SCbowhntr

Hey ya'll,
I'm looking at purchasing a "newer" hunting bow (not necessarily new), and really like Darton and Mathews but I can't decide which to pick. The Mathews is a little higher in price.
I guess what I'm wondering is does the Mathews performance that much better to justify this? I know there's a lot of hype surrounding Mathews (and for good reason) but can the Darton perform just as well? The models I was looking at for the Darton are the Typhoon, Tundra, and Maverick and for the Mathews, the Icon, LX, and Ovation.
I know it's hard to be objective as everyone has his favorite but can someone out there give me an objective opinion? Hope I'm not stirring up a hornet's nest
Thanks in advance!

thenuge15

Go shoot both and buy the one that feels best to YOU, not anybody else. I personall like mathews, but I have never shot a darton.

ijimmy

I would chose a darton mavrick over anything mathews makes , but thats me .

Wolf killer

SCbowhntr, You are asking a tough question. I own a 2004 Darton Typhoon. The only Mathews bows I have shot are the LX & Q2XL. I am not knocking Mathews, they make a great bow. The Darton Typhoon fit me better & I shot it better.
IMHO Mathews bows are alot quieter that Darton bows.
Resale value should be something else to consider. I am sure the Mathews will have a higher resale value.
My local proshop offered me $450 in trade for my Darton Typhoon. If I trade, it will be for a Hoyt V-tec? I will still need to give them $300 to make this trade happen.[]

CG

My 2 favorite bows of all time are the Darton MAverick and the Mathews MQ1. The Mathews is noticeably quieter and that is what I now shoot.....take that for what it is worth.....

JOE PA

I had the two bows that CG mentioned, and yes, the MQ1 was quieter than the Maverick. I my current #1 bow is a Darton Tundra. With it, I have all the easy tuning, smooth draw, and performance of the CPS system in a bow that is right there with any I've owned for noise level, including the MQ1, Q2 XL, McPherson 38 Special, etc. The Mathews bows definitely recoil less than the Dartons, but again, my Tundra has very little recoil, and it bothers me not at all.

If you are buying used, there are other considerations. IMHO, the Darton Extreme cam system is definitely quieter than the Express cams. For a used Darton, I would want an '03 Avalanche Extreme, or an '04 Tundra, Avalanche, Maverick, or Typhoon. Dartons do not hold resale value like Mathews, so you can save buying a used, but like new bow. The older Express cam bows will be louder though.[&:] Still, the Darton CPS bows are very easy to tune with broadheads, draw very smoothly, and have good performance for the draw weight.

The Mathews bows hold value so well that buying a slightly used Outback or LX hardly seems to make sense, since the price is very close to a new one that has a warranty. Also, with the cams having no draw length adjustment, you have to be very sure you are buying a bow that really fits you in the first place. It seems that you can finally get the MQ 1, Q2, Q2 XL, and Icon for a decent price, as resale seems to have dropped on those due to demand for the Outback and Switchback. If you like low recoil and noise, it is hard to top the Mathews bows. I found the grips to be too wide for me, and tended to torque the bows much more than some other bows I've owned. That is probably a personal thing because lots of guys claim the Q series bows are forgiving for them to shoot. It just wasn't true for me, or I'd probably still have the MQ1.

As usual, it really comes down to personal preference. Both are good bows. I personally feel that I got the perfect bow for me in the Tundra. Nice to see a broadhead tipped arrow fly just like a field point and hit the exact spot I aimed at out to 40 yards. (when I do my part, that is!)

dsheally

I have both right now, a 2004 Mathews Ovation and a 2005 Darton Tundra. The Ovation
was a nightmare to tune with fixed broadheads and I use it now for shooting indoors.
The Tundra, as JOE PA. knows tuned very easily even with fixed broadheads. I got
his and others advice on the bow before buying it and I really like the bow! I can easily
check the timing on the bow, the bow shoots accurately, the recoil is low IMHO even
with light arrows. I like the hybrid systems much better than solocams.

ampahunter

Have a look at the new 2005 Darton Tempest Extreme.
This bow reminds me of the Champion Scorpion ETS--it's about 5/8" longer ATA.
I'm sure this bow will be worth the while to look at.

rob1

I agree with the Nuge. I have never shot a Darton either, so I couldn't really compare the two.

BTM

I used to own two Mathews. I now own two Dartons. 'Nuff said.