Now that pictures are up it's time to start a new ASL thread. I should be getting a Jim Belcher Union Jack in a few days but, for now, here's my Hill Jack.

Ok Phil and here’s a Forward Jack. by Jim Belcher

I like it!! If you’re coming to Shade Mountain in a couple weeks, I’d love to check it out.

Howard Hill Legend stick

The Forward Jack is interesting. It makes sense from a shooting perspective but I looked at them at ETAR and kept feeling like I was holding the bow wrong. Would like to see yours if you are at Shade.

So I just noticed I had a stutter in naming this thread. I wonder somewhere down the road if someone will drive themselves crazy looking for parts 2 to 21.

Very nice Buckdancer!!!

very nice Buckdancer

love the paw print elk antler strike plates very unique-enjoy your Bear hunt with it

Buckdancer nice and can shoot either hand.

Chuckie’s ashes are in there right Dan?. Very cool memorial.

Dan that’s a really really nice bow. Hope it treats you well.

J.D. Berry , Taipan, and two MorningStar. Taipan got my love started on reverse handle bows, but it’s MorningStar Love, Two.

Cut it out nice, I like Steve’s Whisper bow too.

Here is my Whisper Steve made for me ! Birdseye maple and elm, dual shelf !! Sheet a sweetheart.

Ron you can shoot two arrows at once one high and one low, But very nice bow too.

Tim your picture was too Big got , cut it out as your handle

No, only one at a time, ??

That forward handle, locator grip, JD Berry Taipan looks real nice! It looks like a mild R/D limb too?

Newly acquired Mahantango Redtail. Green back, caramel belly, wenge riser and cherry limb cores.

Nice bow!

Resized. Sorry I always forget NM whisper.

Formby what are the specs on that Mahantango? I recently got a new to me Redtail Classic that I'm really impressed by. Think that bow of yours deserves a few more pics!;)

Recently received these two ASLs from fellow wallers Howard Hill Kramer Tempo 69"64#@30" Tom Cole Old Timer 69"57#@28"

NBK she is 46@27 68" long.

Thank you Cory. Great color combination, classy.

My new to me Mahantango Redtail Classic. 69” and 44@28”. Myrtle riser with yew cores and veneers. Great grip, smooth and quiet. I have another bow picked as my elk bow for next month but this bow is just so much fun to shoot that it’ll at least get a “ride along” on the trip!;)

It's been a long time since I shot longbows but one I liked was a Martin ML-14 Mountianeer. It was 80#@28". Not a custom bow but was a nice shooting bow. Now that I'm 65 years old I'd have lower that poundage.

Resize and reposted for Longcruise.

"My own build"

At some point we should probably revisit the discussion about what ASL defines. Many bows labeled ASL are actually flatbows because they do not follow the design that Howard Hill promoted. Bows built by Hill had narrow limbs and deep cores. Flatbows have wide, rectangular limbs.

Not that it really matters but I don't want to lose sight of the bows made by only a few folks today that truly follow Hill's design.

Thanks, Phil. Something went way wrong when I resized that.

I don’t typically get as narrow as the true Hill style. Usually 1.125

My comments about the definition weren’t directed at you. It was just something that came to mind.

Your bow looks nice. What are the limb cores, especially the center lam?

Cores are all maple ako veneers under clear. The dark colored lam is a power lam. I don't usually do clear and veneers with these but I had them on hand and went with it.

Jim Belcher has been making bows for quite a long time. Georgia Jeffrey is a partner with Jim and, together they turn out some phenomenal bows.

I just got a Union Jack. 66" long, 40#@28", it is my bow for the future because I'm not getting any younger or healthier. Shedua riser, bamboo core and light brown glass on both sides, this bow is not a show bow with fancy veneers, highly figured riser and clear glass, it is more reminiscent of a working man's bow of decades past.

The Union Jack has a boxed in riser - meaning there are three laminations on the back of the riser and one on the belly side, unlike the Hill Jack which has four laminations on the back of the riser.

While this may not be a showy bow, the design, quality of work and performance is definitely top notch. It is a true Hill style bow that has narrow limbs and deep cores.

Nice Union Jack

That is a beauty!!!! I do wanna get a hill jack one of these days to try

Beautiful bow Phil and I like your choices!

That UnionJack is a beautiful bow. Jim and Georgia build fine looking & great shooting bows.

Phil

That built similar to my northern Mist Classic

They are deadly smooth shooters

Well I started to say it myself, but I'm no authority on all the asl makes, but if you hadn't told what it was I would've bet good money it's a NM! But I have an R/D Chaparral, and it as about a carbon copy to it by cosmetics. Mines a really natural camouflage in the woods as much as any bow can be!

Here are three of the six ASL and "ASL-type"-type bows in the rack that I rotate in summer shooting. From the top down, Great Northern Shelton 69" 44 lbs. at 30"; Mahantango Red Tail 68" and 44 lbs. at 30" back set; and McBroom reverse handle string follow 68" and 48 lbs. at 30". I 'm hunting this fall with the McBroom, but any one of them would be just fine for me.

