The Bear Kodiak Deluxe made only in 1960 is one of the most beautiful bows ever made. I could say a lot more about them, but I'll let discussion take its course. Mostly I'm inviting people to show their KDs, or pics of ones they have. If it's not clear in the photo, let us know the length and weight also.

I'll start with the most recent one I got. 64", 46#, with some rosewood sapwood on the right side of the riser.

The other side of that bow.

If you have a KD (or more than one) do you shoot it? I do. My best shot ever so far was with that bow shown above.

Here's one that was in pretty awful shape when I got it. 64", 31#@26". It's 34.5#@28". Shoots great, despite the looks. It's a project.

Here's an unusual 60", 45# KD. Looks like they added a 2nd piece of zebrawood on the right side, which shows up in two different places due to the contours of the bow. Someone removed the quiver mount bushing and filled the hole with epoxy. Another project to put in a new one and refinish that area.

Does anyone have a 56” version and if so have you shot it?

The KD is such an important bow in terms of the evolution of the modern custom recurve; I'm glad to see this thread on it.

There were a few bows in 1959 that set the stage for what I would call the "glam-inated" recurve: The Kodiak Special, which marked Bear's switch--they had previously laid up their riser stacks from side-to-side, but the '59 KS introduced the "flair," and a front-to-back riser layup (which Howatt had been using for years). Also, the 1959 Howatt Monterey showed how attractive rosewood lams with lighter pinstripes could look; and Bob Lee was making a 60" White Wing in 1959 that had both side-to-side AND front-to-back riser laminations. Though I'm less familiar with the Smithwick Citation timeline, I think they were also aesthetically-important bows prior to 1960.

So, when 1960 rolled around, the bar had been raised. Three 1960 bows--the FASCO Phantom, the Howatt Monterey, and most of all the Kodiak DeLuxe--proved once and for all that guys would buy "pretty" bows.

Nowadays when we look at custom bows, we take the ornamental limb veneers and the mixed-wood, curvy-inlaid risers for granted...but it's worth looking back and acknowledging that the Kodiak DeLuxe was the first to fully define that look. It casts a long shadow over the design of recurves, even today.

One of my favorite all time bows

Kerry, thanks for your post, you make a valuable point.

When I started shooting again 5 years ago after not shooting for 42 years, I was looking for a bow. I couldn't believe how beautiful some of the modern custom bows are. I wanted one of those, with the beautiful veneer limbs! But I didn't want to wait 6-12 months or pay those high prices. So I looked for used bows and discovered the world of vintage bows. When I saw the Deluxe bows that Bear made in 1960, I couldn't believe it. Way back then! I set out to get one! And one led to many.

This is the first one I got. 50#, 64". What a beast! It was too heavy for me so I sold it to Chad. It's a flawless bow.

Nice work Renewed. I have had great success "rehabilitating" these, and have kept an unrestored 64" lefty as a favorite 3D bow. It was common for the clear glass to cloud up, and there has been a lot of speculation over the decades as to just what caused the problem. I'm unsure. The bows commonly show the stress lines typical of so many old Bear bows and longitudinal fiberglass. But when stripping to bare glass I encounter a woven glass "scrim", and that weave readily takes a wood tone stain that eliminates the clouds.

Kerry might know more, but I think this was one of the very first uses of clear fiberglass on a bow, and my guess is that first "formula" used a layer of longitudinal AND a layer of the older woven glass scrim together. Further, that the cloudiness was caused when the resin didn't always fully soak in and perfectly seal and bond the two layers together.

??

RickR

Here's a KD I was lucky enough to get from Dave Wilson. I thought he'd never sell it. But to the surprise of both of us, he offered it to me and I didn't hesitate. It's been refinished but the right side still has gauge marks from the old quiver that was mounted on it. Veteran battle scars, as I think Dave would consider them. The butcher block window is just amazing.

Here's the whole left riser. This is one of my go-to bows when I just want to have fun shooting.

And the other side. The limbs are flawless, no stress lines at all.

