Hey guys,

Considering getting a Toelke Whip and wanted to get some opinions on them, mainly in regards to their shooting qualities. How are they for smoothness, handshock, stability, and forgiveness? I kind of want something that contrasts my Turkey Creek longbow in the situations I would use it in, such as certain treestands or stalking situations where long shots are likely. I've spoken with Dan about this, and if I go this direction I'm going to get a heavy riser wood to optimize it for longer range shooting (35+ yards). I mainly want something in my arsenal that I would utilize in different situations than my TC, which would be optimized I would believe for situations where a quick-pointing, light bow would be advantageous.

Any input would be appreciated!

Thanks!

Craig

Butter smooth limb design. My favorite Whip has a Macassar Ebony riser. It has the grip cut wide for my wide wide webbing. The grip design places the bow in the correct position for repeatable shots. Simply the most accurate bow for me period. Stiff riser design with very light limb tips eliminates handshock. It shoots as soft as any heavy 3pc recurve. I am betting it just may end up as the only bow you use for years to come as it has been for me. I have 3 60" Whips and I shoot them all but the Ebony riser is my absolute favorite.

Cant go wrong with one of Dans bows. Super guy, super bows!!

Don't own one yet but I've never read any complaints about them.

Owners seem to be pretty high on them.

Best R/D bow ive shot, quiet (as in NO NOISE), smooth (as in fluid), and completely "dead" on release. As you have heard me say before, If i had to pick 1 bow right now It would be a Whip.

Ive recently had the chance to shoot many big name R/D bows, and for me the Whip is the best. Im sure others like different bows for different reasons, as far as smooth/quiet, the Whip is by far the best ive owned or shot.

Dan has made me four of them and though I have ended up shooting his D bows more, I can honestly say the Whip is the finest D/R longbow I have ever shot and I have made it a point to shoot a number of them. I draw 29" and all my Whips have been 62" bows. They are smooth drawing, very "soft" initially and never seeming as heavy in poundage as they actually are. They are stable and forgiving, dead in the hand as in ZERO handshock and are extremely quiet with arrows as light as 9 to 1 and RIDICULOUSLY QUIET with the 11- 12 to 1 arrows that I shoot. Dan uses beautiful woods and as a Craftsman is a perfectionist and the best guy you will ever deal with to boot. The longest I have waited on a bow from time of order to my door has been 29 days. I have admitted on previous posts to being a shameless Dan Toelke fan but I am not alone, the following is a quote from Pete Ward the Archery equipment reviewer on his website: "After reviewing 3 of Dan's bows (2 Whips and a 52" recurve) I have to say he is a perfectionist. Try as I might there are no flaws to report. Several people I know have Dan Toelke bows and they all rave about how well made they are. I have received many Emails telling me that they purchased a bow from Dan and how pleased they are with it. Every one comments about the fine workmanship and how nice they shoot for them. From this I can believe my review bows are no different than the one you will get. The Toelke bows I saw with shooters at the Longbow Safari last year were no different than the ones I had with me. Pete Ward"

I have a couple Whip's I did reviews on . Very good bows , and the quality of shot is as good as the quality of the workmanship. The reviews are on my site at www.peteward.com look in the trad review section for them.

Pete

The Whip is everthing you want in a longbow. Super quiet and smooth. Just got a new 58" Chinook from Dan. Shoots awesome and is very quiet and quick. Dan's bows are the best i've shot. His finish work is incredible and you won't find a better person to deal with anywhere. I'm a huge Toelke fan.

over a year ago i test drove one. it is everything that others have posted above. some day (soon, maybe?) i will order the classic whip model. i prefer the low heel longbow grip.

I've been to Dan's shop in Ronan,lives with tall pine trees and grassy meadows up against big mountains.He brought me bow after bow to shoot,50 to 80# whips and 50 to 60#chinooks.Once i got used to his arrows(a bit low) i shot 3 in groups and all were very very smooth,quiet,and no hand shock.Never had a brand new bow but this spring i'll take my wife out to lunch in Ronan and see Dan again.I trust Dan' designs/craftsmanship to be on par with anybody.

one of the best guys to deal with and he builds i fine bow!

