i think i've seen a post on this same topic but can't remember where- i've recently picked up a polar and a kodiak that have a star stamped on / under the serial #.  was that done at the factory? were these bows that were returned and refinished or repaired? they are both in very good to excellent shape .

There seems to be quite a lot of speculation about what those extra stamps indicate but I am not sure that anyone has a definitive answer...sometimes a bit of mystery in the old bow realm is not such a bad thing...let us know though if either of these bows blows up at full draw so we can be more cautious about what we buy eh

DDave

The Bear salesman carried a stamping too in his kit. The stars are typically discounted bows and year end clearance.
The '2's you see on some bows are cosmetic blemishes or defects; I have bows with as many as three '2's. But the blemish or defect is not easy to determine, as it is cosmetic. The'2's were applied in the factory. Anybody have a bow with a star and '2's?

None with a 2 but I have an outstanding 62 Kodiak mag with a star. No repair, no damage, nothing. I am in the camp that it was stamped by a salesman and not returned for warranty work.

Have a '62 Kodiak with a star and there appears to be nothing wrong with it. One of the best I have seen or owned in regard to the grain of the Brzillian rosewood.

what about the B stamp

I can't even remember seeing a picture of a B stamp on a old bow.  Is this on a fairly new bow?

My son has a B on a 1970 type 1 T/D riser previously owned by a well known collector. You'd never know anything was amiss with it.

B stamp on 1970 B riser..beautiful bow....not sure what it means..in very nice condition..I now have a few finish cracks that developed from hunidity change  but was just wondering what the B meant

I think I was told many years ago it was a blemished bow or a second by an employee of Bear Archery, I used to hang around the proshop and museum quite a bit, in fact Fred would sometimes work the proshop on Sunday mornings and would take us up and play any movie we wanted to see.
Neat experience.

thanks..didn't see a blemish on it..but has developed a few cracks in the varnish from humidity change I think....as long as the thin cracks don't let in moisture I  will leave it...love the bow,,,can't miss with it and smooth...