Darton Sequel 35 ST2 An Archery Nerd's Review

[billysmals]

I wanted to provide a review of the Darton Sequel 35 ST2 (I read the other thread which was awesome) with some measurements for those that geek out on that sort of thing. So DISCLAIMER: This is an archery nerd's review. It's long and detailed...so read on at your own risk! Split into Part 1 and 2....

I won’t post manufacturer specs, you can read that on Darton’s website. I’m also not going to go into the new technology for tuning as well, you can read that or watch the 1000 video’s online about it.

Affiliations Disclaimer-I don’t have any! No one asked or paid me. My opinions are my own. I ordered this bow in January and then had to cancel it after needing the money for something else. This bow was then gifted to me by family. So even though it was a gift it was paid for. All other products were purchased by me. Now onto the review!

For comparison I am going to compare to the current bow I am shooting: 2020 Bowtech Revolt X.

Where able I used a caliper to provide the measurements:

Darton Sequel 35 ST 2: measurements out of the box

ATA- 35.187 in (Advertised 35.125)
Brace- 6.31 in (Advertised 6.3)
Riser Length-34.125 in
Reflex-1.1-1inch
Weight- 4.85lbs with no stubby stabilizer, 5.05 with stubby stabilizer- (Advertised weight 4.78lbs)
Grip Thickness- 0.79 in
Grip Length- 1.37 in
Riser Shelf Width- 2.44 in
Limb Width- 2.82 in

Bowtech Revolt X:

ATA- 33.0625 (Advertised 33)
Brace- 6.5 in (Advertised 6.5)
Riser length- 29 in
Reflex- 0.66 in
Grip Thickness- 0.78 in
Grip Length- 1.26 in
Riser Shelf Width- 2.17 in
Limb Width- 3.09 in

Measurement Methodology:

ATA - measured from middle of axel screw to middle of axel screw.
Brace - measured from deepest part of the back of the grip to center of string.
Reflex -measured by placing a 36in ruler from the last point of limb contact of top/bottom limbs and then measuring from that line to the deepest part of the grip.
Riser Length -measured from the last point of limb contact with the limbs.
Riser Shelf -measured from the front edge of the riser shelf lip to the back of the riser where the rest is installed. I included this measurement as there were many reports of the riser and shelf being thicker on the darton sequels ST2’s interfering with rests mounted using the traditional side brackets. Reports were that the riser was so thick that it would max out the left windage to hit center shot.
Grip measurements: Simple calipers

Overall Thoughts On Measurements:
I was drawn to the Darton Sequel 35 ST2 for a lot of these measurements. I like long riser and long ATA bows as I feel the hold and balance well. I also like low reflex bows and was glad to see the Darton was under 2inches of reflex. The Bowtech shines here as it measured 0.66in. What was interesting to me comparing this to the Bowtech is the Darton feels much bigger, even though the ATA spec/measurement is 2 in more, 35in vs 33in. The riser on the Darton is 5inches longer (34in vs 29in) and gives the appearance of being much bigger than that. This is accomplished by near parallel limb geometry when compared to the Bowtech which has less parallel limbs and it’s geometry is more like some target bows. Specifically, the new Mathews Title has a 30in riser with 34in ATA, which is the same ratio as the Bowtech Revolt X at 29in riser and 33in ATA.

Weight:-I was concerned when starting this build the Darton being a 35in ATA that the weight would be significantly more than the bowtech.

The Bowtech fully set up: Redline RL2 5 pin .19 Dovetail Sight + QAD HDX Rest + Titanium Archery Products Stabilizer (TAP) 15in w/5oz with 10 degree Bee Stinger QD + Shrewd Atlas back bar mount QD with Bee Stinger Micro Hex 8in Stabilizer w/ 2oz = 6.78lbs.

