was nearing the end of their production. GREAT Bows!! That one looks '70's.

Thanks guys. I'll be the lucky recipient of this bow. From the research I've done, I was thinking '70s as well, but have no knowledge of how to narrow it down. Not that it matters that much. Just curious. Found a lot of really interesting stuff about Harold Groves and the Spitfires while scanning old threads and internet searches. Super interesting and accomplished man!

I couldn't see any wedges either, but they are very thin and difficult to see. I'm going to stay with mid to late '70's as the era of production. Again, based on the look of the riser and the "moon" or wedge of glass that's in there.

woodshavins' my dad shot Harold's bows for ages. They are in my opinion as good a recurve as was ever made. I've still got a 76lb. takedown that I shoot occasionally.

Gosh thats a pretty bow

Mine has those wedges. What clue is that for the bow's age? Maybe those are what makes it so much smoother and faster than the 'Holly green grills' that frisky people say they shoot.

Looks like the one I had and I bought it in 1971.

dean...is yours a 1 piece or a takedown?

dean...is yours a 1 piece or a takedown?

One piece with the phenolic in the grip.

I almost traded mine for a 55 SK plus $100 a couple of years back. They came over with a chrono and said that if it shot less 170 fps at 10 gpp that the deal was off. I shot 11 gpp faster than that. Mine is marked 47@28, it was faster than the 55SK with same arrows. The deal was off, why should I work 8 pounds harder for less performance. Now my fear is that I shoot it too much. I am better at fast shooting at game with a longbow, but with aluminum arrows it has become my favorite target and 3d bow.

I did not find my 69 Super K to be very fast. That Groves is!

That is one of the later versions, 1990's onward when they started building bows again. As said above the early ones had black micarta in the handle and the earliest ones had crow weave glass.

Mine must be an old one. The number is 3000 something and the one pictured was 5 something. There may be some logic to the numbers.

So...if woodshavins got this beauty what did I get in return?

Another beauty!!

One more...1962 Monterey with the knife edge riser!

Aw shucks...one more...two guys with big grins as they both got what they wanted!

Whoops! Forgot the picture!

dean, those wedges were put in there from what I was told to take pressure off the riser/fade junction. I know those were later bows because I have one.

Now THAT is the Perfect Swap - nice to see both of you got a cherry !!! I'd be happy with either one of those !

Never seen a cut out in the strike area like that must be unique to that bow

The recess is an overdraw for a broad head...common on Groves.

It's an overdraw notch. Harold made lots of the like that as did other folks.

I was a Groves dealer when James Elrod starting building bows again. My shop was in business from 1995-2010. I got myself a Spitfire one piece, serial# 682J8-01. My bow as built August 8, 2001. Not sure how the serial numbers worked prior to this.

Was a Groves dealer back in the late 1960's and again when Harold son Dick revived the business in the late 1990's/early 2000's. Jimmy Elrod was Groves long time bowyer. Even was to their place of business in Albuquerque.

How many models of Groves bows are there?

I would love to get some info about serial numbers and models, too. I've got several Groves bows, no two quite alike. And the serial numbers are all over the place. For example:

#2099-8 is a Spitfire Prestige Magnum, 60" #73610-VI is also a Spitfire Prestige Magnum, 56" #RR-476-7 is another SPM, but a 2-piece t/d, 60" #H-0495-8 is another SPM, also 60"

All of these bows have risers made of Rosewood and black phenolic, overdraw shelves and cut-outs for a double-bladed broadhead. The serial numbers aren't even in similar formats!

I used to have plain-old Spitfire #456. I was told by the original owner that it was built in 1959. I traded that one to one of those survivalist mountain men, in Maine (or at least it used to be Maine - I think he broke off and started his own Kingdom last year).

I can think of the Prestige, Flame Hunter, Spitfire, Mag II, MagIII.

That's a start, fdp ... add Fireline, Spark, Spitfire Prestige Target (both as single-piece and a 2-piece t/d), Spitfire Prestige Hunter, GS 300 and GS 300 II. Probably more, too.

david. wasn't there also a Flame Hunter Supreme, as well as an upscale Prestige that I can't think of the name of righ tnow?

I have not seen (or heard of) the Flame Hunter Supreme, but it is perfectly plausible! And adding another adjective to a name like "Spitfire Prestige Magnum Hunter" would not be a stretch for Harold Groves, either. He may have made as many different models and variations as Pearson or Bear, if only on a smaller scale.

Here's a Prestige Target model with a huge overdraw. The rest is more than two inches in back of the grip.

Harold had said that after completing a bow it was already 90% broke because of the pre stressed, or as he called them "dynastressed" limbs.

The back glass and single lam were glued up on a limb form that was circular in shape. When cured the limb took the shape of about 60% of a circle. Then the limb(each limb was a separate build initially) was put into the final bow form where it was glued to the handle and the belly glass was applied. When cured and removed from the form the limbs actually spring forward because of the pre stressed glue up.

Sorry am not good with words but imagine the unstrung bow should almost mirror the bow form. Well not a dynastressed Groves the limbs are way more recurved than the form.

I understand what you're saying completely Kelly. That's the way it was described to me as well. I've heard folks talk about Harold making his own glass, but I never heard him mention that. Did you?

I have a Groves that looks just like the pictured bow,except for an over draw off the back of the handel.I bought it in the early 70's used.That was the bow I shot my first deer with in 1975,a button buck,remember it like it was yesterday.Ron

fdp, no have never heard that but wouldn't surprise me. Some of his first bows had a woven glass on them-those might have been his own glass. Then later he used Gordon glass in the chocolate brown color for the hunting models. Regarding an earlier question about their limb tips. They have always been the white/brown glass like you see on all these bows. Just the shape changed over the years as Jimmy aged-they got a little rougher. By then Jimmy was well up there in age-late 60's.

The first models that I sold were hunting bows, the Prestige Magnum with the short overdraw(about and inch and half) and the Prestige Magnum Overdraw with the nearly 3". The latter one is what I used. Groves were the second bow and then many successors for about6-8 years thereafter ending up with the two piece version.

With the overdraw I could use 27.5" arrows instead of my usual 30.5" out of other bows. This resulted in less spine needed and I suppose increased speed(never cared about that back in the late 60's/early 70's). Still used a heavy arrows-mostly fiberglass-and heavy broadheads-mostly Snuffers.

yep...the color of the tips has always been pretty well the same. The shape is what made me wonder. I'll try to post some pics. of some limb tips from an older bow.

yep...the color of the tips has always been pretty well the same. The shape is what made me wonder. I'll try to post some pics. of some limb tips from an older bow.

My Spitfire Mag is 8-09...best fine-wiggly/hairy grained rosewood I've seen. Same version as Pdidd's except for a red stripe. 52#/28 62". Kelly's description of the build is perfect..Harold walked me thru it.

Harold's indoor range was great fun...got a lot of instruction directly from him (very generous man), and also from a small group of wonderful guys who shot there a couple of times a week.

Harold was a very good man at heart.

My Spitfire Mag is 8-09...best fine-wiggly/hairy grained rosewood I've seen. Same version as Pdidd's except for a red stripe. 52#/28 62". Kelly's description of the build is perfect..Harold walked me thru it.

Harold's indoor range was great fun...got a lot of instruction directly from him (very generous man), and also from a small group of wonderful guys who shot there a couple of times a week.

Harold was a very good man at heart.

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