bowtech General problem
 

got a new bowtech general about 2 months ago. It has been great until last friday 7/18/08. I went outside to shoot and when i drew it back the bow blew up. The lower axle and cam came off and hit the cable suppressor rod. Where the axle goes through the lower limb and about 3"s in front of the axle the limbs just gave away. Its peak weight is 70lbs andIm only shooting 62lbs so i dont think thats the problem. Has anyone else heard of anything like this happeningon this model bow? I took it back to my local bow shop and they said they would contact bowtech monday 7/21/08 im kinda worried about drawing it back after they fix it.It didnt put a scratch on me but i did have to change my shorts.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

I think it was archerytalk.com that had several posts on that

RE: bowtech General problem
 

WOW! Your first post and it's about a Bowtech blowing up.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

Unfortunately I've seen this happen on another 70# General. It suffered the same damage as you explained.
We've found aftering shooting the bow day in and day out... the allen bolts that tightens the limbs to the center pivot arm loosens, and possibly could cause some related problems.
Other than that, it could have just been a case of limb failure...but I will admit,your experience has certainly occured on at least one other 70# General.
You should also be told, that BowTech replaced the entire bow (within two weeks)and from then to now (maybe 6-months after) all's fine!!!
We did however replace the center pivot limb bolts with 'slightly'longer bolts and have blue Loctite them in...nevertheless you still 'constantly' need to torque these blots snug.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

The General is a great bow but it definitely has limb issues. I have seen numerous posts with pictures and heard of many in my area as well. Bowtech had issues in '06 then seemed to fix them last year. That being said they took a step back with the General IMO. Look at how much stress is on the limbs and cables while the bow is at rest, then just imagine how much stress is on them at full draw.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

Thanks for all the feed back. My local bow shop said that bowtech would probably replace everything but the riser. Should they replace it with a new bow or just the parts?Also wondering if i should maybe get away from the general. There seems to be some kind of problem with the limbs.I didnt get a scratch on me this time but if it does it again i might not be so lucky.what do yall think?

RE: bowtech General problem
 

Man I'm glad I read this post....I was really looking at the Bowtech General (along with other bows) as my next bow to be purchased within the next month or so. Not sure I'm going to continue to look at it! Thanks for helping with the tough decisions.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

First of all, I want to say that I shoot a General and so far have not had any problems- but I always have that in the back of my mind when I shoot it. BUT, my best friend also bought a General (which really surprised me because he has always been die hard Mathews), and like you he bought a 70lb and had the proshop set it to 62 lb. This was on Friday, and Sunday he got it out to shoot and when he pulled it back it exploded. Luckily he also wasn't hurt and he was able to do a complete return for a full refund.
Sometimes I wish I would have gotten an 82nd, but I was afraid that there would be more cam lean in those cams than on the new cams on the General. Besides, the General is plenty fast and the smoothest bow I have ever shot-as long as it stays together.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

Thats weired, i've had the General for like 6-7 months and have no problem with it.

RE: bowtech General problem
 

Bought a New General end of June. No problems, love the bow. But let me info you guys on something I found on mine. I always check over a new bow after purchase. Sure I shot it at the shop, and seemed great. But I'm nit picky when it comes to my bows. I go over them, and paper tune. Well at my initial check over I found several alan head bolts lose on my bow. Including the 4 on the center pivot arms. They were only like finger tight! The string suppessor arm was only held in by one semi tight alan screw, the other screw was sticking up never screwd down. I was quite surprised, and really glad I checked it over. I can't even imagine what'd happened if I kept shooting the bow like that. So I'm a little disappointed in the guy that put my bow together at Bowtech, and the pro shop I bought it from. But happy with the bow overall.
My friend also purchased a new General from the same guy, and founda few screws, bolts loseon his bow as well.
So a word of advice is trust no one when it comes to your bow, and check them over please!!