I really went to shoot the Chill but, they had sold the only one they had in stock. I won't be buying a new bow this year but, I love to shoot different bows. After all, you never know. I know I haven't always been fair to Mathews but, I promise I went in as unbiased as possible. The first thing I noticed was the split limbs. Looks kind of funny on a Mathews to be honest but, it's now for looks I feel sure. Second thing was the massive cam and idler wheel. FREAKING HUGE!! So big I honestly expected a pretty nasty draw cycle just looking at them. The bow is very light weight an pretty balanced in the hand just holding it. I had the tech set it up at 29" which is what I shoot. It would have fit better at 28.5" I believe. The shops release was a little long as well but, I didn't have mine with me which is a mistake I won't make again. The grip, yes, this one made it past the grip test. I normally do not like a Mathews grip but, I actually didn't mind this one. My favorite? No but, I could shoot it all day and not be bothered by it. A plus for this bow. I give it a 6 out of 10. Remember, I'm a little tuff on grip grading. The draw: remember I said I expected a harsh draw cycle? Nope not the case. It was pretty smooth. Very flat actually. Unlike my opinion of the Helim building from the start, this one was flat all the way to the valley. It wasn't stiff but, it wasn't sloppy feeling either. It was set at 63lb and felt like it was about 60lb or a little less. I like a hump in my draw so to me it's a 5 out of 10. The valley: well, to me there wasn't much of one. Remember I am use to my Prime which is set at 80% let off and has a pretty nice valley. The Creed drops in nice but, to me felt pretty shallow. There wasn't much creep at all but, when it did, it was really manageable. It didn't feel like the RKT cam that wants to rip your arm out of socket. Letting down was really easy on the shoulders. It gets a 7 out of 10. The Back wall: Nice! I really expected a sponge to be honest. When it dropped in, it stopped dead. Not quite as solid as my bow but, there isn't much that is. It did seem to be more solid than the RKT and much more solid than Helim. I liked it and was pretty impressed. I give it a 7 out of 10. Noise: what noise?? Really, this bow was super quiet. I liked it! It was as quiet as my or very close to the noise level of my Element. I was completely impressed. I expected much much louder from this light weight of a bow. For this it gets a 9 out of 10. The shot: well, this took my mind off of the noise level. It had a stab on it and I still felt a fair amount of shock to it. The arrow was a pretty heavy Easton Axis so I was really surprised at the amount there was. I believe some limb dampeners would take this out. If they had something similar to the Alfa Shocks I believe this would get rid of most if not all of it. So I'm going to have to give a 5 out of 10 on this part. The hold: honestly I can only give the feel of the bow at full draw a review as this one didn't have a sight set up on it. The string angle felt that of a bow with a much longer ATA. I would imagine that enormous cam and idler wheel much have a ton to do with this. It actually feel pretty good. I'm going to have to rate this a 7 out of 10 only because I am a fan of a longer ATA bow. All in all I liked the bow. It had its flaws as does every bow well, most every bow. I feel like I could shoot it well if I needed to. I really feel like it will make many of you guys really happy in a tree stand. I personally wouldn't buy one but, I can definitely see this bow selling very well to the guy who leans more towards needing a good hunting rig. It's a nice bow that I feel most wouldn't be disappointed owning.
Very nice review. Why so anti-RKT cam??? Lol! I love em. I like the Creed as well. Shoots very nice and quiet. I think the split limbs look pretty nice on it
After going back and reading the review again, I can see how you may think I am anti-RKT. Truth is, I liked the RKT cams just not as much as I did after shooting other bows. The RKT cams are a little on the aggressive side to me, leaving not much room for error. It took some time getting use to them, however, once I did, I liked them. All the modern bows are nice. They just all feel so different from one to the other. I was attempting to give a fair review and ended up comparing more than I probably should have.
Great review. Thanks for sharing. I'm not in the market for a new bow or nor will I be for a few years. That's why I don't want to go shoot these or any of the new bows because knowing me if I did id probably try and find a way to buy one even though I don't need it. Haha
I'm going to be ordering a Creed soon. It's a sweet bow! I was really surprised with how much I liked the Chill, made me go back & forth, but in the end I just loved the feel of the Creed. Now I need to sell my Drenalin.
When I left Mathews I had my mind made up that I was ordering a Chill. I seriously love the way that bow shoots. The only thing that made me change my mind was the back wall. With the Creed having a draw stop you get that solid back wall, where the Creed has a little bit of play to it. If the AVS cam system would get a draw stop I'd be solid in a heartbeat. Maybe next year? Great review on the Creed - pretty much mirrors my thoughts exactly.
Justin - You mean the Chill has a little bit of play to it. I was able to shoot the Heli-M and the Creed right next to each other at my shop a few weeks ago and as good as the Heli-M felt last year, the Creed feels that much better. I agree that the draw on the Creed is flat and the Heli-M had a little hump before it dropped into the valley. I liked how it felt and that back wall is very nice and solid. I can't wait till mine comes into the shop and I can get out in the stand with it.
No problem man bows feel different to everybody! I wasnt trying to be critical. The Creed i shot was also a 28" draw and i am a 31" so it felt different since it was so short on me. And you are used to a prime which you practically have to force it to let down! Haha again great review and i think this will be a popular bow this year!
That's a big NEGATIVE! If I were to buy another bow, it would be another Centroid to have as a target rig and leave this one set up for hunting.
I found many points in your review that to me were not at all true. This one is the main one though. How can you have a more solid back wall then a draw stop? It's as solid as a back wall that is possible thus far. The draw stop comes around and stops solid against the limb. How can you have a more solid wall than that?
Depends on the bow and what the stops are coated with I guess. It had a slight give to it over my centroid. Not much but, it is noticeable to me. I shoot mine a lot and know it well. the back wall felt a touch softer than mine does to me. A review is someone's opinion, not everyone has the same opinion on every bow. If they did, there wouldn't be all the different bows and manufacturers out there.
