2024 Bows?

[sndmn11]

Good feedback on the Alpha and Omnia. If you prefer / need a 30 ATA, you can stop reading now, but if you would consider a longer ATA bow you should shoot the RX-8/Ultra.


Long winded, I know - but with your draw length - I would highly encourage you to shoot the Ultra.

I shot a recurve for a very long time, then a first get Reckoning (35"ata) then did reviews here for the Omnia and Era. Before those bows, I had felt string angle was wonky for what I had tried that was 33" and under. Elite talked to me at length about how brace height, limb deflection, limb angle, cam size, etc. can make a shorter ata bow have the string angle of a longer bow from just a few years ago. The Alphax30 falls into that form as well and lined right up with my anchor. The speed is attractive and the draw cycle was easy throughout. I did not shoot the longer version (lack of speed on paper) nor either carbon version. The RX8 ultra on paper sets itself apart with that larger brace, but I do wonder if that concept of brace height = forgiveness might be going away and replaced with less riser deflection, wider limb pockets, etc. Id also want to play around with both cam sizes on the ultra to find out what feels best for 30.25" actual draw length, as I suspect that the medium cam labeled as 30" max is a little bit longer at some of the different letoff/back wall settings.

My dislike for what Bowtech has right now is that rough valley at my draw length makes it so that it is a circus trying to let down. PSE confuses me with their different cam names and it doesn't make sense to me what the intended purpose is for each so I have a grand total of four arrows sent with one in my life.

 

[3forks]

I shot a recurve for a very long time, then a first get Reckoning (35"ata) then did reviews here for the Omnia and Era. Before those bows, I had felt string angle was wonky for what I had tried that was 33" and under. Elite talked to me at length about how brace height, limb deflection, limb angle, cam size, etc. can make a shorter ata bow have the string angle of a longer bow from just a few years ago. The Alphax30 falls into that form as well and lined right up with my anchor. The speed is attractive and the draw cycle was easy throughout. I did not shoot the longer version (lack of speed on paper) nor either carbon version. The RX8 ultra on paper sets itself apart with that larger brace, but I do wonder if that concept of brace height = forgiveness might be going away and replaced with less riser deflection, wider limb pockets, etc. Id also want to play around with both cam sizes on the ultra to find out what feels best for 30.25" actual draw length, as I suspect that the medium cam labeled as 30" max is a little bit longer at some of the different letoff/back wall settings.

My dislike for what Bowtech has right now is that rough valley at my draw length makes it so that it is a circus trying to let down. PSE confuses me with their different cam names and it doesn't make sense to me what the intended purpose is for each so I have a grand total of four arrows sent with one in my life.

You make some good and informed comments, and I’ve also heard that some manufacturers like Elite are putting more emphasis on the benefits gained through focusing on less riser deflection and wider limb pockets as opposed to primarily focusing on longer brace heights to accommodate forgiveness.

Even still - I’d be curious to hear your opinion on an Ultra if you were to ever shoot it.

 

[sndmn11]

You make some good and informed comments, and I’ve also heard that some manufacturers like Elite are putting more emphasis on the benefits gained through focusing on less riser deflection and wider limb pockets as opposed to primarily focusing on longer brace heights to accommodate forgiveness.

Even still - I’d be curious to hear your opinion on an Ultra if you were to ever shoot it.

Might be able to today. I am sure it is great. I do with that companies would start sending demo bows out with cheap single pin sights so that there's a frame of reference for pin float.

 

[Kularrow]

While other manufacturers are making it easier to tune their bows without a press, Mathews doubles down and says let’s make it more challenging and force people with a press to buy new parts in order to work on bows.

 

[billysmals]

While other manufacturers are making it easier to tune their bows without a press, Mathews doubles down and says let’s make it more challenging and force people with a press to buy new parts in order to work on bows.

This made me laugh out loud at how true it is. This is coming from a current Mathews owner (v3x33). I have a press as well and have no desire to buy a new Mathews and buy the new wide LCA mod. I haven’t been impressed with the new Mathews phase 4 and don’t really expect anything drastic from next weeks release. I would totally be into shooting an RX series tho. I’m not sure I could drop 2k for carbon. But the aluminum “x” series is interesting. The 1/4 draw and adjustable let off is nice. I have a revolt x as a backup (which i plan to sell after an overseas hunt) and was not impressed with bowtech’s lineup as someone else has stated. I like the cam adjust and grip adjust, but do not care for the specs on the current offering. If I could sell both bows now I would look hard at the Hoyt line this year.

 

[Eastonsgrandpa]

For those who are questioning the new bow drop, go shoot the new Hoyts. I posted that i have always bought the newest Ultra but that I ordered the X 33 this year. Well, the Ultra has been on my mind too. They are both just great bows. So I went back today and have an Ultra on the way as well. I usually buy a couple new bows a year and see what all gets released before finalizing. But these two are coming home and honestly, the last couple years of Mathew’s and Prime haven’t impressed anyway. I have last years Bowtech SS34 and wasn’t impressed with their drop.

If even thinking about it, go shoot them. They are pretty dang incredible.

 

[dwhicker]

For those who are questioning the new bow drop, go shoot the new Hoyts. I posted that i have always bought the newest Ultra but that I ordered the X 33 this year. Well, the Ultra has been on my mind too. They are both just great bows. So I went back today and have an Ultra on the way as well. I usually buy a couple new bows a year and see what all gets released before finalizing. But these two are coming home and honestly, the last couple years of Mathew’s and Prime haven’t impressed anyway. I have last years Bowtech SS34 and wasn’t impressed with their drop.

If even thinking about it, go shoot them. They are pretty dang incredible.