KDDog, that sure is a beauty. Let me know when you get tired of it. LOL!

Guess I'll have to show some more KDs until others show theirs. Here's a really nice 42# 64"er.

Here's another gem. 43# 64" with a butcher block window. It's LA 017... the 17th 64" KD made.

Each of these old bows, and old bows in general, was different from each other. Here's a view of the grip of that 43#er shown above, compared to the grip of the 50# KD shown up higher. They are completely different, yet each grip fit me well.

Also, the 43# bow shown above has a visible zebrawood I-Beam. Most KDs do not. But I just learned from Wade Phillips that almost all KDS do have an I-Beam. They just covered what would be the visible part of it in the grip, with one or two pieces of zebrawood.

Here's an old ad discussing the Crystal Light glass used in these KDs and in Kodiak Special Deluxe bows.

And here's one of those Crystal Light limbs... on the 40# 64" KD with the butcher block window that I got from Dave.

These are the back limbs of a 35# 60" KD I got from Brad Lehmann, and traded to Jason Dulac. The pic shows how, on many of these bows, the upper and lower limbs had matching veneers. Another classy touch.

Maybe I was nuts to trade it. But I've learned I much prefer 64" KDs to 60" bows (and never tried a 56"er). So I get 60" KDs in weights I want, and keep them until I find a 64" KD in the same weight. Still looking for more 64"ers!

This is a 48# 60" KD I traded also. A really gorgeous bow. Unfortunately, on stringing it there was a severe twist in one limb. On trying to countertwist it, there was an ominous cracking sound in the limb, so I stopped working on it. The person I traded it to got it for a display bow. He tried to fix it but I don't know what the outcome was.

This is the only KD I've had, that seemed to have the infamous delamination problem that everyone talks about. All the others I have or have had, are great shooters. They are no more likely to break or "blow up" than any other vintage bows of the same age, if they've made it this far having been shot.

Come on, guys, I know more of you have KDs to show! I'll show one more until someone else posts some pics.

This is another one I traded. A beautiful 60" 40# bow. What did I trade if for? A fantastic Kodiak Special Deluxe!

Maybe Rich Lopez aka Droptine59 will weigh in; he knows more about these things than I do, and he's also THE go-to guy for all things Smithwick & Jennings.

But basically, if you combine the features of the Kodiak DeLuxe with Bob Lee's bolt-on limbs from the Presentation II (1963?), you've pretty much got the foundations of the modern recurve.

I have a friend that has over 40 old bows, alot are bears, seen last week at local archery shop, and i dont see him often, but he had one.It had two small holes where a site must have been, and it was refinished, and who ever did it years ago, took all the writing off in the process, but did manage to leave the decals. It was short, must be a 56", and guessing at 55#, but all in all, it sure was pretty. He told me thats kids have no interest in bows, so he is thinking of moving a bunch. If anyone is local, and in the market for some old bows, we are in Oconto,Wi i could hook you up.

Phil--

Please delete Mooshkat's post, so nobody but me sees it! LOL

Only the rare "few" have what's left of these bows that didn't come apart. That's why there's no one else to post pics! I've been collecting Bears since before they were collectable...I've never even seen one except in pictures. Wade probably has them all!

SB has a point. In the recesses of my brain I seem to remember Al Reader telling of an entire shipment delaminating while still in their packaging. Even in pre-internet times such a report would scare off buyers. And it didn't help that for reasons long lost, Bear stopped making them after just one season. I'll speculate Bear found and fixed the problem and only the very first KDs and KSDs had a major de-lam issue with later ones having minimal clouding or none at all, but too late, the word spread. Sort of like what happened with the '54 K-II compass bow. Wasn't the compass that weakened the riser but that the first ones used walnut that was too brittle. Even though the maple ones usually held up just fine, Bear dropped the compass after one season.

I also seem to recall Wade or someone mentioning the '59 riser continued to be built into 1960 alongside the more fat palm swell of the 1960 K's and KS's. That would explain Renewed's photo of the more thin KSD '59 like grip vs. the more typical 1960 next to it.