I just received my Toelke Whip last week 62" 45# at 27 1/2. It is a wonderful bow to shoot and is so beautiful to look at. It look 22 days from the day I ordered the whip to the day it arrived at my door, amazing.

I also have Dan's Chinook recurve, 60" 45# at 27 1/2. Another amazing bow to shoot! It is always tough deciding which one to shoot! The Chinook took a little longer to get, 23 days.

These are the two finest Traditional bows I have ever shot and crafted by an amazing Bowyer!

Scott

I own a whip classic in 64" that I like very much its the only bow I shoot and I use to be a recurve guy. I draw to 32" using a 33.25" arrow and the bow has no stack and is smooth out that far. I hope to have a whip TD someday.

Great guy to deal with. And great bows. I have a 62' 60@28 whip and love it. Smooth and quite.

I never heard of Dan's bows before I opened a "box of chocolates"! What a pleasant surprise!!! I now own my second WHIP... 62" Classic 45#@28". They're a pleasure to shoot! I prefer to shoot a heavier shaft 450-500 gr. but I put 1913's through it and just no hand shock. Can't feel the difference. Very much a quality bow... right down to the delicate tips. You won't find a finish like Dan's either. You don't often see many WHIPS on the ad sites. That must say something. Good luck... you won't be disappointed.

Scott <')))><

Great bow...mine is 64" and smooth out to my 31" draw...real nice shooter

For those who have a Centaur and a Toelke Whip which one would be your "GoTo" bow.

Great bow.

Centaur. I have owned both. For performance, the Centaur can't be beat. Zero handshock, stable and forgiving. I have two Centaur's, and another due in a couple weeks from Jim. The Whip was harder to tune not being center cut. With the Centaur, I can shoot a variety of spines from the same bow. I do love the Craftsmanship of the Whip, Dan uses some beautiful veneers, and is a great guy to deal with, as well is Jim Neaves. You really need to try and shoot each before you buy, only you can make that decision what's best for your style. Good luck to you !!

Tip

Silvertip, Would those be the all carbon Centaurs? I've shot a carbon Centaur but found it to be on the loud side, thanks for the response.

centaur ,way faster cut past center! tune the centaur and it is almost as quiet as the whip both will get you there the centaur will get you there faster with slightly more exhaust note!

Montauks, 7 1/8" brace to the first stripe in riser as Jim suggests. I use Hush Puppies for string silencers. Best string material I have found for the Centaur is Ultracam or TS1, can't see a nickels difference between the two. I am using ten strand with the loops padded with B50. I have both the Chimera and Carbon Elite and these work well on both. Quiets them real nice. With this setup, it's as quiet as any hybrid r/d longbow I have owned or shot. The all wood Centaur seemed to be a bit louder than the carbon for me. I will say, for me the original double carbon I had seemed a bit louder than the bows as of now he is doing. With the Hush Puppies, just use one for the whole string, cut in half and will be plenty. Makes them go twice as far, and the silencers will easily outlast the string.

Tip

You guys give me nothing but problems

One more BOW !

Centaur's are much faster, just as quiet and a little better finish but the wait is 12+ months.

CariBows are much better in finish and a little faster but they cost more and have a long wait.

There are a lot of bows that can beat the Toelke's but they usually cost more or have a much longer wait.

Dan's bow are a fair value and you can get a custom one in less than a month but there is usually a few for sale used if you look around.

My Carbon Elite Centaur is 58" 53#@28. It chronos a 570 grain arrow at 174 fps. The 60" 56@28 Whip I sold last year shot the same arrow at 158 fps. I draw 28". The Centaur is 18 fps faster at three pounds less draw weight.

Tip

I own a 62" Whip. You will not be disappointed. Dan, his work, and his service are second to none.

