JeffB

Welcome Gentle Readers to my latest LBBR.

I thought long and hard about whether or not to do this one because as you may or may not know I am now an Advisory Staff member for BowTech. I even asked some (non-Bowtech) folks on the boards their opinions on whether or not I should indeed write this. Long story short, here it is.

Though I have approached this report in no different a manner than I have previously from a “critiquing” standard, some of you I’m sure will see this as a conflict of interest, and that’s quite understandable. The only thing I can say is that I am giving my honest opinions and observations as always. The folks at BowTech have always said what they liked best about my reports is the fact that they are forthright & constructive with their criticism & praise, so I don’t plan to change for this one either. They have made it quite clear that if I need to rip on the bow for anything they want to hear about it.

All that said, I’m fairly positive this will be my last “full blown” report. They just prove too time-consuming these days for me (a least to do them properly). Perhaps if I win the Lotto I should reconsider?

I hope you enjoy it regardless of your feelings on the matter.

2004 BOWTECH LIBERTY



33.25” measured Axle to Axle length. 7 & 5/8” measured brace height. 71 pounds peak weight. Listed mass weight is 3 pounds 14 ounces. Film dipped in Mossy Oak Obsession Camo. Bearing-equipped Freedom single cam with 4” diameter single track idler(also bearing equipped). Stainless steel stabilizer bushings in front and rear positions.
Gordon CM straight/solid limbs. one piece wood grip. “o2” string and cable. Factory installed Vibrablocks, string silencers, cushion buttons and cable guard damper.

The bow is set at its peak weight of 71 pounds. With the 29” draw length module installed AMO/ATA draw length measured 29.25” ATA/AMO out of the box. With the draw stop set for 65% letoff, draw length measures 29” ATA/AMO.

Currently the Liberty is set up with the factory installed VB’s and hush-kit, a fletcher tru-peep, string loop, Trophy Taker Shakey Hunter arrow rest, an HHA Optimizer Lite 5000 adjustable 1 pin scope sight, paradox sling, and finally my trusty “long” SorboTek stabilizer.


WHATS NEW?

While BowTech has constantly refined their bow designs over the past 4 years, 2004 is a significant leap compared to say the difference from 2001 to 2002 or from 2002 to 2003. Almost every feature or aspect of the bows has been redesigned from the ground up.

First and foremost are the major changes to the risers. Nearly every riser in the line has had a makeover. Machining is much more precise, whether it be edge beveling, cut-outs or otherwise. Everywhere there is the potential for excess aluminum BowTech has shaved it off, while still retaining their typical “solid” feel.



A new full arrow- shelf has been machined in the riser just above grip for safety and to better accommodate drop-away style rests that are so much in vogue these days. The new riser on the Liberty is highly reflexed but not very “torque-y” despite that design. It’s definitely less prone to hand and string torque than previous models like the 2002/2003 Patriots and the Extreme VFT. Bow balance has been addressed for those who did not care for the top-heaviness of most previous model years. My analogy would be thus: The previous model year BowTech’s would be the late 60’s Shelby Mustang GT350, whereas the 2004 riser would be the 2004 model Cobra SVT. Both are incredible machines, but the new models have much better handling mannerisms, are less “raw” feeling, have a smoother/tighter ride, and (arguably, in the case of the vehicles) cleaner more flowing lines. That said, in cars my preference would be for the GT500 Shelby Mustang, but I digress



The sight window on the Liberty as well as the other all-new designs for 2004 is cut out nearly as deep as the arrow pass region, which results in a very wide field of view. This is a most welcome feature in my book, as it yields a very clear sight picture, particularly for those using a scope or scope-like sight. High Country had been doing this for a while on some of their machined riser bows, and I’m not really sure why it’s never caught on industry-wide. Glad to see BowTech utilizing this technology. The only possible downside is that your existing sight and/or rest may not offer enough adjustment. With the NAP 3000/4000, the Golden Key Premier series rests & the Trophy Taker I’ve tried it has not been a problem, but be aware of this fact. As for sights, I’ve had no issues with my Impact Cosmic-Lite, a Scout Mountain Bighorn, or the HHA Optimizer Lite 5000.



Also new for 2004 is the addition of pivoting limb pockets on the new risers. These are similar to designs from other manufacturers such as Mathews, Hoyt & PSE. The BowTech version locks down on one side with an allen key bolt.



