Elite Archery

[Yukondog]

As I'm looking to build a new set up and keep my current as a back up, Elite Answer was recommended to me. Last weekend I went to a shop and tried 5 different bows. The Elite Hunter came out on top. They did not have the Answer bow to shoot so today I'm going to a different shop that has both bows.

Who has shot these bows? It seems like the warranty is hard to beat. Plus they have some program that should your bow brake they will overnight you a loaner tuned and set up for you to complete your hunt. Great bonus if you ask me.

I shot Mathew and Hoyt bows but the Elite was smoother and more comfortable to me. I was very surprised how much better the Elite bows felt. Will say the Mathews Creed came in second place. That may change once I get to shoot the Answer. The Hunter is a awesome bow for sure.

Matt

 

[IAHNTR]

Can't go wrong with an Elite. I have been shooting Mathews since 2006 and I think my next bow will be an Elite. Google Elite Answer reviews and check out what others on other forums say. Seems to be almost all positive for the Answer.

 

[sneek-ee]

The longer axle to axle on the answer is nice. Hunter has a longer brace height. But it all depends if you like a longer or short bow.
The Hunter has a smoother draw than the answer, but the answer is still smooth! I dont think anyone makes an easier drawing bow than an Elite.
Back wall on both is awesome. If you didnt have a problem with the grip on the elite, you should be good to go. That's the only complaint i've ever heard.

 

[miller1]

You will love shooting any Elite, I can vouch for the warrenty as i dropped my GT500 and splintered the limb, i emailed elite on a sunday afternoon about it and got a reply sunday evening and had a new set of limbs at my house in 3 days covered under warrenty.

 

[trkyslr]

Let is know how they compare... Draw cycles, etc. Also what's your draw length?

 

[Ozz08]

I've shot them both and they are both super nice. I liked the answer spec wise but the 2013 hunter is the easiest, smoothest, most dead In the hand, and most quiet bow I have ever shot. I have also read a few chrono results where the the 2013 hunter is just about meeting the IBO speed of the answer which is pretty impressive. Over an inch more brace height and just as fast! Not bad.

 

[trkyslr]

Ozzo, where did you shoot them in Cali?

 

[Jon Boy]

I shot Mathew and Hoyt bows but the Elite was smoother and more comfortable to me. I was very surprised how much better the Elite bows felt. Will say the Mathews Creed came in second place.

Matt

My buddies work at the local archery shop so on slow days they let me shoot all of the bows that they want me to buy that I cant afford, and the elite answer hands down felt smoother than any other, and ive literally shot all of the high end bows from the big 3 (not the 2013s yet though). I dont get caught up in speed either, but the elites are no slouches in that either. The answer will be my next bow.

 

[Lukem]

I have a '12 Answer. Was previously shooting a 08 commander 3D and 09 alphamax for hunting. On the first test shot with the Answer, I wasn't even drawn back to full and the thought "BUYING ONE" went through my mind. The draw is great, the wall is solid and it holds almost as steady as the Commander. Elite's warranty is great as well. I had a finish issue (had a couple splinters on the limb peel back) and they sent me new limbs, had a little serving separation at one of the cams and they next dayed a set of strings. I've been very happy with them, despite the minor issues. It's one of the tradeoffs with going with a smaller company, they might have an issue or two, but they'll bend over backwards to help the customer. Other than what I mentioned, the quality is outstanding.

 

[Yukondog]

Let is know how they compare... Draw cycles, etc. Also what's your draw length?

I have a 30" DL.

So I was able to shoot a '12 Answer with the speed mods. I did not like how that felt. Back wall was solid, but if felt like it was going to jump out of my hands. The Answer with regular mods was great! Smooth and easy to pull. Wall was like a rock and felt like I could hold if forever. Between the new Hunter and the Answer I'm not sure which one I like best. My current bow is 30" ATA. I went into my search looking for a longer ATA bow.

I will go back and shoot them again. Both the Hunter and the Answer are great bows. They feel great in my hand, pull with ease, solid wall and you could hold them forever. Best way to describe it for me is that at full draw I feel as though I have to push the string forward to get it started. I could hold, at 70lbs, full draw for 5 mins with no problem.

I am curious to know how easy are these bows to get a final tune on? Have there been any issues with the cams? I did hear that some of the bows last year where chewing up strings. Sounded like it was a milling problem with the cams that was leaving a sharp edge. Don't know if there is any truth to that. Also, there where problems with the strings in the past. Problem solve with '13 bows coming with Winner's Choice strings. I have used WC over the last 4yrs with great success. That is a nice upgrade from the beginning instead of replacing the strings right away with quality strings. Saves over $100 from the get go.

Any other thoughts out there about Elite bows?

Matt

 

[trkyslr]

Matt, thanks for the info!

 

[Matt W.]

The Elite Warranty is pretty darn nice...
I believe Elite willingly fixed any string issues on the 12 bows.
Check out the Elite Archery forum, good info there.. Also if you search a round a bit you can find info on guys that offer "custom tunes" and lots of good tips on tuning and more...

 

[J-Daddy]

I've got a 2012 Answer setting here right now that I've hunted with this fall...As far as tuning goes, mine tuned really easy. I pretty much eyeballed the rest and then walk back tuned it out to 60yds and it stacks arrows with field tips or broadheads for me. On the string issue, I think a lot of that problem had to do with the strings more than anything else. With good aftermarket strings with Halo serving that is applied TIGHT there are no issues that I've seen.

 

[Yukondog]

Thanks guys for the input!

Somewhat surprised there are not more guys chiming in. Talked with one guy who thought the Hunter was such a great bow but would never buy it because of his brand loyality to Mathews. Doesn't want to buy from smaller company even though he thought it was a great bow. Even suggested I buy it over the Creed.