RickR

Yup, I'd guess that Wade and Shandor have the majority ! Lol! That #50er I got from Shandor is perfect. No stress lines what so ever, and loves a BCYX string. These aren't KD's, but they're just as lovely.

Well Shandor already posted one pic of my (or actually his until I get him the bows I am refinishing for him!) KD. 35 pounds, 60 inches and no coin. Somebody did a beautiful job refinishing it however they applied the finish too thick on the limbs and now the finish itself is cracking. No biggie.

After shopping for a bow for my wife for several years, when she saw this one She decided she liked it! Not one of the others was pretty enough for her she said. LOL! So now Shandor’s bow (who he is trading to me) is now actually going to be my wife’s! LOL! Guess I’ll never be the ‘owner’!

However, with its light weight And my bum shoulder, it is one of the bows I shoot the most as of recently. Shot it over 30 times today!

Here is A pic of me expressing my love…

I have a 70" "Display" bow with the 3 small screw holes where the arrows went. It is only marked "Display" with no lenght, poundage or serial number. Looks like it was never shot or if it was not very muck. Sorry but my pictures are not very good.

I wish I could attach more than one picture at a time and they would attach right side up...

One more pic

Here's a nice one that Wade Phillips sent me to breathe some life back into.

You do that with any bow you get your hands on Jason ! Lol! Nothing new. Ha ha

I found my 1960 Kodiak Deluxe in an antique store in Centralia, WA. in 2014. I really didn't know what I had, but as a bow builder, I recognized the artistic design in the riser. When I got it home, I strung it up and realized the lower limb glass was in such poor shape, it could never be shot. So I decided to copy the shape and build my own. I studied the bow for hours, trying to figure out how the original riser was built, how the riser was trimmed in Purpleheart, how the grip was cut and installed. I eventually solved those problems and built my first one out of Black & White Ebony with black glass limbs. Folks saw what I had done and soon I had a waiting list. I've made and sold two that were made much like my original, Rosewood and Zebrawood, but I love making them out of different exotic wood combinations. Richard

The top bow is the first one I made using the bow based on the design of the 1960 Kodiak Deluxe. The lower bow...I made for my hunting partner in 2015....but now is is struggling with Parkinsons' Disease and no longer can shoot. I think I've made over 60 of the Kodiak Deluxe copies...some of you may have one. It's such a great, timeless design, I have no desire to make any other recurves. Richard

Sorry for the grammatical error in the post above. I've been in the shop since 5:30 AM.....building Kodiaks!

Is that the same KD that was painted, Brad? Amazing.

Richard, I've been watching all those beautiful bows you make. Wish you would make one to order!

I have a correction: that KD I got from Dave Wilson was not refinished.

Steven, you ought to buy one. Then you could see it in person. I've been getting vintage bows for only 5 years, and I've had 10 KDs (I think. Maybe 11). Now I have 6. They're around, just not as common as most other Bear bows.

Here's one that's not mine, but I sure wish it was! I've been looking for a 64" 30# KD for 5 years. This is the first one I've seen. At least I know that one exists. If one, maybe more than one!

Rick, thanks for your comments. I'm sure there are fewer KDs than other bows made in other years. But I'm not sure it's just KDs. It may be all models made in 1960. Just try finding a 1960 Kodiak, or KS, or Grizzly, or even a Polar. IME those models are just as hard to find as KDs. Perhaps harder. I have exactly 2 1960 64" Kodiaks, and I've been looking for them as hard as I've been looking for 64" KDs. Yet I have 5 64" KDs. However, for some reason KSDs seem to be more common than any of those other models. Still rare, but not as rare.

I think you're right about the skinny grip on the LA 017 KD. But it's a great shooter. No problems with the limbs. That's just one bow, but it didn't delaminate!

This is why I love shooting these KDs so much, aside from their beauty. This was my first shot from 30 yards with the 64" 40# KD.

A group that followed.

