Santa came! New JMA Elkheart

[David Petersen]

#6755

My new Java Man “Elkheart” bow arrived on Christmas Eve, and what a great present to myself. 😀 Not counting the prototype, this is the first bow in the Elkheart model line and I couldn’t be prouder. And as always with Mr. Coffey, he has filled it with artistic touches. The antler is from an elk that I killed with my first Gregg Coffey-made Shrew Classic Hunter, so it’s about as personalized as can be. Last night the best I could do was loose a few arrows up in the loft room, the biggest room in the cabin with a whopping 12 yards of range. Can’t tell much in that short range and hard acoustics, but it seemed extra fast and even with a D10 FF string (same material SBD uses) and no string silencers, it was whisper quiet. Today I’ll take her out for a real break-in session including chronographing. Lucky me! It cost the equivalent of one modest diy hunt to another state, and will last my lifetime and several others. Here are some pics …

[David Petersen]

#54458

More pics of Elkheart: For veneer wood I chose Macasser ebony. While it has lovely black/brown patterns I didn’t choose it for looks but rather because, with a matte finish, it produces such minimal glare that it’s huntable “in the nude” without skins or camo. (I found this out this fall while whitetail hunting in AR with Jody Smotherman, who has a Coffey bow with Macasser.) BowBolt take-down, and Gregg has arranged the veneer woods on both belly and back so that the two limbs are mirror opposites; very clever.

[david Keech]

#54514

That’s pretty much the best looking bow I’ve ever laid my eye’s on…Good lord willing and the creek don’t rise,I too will have one of these Coffey creations in my hands soon..

[garydavis]

#54734

That is a lovely bow Dave and the ebony is both beautiful and functional too.

I’m expecting one of it’s siblings this Spring. Mr. Coffey calls it a Falcon. It’s a 58″ Elkhartish longbow.

Cheers,

Gary

[paleoman]

#54772

Wow…what a honey! Like that “Iceman” that unthawed and was found with his neolithic trappings…I’ d be proud to drop dead and unthaw a couple k years later with that in my mummified hands:D

[Brennan Herr]

#54904

Simply a wonderful peace of art! Gregg did a great job! Good luck on the little whitetails in AZ! Be safe!

[T Downing]

#54941

What a beauty! Looking forward to seeing you shoot it…

[Troy Breeding]

#55445

NICE!!!! Gotta be a shooter!!!

Troy

[Raymond Coffman]

#55467

Dave –

Wonderful Bow ! I hope it brings you great Good Luck!

Scout

[George McCloskey]

#55821

That’s a beauty Dave. Happy hunting…maybe a grouse or two in the off season?

[Col Mike]

#55937

Why?

Does a 65Yr. old retired Marine–who owns 3 bows (one a shrew)–has every thing that one could want in this life

–loving wife, outdoor business, etc. Then Why do I look at these pictures and dream about acquiring another bow from Mr. Coffey?

Perhaps it’s time that our webmaster scrubs this stuff, so that the adolescent AARP members are not required to justify another purchase to that loving wife. javascript:addSmiley(‘:D’);

Dave–Enjoy–looking forward to reports of it’s performance and your shaft selection.

Semper Fi

Mike

[strait-aero]

#56824

Really nice bow, Mr.Petersen! :cry::roll: Wayne

[Etter1]

#57033

I think you should send that to GA so I can extensively test it.:D

[doug krueger]

#57599

SWEET!

[tombow]

#57727

She’s a beaut Mr. Dave! After all the good you do for others, doesn’t hurt to reward yourself!

She’s 54″? I haven’t shot a longbow that short, do you notice a difference compared to longer longbows?

Congrats!

Tom B.

[jpcarlson]

#57803

There it is! and I want one:)

Congrats, and I can’t wait to hear more about how she shoots. I too am wondering about how the 54″ longbow shoots compared to a longer bow.

Hope she draws blood on your desert hunt.