I would prefer two lockdown bolts (one on either side) as Hoyt currently utilizes, but the system is more than adequate, and far better than no lockdown on a pocket of this type. The only thing I would be careful of is that you do not make your centershot and sight adjustments until after you have tightened the locking bolts down. On the Hoyt bows I owned with one-side pocket lockdown, the pocket would shift slightly and throw your sights off a bit as you tightened it/loosened it. I haven’t tested it on the BowTech pockets so I’m not aware of it being an issue, so take that as just a pre-caution from me.

The Liberty (as well as two other new models) sports the new Freedom single cam. The F-cam is a large design with an accompanying large 4” diameter single-track idler wheel. Both the cam and the idler utilize bearings instead of bushings of alloy or composite manufacture. Like it’s big brother the Infinity cam, it uses BowTech’s patented post-feed design.




The Freedom cam (also in the same vein as its older sibling) utilizes a draw stop that is minutely adjustable. The draw-stop makes contact with the limb as the cam rotates into the full draw position, and the wall doesn’t get any more solid than this, folks! Modules for the Freedom cam are available in half-inch increments and combined with the extreme amount of fine-tuning with the draw stop, the Liberty is easily and precisely adjustable to your exact draw length. Moving the stop does affect let-off and the valley of the cam, and it may take some tinkering to get the exact combo you are looking for. The stop has a rubber o-ring around it to deaden noise as it makes contact with the limb as well as shrink tubing over it to keep it from popping off. Also new this year are more precise “hash” marks for aligning the stop. The owner manual (which was not included with my bow) will have all the necessary information for adjusting the stop and/or modules as necessary.

Tying the Freedom cam and idler together is BowTech’s “o2” bowstring and cable. This is a two-color “twist” design and is fairly common these days. The only major difference between the 2004 version and last years is a new material. The string material is a brand new product from Brownell dubbed “TS-1”. As far as I know, no other bow company is using this material as of yet. Purportedly the TS-1 is a bit faster than 8125 from BCY (the industry “standard”), while also having minimal creep and vibration.

Also totally re-designed is the new VibraBlock limb vibration dampening system, as well as the new “hush kit” consisting of 2 pairs of string silencers, a cable guard damper, and 2 cushion or “eliminator” buttons. This whole vibration/noise reducing system is “stock” equipment from the factory on all but one BowTech model for 2004. These new accessories certainly are eye catching. The best description I’ve heard of them was “limb squids”, which is appropriate as all the new accessories have soft flexible “arms” that radiate from the center and somewhat resemble a squid or octopus.

While some just may think they look cool (or ugly as per the individual’s taste) there is a motive behind this: more surface area. These longer, softer arms are better able to dissipate vibration. Very much worth mentioning are the “eliminator” buttons. Seemingly this is not a huge feature, but for a dealer it’s actually quite nice: The bow is ready to shoot out of the box save for installing an arrow rest. No pinching nocks or having to install a string loop. Also for those who use them in lieu of a string loop, it saves some set-up time, and the annoyance of having to put the bow in a press and thread them on the bowstring. A small thing, but much more useful than it would seem.

Finally, there is a new grip to accommodate the new arrow shelf. My Liberty was equipped with a very dark brown walnut grip that has some nice grain. The BowTech logo is engraved on one side. It is of a “low” configuration similar to the 2003 grip.

AESTHETICS & QUALITY CONTROL

My Liberty is typical of what I’ve come to expect from BowTech: “tight”. Machining is excellent on the cam, idler, pockets & riser. Limbs are cut and sanded uniformly. Limbs are tight in the pockets. Pockets are tight to the riser. There is no “slop” at the axles.

The new Mossy Oak Obsession camo is a nice change of pace. It’s brown in color compared to the previously used Advantage Timber’s greenish cast. My Liberty’s film dip was good but not without a few minor flaws. There is a “swirl” of sorts by the cable guard where it enters the riser. I also finally noticed with some scrutiny a few small “white spots” near the top limb pocket & in the top quiver mounting hole. Nothing major but there nonetheless.

Overall for Fit & Finish my Liberty gets a 9 out of 10. Had the film dip been more precise, I would have nothing to complain about.

POWER SYSTEM, GRIP, & HARNESS

The Freedom cam, like the new camo, is another nice change of pace for BowTech. It is a direct result of feedback from customers & dealers asking for a smoother drawing & shooting bow. It likely will not disappoint.

The force draw curve of the Freedom Cam is quite a bit different from previous versions of the Infinity cam. About the only similarity is how quickly it hits peak weight. In stark contrast to the I-cam, the Freedom cam starts to let off almost immediately after hitting that peak weight, and then smoothly comes to full draw. There are no shoulder-jarring bumps or humps hitting peak or tumbling off into the valley; just a nice smooth ride from start to finish and back again. Also unlike the I-cam, the Freedom cam will not rip the string forward if one creeps a bit too much (when set at my preferred 65% letoff). Certainly you will feel the string wanting to go forward, but it does not “launch” away from you.