I know it is a smaller company. What part of the country is Elite a good seller? Here in CO it is hard to find dealers willing to work with ya. It was suggested to me to go up to Longmont. Apparently a shop up there is a big Elite dealer.

Matt

 

[6t4nova]

Did you go to full rut? Several of the guys out there shoot elite bows.

 

[Yukondog]

I did. Shot Brians '12 Answer with the speed mods. Did not like it one bit. Shot another bare bow '12 Answer and liked it. Though I'm leaning towards the Hunter. Seem to not be getting straight answers as well. I know there aren't many changes from the '12 to '13 Anwser bow, but Winner choice 8190 strings out of the gate and the new non reflective cerakote finish on all '13 bows are a nice touch. Was told there where no changes and they are the same bow. Which is not the case. I also can't stand the fact that even though the shops I have gone to know I will be buying a new rig soon do nothing for me in the way of getting the bow set up with my correct draw length. Sure I can shoot 27" and 28" bows but when I ask for them to set them up correctly I'm told "nope" shot them as is. To me that is similar to trying on boots too small to see if I like them. Doesn't make sense to me


Spoke with Mark at Elite yesterday. Surprised phone call to say the leaat. My question was arrow speed with my 411gr arrow and the new Hunter at #70 with 30"DL. He said I would be scratching 300fps. I may be a overly simple guy, but that phone call sold me on the peoduct. Now if I could only find someone to take my order and help me get set up I will be up and running. I will be making the drive to Longmont. Mark from Elite suggested that I put the effort in and Boyd from Archery from the West will make it happen. At least that is what the shop is called I believe.

I can't figure out why it is so difficult to find a good archery shop. A guy could make a killing if he could open one up with a couple dedicated and qualifies bow techs and a store front that was not biased towards what products they sold. Sponsorship has killed many good intentioned shops. IMO

Matt

*sorry for the ramble. Afterall the Mathews and Hoyts didn't feel good to me. Suppose I'm weird or dysfunctional. Current bow is a Bear Attack amd I love that bow. Only reason I want a new set up is so I can have a back up bow.

 

[6t4nova]

Gotcha. Yeah it seems that they would be able to set one up for you. Scratching 300 FPS is pretty good. I shoot a vector turbo, 80 lbs, 28" draw, and with a 430 grain arrow I am getting right at 310.

I really like the elite bows. Thought about getting one as a dedicated target bow/back up hunting rig actually. The wall on them is great. Feels like you have to push it forward to release it.

See you tomorrow if you will be at Bill's Archery Hut.

 

[J-Daddy]

I did. Shot Brians '12 Answer with the speed mods. Did not like it one bit. Shot another bare bow '12 Answer and liked it. Though I'm leaning towards the Hunter. Seem to not be getting straight answers as well. I know there aren't many changes from the '12 to '13 Anwser bow, but Winner choice 8190 strings out of the gate and the new non reflective cerakote finish on all '13 bows are a nice touch. Was told there where no changes and they are the same bow. Which is not the case. I also can't stand the fact that even though the shops I have gone to know I will be buying a new rig soon do nothing for me in the way of getting the bow set up with my correct draw length. Sure I can shoot 27" and 28" bows but when I ask for them to set them up correctly I'm told "nope" shot them as is. To me that is similar to trying on boots too small to see if I like them. Doesn't make sense to me


Spoke with Mark at Elite yesterday. Surprised phone call to say the leaat. My question was arrow speed with my 411gr arrow and the new Hunter at #70 with 30"DL. He said I would be scratching 300fps. I may be a overly simple guy, but that phone call sold me on the peoduct. Now if I could only find someone to take my order and help me get set up I will be up and running. I will be making the drive to Longmont. Mark from Elite suggested that I put the effort in and Boyd from Archery from the West will make it happen. At least that is what the shop is called I believe.

I can't figure out why it is so difficult to find a good archery shop. A guy could make a killing if he could open one up with a couple dedicated and qualifies bow techs and a store front that was not biased towards what products they sold. Sponsorship has killed many good intentioned shops. IMO

Matt

*sorry for the ramble. Afterall the Mathews and Hoyts didn't feel good to me. Suppose I'm weird or dysfunctional. Current bow is a Bear Attack amd I love that bow. Only reason I want a new set up is so I can have a back up bow.

Good shops are hard to find no matter where you live...There are some good ones but for every good one you get 10 that suck it seems like...Seems like you always end up with big Egos, employees that don't know anything and gladly hand out bad advice to anyone who will listen, and old school owners who have no interest in new products in the bad shops. I've seen and heard so much bad advice and terrible work come out of some shops over the years it's hard for me to put much trust in them anymore. Archery is a niche market, shops should bend over backwards to help customers and they owe it to themselves and their customers to be informed...To bad that's not the way it always works out.

 

[Lukem]

Good shops are hard to find no matter where you live...There are some good ones but for every good one you get 10 that suck it seems like...Seems like you always end up with big Egos, employees that don't know anything and gladly hand out bad advice to anyone who will listen, and old school owners who have no interest in new products in the bad shops. I've seen and heard so much bad advice and terrible work come out of some shops over the years it's hard for me to put much trust in them anymore. Archery is a niche market, shops should bend over backwards to help customers and they owe it to themselves and their customers to be informed...To bad that's not the way it always works out.

Amen to that. I could ramble on that subject for an hour, but you put it dead on, and spared everybody my nonsense.

 

[Matt W.]

Go to the Elite Forum. Those guys can help ya quite a bit... I love my Z28.. Its a sweet shooting bow... Unless I get a free bow, my next bows will always be Elite..