This Diary is updated on a weekly basis each Monday night.  We maintain four weeks of information on this page at all times.  Our intention with this page is to bring helpful information to you on a weekly basis.  Please feel free to E-mail us with your questions and comments.

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February 7, 2012

Cedar Arrows clearance Sale (Click here)

Inventory clearance flyer (Click here)

Going to the Accessories page

will let you see the items on clearance. (Click here)

          Going out of business is really going to be a major undertaking.  When we sold out our first shop (Catlin’s Custom Archery) on Frankfort Hill in the early 70’s we only had about $2500 in inventory.  In 2012 we are looking at disposing an inventory much larger in merchandise and fixtures.

When we announced our wood shaft/arrows clearance, a customer posted the fact on the Stickbow website and as a result we have had a busy week.  We were able to clear out all of our cedar shafting and the majority of our finished arrow stock as a result of that posting.  It resulted in lots of shipments and I have had to replenish my stock of arrow boxes and I went through three rolls of packing tape!  The income is certainly nice (even at heavily discounted prices) allowing us to refill the heating oil tank in the cellar along with the big Surburban propane tank in the backyard.

          Indoor Leagues – Week 4:  Bob Yaciuk and Louise Stockigt top the Trad League with a 14-2-0.  Second place is a tie between Jim/Chris Calkins and Lenny/Scott Calkins with 8-8-0.  Third place goes to Jeremiah and Bob Land with a 6-10-0.  High single round was a 246 shot by Jim Calkins.

Saturday League finds the lead held by Steve and Steve Laymon Jr. with a 14-2-0.  Second place goes to Butch Ward and Fran Frank with a 12-4-0.  Third spot is held by Dave Huxtable and John Rodden with an 11-5-0.  High single was Steve Laymon’s 284 round.

          Margaret and I are looking forward to our 15th Annual Trad Shoot which will be held on Sunday.  I ordered three dozen pastries from the Price Chopper bakery this afternoon for pickup on Saturday evening and Margaret is planning on baking a couple of her famous Hummingbird cakes for all to enjoy.  If it doesn’t snow (none predicted) it will be the first time in fifteen years that we haven’t had to clear out the parking lot to accommodate the shooters!

Central NY 2011 3D Schedule and  Directions to clubs

Click here for printable schedule.

Click here for printable directions to clubs.

That’s about it for this week.

Thank you for checking in with us.

george

February 2, 2012

          As I mentioned in last week’s Diary entry, 2011 was the first year in our business history that we found our business expenses were greater than our business income.

Because of this fact, Margaret and I have decided to phase out our traditional archery business during the 2012 business year.  We expect to clear out our business assets, sell the property and move to Deming, Washington to be with our daughter and her family.

We will support the events that we are committed to support during 2012 and hope to be away from here by the fall of this year.

Inventory clearance flyer (Click here)

Update 2/4/12

          For years now I have watched our sales of cedar arrows dwindling.  While I know that many traditional archers still love to shoot them we don’t have that many customers walking through the door that do!  We have decided to put our cedar arrows into a special order category and sell out our existing stock on a Clearance Sale.

Update 2/4/12

To view the Clearance Sale  (Click).

          League Results – Week 3:  Top team in the Trad League is Bob Yaciuk and Louise Stockigt with a 10-2-0.  Second place is Jim and Chris Calkins with a 6-6-0.  Third place goes to Rick Rendo and Peter Stockigt with a 5-7-0.  High single honors to Jim Calkins with a 233 round.

The Saturday League finds Butch Ward/Fran Frank and Dave Huxtable/John Rodden tied for first place with a 11-1-0.  Steve Laymon and Steve Jr. in second spot and Larry Castle and Steve Byrnes in the third spot.  High single was the 277 shot by Steve Laymon.

We received an NYB Red Alert that Senator Patrick Gallivan will soon be meeting with Senate ENCON Chairman Senator Mark Grisanti to discuss a crossbow bill to allow the use of the xbow in all seasons. 

The NYB Alert is as follows for your action:

For alert (Click here)

Central NY 2011 3D Schedule and  Directions to clubs

Click here for printable schedule.

Click here for printable directions to clubs.

That’s about it for this week.

Thank you for checking in with us.

george

January 25, 2012

          For years now I have watched our sales of cedar arrows dwindling.  While I know that many traditional archers still love to shoot them we don’t have that many customers walking through the door that do!  We have decided to put our cedar arrows into a special order category and sell out our existing stock on a Clearance Sale.

