No problem on the question--I was just messing with you. Black Widow is one name that can get a lot of debate fired up quick though[8D].

They do draw smoothly, and properly tuned the recurves have little handshock--especially the take-downs, with the massive riser that absorbs it well. The "old" longbow rattled my teeth with handshock--at least both of the ones I shot did. I haven't shot the new one yet, but have heard it hasn't changed much in that department.

Any recurve can get the limbs twisted by improper stringing or storage. The narrower limbs on the BW recurves are a bit more susceptable to that, as well as any recurve with a narrower limb design. I've never seen or even heard of a limb getting twisted on a longbow.

The differences in longbows and recurves vary depending on the design. There are recurves with longbow grips, longbows with recurve grips, and "hybrid" longbows that, to me, shoot and feel very much like a recurve. There are some very light mass weight recurves, and some take-down longbows that weigh as much as most any recurve. Some recurves have a lot of handshock, some longbows have practically none, and vice-versa.

Generally speaking, a longbow is quieter, lighter, slower, and will have more felt handshock than a recurve. Most recurves are built with the shelf cut out past center, which makes them more forgiving of arrow spine. Often a longbow will be more forgiving of mistakes in your form. Those are just general statements though--there are both types that break the rules.

The best place to try out a lot of different bows is at a big all-traditional shoot. You will find lots of vendors that are happy to let you try out the bows, and usually lots of shooters that will let you try their bows as well. Black Widow has a "try before you buy" program that will let you try out one of their bows without spending a lot of money. However, any of these is just a starting point to get an idea--I can usually tell with a few shots if I really DON"T like a bow, but it takes more than a couple dozen arrows for me to decide if I really DO like it. Most of the time a bow is just average to me. I don't know of any big shoots going on this time of year, but in the summer months there's quite a few big ones in different parts of the U.S. If you need help finding one, just holler.

Vapor, I agree on most bows, but there are still some that give you just what you pay for. By that I mean you pay a reasonable price for a quality bow, without having to cover all those other expenses that have absolutely no effect on how your bow shoots. Of course they have to make a living, which means they have to profit from the business, but there is a big difference (to me anyway) in paying 1/2 the price and getting just as much or more bow. Some bowyers and companies let their reputation do the talking, without adding the expense of advertising and catalogs. Others put out for those expenses, and it reflects in their prices, but it also sells a lot of bows. Obviously both methods work--I reckon BW stays busy year round, and I know of others who don't advertise who are also busy year-round. There's a niche to fill on both sides of the market.

Chad