Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

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ineffableone
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Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by ineffableone »

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Introduction

Well first off let me start by saying I have no affiliation with Steve Catts of Hidehandler leather other than purchasing one of his quivers.

Second I will say I had been looking and lusting after his quivers for a few years after coming across them while doing an image search of quivers online. Though originally I was more interested in his Combo Hunter till I realized it was pretty much the same as the Mountain Hunter Elite which is what I ended up getting. Only two real differences I found between the two. Neither made me want opt for the higher priced Combo. I have actually had this quiver for over 6 months, and finally getting around to reviewing it.

Third I should disclose I had a long wait for this quiver. From the date of ordering to actually receiving it was almost exactly a year. Steve Catts the maker of these is a small business man, who does all the work himself and had built up a bit of a back log. He also ended up having issues with leather supply, and health. At least according to him emails. After ordering I waited quite awhile before contacting him to ask for a progress report. His responses were always fast, and he always had what seemed a reasonable answer. A lot of the time I waited he had not even started my quiver, and admitted he was still working through his back log. I am a patient and reasonable person. So did not overly stress on the time it took, though I know plenty of people who would not have been so patient. In the end I got the quiver and am very happy with it.

Fourth, I should also point out, side quiver is not a hip quiver. Side quivers are a single strap over the shoulder style quiver. Also commonly called a Stalking quiver, Plains (Indian) quiver, Safari quiver, and likely more. As some of the names might suggest, this is a popular hunting quiver style.

Fifth, the leather "The Mountains are Calling" patch was added by me and bought from BCUSA. Quote from John Muir. It just seemed too fitting to not be added to this quiver.
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Sixth sorry for the crappy quality cell phone pictures, it is all I have.

Seventh, this quiver is not exactly Middle Earth styled. There are some modern parts like snaps on it.

Finally in this introduction I would like to say, this is an expensive quiver and not one everyone would want to spend the money on. For me, it was worth the price for the function it offers.

Historical overview

Shortly after someone invented the first bow, they realized they needed a way to carry arrows. And the Quiver was born.

This quiver is a mix of multiple types of quivers a back quiver, side quiver, and bottom draw quiver. Each having a long historical president, but to my knowledge none have combined features like this. So historically this is modern and not a reproduction of some old style.

Despite a lot of hype from a recent viral video, back quivers were quite prevalent in history. While less common in Europe they were still employed quite regularly by Europeans as a way to travel with arrows. Asia, Middle East, Africa, The Americas, etc all however employed back quivers. As well as other quivers.

And that is another part of the history, there is no one type of historically accurate quiver. As different types of quivers were often used by the same culture in the same time period. Hip quivers and back quivers were in use by the same people in one area. While a little ways away they preferred side quivers and back quivers.

Which is why I liked this quiver, it is a mix of a back quiver, side quiver, and bottom draw quiver. While mainly a back quiver, the ability to use it multiple ways is a great find.

Initial Impressions

When I first got it. My first impression was "wow a lot lighter than I expected" For a large leather tube made of it pretty thick heavy weight leather, it was surprisingly light. Next was noticing a couple differences between my quiver and the stock photos. The cover for the bottom draw for example having 2 Sam Brown studs rather than just one from the stock photo. There being extra loops on the top for the straps to go higher when not being used as a back quiver. Neither upset me, both actually were happy extras I had not expected but could understand why they were there.

Next I was quite stunned by the beauty and craftsmanship. This quiver took a lot of work and was done very well yet still retained evidence of being hand crafted. The leather work was wonderfully done. The color great. And the smell, well new leather just smells awesome.

Statistics

Stats are never going to be the same for quivers, they are hand made for your specific arrow length. But just to give folks an idea.

Overall Height: 34 1/2"

Width: 5 1/2"

Depth: 4"

Capacity: 24 arrows

Weight: I don't have a scale for this, I will try and borrow one and find out.

Components

There are a few main parts to this quiver.

Main body
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Top fletching cover/guard
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Loading lid
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Bottom access port
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Pouch
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Straps

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Strap in load lifting position for use when fetching guard is on (better weight distribution)
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Strap cinch to tighten to the quiver
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Handling Characteristics

This quiver fits me quite well. When just wearing it alone while hiking, in transport mode. As a back quiver while target or stump shooting. Using it for bottom draw. Or as a side quiver. The conversion between these modes can take some strap adjustment, and trial and error. The least perfect usage and handling is side quiver style. Mainly due to balance issues with the pouch. If I had it to do over I would likely have had the pouch placed in a different spot to enable the side quiver usage with less difficulties. Though it is still quite usable as a side quiver.

Conclusions

I am quite happy with this quiver. I am glad I ordered it, and glad I was patient with the maker to get it.

Pros

- Multi functional. Back quiver, side quiver, bottom draw quiver.
- great for protection of arrows during travel
- High capacity arrow carry
- unique and beautiful eye catching quiver
- custom made for you, if you want something a little different he will work with you
- adjustable straps to fit the user

Cons

- Some modern parts used like snaps that make it not a Middle Earth period quiver (however since his quivers are custom made, if you wanted something more period correct I am sure he would work with you)
- took a long time to get (though my experience might have been longer than typical due to issues in the maker's life at that time)
- cost, it is not a budget quiver at the $400 range
- leather needs to be cared for and takes maintenance (for some this is a con, I don't have a problem caring for leather)
- weight, while this quiver is light for leather and balanced well. It is leather and leather weighs a lot more than other materials.
- no instructions on how to adjust the straps into different configurations

The Bottom Line

Yes I would recommend this or other of Steve Catt's quivers.
Here is the site, http://www.hidehandler.com/index.htm
He is an amazing leather worker, and he knows what he is doing. I would however maybe suggest making sure to contact him ahead of ordering and get an idea of what sort of wait you might have. The Hidehandler site is not a click and order site. You can look through his work but you have to mail your order in to him.
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grimwulf
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Re: Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by grimwulf »

wow truly a beautiful quiver.
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ineffableone
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Re: Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by ineffableone »

grimwulf wrote:wow truly a beautiful quiver.
Thanks. Though credit goes to Steve Catts on making it beautiful. I had ordered it before joining MERF and had not ordered it thinking of a Ranger kit quiver. Thus why it has some of the modern parts. Though the quiver is cool enough I will likely use it with my Ranger kit and pretend it doesn't have the modern parts or that some ingenious dwarf /elf made a giant leap in technology design.

He does however make plenty of quivers that would be appropriate for a Ranger kit, and if you order something from him you can express interest in not having anything that would not be period correct.

While his work might be on the expensive side compared to mass produced quivers, for made to order leather goods like this he is actually quite reasonably priced. The quiver I bought for example could easily cost more in the range of $700 from other leather smiths instead of $400 that I paid.
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grimwulf
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Re: Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by grimwulf »

ya leather products are not cheap to buy. some one who does quality work and doesn't charge an arm and a leg is a great deal.
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ineffableone
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Joined: Mon May 05, 2014 9:29 pm
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Re: Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by ineffableone »

I realized I forgot to post a side view

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bjaurelio
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Re: Hidehandler Mountain Hunter Elite Quiver Review

Post by bjaurelio »

That is a really nice quiver. There are a ton of little details that would make it take a very long time to create. It's certainly an excellent find for that price.
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