Jason McCurry

The Legacy sells up here in WA for $699, but I'm heading home to Alabama for a few days over Christmas and I can pick one up there for $595, and that's at a shop I trust that have given me a lot of good info. I would probably still buy it there just because I would rather have my money go to them.

Muskrat

Simple 1 over priced 2over rated 3over advervised -their are a lot of very good bows out their for a lot less money<img src=icon_smile_tongue.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_evil.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_shock.gif border=0 align=middle>

cookie99

First of all, I would like to thank you all for your posts. As a kid I shot a little, and quit. Recently I have caught the bug, and am nuts about archery,and everything about it. Through reading many of the posts, I was able to get a lot of help on what would be best for me. I read a great deal on how one should try many different types, and see which one feels best to them. Personally I liked, and like the bowtech line very much. I now have a 2002 Patriot, and love it to death.

Spencer Cook.

Jerry/Pa

I must be bored waiting for winter bow to open but here's my cut on the subject. I have never shot a Mathews only because they don't make a duel cam and I'm stuck on duel cam bows. I had a durango but I just don't understand the engineering behind it and don't like the draw cycle of the single cam bows. As far as there advertizing blitz. You can advertize all you want but if your product doesn't live up to the hipe you lose. Mathews over the years have been on top of there game with some of the best engineering in the archery world. So you'll pay for that. I don't think they are any higher then the rest of the top bows that the rest of the top manufactures put out. They also went after the best shooters and won every title in archery compition. Now! most of these guys can shoot a broom sticks and still win. They're just rock solid. Some things you just can't teach. So now everyones looking at Mathews and guys are getting a great product but half still don't know there butt form a whole in the wall. (AT least half the guys I shoot with anyway.) But because of the forgiveness of some of mathews bows these guys are shooting better and now they're experts. But that's another topic. So I started to hate Mathews. LOL. I think Mathews did a great thing for the archery industry. They got the ball rolling and it keeps getting better. Hoyt,PSE, and most bow manufactures also play the same game but Mathews had the right combination with good engierring at the right time with the single cam. BUT!! And this is what I love about this sport. The pendulum is coming around. A couple of years ago the duel cam was looking like a thing of the past. I had a hard time finding a duel cam bow with the specs I wanted. Darton started the come pack and now Hoyt has picked it up. So now we'll see what Mathews and the rest of the manufatures engineering department does to keep in step. I love it cause my options will increase. Only they'll have to go aways to get me away from the MERLINS. I got a white knockle grip on my Max. In ten years you'll be shooting duel cams or some kind of clone anyway and I can say &quot;I told you so&quot;. lol Just kidding. JERRY

Hawgz

Great post jerry.What I dont like about Mathew's mmmmmmm Ilove um best bow for me.

SAVE A HUNTER EATA PETA

Grndzer

I don’t dislike Mathews but my Mathews dealer is a hunter only and my Hoyt dealer is a Competition shooter for ASA and IBO and has years of experience. I know that if I buy from him that I will be taken care of and that he will cut me some slack on accessories because I got the bow there. For me its way more a dealer factor than a company factor. Another thing that make me buy Hoyt is the fact that they don’t screw around, they release there 2003’s first. I buy I new bow every year, I don’t need to but I like to. And as long a BowTech and Mathews waits until after January to release there new stuff they will keep missing my 600.00. mmm I bet I am not the only one!

Orions_Bow

in my opinion nothing is wrong with a mathews, I have 3!

tobyn

i do own a mq1 and ultralite before that one.
i belive what some of these guys say about jumping on the band wagon.
i owned the ultralite for 8 years and traded it for a used mq1.
the bandwagon being the down side need for more speed..tech gagadets.
not nessarcy...after the mq1 the bows got heaveir and slower.
i would like to see a black max with the smoother cams...that would be near percfect in my opion. thanks

Ossage

I like Mathews because they invented where we are with bows today. Much of what we have is a reaction to what they did. But as with all successes, people adapt and you can get a lot of stuff they do for less, or possibly with different feature one might prefer, elsewhere. Back when they were the underdog, they did a bunch of things right that you couldn't get on other bows, and they were mid priced. Now they are upper priced, so what, its like a couple of tanks of gas.

The list of firsts in the market in a big way include:

Machined aluminum risers (right quadraflex and others, just not Bear PSE or Hoyt)

Short bows. (several others, but grip placement, also not original drove this)

Light bows

Below center grip placement

Solo cam (don't waste my time talking about Dynabow)

Carbon cable guards

VFT/parallel limb

Wood grips (they were aftermarket on most other bows at the time)

Now that all these feature are available on every bow, Mathews is a snore. But they were first to market, and once you find a bow you can shoot, why change it?

Grip sucks, but since everyone makes accesories for them, there are lots of options. One used to be able to modify them in about 10 minutes, not sure if there is enough meat on the low factory though.

The other big problem with mathews is that they are starting to loose the leadership positon they once had. All their recent technology is old, and begs for a faster bow. Obviously if bows like the legacy can be effectively silenced by their &quot;stolen/adapted vibe tech&quot;, then why aren't they faster. If speed/vibe/noise are changing from a vicious circle to a virtuous one, what are they doing about speed?

I used to buy at least a new Mathews every year, sometimes two, counting a target bow. I haven't seen anything compeling from them in quite a few years, and I haven't switched out my Ultralite, C2, or signature.

RobVos

Well...

First, I just can't seem to shoot them as well as other bows.
2nd, The grip is the worst in the industry -- has been for years and they don't change it.
3rd, they are all with high let-off and I don't like any more than 65%
4th, they don't balance for me well -- may have to do with the grip.
5th, poor tolerences, especially in limb cup to riser.
6th, cams that eat cables -- seems all the 'copy' bows fixed it, why don't they?
7th, they are overpriced in my area -- apparently in Oklahoma they are fairly priced (about $200 less than here).
8th, they have harsh draw cycles (except the Icon which is smoother), Legacy is very harsh on the draw.
9th, lose too much performance if you have to adjust the cam for and 'in-between' draw length.

The first time I saw a Mathews, I wasn't hip to the buzz about them. I picked it up and I thought it was 'cheap' but then I turned over the price tag and got shocked. Then I started to read the ads and magazines and found out they were great...haha.

When I look at the bow carefully, nothing jumps out and yells 'quality' to me.

All the stuff others have said about the advertizing (false claims and such), and the attitude of a lot of yahoos who tell you that your bow sucks because it is not a Mathews rings true. This goes for some dealers as well!

Enough for now -- you asked for honest opinions of why I don't buy them. Many others do and they are good bows (but nothing separates
them from the other brands, IMO). A little refinement and I might give one a shot.