Shot a Monster last night
So I called my buddy PAHardwoods on the way to the shop tonight and he said the Monster showed up and he was in the process of getting it ready to shoot. I thought cool, lets see this thing finally.
The setup was as follows (Chad, chime in if missed something)
29" @ 68lbs with a 354gr arrow.
It sent this arrow through the chrono at 328fps. I was under the impression this bow was supposed to shoot 353 IBO. Doesn't look like its gonna make it.
Enough of the speed stuff.
Fit and finish on appeared right on par for Mathews, top notch. The bow really does look "mean". I watched Chad shoot the bow first. First impression, this bow is surprisingly quiet for being a 6" brace height speed bow. I also checked cam lean at full draw and if there is any, its very, very minimal.
I shot the bow next. The draw cycle....well....as you would expect, its nasty. The initial pull of the bow is nice, but toward the backside of the cycle, there is a big hump to get over. So much so that once you get over it, you're dumped abruptly into the valley. It does appear to have a pretty nice valley though. Thank goodness. If it didn't, it would pull you arm out of its socket.
The shot itself was also surprisingly shock free with little recoil. Mathews did send a string suppressor which was put on as well. I honestly think this bow has less hand vibration than the Reezen I shot earlier. This of course could be attributed to the suppressor. The Reezen didn't have any type of suppressor on it and its quite evident that most felt hand vibe was because of the string.
For comparisons sake, we turned the bow down to 62lbs and shot it some more. Still, the draw cycle is rather brutal IMO. After shooting it a while, I went back to my 66lb Allegiance and honestly, even 5lbs heavier, was much, much easier to draw than the Monster is. But, its a speed bow, what else can be expected?
I honestly think this bow shoots well and holds well. Very little recoil and vibe on the shot. But, a 6" brace height, combined with a nasty draw cycle, has no place in the woods, at least for me.