Damon Howatt recurve question, please help

Todd M.

Todd M.

New member
I was given a laminated recurve by a friend today. He bought it at a garage sale many years ago. The widow at the garage sale told him it was handmade for her husband by the owner. It appears to be in original condition with the only wear being a few scuffs in the finish from storage.
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It is marked Damon Howatt, Hunter, 50# at 28” draw, with 62” limbs, serial number HH41221. The H's are written with a flourish, and it is possible that the 4 is an H as well. Which would indicate HHH 1221 as the serial number. The writing is perfect, but hard to determine as the 4/H looks just like the first two H's but lack a tail on the left side.

Reading everything I can find on the net’ it looks like the first number reflects the last year of the manufacturing date (4 would mean 1954/1964/1974 etc).

Do any of you guys know any more about the history of Damon Howatt bows? What little I’ve found indicates that he sold the company in 1961 and died shortly thereafter. Any details on deciphering the serial number?

Thanks!
Todd
 
I doent know anything about that specific bow, but go to stickbow.com. If its not there, its not a traditional bow.
good luck.
 
I have a left handed one indentical to yours. Martin archery still sells these bows but they are not the same look as back then. The bow you have I am guessing was made in the 60's or 70's and sold for around 80.00 to 100.00. I too bought mine from an individual for 50.00. They were not custom made but were nice bows for that era. The Super Diablo model was the top of the line and the Howatt Hunter was their middle priced bow.By todays standard of recurve they are slow and usually you see people using them for bowfishing bows.
 
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Thanks bowjunkie, I just read that very article this morning. It is truly a gorgeous old bow and I may hunt with it this fall if I can verify that it isn't worth too much. I like to see a tool used for its' purpose rather than sitting and getting dusty. I would like to learn more about the serial number/designation. If Damon Howatt made it himself before he died in 1961 I may have to keep it pristine.
 
its prolly worth somewhere between 250 to 400 providing the limbs are not warped leatherwall hal some better info on the prices than I do havent kept up lately they are an awesome hunting bow though had a full passthrough at 28 yards last year on a small mulie so they do have enough umph to take game
 
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By todays standard of recurve they are slow and usually you see people using them for bowfishing bows.



Relegating a Damon Howatt bow to bowfishing duty is way underrating these bows. True, Martin archery bought the rights to build the Howatt bows but they are not the same bows by any stretch of the imagination. Damon Howatt bows are elegant works of art. The reason Martin does not make them the way Howatt did is they can't afford to build them as well

I have three Damon Howatt bows, a Monterey (which sadly experienced a split limb tip /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif), a Howatt Cavalier and a Howatt target bow. These bows will shoot along with anything coming off the forms today.

I hope you will hunt with your Howatt this fall and that you treasure the days you spend afield with it.
 
Longcruise is right....they don't make em like that any more. I have one in left hand, my mother and wife went in together and bought it for my birthday back in 1975, ran somewhere around a C note then.
To presume they are good for no more than "bowfishing" is absurd! A truly eleganty bow, made the way they used to, far out classes bows of its era such as Bear,Ben Pearson et al: Its a keeper buddy, hang on to it and enjoy it.
 
Seeing how there has not been any major evolutionary changes in the recurve bow in the last 50 years, That Howatt is just as good as most any other you could get today, including most "customs". Do not relegate that bow to a life of carp duty. Its heritage demands better. Practice with it till archery season and go hunt with it. You wont be sad you did. But I will tell you, once youve killed the hard way, hunting for you will NEVER BE THE SAME.

-Mike (2005 Ohio Bowhunters Association Shooter of the Year in case your wondering)
 
Nothing wrong with carp duty. I use my custom Wes Wallace "mentor" for carp duty to get some practice in for deer season too. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Truth be told, Ive used my Hoyt Matrix for carp, but not just for carp. That Howatt, just like your Wallace is more than up to the task of thinning the herds.

