By Bill Krenz C.P. Oneida Black Eagle When a product category matures, what often happens is that the products in that category slowly begin to look and function alike. Computers, tennis rackets, video cameras, even sport utility vehicles are prime examples. So are today's compound bows. More than one archery dealer has lamented to me recently that so many compound bows now look so much alike, that it's becoming hard to tell them apart. Directly in the face of that, one particular company offers a distinctly unique alternative. That company is C.P Oneida Eagle. The heart of the 2002 C.P. Oneida Eagle line is the Black Eagle, a conspicuously different bow. The Black Eagle sports a machined aluminum riser, a unique limb configuration that includes short power limbs connected by way of a 1 hinge to outboard recurve limbs, and a cam and cable system that is tucked tight into the riser. The result is a most unique bow that appears to be an artful cross between a recurve bow and a compound bow. Few would dispute the argument that the traditional recurve bow is the most aesthetically pleasing of all of today's bows. It's more graceful than the traditional longbow, and sleeker and trimmer than the popular compound bow. But a recurve bow doesn't have the let off, or nearly the arrow speed capability, of a good compound bow. Now, imagine a bow that looks surprisingly like a recurve bow, but draws and shoots like a compound bow... and you have a C.P. Oneida Eagle. The basic Oneida Eagle bow concept has actually been around for some years, and has developed a very loyal following. Oneida Eagle fans are quick to point out their bow's exceedingly smooth draw, excellent speed, forgiving nature, and distinctive look. Many won't shoot anything but an Oneida Eagle. So why hasn't this distinctive, high performance bow design become more widely popular? The truth is that the company has gone through a series of misadventures with different owners. Marketing and promotion have been substandard, and delivery inconsistent. But watch out! All that is about to change. Archery industry veteran Claude Pollington of Marion, Michigan is the new owner of Oneida Eagle. C.P Oneida Eagle Bows is a brand new company with a much-improved Oneida Eagle bow design (30 percent fewer parts than previous designs), and a gung ho owner with the experience, confidence, and ability to make these bows go. KEY SELLING POINTS Distinctive Look In most any rack of same-looking compound bows, the Oneida Black Eagle will stand out like, well, an Eagle in a flock of sparrows. That may be overly dramatic, but in an aesthetic sense it's not far from the truth. The C.P. Oneida Black Eagle looks good. It looks trim and powerful. It looks like it's been designed to shoot very well. Silky Smooth Draw Few compound bows today draw as smoothly as an Oneida Black Eagle. This bow draws back and lets off like silk. Compared to some of today’s harsher drawing bows, that's a real relief. When a buck is walking closer and you need to draw slowly and smoothly to your anchor, a Black Eagle can take you there. Excellent Performance The Oneida Black Eagle is fast, ranking right up there with many of today's most popular, conventional compound bows. With either aluminum or carbon arrows, the Black Eagle gets an arrow to where you need it with dispatch and power. Reduced Hand Shock Because of the nature of the Oneida Eagle, these bows shoot with barely a hint of hand shock. As the bowstring is released, the upper outboard recurve limb rotates rapidly upward, while the bottom outboard recurve limb rotates rapidly downward. That counter-canceling action seems to significantly reduce shot vibration and subsequent hand shock felt by the archer. Convenient Draw Length and Letoff Adjustability Each 2002 Oneida Black Eagle comes with a complete set of draw length and letoff modules. With those modules, each Black Eagle is adjustable over approximately a three-inch range, and can be configured for letoff from 40 to 80 percent. Installing a new module is as simple as loosening a cam set screw, removing the old module, and installing the new one. The Oneida Black Eagle can be ordered in any draw length from 25 inches all the way out to 34 inches. Positive Draw Control System Once the Black Eagle's draw length is roughly set using the provided draw length modules, the bow's innovative PDC (Positive Draw Control) System Is used to fine tune for an exact and very precise personal draw length. The Positive Draw Control Svstein consists or two round and adjustable disks strategically located on the bow's riser. A nylon screw, which projects from the disk, contacts the inside edge of the Oneida cams at full draw. By rotating the disks to the exact position desired, draw length can be very precisely set. In addition, the Positive Draw Control System on the Oneida Black Eagle creates a very solid back wall to the draw force curve. Your customers will love that. Shoot It the Way You Want It One of the real advantages of the Oneida Black Eagle is that this bow can be easily adjusted and configured to match up perfectly with almost any shooting style or preference. Draw length, letoff, and tiller can all be easily adjusted to set this bow up for serious release, or fingers shooting. Set it up with a high letoff and a solid back wall for a release. Or configure it with a very low letoff and a long valley for the died-in-the-wool liners shooter.