Quote:
ORIGINAL: JOE PA
Rick: If you don't mind, could you please tell some specific things about the Apex 7 that you find so much better than other bows you have shot. I know you have put a great deal of time into your shooting, and are far above my level. Just curious about why you say it is so much better. What would you think of an A7 for a hunting bow, assuming I don't have any climbing stands to worry about clearance? Thanks.
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There are a couple of things that make me say that, but mostly it has to do with balance, and mass weight.
I am a huge believer in a target specific bow needing to have an appropriat ratio between mass weight of the entire setup, and holding weight at full draw. I am still shooting HC in both IBO, ASA, and local stuff. With an 11.5" doinker carbon elite, the bow balances perfectly and isn't top heavy like nearly every other bow. Parallel limbs and long risers are cool because of lack of shock, however they really mess with the balance of the bow and make them top heavy. The Apex 7 doesn't do this at all and balances perfectly. The combination of the higher holding weight at full draw because of the 65% letoff, and the higher mass weight of the bow because of the heavy machined riser is perfect and the weight is in the right places as well. For a HC setup, it is difficult these days to accomplish that balance without side rods and v-bar setups. I can honestly say that my 70lb A7 with that doinker holds steadier and has less range of movement than any other bow I have used for 3D. The same goes for my 56lb Apex 7 with the shrewd carbon devibe 26" front rod and the 7" side rod. With that setup on the vegas face I honestly float within the 10 ring using a 6X lense.
The specs of 38" ata and 7" brace height are perfect for a 3D bow as well, and it is more forgiving than the 7" would lead you to believe. I actually liked my 70lb one for 3D so much I bought another in target colors @ 56lbs for indoors and have shot my highest indoor games with it over the last few weeks. I plan to shoot it for field and FITA this year also.
The grip is simply the best stock factory grip I have ever felt, better than shrewds IMHO. I put a small strip of skateboard grip tape on the back of the grip and that gives me the most consistent hand placement I have ever seen.
The bow is quick, fast enough to let me shoot GT 30X pro arrows at perfect ASA speeds. This is a 26/64's diameter arrow that really helps cut lines and it does make a difference IMHO. Those 30X pros fly at 281fps at 437 grains.
I wouldn't hesitate to hunt with one, however every time this year I killed a deer I had to hold at full draw for a while, and the 80% letoff my XT has was really really nice for that. The XT is much lighter to be hauling around as well and is plenty accurate enough for hunting distances, plus it's lots quieter. With that said, I do bring my A7 3D bow with me on long hunting road trips as backup and would use it in a second if I had a problem with the XT..........it just hasn't happened yet.
A lot of people look at the XT and nothing else in the Mathews lineup these days. The A7 deserves a better look IMHOfrom guys. You hear so often of people wanting a 37" 7" brace height bow but they don't look at the A7 I think because it doesn't have parallel limbs and that isn't "cool" these days. It is expensive also, but then again it is perfect for any type of target archery especially 3D. When compared to other bows that would be used specifically for 3D, not much else is in it's class IMHO. I wouldn't change a thing on this bow for a target specific rig.
New 3-D Bows
