I'm going to be in the market for a new bow in 2009. I'm still shooting my 2003 Mathews LX, I shot a DXT last weekend and it didn't do much for me. I'm just not sold on the thin limbs. I haven't shot a Bowtech this year, the dealer in my area is a tool. I'll probably make the drive to the St. Louis area and shoot some there. I did shoot a HCA Iron Mace over the weekend, crazy fast, but it hurt my shoulder drawing 70lbs back with that beast. I'm looking for smooth and fast.... Bowtech sounds like the way to go, I'll just have to decide which one when I shoot them.
This will probably be the first year I won't even bother to shoot the new Bowtechs........I just don't see anything even remotely interesting. Speeds hovering around 320 on a Bowtech?? That is slower then my Patriot. They are going backwards lately IMO ever since they came out with the split riser design. Limb problems, and other design issues have them struggling to find their groove. I predicted the string grabber would prove to be a problem and got a ton of flak for it.........one year later it is history, buried under a pile of complaints. I just don't understand who they are gunning for with this years line. I'm sure they are nice smooth shooters but a nice smooth shooting bow that IBO's around 320 is not hard to find.........and easily for less then $800. If they can find a way to put out a split riser speed bow they will be back on track IMO. Bowtech gets the benefit of the doubt from me because I have nothing but praise for my Pat but besides the Ally their lineup since then has been easy to forget. I wish they had something better to offer because they are my first choice but I don't see it. Buying a used Ally could be fun.......what year was the "best" Ally in your opinion (I would assume the one you own). EDIT: Just saw the new Bowtech site.......most of the bows are at 315 and under for IBO low end....with the flagship at 312. This will put them at the lower end of the speed spectrum and they may actually be slower then Mathews this year........never thought I would see that day. Slower bows, commercials for baseball bats.........not sure what is going on over there
I can't find any HCA bows around here.........never even shot one. I hear the Iron Mace is scarey fast. I saw the new PSE Dream Season is tickling 350 at 7" brace height. I didn't like the feel at all when I shot it last year but would be willing to give that bow another try. Hoyt is interesting to me right now.........if they come out with something cool and fast I would be interested, I've always liked their bows.........almost bought a Razortec instead of my Patriot. The Mathews bows offer nothing to me I can't find anywhere else and I hate their grips. Nice smooth draw is what I usually say after I shoot the new Mathews.....nothing else stands out......to me anyways.
My current bow of choice.......no doubt. I just can't get my hands on one. The dealer closest to me can't get them in fast enough and he has back orders as long as his arm. The demand for Elite bows around here is huge........excellent bows.......fast, nice draw, and great shooting, love the feel, fits my hand like a glove......Barnsdale limbs don't hurt either If I could find one I would buy it.........just too hot of an item right now.
I held the Admiral in my hand today, I didn't shoot it because my daughter was with but it sure felt great. What I noticed right away is how light it felt. Looks cooler in person also. I don't know what you guys expect every year the speed on these bows is more than fast enough. lol Very cool looking bow though. I liked it alot more after I handled it.
Atlas- From the words of Matt/PA Speed: Here's an interesting thing for you guys to consider. For 2009 Bowtech will establish their speed ratings based upon the average speed shot by an actual "Pilot run" of bows. Not one or 2 tweaked and retweaked prototypes and then find out the production bows are a little slower, or worse yet what some other manufacturers do........inflate the bows specs (increased draw length and/or weight) in hopes that the end user isn't smart enough to check or care that they aren't REALLY doing what they say they are. Bowtech will take the pilot run, average the speed of every bow shot (dozens of actual production bows) and place that number into the upper end of the speed rating. This will ensure that every bow will hit the speeds we advertise and some should even reach the very top of the range at the specs we say they are. This way hopefully people are happy when they see a bow rated at 317-325fps come in at 324fps rather than 317. To illustrate what I was talking about with TRUE speed ratings.....Bowtech has in their possession pretty much every production bow out there from other manufacturers, only smart to see what everyone else is doing performance wise. Well we took a measured AMO 28" / 70# Bowtech Sentinel and shot an exactly 350gr test arrow through the chrono graph at 305fps. The Sentinel is rated 317-325, so BAM!, it's dead on high end speed rating for that one which was a production bow off the line. Next we took a "Speed" bow from "Another" manufacturer rated to the mid to upper 340's that has only 1/4" more brace height. After having to set the draw length BACK to AMO 28" and turn the draw weight BACK to 70# to get the bows to match we again shot the same 350gr arrow...........and got a whopping 308fps apples to apples.
So here is a big time rumor about Hoyts 09 bow coming out...too good to be true IMO, but would be sweet none the less. I also heard a rumor Hoyt is dumping alot of their current designs and starting new for 2009, not sure if thats true or not. Hoyt is so tight lipped about their lineups that no one will know until Mid October, for sure anyway. Codename "Thundertec" 36 in. ATA 7 1/4 in. brace 352 fps Beyond parallel limbs XT450s Available in RT APG HD, MO Treestand and Predator camo finishes Dual Stealth Shoks like Bear Truth 2 piece wood plates 6 oz. lighter than Katera Dead quiet... Ill be checking one out here in a few weeks if it proves true.
Unless you get stuck with one of the bows that come in at the low end......after all it is based on an average right?? So for every bow that comes in at the top there must be one out there that comes in at the bottom. Couldn't agree more that bow companies should be forced to give a more accurate speed rating........it's borderline false advertising IMO and close to fraud in some cases. I'm just surprised that Bowtechs will be topping out around 320 this year.......that is average to below average at best and may come in under Mathews.......just seems weird to me.......a "normal" guy shooting 28" 63lbs with a reasonably heavy arrow is gonna end up somewhere around 270 fps.
Again, confusing.....seemingly pushed to the back burner when last year it was pushed hard (perhaps harder) then any other......now just as quickly (my guess is next year) it will be gone. I was excited again last year when they seemed to be headed back towards the bows that made them great (Patriot, Ally, VFT).....speed that was unmatched (at that time) and still smooth and quiet. I wish they would get back to that.........It's what makes Elite bows so attractive to many IMO.
From what I've heard from my shop owner is that BT is going to have a bow that will affect the archery industry as did the Guardian when it came out. He told me that a couple of weeks ago. Personally I think that bowtech should have kept the tribute alive. I know that when I go out to shoot, I get a lot of comment on how it looks. The ally is nice and was a hot bow, but then the Guardian came out and the Ally was out of mind. Do we remember what the Tribute did when it came out? That was the flag ship for Bowtech. It seems that the fad is speed right now. If they can build a bow with a smooth draw and the high end speed that will be the one to take the market.
I currently shoot a 2001 Mathews Last year I shot bows from BowTech, Elite, and PSE. The fastest of them all was the exact same as my current set up. Speed hasn't been the goal for some time I think. It has all been about draw cycle and eliminating vibration and holy cow have they done a good job there. Now, I did not get to shoot an 82nd and I am currently trying to figure out how I could afford one for next year. I just think that bow is the cat's meow b/c it is freaky fast and smooth... supposedly. I will obviously have to shoot it for myself first to be certain. My personal opinion is that they have nearly optimized the bows for a balance of speed and "shootability". If you want fast, then you have to give up smooth. The opposite would be true also. I think we have neared the plateau of development possibilities. Now it is just small tweaks here and there. However, I am not very knowledgable about the industry. Just my guess.
