Need unbiased opinions on what bow I should get...


ChrisSeb53

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Hello everyone,

Thanks for everybodies help who tried to answer my questions about my '09 Diamond Iceman that I could not get to tune. Turns out the bow had bad cam lean so I took it back to Cabela's for a refund no questions asked. Now I am on the market for a new bow once again and I was wondering about what people thought about the new bows out there (please try to be as unbiased as possible.. what works for you may not work for me). I am looking at possibly the Mathews z7 or Reezen 7.0, and from the Hoyt line possibly the Maxxis 31 or even the TurboHawk. I was wondering how the hand shock was on these bows and how forgiving the draw cycles were. I will go out and try them for myself at some point, but in the meantime I was just wondering what your humble opinions are. Also, feel free to mention a bow that you think is a nice shooter, but please leave some info on that bow as well. Thanks guys! Shoot straight!

-ChrisSeb53:cool2:

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They are all nice bows; but they are all different. Mathews make a great bow; but the Hoyts sure are nice shooters.

I, personally, didn't like the Reezen or the Z7; but I love the new Maxxis 31 by Hoyt.

But saying that, you can get all the info you want on here; but until you put these bows in your hands and try them out for yourself, you will never know which one is right for you!

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I am having my Diamond Marquis repaired under warranty right now for the same problem. If it happens again I'll redesign it myself and machine the necessary parts. We'll see how they do first.

As for a good bow, I'm loving my G5 Quest Primal. It's very well made and shoots well. I can draw it at 70 pounds so the cams aren't too wild. I shoot it at 65. It's worth a look. Or the solocam Quest bows. I've shot them and they were fun to shoot. The string that came on it hasn't rotated the peep at all either and I've shot it at least 700 times. They seem like a well thought out setup.

Mark

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I don't know how brand loyal you are but that isn't a key factor in me buying a new bow.

One, I'm with you on the smooth draw cycle. High energy cams will make you feel like your shoulder is coming out of socket when drawing and especially letting down. Being able to let down smoothly while in a stand is essential when a deer is involved adn not spooking them. You hunt enough and you will have to do this eventually.

Two, if you like a short ATA bow then you've got to look at shooting a loop which I don't like, so I stay with 33" ATA and longer bows. Just a preference of mine of shooting off the string.

Three, grip is a huge factor in a bow and this will determine how well it shoots also. To much palm on a grip and you'll get into torquing the bow and not realizing it. I prefer a small neck grip and minimal on the side plates.

Four, hand shock should be a thing of the past with any and all different types of supressors on the market.

With today bows and cams designs, it isn't hard to find a bow that will meet all of these criteria for me. your preferences might be different. I've shot the Reezin and didn't like the draw on it. Mathews has some great bows out there but alot in their designs I don't care for. JMO Anyway, shot a bunch of them and get a good idea of what you want.

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Brand isn't that important any more, look at a brace height of around 8 inches or so. This will give you a more forgiving bow, smooth draw cycle is important. I have a short draw length and slower arrow speed than most and I've never had a deer I shot complain about the arrow only sticking in the ground 3 inches after it went through them. LOL Good luck

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It is pretty hard to buy a bad bow these days. All the brands are pretty good these days. Everybody has their prefrences and what qualilities they like on a bow. I think the feel of the handle and how it feels to shoot it is very important. It is always best to test the bow out before you buy it. It is the same as test driving a vehicle before you buy it, you want to get a good feel for it. Do not buy a bow just because of it's speed. Look at things such as brace height and axle to axle length to determine how forgiving and smooth the bow will be. Forgiveness is very important to me.

I am not familiar with Mathews or Hoyt at all, because I have never owned or shot either of them before.

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It'll be a little cheaper now, but a couple years ago I got the Gander Mountain Tech Hunter Elite bow. It's made by Diamond/Bowtech, but I haven't experienced issues with cam lean at all. I liked the fit (single-piece wood grip version). I also had many of the top bows a couple years ago set to the same specs, compared their draw cycles, and found the TechHunter Elite was super smooth. It felt like I was drawing much less weight. Also, I shot it stripped down against a lot of top bows with no accessories at the time and it had really no perceived vibration. It also had a rock solid backwall which I liked for consistency. It was loaded with top of the line features straight from the factory. At 317-319 fps IBO it wasn't really slow either for two years ago. Not sure how it compares to the new bows like the Z7 or any of the new beyhond parallel limb bows, but I'd check it out if you can.

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Never OWNED a bow model I didn't like but have shot plenty of them. Did plenty of spec compairisons and hands on before ever purchasing what I was looking for in a bow. Started with PSE, went on to Mathews, Hoyts, Bear, and now back to PSE.

Who knows what the future will hold for me. Shoot as many as you can that fit your criteria, then narrow down the field to which fits your personal budget and hunting style best.

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This is a very easy question if you don't care what kind of bow you shoot. Get all the bows you want lined up. Stand at a three yard target, draw each back, close your eyes and shoot. If you can make it so you don't know what bow you are shooting, all the advertising and peoples opinions won't influence what you think of the bow before you shoot it. The hard part is not second guessing what bow "feels" the best because its not one of the more popular bows.

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But saying that, you can get all the info you want on here; but until you put these bows in your hands and try them out for yourself, you will never know which one is right for you!

Right there is what you need to do! Shoot as many bows you can get your hands on! Then decide for yourself what you like! What fits and feels the best!

;)

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I just picked up a new 2010 Martin Firecat TR1...it is my first new bow in about 15 years.

I have to say, my PSE 'SR1000' vs. the Firecat?...no comparison...It's not even shot in yet, but that cat growls !

Why did I choose a Martin?

Primarily, that is the bow that my local Pro shop carries. I have owned Martins in the past and have absolutely no qualms with their bows, but local service is a BIG plus to me.

Like has been said, visit a local pro shop and handle a few bows...and if they have them there for you to handle, chances are they work on them too.

Bob;)

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