Those mucksuckers started spawning early here this year and I have popped a few already. Who says you cant hunt all year long?
 
For those of you who hunt with a recurve, how heavy do you go with your arrows? Everything I've read leads me to think that something in the neighborhood of 500 grains is about right, to keep energy and penetration up with a slower bow. I am used to hunting with medium weight fiberglass shafts and a compound bow.
 
lol speaking of carp if you truely want a fun experiance hook one on a four wieght fly rod they dont call em the poor mans bonefish for nothing hehe
 
Maybe I should clarify myself.My Damon Howatt is also too purty to Bowfish with,I use a takedown browning for that task. What I meant was that the last few Damon Howatt's that I had seen in use were during the early 80's were being used at bowfishing tournaments at which I saw lots of fairly nice bows including Black Widows which is my current choice if I am serious about getting a whitetail.I am thrilled to hear fellow bowhunters who admire the classic lines of a classy bow.I guess what I am trying to convey is its a nice bow and you guys are right it is a worthy companion on any hunt.
 
I love my Damon Howatts! I used it to take my first bowkill elk, 50# and it worked awesome!
$250-$400 is pretty steep for a Damon Howatt Hunter, I'll sell all the ones I have for $400 a piece.
They are GREAT bows and you'll be happy with it. Martin doesn't make them like that anymore. I prefer them over my Bears, maybe even the Pearson. I have a few traditional bows and when I can't seem to get things right...I go back to Old Faithful.
Congrats on a great bow!
 
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For those of you who hunt with a recurve, how heavy do you go with your arrows? Everything I've read leads me to think that something in the neighborhood of 500 grains is about right, to keep energy and penetration up with a slower bow. I am used to hunting with medium weight fiberglass shafts and a compound bow.



I don't aim for a certain weight, but they seem to land in the 9 to 12 grains per pound of bow weight. Many shooters feel 10 grains of arrow weight per pound of bow draw weight is a good combo.

I make my arrows with 23/64th or 11/32nd cedar shafts. They are around 30 to 31 inches long. Arrow nock is usually a Bjorn or similar type. Feathers are full length applied at 5 1/2 to 6 inches long and shaped with a feather burner. Broadhead will be a two blade from 125 to 190 grainer. I use arrow length and broadhead weight as primary arrow flight tuning aspects, but brace height and arrow rest/center point adjustments also play a part. String nock position of course goes without saying.

So, short answer to your question (guess it's too late for that! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif) is that the arrow weight will take care of itself with cedar shafts. If you shoot alluminum or carbon from your recurve or longbow, you may have to make other adjustments to bring the weight up.

It's heresy in the compound speed world to say this, but most compound hunters would be better served shoot heavier arrows too!
 
And dont forget www.tradtalk.com either. That one tends to weed out the BS A lot quicker. Results oriented, as opposed to fad.

As far as arrow weight goes, go with a light weight FULL LENGTH (DO NOT CUT IT) 300 spine carbon shaft and put a couple hundred grains up front until you end up somewhere between 450 and 500 grains. This WILL give you the best performance out of that bow, or most any other trad bow for that matter, and is similar to what I hunt with and win tournaments with /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif.

But my best advice is do not put to much concern into what your arrow weighs. Focus on repeatable consistancy and hitting your intended mark every time, and do not be afraid to ask exzactly how to do it (yes this sometimes involves aiming the bow, and the dark art of gap shooting /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif).

Also familiarize yourself with your inteneded quarry's anatomy. What is a good shot at one angle is pissss poor at another and you'll do well to realize the difference.
 
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Thanks guys, I've read everything I can get my hands on re: traditional archery, and am a moderately accomplished bowhunter.
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I will not hunt with it until I feel competent shooting it. Yotenaylor, what do you use for anchor points, and how many fingers do you hold under the nock? I will probably start by gap shooting and figure I will need to adjust the anchor I typically use with my compound in order to effectively use the recurve's trajectory.
 
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