Thanks LBR, I just didn't want to be thoughtlessly rude.

None of the bows I saw were second hand. They had about 60-100 new Checkmates of various types.

Not all checkmates are equal there are a lot of different models. For instance one local shop orders Crussaders specificaly for IBO. These guys have made about 15000 bows, and they make them for all kinds. The two I like the best from a performance perspective are the crussader and the firebird. The one piece and 2 piece hunting recurves are increadibly good buys, and they perform right up there with a lot of very well known top custom bows. I mean exactly as good, not roughly.

One pal was trying to replace a Widow he had shot for about 20 years, one of the first natural clear glass bows. He went through a bunch of top bows, finaly settled on two checkmates, which surprised me a little. He is now shooting A Dick Robertson bow he got from me which he finds even better. But the point is he went through a bunch of custom bows first, and the CM was right in there. He easily shoots 75-80#s, so he is pretty much set for decent speed in any bow he shoots. For me I prefer to shoot a recurve with a little more zip than the CM Hunter series.

My only other CM complaint is they don't really have a decent non-hybrid longbow.

1/2 a bow sounds like a set of limbs to me.

I have a Widow, and they are well made bows that shoot a fast arrow, particularly considering the brace height. But at a time when I had about 12 customs around, they were never the one I reached for. Feel is the most important thing. Just a combination of happy circumstances that makes one bow the most shootable for a given person. You can spend a huge stack of dough on a Widow and it doesn't mean a thing if it ends up just another bow in your closset.

There are products like flyrods, golf club shafts, and bows were the big name means nothing, what maters is how it feels, and how that makes it work in your hands. Something like an Able fly reel is just a really well made product I can fish at any time without droping a beat. I could say the same thing about a number of 500-1000 dollar reels, but a rod or a bow is not something that the manufacturer can make the best for you. He can make the worst, but the best is too personal.

I had my Widow up for sale, now that I am down to 2 bows. But I got it back form the dealer for the odd reason that I kept seeing them in the hands of folks like Asbell in magazines, videos, and such. I felt I would probably get roped again (WHAT A SUCKER) if i sold it, so I'm haging on for now, but I'm not shooting it.