Due to this very nice programmed cam, it makes for easier drawing of peak poundage, much like the way an energy wheel is easier to draw than a hard hatchet-cam. Compared to the industry norm hard singles, one can definitely handle more draw weight with the Freedom cam to make up for any lack of performance as a direct result of the softer design (or you can just enjoy the easy draw and let it go at that). I’ve compared the 71-pound Liberty against two different 60 pound Infinity-cam bows (2003 ExVFT, 2004 mmVFT), and overall for effort, I cannot tell a whole lot of difference. They draw differently, but the same amount of effort seems to be expended through the completion of the entire draw. Compared to my 70 plus pound harder cam bows from a handful of manufacturers (including an older BowTech) the Freedom cam shows it’s smoothness even more. I admit I’ve become very accustomed to the F-cams draw cycle. This cam is truly a pleasure to draw and extremely accurate, yet doesn’t sacrifice too much in the way of speed.

Complimenting the Freedom cam is a large diameter (4”) single track idler. It has the typical beefy wide “lipped” design of BowTech’s Infinity cam idlers. This may seem like a minor feature, but something I’ve always thought was a cut above. I know from my own experience, and from seeing many, many bows come into the shop, Idlers (and cams) get dinged up quite a bit by Hunters. On a typical idler this often results in bends and gouges that can cut servings and strings faster than you can say “scat”. With the BowTech design you would have to seriously damage the idler to get to that point.

The grip on the 2004 bows is also improved. While the general angle remains the same, there are some very slight differences that, for my hand are an improvement; First, the grip throat is slightly thinner. Second, there is a bit of extra sculpting in the heel that just fits me better. It’s subtle to be sure, but noticeable. I must admit though, I would prefer the heel to be squared off instead of rounded. It makes for a bit more “solid” connection to the bow hand.

SHOOTING

All shooting has been done with Easton A/C/C 3-49’s weighing 388 grains, or Easton’s new ST AXIS carbon shafts which weigh in the 392 grain range with vanes and the 377 grain range with feathers.

It’s hard to find a place to begin with this. Most everyone on these boards probably has an idea of how the Liberty shoots due to the enormous number of posts on this particular bow.

In a word I would say the best descriptor would be: Fun

If the smooth draw isn’t enough, the smooth shot should win you over. Vibration and Handshock are extremely low on the Liberty at my 29” draw length. It has just a slight “thump” in the hand at the shot.

Shot noise also is extremely low. Definitely the quietest BowTech I’ve owned, and it is quieter than any bow I’ve owned in recent years save perhaps my Pearson Diamondback (however the Liberty has about 20 FPS on the Pearson). For the hunter who is a “quiet freak”, this model is right up your alley. Consider also that I’m shooting arrows weighing in the 5.5 grains per pound range. I’ve run some 2413s through the bow that are in the 480 grain range and you can hardly hear or feel the bow shoot.

Right off the bat, I knew the Liberty was going to be a very accurate bow for me. Within minutes of setting it up, and just a handful of shots, I had it roughly sighted in, and was grouping quite well at 25 yards (outdoors) using the A/C/Cs.

After buying the Trophy Taker, the HHA sight, and the Easton ST AXIS arrows about a week later, and getting them installed I really started putting some arrows through the bow. After a minor tweak of the rest for launcher height, the AXIS shafts were more often than not smacking each other entering my bag target. 25 yard accuracy is not terribly difficult to obtain for most decent shooters with quality equipment, so after getting it dialed in there, I started moving back to see how the Liberty would hold up at longer ranges. Suffice to say, I have not been disappointed out to 45 yards. And when I am goofing something up form-wise, I cannot say the Liberty is particularly sensitive to my flaws, which is about all one can ask for. I won’t say that the bow is a great FITA distance bow, or would be something I’d take to Vegas to compete with, but as shorter hunting-specific models go, it’s better than average in the accuracy & forgiveness department, and should make a good 3D bow for the guy who mainly hunts and just shoots 3D to keep himself in tune. It holds well on target and is not “bouncy” at all (a benefit of the long riser/short limb design compared to a more traditional riser/limb design of the same axle to axle length).

Originally one nitpick would have been that I prefer a bit more mass weight: a half-pound or so. But after having it for several weeks, I’m “OK” with the mass weight. I would prefer more, but I don’t feel like it’s critical due to the heavier accessories I’ve outfitted the bow with.

