Ok, I will take you up on that offer...<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>
Alright, I am not whining.....but when I get a taste of the good life then why would I want to go back to a longer, heavier, stiffer to draw bow....just to gain 10 fps and some more kinetic energy that I already have more than enough of anyway?
90% of my shot opportunities are limited to 20-25 yards...with the other 10% being between 25-35. I haven't done trajectory comparisons between a bow shooting my setup at 275 as opposed to one shooting 285-290 but I can't believe that the difference would be significant especially at those distances.
Kinetic energy levels are really a moot point in my case. I am generating 70 ft. lbs of kinetic energy now....what do you want me to do..shoot 3 inch cutting diameter expandables so I need to up my kinetic energy level another 10 ft. lbs?<img src=icon_smile_shock.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>
Let me "turn the tables around" and ask you this......from a hunting standpoint why did you need to switch from that 31 inch axle to axle length-7.25 inch brace height bow that you were shooting with 80 ft. lbs of kinetic energy to a 38 inch axle to axle length bow with a 6.75 inch brace height that is generating 90 ft. lbs (? I forgot) of kinetic energy?
It isn't because you need more kinetic energy to open those expandables you are using...nor is it because of any flatter trajetory that you are going to get going from 319 fps to 336 fps.
So, in essence, you have gone to a longer bow with a shorter brace height to get an additional 17 fps, which from a practical point of view, doesn't make that much of a difference when we are comparing speeds at that end of the spectrum.
Matt..I am playing devil's advocate here and you know darn well that I never condemn anyone for their bow choices..
.........especially not in your case...since you have such fine taste, but I am trying to relate that all of this is a matter of perspective. I know you switched bows because you wanted something that would make you a little more competitive on the 3D scene.
A 10 fps increase is not substantial in my situation and the only way that number would change would be if I switched to a lower brace height bow or a lighter arrow or a heavier draw weight....all of which I could do but I don't see the need to. I have finally found a combination that works perfectly for me for hunting.
Something else to consider is the comparison in speeds between the two bows in question...the Extreme Solo and the Havoctec Versa. Given your estimations on speed...as well as Vic's I would gain roughly 10 fps with my current setup (using the 420 grain arrow) right? Ofcourse, they are just estimates but still.... Now, what is the IBO speed rating for the Extreme Solo with the Option 2 ....312-319? The Havoctec Versa's is 300 fps which is, obviously, 12-19 fps slower than the Extreme Solos.......Now I am only about 11 fps slower than the Havoctec's IBO speed with my setup.........but your estimates on speed could place me as much as 19 fps slower than the IBO speed for the Extreme Solo. Would that imply a higher efficiency rating for the Havoctec Versa even though its draw cycle doesn't help to store as much energy? Could that be because of the design/configuration of the riser/limbs? The materials used in the limbs, strings, etc??? Or something else?
So, if we tear this down even further we could surmise that the only difference between the two bows is the aggresiveness of the cam itself. If I were to put the original Redline 65% letoff cam on the Havoctec I would be willing to be that I could get 311-315 out of the bow at IBO specs. We compared a very similar situation last year with your Mighty Mite and my Havoc Redline. We were able to achieve roughly the same speeds because the one inch longer draw length I was using was roughly equivalent to the one inch shorter brace height you had on the Mighty Mite.
Jeff mentioned that Hoyt went in a direction different from the one he wanted to go in. Judging by his current choice in bows I would be willing to be that he felt Hoyt sacrificed performance in order to gain adjustability/marketability of their bows while reducing production costs....hence getting rid of the Redline cam, heavily pushing the Command Cams Plus and the Versacam...while still keeping the Saber/Excel cam for those few folks that still prefer a super soft drawing single cam.
Like him, I wish Hoyt would have redesigned one of the single cams to produce blistering speed...the new Redline that was introduced last year just doesn't do that with mid range brace height bows. Hopefully they will come up with something to remedy that for next year.....because that was also my only complaint for the 2002 lineup...they were all slower than last year's.
Ok, now we are going into a totally different area so I will stop....hope I didn't confuse, disappoint or tick you off.....I was just rather trying to related my point of view on this issue.
I am still going to go check some out this weekend....you convinced me enough to do that...<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>