What is with the high prices for Bear C wood handles? Complete bows have been selling for $800.00 plus lately. They used to sell for bargain prices. What am I missing?

Asking prices are asking prices...that's all. Some of those folks actually have no clue, other than it's a Bear Takedown, so they assume it's worth the price of s three year old Toyota. But, if they sell it for that price, then all good for them. The C-risers are not being made anymore, and haven't been for over forty-couple years so where you gonna get one of you want one?

I think most archery bows are overpriced anymore, but I'm a product of parents that lived through the Great Depression and it's hard to let go. One guy reminded me the other day that even a new $50,000 GMC truck will wear out in about fifteen years, more or less. A C-riser will likely be passed down forty years from now.

Are you referring to the "C" on ebay? It appears it may be a type I which would make a rare bird if I'm seeing things correctly.

I think that one on ebay is mine. What makes it a rare bird? I listed it here for about 450 and got no interest at all. thanks

David, do you know the year it was made? I could be off on my year made assessment.

I don't know the year it was made, I picked it up with a Broomstick Handled C about 8 years ago. Been in the safe pretty much since I got it.

They only made around 350 give or take. The first few years not many bear td's sold. My number may be off but not by alot.

I’m not talking asking prices. I’m looking at actual selling prices.

On ebay, if a particular item that is of value in the market has not been listed in some lengthy amount of time then it tends to go much higher when ppsted. Post another one like it for several weeks and the price will drop back down to typical range.

critter- then I defer back to Georges response. No longer being made, timing and supply and demand.

I recently sold a Type I C Riser that I'd had forever, it seems. I had the original case, and a bunch of other orginial accessories-- everything virtually in pristine condition.

I got what "I" thought all of it was worth. Looking at that ebay auction, I think I sold short.

:^)

I have 2 C's, a Type 1 & a Type 2 and they're both great bows at least for me. I've been watching David's on ebay and I wish him the best!

I bought the riser and accessories 1buckurout is referring to. It is, indeed, in pristine condition. I don't mind him disclosing the price if he chooses. I'll simply say that the price involved four digits. I gave the matter about 10 seconds of thought and feel as though I got a great deal!

I also just missed out on the Broomhandle one David was selling. As for the one he currently has listed, my thought is it is priced VERY fairly.

Scarcity and condition play a big role in the valuation of these particular risers, as it does with most items.

And a well made $1200 all gold crown will last a lifetime. Damn dentists.

Critter -

And $1500 for a "custom" bow made by an amateur in his basement doesn't bother you?

Fact is that Bear will out shoot any human alive, and so will about 99% of all current production bows made. The bottom line is what is someone willing to pay for it and for what reason. Sentimental and emotional factors come into play, and most of the time outweigh reality.

Viper out.

I suppose I fall into the buying amateur basement bowyers bows. I've had a couple Bear bows and we're always pleased with them. Not by coincidence but the custom bow I have now is actually modeled after 3 prominent designs by Bear throughout the years.

Chas i don't know theres a wsy to tell exact year but you can tell type 1 from 2 by the serial number. Type 1 serial number start at 1000, type 2's start at 2000. Type 1 year is 69 or 70, type 2 is 71 or 72.

I think it is the circle of fads. Years ago Super K’s went through the roof. Then 64’s and doglegs. Then 59’s. Then mag risers, then green stripes. I think it is just the C riser’s turn to be the new hotness.

I agree with Dan In MI. Just whatever is trendy at the time. This too shall pass.

As someone who has two C handles, purchased in last two years:

I searched for two years to get mine. One is a bit scratch and dent, but overall very good condition-sold to me by a highly knowledgeable archery dealer for about $550 if I recall. Other is an odd ball- Victor Viking Custom red white and blue. Cannot recall exact price paid, but recall ~$700 including limbs.

Nothing came up on Ebay for two years while I was searching, finally reached out to fellows on the Facebook Bear Collectors page for one, the other came from a "wanted" ad in Archery Talk.

My take on high ebay values:

First: Value is HIGHLY variable since the number available is minuscule. If you get 2-4 folks bidding for same riser, costs will skyrocket if they really want it. Prior to getting my first one I would have gone pretty high... serious "want"

Second: As Dan pointed out, we might have a "mini trend"- you get 4 or 5 guys actively searching for a C handle and values would rise due to the extreme scarcity of handles. Once those guys get their handles you could see market value collapse again, unless some enthusiast comes along and posts some really fun sounding results and you get another 4-5 guys looking for a handle.

Just like asking why the old Ben Pearson all wood longbows are going for more then $10.00 each.. When Pearson made 100's of them a week. for so many years. It is what it is. When it's in a auction setting who knows what stuff will bring. Just because some people feel stuff should go cheap so they can buy it. Just like a guy last summer who picked up a Grayling A wood riser with case and set of limbs from a pawn shop for $95.00. Pawn shop had no ideal what they had. I feel ebay actions are good for selling almost anything. It shows the real world prices. Just like asking what happen to buying used rifles or camping gear at yards for super low price. Sometimes you get lucky.... If you want it buy and spend money if not don't cry about it !! there will always be someone out there happy to buck up and spend more then you if they really want somthing. Guys would be all kinds of pissed off if that C riser set up went for over $1000.00

I paid 5 grand for one today. It was one of Fred's personal bows.

Like I said glass is glass

Another one up on Ebay now.. amazing that I watched for 2 years and almost gave up, now 4 in last month or two. "Vintage 1970s Fred Bear Take-Down Recurve Fascor Bow Riser & Limbs - Blue Wood." Active bidding with 21 bids to date... lets see what happens.