Alan

Whips and centaurs are both superb bows.Perfomance in speed goes to the centaur.I think its well documented that the centuar is a very very fast bow.Just looking at the design when unstrung will tell you that.

The whips a really pleasant bow and has a great grip and the arrow shelf is nicely designed for clean flight.It would be hard to find a quieter bow.

I have had a few Toelkes and the finish work was impeccable on the ones I had.I would be very surprised to see a better finished out bow.Not a pore to be seen in the riser wood anywhere on the ones I had and everything feathered in seamlessly with superb glue lines throughout.The superb fit and finsh is one of the hallmarks of his bows so I was surprised to see it mentioned that his finish was not quite as good as the centaur or Cari-bow.All 3 all impeccably crafted bows with attention to detail.

If you wanted some mass in that Whip he offers all phenolic risers and also for a little more weight the addition of the bow bolt with the phenolic is gonna give you as much mass weight as possible in that bow.Pretty expensive though with the bow bolt.

As I said previously I have had Dan build me 4 Whips and found the earlier posted observation that they are not center cut strange because they are. I'm also a bit perplexed at the comments about fit and finish and if you look back at all of the posts here notice how many mentioned the exceptional fit and finish of Dan's bows including someone who reviews archery equipment for a living and has seen way more than a few.

Per a previous post. I recently spoke with Dan, I asked if his bow's were cut to center, his answer was not quite, just outside of center. I would own another for sure, but just in a lower poundage... fine bows for sure.

My first bow from Dan Was a triple bamboo ,And you know how bamboo looks, And there was not one edge on the bamboo you could feel, Smoothness does not describe it.

I just finished talking with Dan last night ,and between the time I talked to him last night and early this afternoon my riser was already cut ,His service ,Well there's no words to describe it ,He has never not come to the phone if he is there.

And he takes the time, That is a very big plus .And it is amazing to have that quality and workmanship ,In 30 days .

He is putting a different type of limb tip on mine that I have not seen before ,It is great-looking ,He sent me a photo of it .

So this will be my second " Whip "

I have not heard ,Or seen any one complained about Dan's bows,On any of the " major " Traditional web sites . And another thing I have not found many ,If any of Dan's bows on the classifieds. That says a lot and I like his very first statement on his website . "I build every bow myself" And that's important to me Because some don't and still claim the fame.

Now if I wasn't so afraid Of grizzlies ,I'd be going to pick up my bow and do some hunting !

Carl

Dans bows are better than a lot of others in performance and crafsmanship for the cost but to say they are the best in all area's is silly.

Toelke's are very nice bows and Dan is a professional to deal with but there are so many great bowyers out there today that it's impossible to find one that is tops in all area's. I would own another in a lighter weight for the right price but I wouldn't order one for full price again because there are so many choices right now.

I draw 29". 60# whip 595gr arrow = 184 58# whip 590gr arrow = 184 64# whip 670gr arrow = 179 Haven't tested the 62# or the two lighter whips. Plenty fast enough for me combined with a high degree of shootability. Actually got rid of the chrono because most comparable bows shot about the same. There are many fine bowyers turning out excellent bows.What ever works for you shoot it and enjoy. You have to believe that whatever your setup, its the best for you.

I'm a little late in getting in on this discussion, but here's my 2 Cents worth:

If Dan Toelke is not one of the top 3 bowyers on earth these days, I will grind up and eat one of my Easton Axis 400 carbon arrows!

Myself, I just don't know how you can beat the quality, performance, and value of Dan's bows.

I'd have to rate the top 3 Bowyers this way:

1. Dan Toelke; 2. Jared Toelke (his son and bowyer in training); and 3. Some other guy . . . who is a distant third!

Jeff in MT

The above posts are encouraging!

I've got a 64" Whip , 51lbs.@ 28" on the way. It should be here tomorrow or Sat. Recieved photos from Dan - it's beautiful. Pau Ferro riser, Myrtle limb lam's with 'boo core and ebony thumb swell.I'll add my impressions ASAP.

If you have already registered, please

sign in now

For new registrations

Click Here