JeffB

Yes Gentle Readers, it’s another of JeffB’s Long, Comprehensive, Boring, Bow-Reports! Perhaps my last.

Dare I even say such a thing? “..the last..”? Quite possibly Friends! I have found a bow detailed herein that I have become attached to, and barring any unforeseen calamities, I think this will be the last “New Bow” report for 2002 (I’m knocking on wood as I said the same thing about my VorTec, and it crapped out on me shortly before the hunting season). In light of this, I have gone the extra mile with this report. It will be, by far, my longest and most boring EVER!

Frank and I had been discussing a phrase he wrote in his report on the BowTech Pro-38 model after the thread in question first saw the light of day. Something to the effect of “ The journey is sometimes more fun than the destination”. I wholeheartedly agree with such a statement. But in an email to him I delved a bit further and told him in not so few words that after awhile the journey gets long, makes you tired and weary, and you are inclined to stop more often, enjoy the present scenery, or maybe take a road you once did before. And that is “rest stop” I’m pulling up to as far as bows are concerned. I’ve come to find that all of them are great, all of them are bad, and all of them could be better. You need to find one that you can get used to, one you have confidence in, and one that will put up with you, i.e. is not too sensitive to your shortcomings: much like a good husband or wife Have I found my Archery Mecca? The Holy Grail of all that be Bow-dom? The String and Cables at the end of the Rainbow?

Nay, Gentle Readers I have found no such thing, nor do I believe anyone ever will! But I have found a comfy pair of slippers I don’t mind lounging around in for a while.

I can almost hear the readership now: ” Enough with Fairy Tale Banter and Philosophical Mumbo Jumbo, You loquacious JACKASS!”

So, in the immortal words of boxing referee Mills Lane….

LET’S GET IT ON!!

THE 2002 BOWTECH PATRIOT

Infinity Post-Feed single-cam powered. Single Track idler wheel. SandTrap Limb Pockets. Vertical Force Technology (VFT). 33 &7/8” measured Axle to Axle length. 7.25” measured Brace Height. Weight is listed at 4.25 pounds. 29” draw length (DS#2) module installed. 60 pound peak weight limbs. Cam is set for the 65% letoff position and measures 29” AMO at that setting.

TECHNICALITIES

After I give a run-down of how the bow is set up, I shall go over the bow from top to bottom.

I have set up the PATRIOT with the following items: A Scout Mountain SPIKE Millennium Fiber Optic Pin Sight. New Archery Products QuickTune 3000 Micro-Adjustable twin prong launcher arrow-rest, w/ normal shrink tubing on the prongs. A X-Ring SIKA-FLEX GEL stabilizer (5”, 9 oz). One brass nocking-point. One Braided Fast Flight (horribly) tied in “eliminator button”. A Fletcher Tru-Peep. And finally, a pair of Sims LimbSavers.

The Idler wheel of the PATRIOT is one of the better designs I’ve seen. It is wide “lipped”, contains American made bearings, and is extremely well machined. The wide “lips” or “walls” do have a function: One is strength. On some of my bows, and others I have seen in shops, oftentimes a thin walled idler will have some dings or will even be bent slightly. The “thin-walled” idlers also lead to other problems as they get dinged up or bent: premature serving wear as the string tracks back and forth across the idler. Assuming you don’t abuse your BowTech above and beyond the norm, I don’t think you’ll have anything to worry about.

Next we have the limbs. The limbs on all BowTech models are manufactured by the Gordon Glass Company. Gordon is one of, if not THE largest manufacturer of fiberglass materials in the USA. They have been building limbs for bow companies for a long time (as well as fiberglass for other applications such as boat hulls, I’m told), and supply and/or build for a majority of bow companies. Several grades or “lay-ups” are available from Gordon, including low cost, lower strength lay-ups, and high strength premium lay-ups w/ higher breaking strengths. These various Gordon limbs go by names like “Power-Tuff”, “Bo-Tuff”, “Core-Tuff”, etc. I have been investigating, but I’ve yet to find the specific information on the lay-up “style” of BowTech’s limbs. Based on my own experiences w/ some of the less expensive limbs Gordon has made over the years, the information I’ve gleaned from Bowtech owners and dealers, as well as the high stress/performance levels in their bows, I think it’s safe to say that BowTech is using the higher grade lay-ups, though I am by no means absolutely certain. Be that as it may, the limbs on the PATRIOT (as well as all other BT models I have owned or played with) are cut uniformly, sanded very well, and have held up to my abuse without the slightest hint of a problem. They are thickened through the limb tips as is common these days with most non-laminated limb designs. The PATRIOT logo is stamped in red and black on the upper limb, and the lower limb has the company name on it in the same color scheme. The limbs track straight and fit very nicely in the SandTrap pockets.

At the base of each limb we have the SandTrap limb pocket technology mentioned above. This design consists of a sealed “deep” pocket filled with sand. The sand acts like a dead-blow hammer (or a sand/powder filled stabilizer) to absorb vibration as the limbs recover when shot. As I’ve said on my other BowTech model reports, as well as in conversation on the threads, the ST pockets are functional and do provide some vibration reduction, but are not nearly as beneficial as a pair of LimbSavers, for example.