Overall I really enjoy shooting the Liberty. I have never become frustrated with it, or wondered why an arrow went astray. I have a real hard time walking by the Liberty without grabbing an arrow stepping outside and flinging one off my deck: this bow is very addictive!

TESTING

Before I get to the speed tests, I would like to talk about another area where I did some testing: The new VibraBlocks & Hush Kit.

No I didn’t do any decibel meter testing or whatnot. I simply wanted to see if the new VB’s & HK were as good as folks were saying as compared to Sims Limbsaver products.

Now, in case you did not know, I’m a HUGE proponent of Sims products. Once I got over the initial “I don’t want those ugly mushrooms on my bow” syndrome when they first appeared, I fast became a fan of these products. For the past 4 years, every single bow I’ve owned has had Sims Limbsavers installed and 80 % or more of them have also had Sims String Leeches.

Also, in case you didn’t know, although the 2002-2003 BowTech VB & HK worked, they could not compare to the damping level of the Sims products. What I had been doing was ditching the BT string silencers & installing leeches, pushing the VB’s down to the limb pocket, and then installing Limbsavers.

I have to be honest and say I didn’t have my hopes up too high that the new system would be as good as Sims. I knew it would be better than before, but had my doubts just how much better it would be.

When I first started shooting the Liberty I decided to just use the BowTech HK & VBs and nothing else. Well I was pretty darn impressed with the new stuff. I shot close to two hundred arrows and got used to the feel of the bow “stock”

Then, I bought some Sims Stealth Limbsavers, moved the VB’s down to the limb pockets, and installed the LS in the normal position I use for the BowTechs (thinnest part of the limb right before it tapers up to the fork). And I shot the bow. And I couldn’t really tell any difference. So I shot it several more times. To my ears it was no quieter, and to my hands there wasn’t any less recoil or vibe. But I still kept shooting it for a while that way. Then thinking maybe due to the new cam, and slightly more “aggressive” VFT angle maybe the thinnest part of the limb was no longer the “sweet spot” for the Limbsavers. So, I moved them up to the normal position Sims recommends. Shot it some more. No difference. So I then moved them back down to the sweet spot. By this time I had probably shot the bow fifty times or more, so I decided to take them off and see if I could tell the difference that way. I couldn’t. And I couldn’t believe that I couldn’t. On every previous BowTech I’ve owned there was a very noticeable difference from VB to Sims gear. Not on this Liberty. Perhaps with some sophisticated machinery one could really measure things, but to my own ears and hands, I’d say the new BT silencing gear is just as good as the Sims.

My only concern will be durability. I’m sure the VB’s will last just fine, but the string silencers may not. Leeches are fairly fragile too, but the leeches do have the advantage of being inserted into the string and not over it, which makes replacement much easier. That said I probably have about eight hundred arrows total through the Liberty now with no wear on the BowTech silencers that I can see: So far so good.

Now for the Chronograph testing. Again my setup is 29” AMO, 71 pounds, stock hush kit, loop and tru-peep.

I ran 2 different weight arrows through the chronograph:

An Easton ST AXIS 400 with Gateway 4” feathers & 100grain point weighing 377 grains shot 283 FPS (67.06 pounds of KE)

An Easton ST AXIS 400 with 4” AAE Plasti-fletch & 100 grain point weighing 392 grains shot 278 FPS. (67.28 pounds of KE)

This is very good performance considering how easy this cam is to draw and certainly a very efficient design. For comparisons sake, my 2002 Pat Single zips a 388 grain A/C/C 3-49 @ 289 FPS. Same draw length, poundage and similar string accessories.

After all that shooting my string/cable has crept very little: 3/4 of a twist in the cable corrected the problem. Peep rolls back every time the same way. This new TS-1 from Brownell is very impressive. It also does not seem to fuzz up as bad as 8125.

NITPICKS & IMPROVEMENTS I’D LIKE TO SEE

My only major nitpick is the dip. It’s not horrid and things like that don’t concern me from a utility standpoint, but a $700 plus bow should have a perfect or at least near perfect finish in my opinion. This needs to be improved.

I would like to see an updated cable slide. On occasion you can get a burr on these stock slides and this can cause some wear on the cable/string at the slide. The slide should also have slightly shorter grooves to add a touch more fletching clearance for those using higher profile feather/vanes.

