As I mentioned in my last post, I spent several hours shooting new model bows in a couple different pro shops Thursday before last.
I love my bow and it will be hard to set down, but there are so many improvements that I can make to my equipment and with my bow being harder and harder to keep in tune with 10 year old+ dual cams – a change will be made sooner than later.
Now, you can be assured I won’t be sucked into the latest and fastest speed bows. Quite frankly, I think they are a ridiculous sacrifice of shootability and smooth draw cycles to gain a couple dozen fps. There aren’t degrees of dead, just dead. And I would seriously argue that speed is the least important factor when considering the ability of a hunter to consistently harvest game with his bow.
That being said, I didn’t like the Matthews Monster, Bowtech Destroyer, or PSE Dream Season X-Force. I hate the hump in the draw cycle immediately before you hit the back wall. Some people don’t mind exchanging some smoothness to pick up speed, but I won’t compromise shootability.
I liked the Hoyt Maxxis and the Matthews Reezen & Z7, but they too were surpassed by the top 3 bows on my current wish list. Not a big fan of the Matthews look these days and improved dual-cam technology has made the single-cam feature of Matthews a “6 of one, half dozen of the other” selling point nowadays. The Hoyt Maxxis was only a 31″ axle-axle which is a little short for my liking, but it did shoot great.
The final three;
Hoyt AlphaMax 32″ – just about perfect length, not a big fan of Hoyt’s riser but whatever, smoothest draw cycle of any bow I shot, no shot vibration whatsoever.
Elite Z28 – long brace height, smooth shooter and draw cycle, best feeling grip of the 10 bows I shot, incredible factory and Hunt warranty. For those not familiar, Elite will fly you a set-up bow to your specifications FREE if you snap a limb, cut a string, etc. while on a hunt. Next day delivery – no charge. That’s a big deal if you don’t always hunt on the “Back 40″. Also, I love the look of Elite bows – incredibly simple, no bells and whistles, only what’s necessary to make a great hunting machine.
Bowtech Admiral – I could say the same thing about this bow as I have for the other two bows – smooth draw, shoots nice, etc.
The hunt is on for a new bow and when I make my final decision, I’ll be sure to post pics.