What made you go with the longer version of both bows? I’m having an incredibly hard time deciding between the RX8 and the Ultra. Here’s my predicament….
The ultra feels better to shoot and I love the stability of it and the super smooth draw cycle. The 30 feels good, just not quite as good. The thing that makes my decision so difficult is I am getting 15 FPS faster out of the RX8. That’s pretty substantial. If it were only a few FPS faster it would be a no brainer to go with the ultra, but 15 is a ton. Any input or advice? Am I overvaluing speed? Or undervaluing stability?


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[Eastonsgrandpa]

What made you go with the longer version of both bows? I’m having an incredibly hard time deciding between the RX8 and the Ultra. Here’s my predicament….
The ultra feels better to shoot and I love the stability of it and the super smooth draw cycle. The 30 feels good, just not quite as good. The thing that makes my decision so difficult is I am getting 15 FPS faster out of the RX8. That’s pretty substantial. If it were only a few FPS faster it would be a no brainer to go with the ultra, but 15 is a ton. Any input or advice? Am I overvaluing speed? Or undervaluing stability?


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I hate short bows. All of my bows are minimum 33ata. I’m never concerned about speed. It’s one of the last things I consider when buying a bow. As long as I have decent speed, it’s just not an issue.

The Ultra will shoot a little slower, but the stability and accuracy for me is far better on the large platform. I feel more confident in an accurate placement getting there half a second later. Plus it just makes the shooting experience better in my view.

 

[sndmn11]

@realunlucky how did your Mach34 fare this year? I think PSE stuff comes out this week.

Any input or advice? Am I overvaluing speed? Or undervaluing stability?
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Speed is fun and covers up ranging errors better. "Stability" might be subjective, it might be an assumption, it might be something you can prove. If you walk into the bow shop with an envelope of cash and tell them you want to put your sight on each, tune each to your arrows, and shoot a 5 end spot score with each, will they say no?

 

[ol490]

I did what sndmn11 mentions over a couple of sessions. 1st session shot everything under the sun and narrowed down what “felt” like the best options. Session 2 I shot the 3 finalists for 4 hours Including through a chrono. For the remaining 2 that I was interested in, I had them mount a site, sighted it in, and shot a ton.

Similiar to where you are at dwhicker, the final 2 were between the Rx7 and Rx7 Ultra. The ultra was better, for me, in every category and I shot it better with much less float. The chrono difference between those 2 was 14 fps. To bridge that gap, I ordered the Ultra with 80 pound limbs. At 80 pounds, it’s still a better draw experience than my prior bow at 70 pounds which is a 2015 Hoyt Carbon Spyder Turbo.

It’s shooting a 471 grain arrow at 278fps @ 28” at 80 lbs. I knew that draw length fell in the modules at a spot that would be slow but I made a mental commitment before trying and buying that I would buy what shot the best without regards to being seduced by speed numbers. I had been there done that and ended up with a fast bow that I struggled to shoot well.

Long winded post here, but I’m extremealy happy with the ultra. I’ve been shooting a bow 35 years and by the second session with this bow, I’m shooting my best ever (it’s a low bar…).

Not sure 80 pound limbs is for everyone but I made the decision to buy those to overcome the gap. If I keep this bow long enough to get to a point where I can’t comfortably shoot there I’ll turn it down in weight.

 

[doc holiday13]

I missed last season with my Hoyt VentumPro 33 due to bicep detachment. But I'm overly happy with the performance. I've plugged a bunch of deer this season, and I'm very happy with performance. I'm due for new strings because I've shot it so much trying to learn it and tune.

But this is a 2024 bows thread.. That said, the new hoyts aluminum bows are highly interesting and the fact that hoyt designed the carbon and aluminum bows to shoot and "feel" the same. the VentumPro33 feels very stiff to me. But based on the look of the new alpha X, I can hardly see that thing flexing. I honestly can't see how anyone factors bow "vibration" into their choice in bows. I'll give you a bow from 1994 and you'll appreciate anything made in the last 12 years. Early 90's bows vibrated like a tuning fork.

The option for 75, 80, and 85% let-off is pretty cool

 

[Eastonsgrandpa]

I missed last season with my Hoyt VentumPro 33 due to bicep detachment. But I'm overly happy with the performance. I've plugged a bunch of deer this season, and I'm very happy with performance. I'm due for new strings because I've shot it so much trying to learn it and tune.

But this is a 2024 bows thread.. That said, the new hoyts aluminum bows are highly interesting and the fact that hoyt designed the carbon and aluminum bows to shoot and "feel" the same. the VentumPro33 feels very stiff to me. But based on the look of the new alpha X, I can hardly see that thing flexing. I honestly can't see how anyone factors bow "vibration" into their choice in bows. I'll give you a bow from 1994 and you'll appreciate anything made in the last 12 years. Early 90's bows vibrated like a tuning fork.

The option for 75, 80, and 85% let-off is pretty cool

Absolutely agree on the whole vibration, or how it’s put now, “hand shock” thing. That is just gimmick that only matters as six feet in the shop. I can’t say it’s ever mattered to me when choosing a bow. I love the shoulder punch of a good 30 cal rifle so the little buzz in my hand being an issue is comical.

Besides, once you have sight, bars, rest, and quiver on there, it is not the same bow.

 

[Kularrow]

 

[OR Archer]

That’s quite the preloaded limb on the new Mathew’s. Interested to see what the claimed IBO will be on them.

 

[Sadler]

D

View attachment 626617

Did they change much of anything?

 

[chasewild]

Looks like a new cam?

 

[sndmn11]

D

Did they change much of anything?

It looks like they changed about everything.

 

[Billy Goat]

Wait til you see the limb width in person.

 

[Wannabebowhuntr]

is that the same ata with 2 different cams or just the angle makingnthem look different?

 

[Kularrow]

Wait til you see the limb width in person.

Is IBO really 353?