The other three bows that get shot and hunted are, from the top, Great Northern Shelton 66" and 42 lbs. at 30"; Maddog Extreme Follower string follow 69" and 46 lbs. at 30"; and a 7 Lakes 66" with back set and 48 lbs. at 30".

All are very good shooters and I have faith in any one of them as a hunting bow, with preference given to the heavier weights for bigger game. Racked in the other room are a few more ASLs, like a heavier McBroom and Liberty Classic among the reflex/reflex longbows.

It would be very difficult for me to chose just one bow or maybe two to keep from among them. Old age and injuries may push me towards the lighter bows, as it has already done with my other heavier bows from over the years racked up in the other room. And that's why I have them.

It is all really good. I mean very, very good for this old man's mental and physical well being.

You mean Northern Mist Shelton, not Great Northern, right?

The latest new ones for are a Northern Mist Classic

St Patrick Lake Mushin Styk

Not really an ASL but it is D when strung . Mahantango Kestrel

Scoop you hit the nail on the head on all six accounts and more, enjoy

Good catch Phil and my apologies. They are obviously Northern Mist Sheltons. Don’t know if it was the six-month-old granddaughter I was babysitting, a Freudian slip to buy a G.N. which I have never owned, or old age and not enough coffee.

Thanks for the heads-up. And those Sheltons are about as good as ASLs as they come and the first one is a two-piece takedown, too boot. —Mark

Peckerwood, all three great bows and the Kestrel is very close with back set limbs with a little bend in the limbs, great shooter, Enjoy

Yeeeeehaw got my new Northern Mist American yesterday. What a shooter and looker!

Nice Northern Mist bows Guys

No, Steve said he’s really backlogged and would just like to catch up on orders. BUT you need to look at his stock bows every day. He’ll be adding one or 3 whenever he has them. He’s sold 3 or 4 in last couple weeks. They usually don’t lay the day.

man O man I'm glad I got mine when I did

have 3 classics and an american I've gotten over the years -those are my 2 favorites of the ASLs

A lot of nice bows on here! Here's a shot of my Northern Mist American out in the woods, it's getting close to that time of year again!

another NM classic tempered bamboo limbs and American chestnut riser

Classic -rose wood riser and bamboo core and yew veneers

more classics than I got sense -but I like them

last one- my American by NM like them also

Jay St. Charles Pacific Yew Classic. Light weight, classic looking with great performance.

Resized photo for Foxbow.

"Sunset Hill. Nate crafted this bow for me in 2006. He refinished it and lowered the poundage a little over a year ago. Also installed the antler strike plate. Has not been in the woods yet."

There are two longbows that I'm looking forward to trying. One is a Northern Mist Classic or American and the other is a St. Patrick Lake American Styk. I am curious to see how they compare to my Jim Belcher Union Jack and Hill Jack.

I had a chance to buy this SPL American Styk and have been shooting it for a couple months. I briefly considered selling it but then I came to my senses. A mix of yew and bamboo core laminations gives this bow a buttery smooth draw that seems to be lighter than its 43#. It is a dream to shoot. Not quite as consistently accurate for me as my Union Jack but, with some time, it will be fine. On top of that this bow is drop-dead gorgeous. Waterfall bubinga riser, brown glass on the back and white on the belly.

St Patrick Lake. Northern Styk 68”

TTT - I just want more eye candy!

7 lakes

Mcbroom take down

NM classic out stumping

Picked up this Lee Kramer Autumn in a trade a week or so ago. Behaves like his Dads' bows except with a smaller grip. Real nice shooting bow.

This is my Hill Jack by Jim Belcher. The original sideplate was about 1/16" thick. Not a lot but on a bow that is already cut past center, every 1/16" matters.

After reading again how Howard Hill did not use a sideplate and also reading about how Nate Steen used an inlay, at first leather then an antler button, as a sideplate I decided to inlay a leather disk. It works every well with no noise on release, making an old school bow a little more old school.

That is neat there Phil

Should work well, Phil

Shick

Good one Phil

Maybe sacrilegious but I thought I’d try a bow quiver on my St Patrick Lake longbow. Both the riser and the quiver are Osage.

I

I know many folks use quivers on their longbows and I hope this works for you. For most of my bowhunting life I used a bow quiver at least some of the time. When I shot Robertson R/D longbows I used a Selway slide on and had no issues. But on ASLs I could never get used to a bow quiver. My arrow flight would be erratic and would change depending on what quiver I tried. And the quiver never felt right during the drawing process. I tried a Creek Walker quiver on my St. Patrick Lake American Styk and encountered the same issues so I ended up selling the quiver.

I hope you have good luck with your setup.

Thanks Phil. I’ve only shot it at ten yards or so. I’ll have to extend distance see what happens.

Now this is a thin bow 72 inches long 65lbs @28.

Borders Griffon ll despite its long length this thing was fast and had a cast that could compete in any championships.

This was my main bow until I couldn't draw it anymore, tried to reduce the weight but got too narrow, I couldn't trust stringing it anymore.

Second picture

It has two extra string grooves for use of a stringer and no handle wrap, just the way I like them. I wish they still made them, I would order one in a second.

Come on guys we need to keep this on the front page.

Nice Phil.

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