Update 1/29/12

To view the Clearance Sale  (Click).

          League Results – 2012:  Week 2 finds Bob Yaciuk and Louise Stockigt leading the Trad League with a 6-2-0.  Second place goes to Len and Scott Calkins with a 5-3-0 and third place to Jeremiah and Bob Land with a 3-5-0.  High single goes to Jeremiah with a 213 round.

We have a three way tie for first in the Saturday League with the teams of Butch Ward/Fran Frank, Dave Huxtable/ghost partner and Steve Laymon/Steve Laymon Jr.  All three have a 7-1-0 team record.  High single was a 277 shot by Steve Laymon.

          I went to my lawyer this morning and got the taxes done for 2011.  For the first time since 1985 we recorded a business loss as our expenses have exceeded our business income.  The archery business has traditionally been inflation proof which pretty much proves how deep this latest recession has been!

          Merlyn went to the bank with me on Monday morning as that has always been a special treat for him.  Especially when the “bank lady” at the drive-up window says hello to him by name and makes sure he gets a doggie bone!  I carry him to and from the van but he stays upbeat even though I am sure that his disability is frustrating for him.

Central NY 2011 3D Schedule and  Directions to clubs

Click here for printable schedule.

Click here for printable directions to clubs.

That’s about it for this week.

Thank you for checking in with us.

george

January 18, 2012

          I received one dozen Heavy Hunter 400’s from Kustom King and have the following info to report.  The shafts have a nice wood grain pattern and the logo markings on the shaft are nine inches down which leaves ample room for a crown dip if the customer wishes to do a custom dip and crest.  The logo is uniformly applied which means that the marking can be used as a reference for the paint dip process.  The outside diameter of the shafts is 21/64” which is the same OD as a 2117 aluminum shaft.

The inserts supplied are made from aluminum and weigh 54 grains.  The insert measures two inches in length from the shoulder to the end and are not drilled and tapped all the way through which means that additional weight cannot be applied to the insert.  A 100 grain brass insert can be used as a replacement but the brass lacks enough outside diameter to match the shaft diameter.  Brass inserts could be used but only with easy pull points so the hole made by the points would be slightly larger than the shaft diameter.  Of course the slightly smaller diameter of the brass insert increases the probability on shaft splitting on hard hits (stones, etc.).

The nocks supplied weigh 14 grains and fit well but the throat is shallower than the Easton Super Nock.  The nock ears are much less flexible due to construction and possibly materials giving it a much harder “snap” when put on the bowstring.

I weighed all of the shafts in the dozen with the following results:  two shafts – 403 grains, one shaft – 404 grains and nine shafts – 406 grains.  Providing us with a weight match of plus or minus three grains.

I have modified my old Tessier spine tester to check shaft deflections at 28” and I ran the dozen shafts through it with the following results:  five shafts read .375, three shafts at .380, three at .385 and one shaft at .395 for spine deflection.  These numbers reflect between 66 and 68 pounds of draw weight which is pretty tight and consistent.

Using the factory supplied components, finished arrows will sell for $172.00 a dozen and the 400 shafts with 145 grain points weigh 602 grains when finished with five inch die cut feathers.

          Our indoor leagues got started this past weekend and we have five two man teams competing in the Traditional League.  We have two kids shooting in our afternoon Youth League and a total of nine teams in our Saturday Mixed League.  We have a  total of twenty seven adult shooters and two kids which is the smallest turnout that we have had since 1991.

          Sunday morning we had 13 below zero on the back deck and it managed to warm up to 4 above by 3:00 in the afternoon.  Today’s project was to recondition sixteen aluminum arrows for a customer in Massachusetts.  I ended up carrying my bottle of fletching glue around in my shirt pocket since I couldn’t get the inside temperature much above 50 degrees in the shop!  Monday morning was another ten below and I found the hot water in the shop was frozen.  I cranked up the old kerosene heater and that along with the electric heater managed to get it thawed out by putting heat into the restrooms.  It took until noontime and no obvious leaks so it would appear that it froze without breaking any pipes.  Hooray!

View photos for this week! (Click here)

Central NY 2011 3D Schedule and  Directions to clubs

Click here for printable schedule.

Click here for printable directions to clubs.

That’s about it for this week.

Thank you for checking in with us.

george

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