J

[David Petersen]

#57903

How does such a short longbow shoot? Like a dream! So far as I know, Ron LeClair’s Shrew was the first really short longbow, at least the first to gain popularity, and that only after many years and at least three bowyers, the last of whom, Gregg Coffey, put Shrew on my personal gotta-have list because I much prefer shorter bows for practical hunting reasons, and the little Shrew Classic Hunter, which Gregg designed, thinks it’s at least a foot longer. Part of it is the handle-forward design, which is now being emulated by other bowyers. Part of it is the deflex-reflex limb design. For a while I had a 52″ Classic Hunter and it shot as beautifully as any 54″ I’ve had (just ask ColMike, who now owns it and is an amazing shot). The new JMS Elkheart is the Classic Hunter taken to the next step. For a hunter looking for one of these bows, I’d either get on Gregg’s wait list immediately–I think he already has several dozen orders–or start shopping for a used Classic Hunter. The Elkheart is some better, but the CH is still heads above any other short longbow I’ve shot. I’m not sure what effect Gregg’s going solo will have on the used Shrew market. They already held great resale value, since so few who own them want to let them go, and so many were looking to buy used to avoid the 18-month waiting list for new. So their value could soar to or above the new price. On the other hand, I predict that lots of ShrewHeads like me will want a JMA bow now, so a few more used Shrews may come on the market. If you can get to Kalamazoo next month Gregg will have bows representing several of his designs there for folks to shoot. Shrew or Java Man, it’s a win-win deal so long as they’re Coffey-built. My new Elkheart is so quiet I don’t even plan to install string silencers, and this is with FF string.

[Col Mike]

#58067

Dave

Well thanks for the compliment. For those considering the short long bow–I second every thing Mr. Elkhart said. Light, smooth, and moves easily in hand while crawling through the brush. When I took it to 3-rivers this past summer to proof for arrows–Dave E. said “wow that Shrew really launches an arrow–and so quiet”. With the right arrow–she shoots where you point her.

For Java Man

Was wondering–as I was on the wait list for a new Shrew–and never really officially canceled that after I got Dave P’s–can I use that wait time to move up the list for an Elkheart. If not, do you give disabled vet preference or old hunters–I mean we don’t have a lot of wait time left.

Sorry folks a mans gotta try for an edge–:lol:

Semper Fi

Mike

[David Petersen]

#58086

Mike, best be careful what you say here, as we’re being watched …

[garydavis]

#58183

My dear Colonel,

I suspect Mr. Coffey will see through this ruse. You’ve got one already, so, don’t be greedy.

Happy New Year,

Gary Davis

[Alexandre Bugnon]

#59165

What a beauty!! Congrats, David! I’m looking forward to mine.

[Dan Jackowiak]

#59249

Nice looking bow, Mr Peterson! I just might have to give one of these a try. 😀

[Wexbow]

#60164

Best of luck with that beauty Dave. Keep us posted as I know you will…

[skifrk]

#63394

Dave glad you are enjoying shooting the new bow. So what are the plans for the first hunt to take on to draw a little blood.

[David Petersen]

#63703

Kirk — Well, shucks, I’m afraid I blew my budget for my (recently) usual winter trip to AZ for Coues whitetail … on the bow instead. It’s odd, I know, for a guy who preaches materialistic minimalizim to act this way … but I’m an archer and art lover as well as a bowhunter. So likely it will be spring turkey–assuming that for a change that we have some turkeys locally to hunt. Elk is always first love for me, but increasingly I crave whitetail hardwoods and feral pigs. The latter, I fear, may never happen, given my limited budget and “elitist” ethics. Increasingly with age, priorities get harder to figure out. 🙄

[skifrk]

#8033

Dave I try to keep minimal but enjoy great art and sharing with others. For feral pigs does kingwouldbe hunt on a ranch or he might know of some free range there in CA that would be close. I think this year for turkey I might head to either Nebraska or Kansas instead of stay in state to have a little fun. Enjoy the new bow and all the fun shooting it.

[JodyS]

#8262

Dave

The EH looks great! Macassar is such a funtional and beautiful wood. I look forward to hearing your report of its performance, which I suspect will be excellent. My new Inferno will arrive from Gregg early next week. I can’t wait…

Jody

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