pdoughertyMU

This looks like a very nice bow for cheap. It seems to have good speed, a good feel, good looks, etc. so why so cheap? Is this a good bow to buy? any experiences? or is this cheap bow going to provide poor consistancy and performance? I am very close to buying this bow, but would like to hear your experiences. At 299, i don't see how i could pass it up.

Thanks

Geronimo1

My thoughts exactly. I looked at one today and think I'm gonna get it. Just looking for feedback myself.

wayomic

Have one. Quiet bow, shoots fast, accurate enough to kill deer, so not bad at all.

my only problem has been the high poundage it is set at and my draw length make it hard to get a good arrow for my setup, but that'e me not the bow.

And since when is $299 cheap? It is only when compared to $700+ bows.
Just about ALL of the bows on the market are overpriced.
It's like the difference between a Remington 870@ $250 and a Benelli Super Sport @ $1600. I've been on hunts w/ guys carrying Benellis, Berrettas, etc and they were no better a weapon than my 870. Fancier, more gadgets, but mine killed as well, and hit as accurately. Same with so-called "cheap" bows.
They only thing you get with the higher price is "todays" latest gadgets, which are old in a year and why there are so many people who buy a new bow every year or so, and sometimes it brings a more consistent product. Like a rifle manufactorer who gauranties 1 minute of angle, or better, out of the box. Only because they tested and "threw out" the ones that didn't perform above average.

Or as onebow-tech/competitor I know said, "Higher Prices don't kill deer, accuracey does"
(also coming from someone with knowledge on the difference in Retail price and what a store gets them for AND how much thingscost to manufacture)

Sorry, but I get in a rant about "cheap" stuff. Mainly because I have almost always had to make due with the very same, and have actually never had a problem with them.

pdoughertyMU

nice to hear you are relatively happy with it. When i was saying cheap, i meant look at every other bow with the specs that this beast has, and they are all at least a hundred more. even with the instinct, it seems the only real difference is a slightly different cam with 8 more ibo fps. yet its 100 bucks more. I dunno, i shot it and thought it was great, I would have gone with the instinct, but chose the element because it is less expensive. It should arrive sometime this week. I am very excited to get it up and shooting. Fred Bear seems like they take a long time to ship to their vendors. Its been 2 weeks!

PABowhntr

I haven't handled one yet but on paper the bow looks very impressive especially when you consider the price....and who cannot consider its price when the average price for a bow these days has to be around $400 or more?

I have owned Fred Bear bows in the past and having been happy with almost all of them. Definitely a step forward with this year's lineup in my opinion.

TerryM

I forget where I saw/read it but recently I was looking at a bow test that had the usual flagship bows from the big 3 and also had a Fred Bear in the test. The Bear scored remarkably well and obviously surprised the hell out of all the testers. They are probably a very good buy.

dick_cress

For those of you with the Element, I am interested in details of your set ups.

After all these years my son traded his Remington (740 I think) for a new FB Element. He is not rich and has to add things to his set up one piece at a time. It took me 43 years to get set up. I know his bow is not a Mathews but most of my early years of bow hunting I wasvery happywith all my FB bows (my favorite was the FB Kodiak-I think that's what it was called) and never had any problems-of course those were the Recurve Days and some of those bows stacked but still tool many whitetails and one black bear.

The following is my recommendation for his setup:
1. String Loop 2. Limb Savers, 3. Sims S-Coil stabilizer 4. Scott Sabertooth Release 5. Copper John Scardey Cat (Fall away arrow rest.) 6. Cobra Boomslang 5 pin sight 7. Timberland No-Peep 8. Strap type wrist strap 9. Beman ICS Hunter (target arrows) and Beman ICS Camo Hunter (hunting) 10. 100 gr field tips 11. Sonic 100 brodheads.

Do any of you Element shooters have any comments?

OOPS! One more question-he did not get a manual can you tell me what the draw weight change is for each turn of the limb bolt?

gzg38b

I know a guy who has one and he really likes it. I've never shot one though. In general, the difference in performance between a top end bow and an economy bow isn't that big. But the difference in price is huge.

Gundeck

Definitely looks like a fine bow. I am thinking of buying one for my son.

Roskoe

I bought one for my son this past Christmas. Set up almost exactly the same as yours except that we use the Whisker Biscuit. We got the 50/60. Started turning it down. Four turns brought it down to just under 51 lbs. Six turns gave us 44.3 lbs. Have been shooting it for ten months now at the 44.3 lb. setting. No problems. 237 fps with 372 gr. arrows. Will reliably put arrows into an apple at 25 yards. We shoot the Easton Excel 500 series. Will start deer hunting here in about two weeks. After that, I'm planning to crank the poundage up a little as he appears to be pulling it back pretty easily the past few months. Great little bow.