Know your bow

Which Oneida do I have? Tell the bow families apart

Oneida lever bows fall into a handful of families, and the family decides which parts and guides fit. Start with the serial number; if it's gone, these clues narrow it down.

  • Difficulty Easy
  • Time 10 minutes
  • For All Oneida lever bows

Every Oneida on the site.

All how-to guides

We're still double-checking this guide against how we do it in the shop. If anything doesn't match your bow, stop and text us or call 270-318-2020.

Before you start

  • Photograph the whole bow from the string side, plus a cam and a hinge close-up.

Steps

  1. Start with the serial under the grip (see 'Find and read your Oneida serial number').
  2. 1980s–90s Oneida Labs bows: look for pylons with idler wheels, a slotted timing wheel and a clevis at each hinge.
  3. Narrow a pylon bow by its cam: H-series, Screaming Eagle and 1990 I-Cams hide the yoke swage behind the timing wheel; 1991–mid-1992 I-Cams (Tomcat I, Phantom I, Strike Eagle) show it; 1992 K-Cams went on the Phantom II, Tomcat II and Aero-Force.
  4. Check the grip: glued one-piece on the Tomcat II and Phantom II, bolted two-piece on the Aero-Force and Strike Eagle.
  5. Stealth Eagle: look for a forged, machined riser, one-piece cams and wheels, stainless hinge pins, two saddle screws per limb and no clevis; the sticker is on the lower power limb (SEQ).
  6. Discovery: look for no cams, cables running through slides with a center slide on a rod, and a draw-length axle in a row of holes on each limb.
  7. Black Eagle family (2000 on): look for K-Cams with snap-in letter and number modules, a timing hub with locking screw and long weight bolts. Older bows also used K-Cams, so the serial (BE, C.P.A.) is the surest clue.
  8. Check the outboards: wood on the 2000 and 2001–03 Black Eagles and the 41 in Hawk; carbon on the ESC Black Eagle, Talon and C.P. Osprey. Pro Eagles came with either, and the string differs (see the Pro Eagle page).
  9. Kestrel: look for the orange timing screw; item numbers run 20009–20024, RH or LH.
  10. Phoenix and 2017+ Osprey: Oneida lists them as PHX and OSR in Short, Medium and Long; they're not on the old serial charts.
  11. Tell the two Ospreys apart: a C.P.A. serial means the older carbon-outboard C.P. Osprey.
  12. Note that the Monster Bows Phoenix is a different company's bow.
  13. Look up G-String bows (G-Rex, Gnat, Pro2G) by our build number on the G-String side of Find My Bow.

Tips

  • Stealth limbs look like Tomcat III or Lite Force limbs but won't swap. (Stealth Eagle Instructions p.8)