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The Coup Stick is not an ordinary traditional bow. It wasn't meant to be. When you judge it by the way it looks, feels, and shoots, you'll see that it stands apart from the rest of the crowd. Let me tell you the story of why I created the Coup Stick and share some of my thoughts about bows, and hunting with them.
My personal quest to find the perfect hunting bow spanned almost twenty years, and at least that many bows. I finally decided to build my own, with the hope of satisfying my wishes for what I wanted in the ultimate traditional bow.
The criteria I used to design the Coup Stick was really quite simple - I made a list of every feature that I wanted in my own hunting bow - based on many years of actual experience in the field and on the range. In a sense, I disregarded the rules of conventionality and opted for functionality instead.
Smoothness. I like a bow that draws smooth. An ideal hunting bow should be short enough to handle easily in the brush and the tight spots that we find ourselves in so often, without sacrificing the smoothness generally attributed to a longer bow.
The true reverse-handle of the Coup Stick, combined with the limb geometry and construction, allows it to pull as smooth as the best recurve. But the bows are also fairly short. Even the 58" Coup Stick is smooth to 29"!
I think there's a great misconception that a longbow can't be short or it will be "stacky" and unforgiving. The Coup Stick blows that myth.
What length of bow is best for you? There's a lot of personal preference involved, but here are some guidelines. Most traditional archers don't have even a 28" draw length, and at 28", you're still not getting to the "stack point" of a 58" Coup Stick, let alone the 60" and 62".
Finger pinch is a valid consideration, but it's also a relevant term. Let me explain. If you've been shooting a really long bow for a long time, you may notice more finger pinch by going to a drastically shorter bow. But if you've already been shooting shorter bows, including a compound, you're not going to notice finger pinch. My suggestions:
| 25" - 28" draw |
|
58" bow |
| 28 ½" - 30" draw |
|
60" bow |
| 30 ½" - 32" draw |
|
62" bow |
I might also add that I have an actual draw length of 29" - and my favorite has been the 58".
I believe that hand placement and comfort are two critical items. It's difficult to achieve consistent accuracy when you're shifting the hand position from one place to another.
The riser of the Coup Stick is designed and shaped to allow consistent and positive hand placement. You simply lay your hand in the bow and shoot. You don't have to jockey your hand position to try to find the "sweet" spot. No effort to either "heel" or "high wrist" is necessary.
The Coup Stick is comfortable in the hand, and it's a pleasure to shoot or hold for long periods of time. Why should something that spends so much time in your hand feel like the square edge of a 2x4?
I don't find bows with a lot of hand shock enjoyable to shoot. The Coup Stick has no hand shock. In fact after you shoot one a while, many recurves will seem "shocky" by comparison. The Coup Stick is pleasant to shoot and won't jolt your joints.
Even though the Coup Stick could be called a "hybrid", it is still essentially a longbow. There are four things that I really like about a longbow for hunting purposes.
First, the overall light physical weight. Nice for long days afield, or holding out at arms length waiting for the right moment to draw.
Second, a longbow works best for quick, point-and-shoot situations - grabbing that second arrow, moving targets, aerial targets, or if you just get caught by surprise.
Third, a longbow has a unique cast or "feel" in the way that it propels an arrow. It's hard to describe, but gives the impression of a more direct, "jump-out-of-the-bow," hard-hitting sensation.
Fourth, and most important, the design and construction of a longbow-style limb is inherently stronger and more reliable than a recurve, which has a sensitive limb tip that is always subject to twist or breakage. That means one less thing to worry about out in the field or on the range.
Speed and performance are not necessarily the same thing. My definition of good performance is good speed combined with controllability. In other words, shooting fast arrows is not enough. You have to be able to manage or control your arrows, shot after shot, in all kinds of situations, to be consistently accurate. The Coup Stick has excellent performance.
Just how much speed you get is directly related to your actual bow weight, your draw length, and the total grain-weight of your arrow. You can shoot over 200 feet per second if that's what you want, but you'll be much better off to shoot an arrow heavy enough to keep your feet per second reading well below 200. Remember - it's where you hit, not how fast.
The Coup Stick is made for, and comes standard with a Fast-Flite string. That's not to make the bow shoot faster. In reality you don't gain that much speed between a Fast-Flite and B-50 Dacron. But Fast-Flite is much stronger, offering longer life, more cut-resistance, and dependability.
My first priority was to make a purely functional hunting bow. The next goal was to make a bow that looks as good as it shoots. The Thunderhorn Coup Stick is the culmination of my efforts to meet those objectives. When I build a bow, I'm not just making something for you to shoot an arrow with . I treat each bow as a piece of artwork, specially commissioned by you.
The Coup Stick has met with, or exceeded my expectations on all counts. I'm very proud of it and, as a bowhunter, I highly recommend one to you.
The Thunderhorn Coup Stick is handcrafted using select exotic hardwoods risers, with red elm limb laminations and clear glass. I also offer a model with a brown actionwood multi-laminated riser, which is a little more economical, but not nearly as "custom." (If I build a bow for you with actionwood, and one for your neighbor they both look the same. If I build you a bow made with exotic wood, each bow looks different, because every piece of wood has its own unique color and grain pattern.)
The riser can be either a single piece, single specie (no accent stripe), or a combination using different exotics separated with an accent stripe.
Multiple overlays on the riser and limb tips add beauty and strength; and are custom matched to the selection of riser wood.
The immaculate satin finish lets the beauty of the wood show through, but also prevents light from reflecting on the Coup Stick, making it hunting-ready when you receive it.
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