When I pulled mine out of the box, the cams and cable guard area were very well protected w/ foam padding, but I still am not seeing any protection at the limb pockets, which is a crucial area as well. During shipping the pockets are very easy to ding up. On a dipped finish this can cause some chipping/flaking to occur. Easy fix. Just do it

I have some minor serving separation at the buss cable as it rolls over the high point of the module. This is the first time I’ve personally encountered this on a BowTech using WCCB or the 02 strings. Perhaps it’s due to the new end-serving material they are using. I simply push a couple of the “wraps” down every 100 shots or so. There is no damage or wear, just a little separation. Although it’s far better than what I’ve seen on many one-cam bows and lesser quality strings, this is worth mentioning.


CONCLUSION

Last year, in my BowTech Pro 40 Dual Cam report, I wrote the following as some key things BowTech needed to think about:

I think Bowtech needs to take a step back while drawing up the 2004 line, and address a few issues, namely the cam draw cycles, noise level and lean. I think Bowtech would be much better served by refining: smooth out the cams and quiet down the bow while maintaining existing speeds, instead of pushing the envelope just to eek out a few more FPS, and risk losing shooter comfort and increasing noise further in the process. It’s not a good tradeoff for the vast majority of archers, especially bowhunters. It’s well known that Kevin Strother has some designs that are absolute screamers both in production, and those that when the time is right will be in production. However, I’m not so sure that a majority of archers (regardless of experience level) are ready for, or even want them. Bowtech, in just a few short years has managed to increase it size and popularity exponentially by walking that very fine line of producing a high speed bow that is still very manageable for most archers: a difficult task. Right now, in my opinion, they are at a critical turning point: they can reign themselves in a bit and keep walking that line while addressing some of the fundamentals (noise, draw cycles), or they can get overzealous and cross the line by continuing to push the speed while ignoring those fundamentals, which likely will only hurt their otherwise bright future.

Well, I’d like to take all the credit for it but I can't. However, there is no doubt BowTech has done just what I suggested for the 2004 line. I’ve shot all the bows in the 2004 line-up now, and they all are built better, smoother to draw, smoother to shoot, quieter, and haven’t sacrificed any speed in doing so.

The Liberty in particular is the hunting bow I’ve been wanting for the past couple of years from any manufacturer. While the Patriot single-cam has been my favorite hunter from BowTech previously, I was hoping Kevin Strother could figure out a super smooth cam that would still possess good speed and put it on a platform that met my personal needs: Long riser, short limb VFT design, medium to heavy mass weight, 33-34” axle to axle, and a 7.5” plus brace. Some other bows I had owned had come close, but were not quite what I wanted. The draw was a little stiff, the wall wasn’t hard enough, it was too light, the riser felt “clunky”, valley was too sensitive, etc. With the Liberty I got what I’ve wanted. The only real improvement I could think of is to not change a thing but have it about 10 FPS faster (Old I may be getting, but I still like my speed ).

2004 looks to be a good year for several bow companies. This year there seems to be an ever-greater push back to more hunter friendly models, and nearly everyone has got something good in the works from what I’ve seen. The Liberty is a perfect example of this philosophy. It is a pure hunting bow designed to be easy to manage, fun to draw, perform well, and is super easy to shoot. It’s a “Bowhunter’s Bow” plain and simple.

P.S. What's with all the weenie smiley faces again? [:@][:'(]

jsasker

Thank you,SIR!As usual--very good report.

Rangeball

Very nicely done Jeff, as I knew it would be

Quick question-

You seem to be saying that the eliminator buttons can be used in place of nock sets or loops. Is that so? The only eliminator buttons I've ever seen are rubber and move up and down the string easily with their only function being to provide cushioning between the release and nock for those shooting off the string. Are these something different?

bowhuntr09

Great report! Thanks Jeff for taking the time to write that for us.

PA Hardwoods

Thanks for the report Jeff, great as usual. Did you ever think of doing these reports for magazines. Your reports are better than most mags I read. You confirmed everything I thought about the Liberty when I shot it a few weeks back. Definitly the Best Bow I have ever shot!!!

PABowhntr

Very nicely done Jeff. Good basic information that folks can absorb and apply to their particular tastes in a bow.

Rangeball,

I think what Jeff is referring to is that the Bowtechs come with two eliminator buttons like the ones commonly used at most shops. They, along with the factory pinched brass nockset, can be used instead of a loop for those that prefer that type of setup.

Rangeball

Ahhhh, I was missing this important tidbit...

Kanga

Jeff.

Great report.
Long yes Boring no.

Hopefully you will change your mind about doing them in the future.
Just not going to be the same around here without a Long and interesting JeffB report

walks with a gimp

Great report Jeff!!! Your observations mirror my own with the limited shooting I've done with a 60 pound Liberty One thing I'd like to see is a "rounding off" of the shelf extension to prevent potential wear spots in the finish.[8D]

Orions_Bow

once again great report - you da man