The Darton fully set up: Axcel Driver Custom 4 pin .10 + Hamskea Everest COR Mount + TAP 15in w/5oz with TAP Gen 4 QD mount + Shrewd Atlas back bar mount QD with TAP 10in stabilizer w/ 2oz + TAP rear string stop suppressor = 6.9lbs

I used an Xpot Hanging Scale for these measurements.

I was pleasantly surprised that the darton was 0.12lbs (basically 1.6oz) heavier, even being at 35in ATA. I think this is due to the accessories mostly. The driver sight is super light compared to the Redline. Interestingly the bee stinger micro hex 8in stab with 2 oz weighed almost exactly the same as the TAP 10in stab w/2 oz. I think the hamskea Everest weighs more than the QAD HDX, but I can’t not confirm this. I would have liked to weigh the both bows bare, but the bowtech is going to be my backup on my fall hunt and I didn’t want to deconstruct it all just for this measurement. Overall, I’m really happy that the Darton fully set up is only about 1.6oz more than the bowtech.

SUBJECTIVE TIME! Just my thoughts, your mileage may vary!

Grip

Darton: It feels good to me. Not like a “WOW this is sooo much better than anything els…” It just feels good. It’s got decently squared off edges to be repeatable without being uncomfortable. The angle is more low wrist. It is thickish feeling, which I prefer as my hand is relaxed when making contact at the front with my fingers. Too thin and it caused me to close my hand and I induce more torque. What feels really good is the riser shelf provides more portectioin for my fingers. It feels like a Bee Real UV grip here. The shelf extends and is really comfortable for the grip hand, no bumps or sore spots while shooting. Additionally, there is a machined groove in the front of the grip which provides a reference for your fingers when feeling the front of the grip.

Bowtech: I concede there more bias here as it’s most familiar. I like bowtech grips. I have the clutch raised heel and you can feel how the darton has more of a low wrist comparably. I prefer a slightly raised heel. The bowtech also feels more thin. This is why I measured this between bows as I wanted to see what it objectively measured at. It wasn’t as thin objectively as I felt to me subjectively, 1.26in bowtech vs 1.37in Darton. It’s amazing how the this small .11in difference feels so much smaller. The riser shelf here also feels much smaller. Switching back and forth it was obvious I prefer the Darton here. I used to shoot a Mathews v3X and I tried a Bee Real UV grip (both versions) and I really like the riser shelf feel on these grips. The darton is similar to the Bee Real grips and it’s really nice.

Overall I like the heel profile of the bowtech but the darton’s thickness and riser shelf is really really nice. I’m not sure if one is better or worse here. I never had a problem setting my grip with the Bowtech, and the darton is no different as my hand finds the position easily. I will say the machined groove on the front of the darton is a huge win as it proves a repeatable tactile place I can touch for my front fingers. Kudos to darton for this and it’s something I wish all manufactures would take note of. It’s simple and it works.

Fit and Finish:

I chose the Ursi 2.0 camo initially on my order in January and was out of stock. This is not showing as an option on Darton’s website currently (it was at the time of my order), but you can still find this option at Lancaster and Podium Archery. I am unsure why Darton doesn’t list it as a camo option on their website. I liked the Ursi camo over the other camo options from Darton. I almost chose the Folds of Honor edition because I like to support our military veterans, and I liked the camo pattern, but the camo seemed too tanned out for me. The Ursi camo looks pretty sweet to me and overall I’m happy with it. It’s more forrest/and fern green than I had initially thought. I ordered a Kuiu Verde 2.0 tight spot thinking it would be close, but the difference is much more striking. The Kuiu has a lot more gray/blue ish, and the green is more olive. I do like the Ursi, but if darton had used Kuiu Verde 2.0 I would have chosen that. The camo finish is good not great. There are a couple of spots that look like the hydro dip (which is what I’m sure they use) didn’t apply as much or someone touched it while it was wet. I included some pictures of these locations which appear on the back of the riser where the integrated rest mounts and also on the front of the grip near the front edge of the riser shelf. I can’t compare to other companies in this area.