Pics don't show up as planned! I was shooting it today, too, from 40 yards. Not perfect, but a lot of fun on a cold winter day. These bows shoot straight, fast and consistently. At least, some of the time. If I do.

Yes Shandor, that it the same bow.

Brad, have you started refinishing that painted KD yet? Any pics?

Don’t actually have many good pictures of the smell surprisingly. Here’s another one it’s kind of like the one Shandor already posted.

I have another Kodiak deluxe which I am in the process of refinishing. It has a fair amount of clouding at the fade outs. I’ve shot it Probably around 1000 times and it has not blown up on me yet. LOL! These cloudy patches made me wonder if they aren’t also sitting under the Brown glass at the Fade outs of my 1960 Kodiak…

Anyway, I tried an experiment drilling tiny holes into the clouding with a dentist drill bit and my Dremel tool then putting in drops of Loctite 420 to see if they would get into the apparent space between the zebrawood and the clear glass. Didn’t work. I also tried it from the side. No luck. I’ll get around to finishing this bow someday. I will try brown wood stain technique applied over the bare glass that Shandor has described to me to mask the clouding at some point. I have also tried sharpies, extending dark lines in the zebrawood through the brown glass. That helped. I’ll probably apply the wood stain on the entire limbs and polish it in Then try to extend the zebrawood lines through the clouding to minimize their parents before applying finish.

Jason, that's courageous of you to drill like that!

There's another technique I discovered by accident that might reduce some of the appearance of the clouding. Soak some paper towels in 70% alcohol, apply on the limb, soak some more, wrap the limb and towels in plastic wrap so the towels are against the limb and so the alcohol won't dry out. Check it in 10-15 minutes, if the finish seems fine, repeat. When you see something starting to change in the limb, try applying stain then.

This is a Kodiak Special Deluxe limb, not a Kodiak Deluxe limb. But it shows how beautiful these Deluxe limbs can be. This is on a 62" KSD, PA 001, the first 62" KSD made. All 4 limbs are flawless and look like this one. And it shoots!

here is mine...

Jason, the finished Deluxe that I posted a picture of is the painted bow. Wade had me paint the limbs where there was so much clouding as well. I'll look for that picture.

Here are the limbs that I painted.

Here is a picture with my 1960 KS on top, Wade's 60 Deluxe in the middle, and Wade's 59 KS on the bottom.

Beautiful, Brad! Did Wade ever get the shelf repaired?

This KS was given to Floyd Eccleston from Fred Bear. When Fred pass away in 1988 Floyd took the bow to The Michigan Bow Hunter rendezvous and had most of the archers that shot the 21 arrow salute sign the bow.

Dang, very cool! Thanks for sharing that signed KSD! Very neat piece!

Nice condition also !!!

Still all orginal too

Yeah I just had too i shot it ONCE

Here's another 60" KD, 40#, I used to have. The new owner, who has a short draw, is thrilled with it.

OK, this is the last KD I have pics of, that are or were mine. Time for some others to post!

heres my first KSD . got lucky at a pawn shop 2 month ago.66in 43lb . beautiful bows for sure

No wall queens here. If you won't go into the woods, you aren't coming in the door. ;-)

60", 48 #, at the Iceman #D Shoot and Weenie Roast yesterday in Floodwood, MN:

Anybody know how to stop Bowsite/LW from rotating my pics 90 degrees?

Spectacular bows in every way. I was lucky to own one Kodiak. It was retired in 63 due to limb failure called by Bob Kelly at the factory. Check your bows for black checks going across he grain of the lamination edge in and around any signs of lifting clear glass. Take care as it would be a shame to lose any of these beauties. I would also be very careful of leaving the bows in a rack that exposes the glass to the sun. I have one Kodiak Special Deluxe that split right along the line of a long streak of black in the zebra wood. I suspect the sun heats the dark stripes faster than the light parts and causes expansion which cracks the glass and possibly the underlaying lamination. Paul

Beautiful bows.

That's good advice, Paul. Thank you.

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