I have one of these Victor Viking Custom, mine is in better shape except for some very well drilled and tapped holes for side mounted sight and a clicker.

After reading your posts Viper I have to agree it's not rocket science. I am not a bowyer and don't sell bows. But I have made a few in my workshop. And I shoot the first bow I ever made in 92 as good as any bow. Save for a few years of shooting a DAS I have shot it since 92. Just recently went back to it and still shoot it better. My point? It's not rocket science. Get a bow shooting a good arrow straight and like you say most can't tell the difference. The cost of these bows has gone up because of aesthetics. JMO

I suspect some of the recent buyers are likely collectors, and what collectors will pay to fill in a collection is highly unpredictable, and is in a different realm entirely.

I am going to make a case that a C riser is a tremendous VALUE if an archer meets a few conditions, only one of which is aesthetic.

I do not want to sound argumentative... rather I really love my risers, and there might be guys out there that would "fit" a certain profile and benefit from the viewpoint below. I wish to help our community of archers. If you don't fit the profile below, then a C riser should NOT be considered.

The profile is a small "target" market.. but hey, fun

Profile: An archer who - is a barebow target shooter - has a 31" to 32" draw length, so a long riser (25") is really reasonable/required - prefers a takedown - prefers to invest in assets that hold their value rather than depreciate rapidly - Now make one darn/unfortunate aesthetic choice: Require a wood riser because you like the looks of wood. No RATIONALE reason here whatsoever, you just want a wood riser. Crazy the things we like, but there it is.

This singular choice pushes an archer into a weird and expensive corner. There are only a handful of 25" or longer wood riser manufacturers, they almost never come up used... And for NEW all are pretty pricey (min $550 TYD new, riser alone) and mainly ILF. If you don't use ILF, it usually gets much more expensive and you have more and more trouble finding cheaper used limbs as you are limited to ONE vendor and typically a small pool of used equipment. New long risers/custom limbs are ~$1500-$1700 for a set/bow. And each new set of custom limbs is $500-$700.

Used Bear limbs are $150-$250 typically. You could viably put together a rig for $1000 with two sets of limbs if you are in the ~30-40# range.

Suddenly an older C-riser at $600-700 is not so crazy, right? But wait, there is more:

-Once you own your old bow, it is unlikely to lose significant value. It is not a "wasting asset" like a new riser/limbs which lose ~50% of value rapidly. You might even make money in future should you decide to resell. -You can shoot competitively. There are few barebow shooters who would ever be able to tell the difference between this rig and any other for scores. I am certainly not in that crowd. -It is simpler than ILF to set up and use, less to fiddle with -There are lots of older Bear shooters out there, so when you show up to the range folks are interested, get engaged, you meet people. This is a FUN riser. Even kids seem interested in hearing the history. To them you are shooting an antique without wheels, then you tell them it is from ~1970 and they go "really?" I really appreciate this aspect myself. I give a ton of free introductory lessons at our range, try hard to get kids interested, this helps. -It is aesthetically pleasing to look upon. Simply "pretty"

If you are not buying for extreme performance alone, and you fit the profile, you might consider a C-riser. I put ~96 arrows downrange yesterday on mine with older Grayling limbs and had a blast.

"What a value!"

Pipcount X2

I definitely fit your profile, though I'm not just a target shooter as I also hunt. I own 2 C-Risers, they're great for me in all aspects and I really enjoy them. Thanks for your insights very interesting.

Well what a amazing couple months.. Another on Ebay for $850 as a "buy it now" with limbs for last couple days, noone jumped on it.

The Victor Viking Custom in red white and blue went with limbs for ~$930, even with some corrosion on latches.

Perhaps the recent flood onto the market dampened out the demand.

In other news: Border is making Bear limbs now in 1, 2, 3, and 4, 5 sizes! I have a set of XXL (#5) Border limbs coming that should bring the draw into a comfortable range for me on my B risers. Yep- #5 adds another 4 inches vs. #3 and should make a 68" bow on a B riser.

Will try on my C risers as well, but I sort of expect they will not work well, won't get loaded up properly.

The wood handle B risers are not truly cut past center like the C risers, so I plan to inlet the B woodie I have to get a true centershot like the C risers. In meantime will run on older B- Mags.

Should be fun!

Ah heck.. I couldn't help myself. Picked up one of the risers on Ebay. $711 + tax for an original Bear bag, limbs, riser. Now I have three C risers!

Anyone want an original Bear bow bag/case or a set of #2 ~52# limbs?

That's great Greg, good luck, love the C-Risers!

Enjoy that C-riser, I've had one for a while now (great looking and performing bow) but not shooting much lately so its been sitting and collecting dust past year or two.

Another C riser up for grabs on ebay... starting at ~$600, item 274739364084. You wont have to bid vs. me, I have enough-- really, my wife told me so :)

There was another listed at $2k for a while...

I have been shooting with some Border limbs for a while now. Wish I had a chrony to tell about speed. But they sure have a smooth draw at 31.5". I dont think I am going to buy more, too expensive vs. results for me, but fun to experiment. I dont shoot any more accurately, and a few FPS not going to float my boat.

I've been watching them also Greg. I don't think anyone will be buying that one for $2k but it will get interesting on the other one as the auction winds down. Very glad I have my two C's I bought a long time ago!

This will all end soon , the generation under us doesnt even know or care who Fred Bear was .

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