 

[billysmals]

Part 2:

Draw Cycle:

Full disclosure my bias is towards smooth drawing bows and this (along with the advertised specs) is why I chose the darton. I shot the Mathews Lift X, Bowtech Proven 34, and the Darton. To me out of these 3 the Darton had the best feeling draw.

Comparing the draw to my Bowtech Revolt X:

Darton: 70lbs, 27.5in draw length, small draw stops=85% let off: A little stiff up front (but less than the Mathews Lift X), it stacks evenly and then rolls to the valley really smooth and easy and then you hit the cable stop wall which is firm for me.

Bowtech Revolt X: 70lbs, 27.5in draw length, Luck Stop Draw stops with 2 dot side installed =Estimated 82-84% let off (Stock draw pegs are 85%, but I used Lucky stops for better feel and can adjust let off/draw length. Currently the 2 dot side slightly decreased the draw length by about 1/6-1/8in): Easy up front to get started, much more noticeable than the darton here, then it stacks a little more steeply to reach the peak and then there is slight hump feeling to the valley and then the wall. Hump isn’t the best word choice here, it just felt like a pronounced transition. I would still call this a smooth draw cycle as it’s easy to pull and draw.

What stood out shooting these bows back to back was the darton felt much better transitioning from peek weight to the valley and then the wall. It’s really smooth and enjoyable. Just a simple steady pull and then roll over and stop. The Bowtech however was easier up front and but the transition from peak to valley was much more pronounced which gave it the appearance feeling humpy, even though that isn’t the best descriptor. Overall, I prefer the Darton’s transition into the valley, but I prefer the Bowtechs gentle up front start to the draw cycle.

Vibration:

Darton: There is a small amount of vibration shooting it bare without stabs and no sight. It’s not a ton, but it’s more than say something like a Mathews Lift X which is like zero. I don’t care as much about this, but it’s not “dead in the hand” as people say…I don’t notice it all with the stabilizers and fully set up with a sight though. Compared to the bowtech it feels exactly the same to me, or at least if there is a difference I can’t tell. I don’t feel like one is more vibration free than the other and don’t have a way to measure it objectively with confidence.

Bowtech: I haven't shot this bow stripped in years so I can't comment on how it feels without the stabilzers and fully set up.

Sound:

Darton: It doesn’t feel louder than other bows. Shooting it in the garage tuning the target is so close it gets washed out. At the 20yrd indoor range it wasn’t overly loud or overly quiet. There was one other shooter who shot a hoyt target and hoyt hunting bow (unsure of the models) while I was shooting and it felt like the darton was about the same. My ear is tuned to the sound of my bowtech so comparing it to this it feels the darton isn’t louder, but a different pitch. I will say having owned a Mathews V3X and having shot the current Lift X, those feel more quiet for sure.

Bowtech: Has a different pitch, but it's overall "loudness" feels so similar I can't tell which is louder. I will shoot both at an outdoor range to confirm.

Set Up and Tuning: Things get interesting!

Rest: The Darton has both integrated options for the QAD and Hamskea. The Hamskea Everest rest was specifically chosen with the COR mount to take advantage of this. I wanted to go back to limb driver for this bow as I shot a first gen Hamske Epsilon on a previous V3X. Darton says to put the rest at 13/16in from the riser. Additionally, Darton machines a line in the riser shelf to indicate center shot as well.

Timing: Out of the box the top cam was about 1/8in behind the bottom cam. I can’t stress how amazing the perfect timing system is on this bow! Once I figured out which cable to twist (I first twisted the wrong cableJ) it was a breeze to time the cams equally.

Paper Tune: The advertised limb pressure tech (Darton's buzzword is "perfect tune") works. I initially had some trouble with a large 1.25-1.5 left tear (See pic). Long story made short-my rest was a bit outside of 13/16ths and I was using the limb pressure bolt on the wrong limb. I ended up calling darton which cleared it up. Turns out the “left” limb is referenced from looking at the front of the riser (not the shooters side) so I was using applying pressure to the wrong limb! The darton tech also told me I have two full revolutions of adjustment for the pressure bolt. Armed with the right information I immediately change the limb pressure locations and I purposely went slow as I wasn’t sure how quick the changes would be. It took 5-10 shots and 1.5 revolutions and I cleaned up the tear and shot a bullet hole (See pic). I am actually pleased the bolt doesn’t turn easily and have no doubt it won’t chang over time. Prior to any adjustment I marked the bolt and limb with a gold sharpie to make sure both top/bottom limbs were adjusted equally and to serve as a reference to monitor.

Speed: Don’t have a chrono so I have no idea. The bowtech has a slightly longer brace so I assume it’s going to be slower, but not by much.

Overall Thoughts

Bowtech Revolt X: Man I love this bow. I shot this for a few years and then bought a Mathews V3X in 2022, which is a really good bow and I enjoyed it. I sold it last year though because it was newer and I thought I would get more money and I knew how good the bowtech was. The bowtech revolt X draw cycle is great, the grip is nice, the cams adjust easily, there is a lot to like about it. I could talk more about what makes this bow great, but essentially what I wanted was a longer ATA bow with a longer riser.

Darton: This bow rocks!

Pro: Love the draw cycle! I like it better than the bowtech, but it’s close. Shooting at the range sighting in for 20, the more I shot the more I grinned inside. It’s so nice to draw back and it’s amazing. Truly this is easily my most important priority in a bow. The balance is good as I have it now, but I have some more range time coming this weekend to mess with my stabilizer weights. I also want to play with the front stabilizer mount locations. The Darton has two locations for the front, an upper and lower mount, so I want to experiment with this as I have never had a bow with a lower stabilizer mount.

Pro: Dimensions and specs. I like long bows and low reflex and this bow hits the things that matter to me.

Pro: Customer service. Not a bow thing really, but I wanted to shout out Darton for this. Darton tech was easy to get a hold of and answered my questions and was kind to work with.

Pro: The tuning features are awesome. I bought the bowtech initially in 2020 because I liked the draw and the tuning feature of the deadlock cams was innovative and first of its kind. The darton has their version of cam shifting and adds the timing adjustment. The timing adjustment, to me, is the real star here. While adjusting the timing, at one point I was like 1/16-1/32 off. It was awesome to twist the cable 1/8 of a turn and bam fixed. It works as advertised and it’s legit. I know bowtech now has their deadlock timing feature, but that wasn’t available at the time in 2020.

Cons: No integrated sight option. I include this as con because it may matter to some, but not as much to me. I used it on my V3X when I shot with a quiver on, but using the bowtech it doesn’t have it and this year I’m trying a total peep hip quiver so I don’t care as much. Darton just released a side mounted pic rail option if I want to change to an integrated pic mount sight. It slims the side profile a little compared to the current dovetail side mount I am using now…

Con: Weight. While I was able to get the total build weight to be almost equal to the bowtech, I think this largely came from the fact that the Redline sight on the bowtech weighs a lot and the Axcel driver is super light. I didn’t buy a Driver just for the weight, I wanted to have a complete back up bow and needed a new sight, so the driver was purchased for this reason because I liked it the most out of the new sights. I suspect that the darton would be 4-5 oz heavier using the redline sight. If darton could find a way to shave 3-4oz it would be amazing.

Con: Finish. The Ursi camo is really good looking but it isn’t applied perfectly. I’m not sure if this is specific to the Ursi camo and the other options would be better? I also can’t compare to other companies in a detailed manner, but in the store the Mathews Lift X in Kuiu Verde 2.0 looked a bit cleaner and sharper. The imperfections in the Ursi finish on my darton aren’t glaring like it’s obvious from a few feet away, but it didn’t take much for me to find them either as I was doing a once over, and I wanted to reference it here.

If you made it this far, thanks for the read! Let me know your thoughts!