Now that I’ve covered the limbs and pockets, I’d like to cover Vertical Force Technology. VFT is a further experimentation on a trend that has been growing in bow design for about 8-10 years now. The idea is that the closer to parallel the limbs are, the less they have to travel to come back to rest, and the distance they do travel, will be almost up and down instead of forward. This reduces recoil in the bow because the energy is directed upward and downward instead of forward, which makes the bow lurch that way as the limbs close. Generally, there are two ways this is accomplished: By the angle of the limb pockets and/or the shape (or pre-load) of the limbs. The problem w/ parallel limb technology is that while the comfort level of the bow is increased as the bow recoils, performance is degraded because the limbs are not as stressed. In years past companies like XI and HCA experimented with several variations. XI started with somewhat less aggressive pocket angles in designs like the FlatLiner and Legacy, and used stiffer drawing cams (for the time) to compensate. Later, XI went all out with a highly stressed pre-curved limb, very stiff cam designs, and an aggressive pocket angle in the Velocity series (Velocity V-Max, Velocity CyberCam, Velocity Extreme, etc.). Unfortunately, while XI’s ideas were great and worked to a certain extent, the durability left a lot to be desired, and the company folded when all of it’s prior problems caught up with them not long after introducing the Velocity series technology. HCA used a shorter limb with an aggressive pocket angle and a long riser as well, and succeeded in getting a higher speed bow w/ less noise and recoil in the Z-Force/Force Supreme models. The only downside is that HCA had to produce very low brace height models to utilize their ideas to the fullest. In 1997 Mathews introduced the Conquest, which utilized a very long riser, short limbs, soft limb angle, and a very aggressive single-cam to yield a good performing bow with a decent brace height. The technology took off from there. Subsequently, Mathews has advanced the technology by utilizing even softer limb angles and shorter limbs, as well as less aggressive cams. Again, this is great for “feel” characteristics, but sacrifices raw performance, especially as arrow weights get into the 6 grains per LB and higher spectrum. As far as I’m concerned, with the new PATRIOT, BowTech has taken the technology a sorely needed step further. Let me preface this by saying I am no engineer, and can only relate things I’ve read about the design, and my own findings. The limb pockets on the Patriot are extremely “laid back”. Comparing the Patriot to my Mathews Q2 it is clear that the Patriots limbs are closer to parallel at rest than the Q2’s are at full draw. The difference in actual limb length is about ¾ to 1” inch with the Q2’s being the shorter of the two bows. By reading interviews in a trade magazine w/ Bowtech’s VP of Engineering, Kevin Strother, as well as information available on the Bowtech website, it seems that Kevin went through an enormous amount of combinations of pre-load, and pocket angle to get the results he wanted. It seems to have worked, as the Patriot has great speed, and quite possibly is the best “mannered” bow I have shot in many years. I will elaborate further on into the report.

The machined riser on the PATRIOT is quite long for such a short axle to axle model, has a very long sight window, and a forward jutting stabilizer mounting area below the grip. The machining is as good as I’ve seen, and is well rounded and beveled at the edges unlike last years PRO-risers. The SandTrap pockets fit tightly onto the riser with no visible slop. The riser is designed quite well for balance. By putting the stabilizer mount out farther forward, some of the “torquey-ness” is eliminated with such a heavy reflex, and you also can get away with a shorter, lighter stabilizer for balance. The PATRIOT also has a string side (or “rear”) stabilizer mount about one inch lower than the primary mount for counterbalance. Both mounts utilize stainless steel threaded inserts: a step up from drilled and tapped risers that many companies still use (including BowTech). The entire riser is triple dipped with Advantage Timber camouflage. I’ve heard mention of “blemishes” in the finishes of some BowTech models. I don’t know if I am just lucky, but I have yet to see any blemishes on any Bowtech models that I have owned or handled (On a side note: the 2000 models had very bad finish problems). If you look very closely you can see a “pin point” of whitish or beige color here and there on my PATRIOT. This is a by-product of the film dipping process. If you are unfamiliar with how COLORWORKS (the company that does the majority if not all of the film-dip work for the archery industry) does a film dip job, I’ll give a very brief & general summary of how it works. The camouflage dip is fairly solid material and is cut into large, thin sheets. These sheets are put into a vat of liquid and they float on top. The sheets of film-dip react w/ the liquid and start to get very soft, or melt, so to speak. The riser (or limbs, or what have you) are placed on top of the sheet of film-dip, the item “falls through” the dip, and the dip “shrink wraps” itself around the item. This is a very basic explanation, but that is in a nutshell how the process works. As you may have noticed, some camouflage patterns come out better than others, and even some manufacturers dip coats seem to be of very low quality. I suspect like anything else, there are varying qualities of “dip”, and the number of times a product is dipped will obviously have an effect. Sometimes the dip coats will yield “blank” areas and this often where the sheet ends meet as they wrap or more precisely, if they DON’T meet or overlap. Another problem is that sometimes it seems the colors have sort of “bled out”. Oftentimes if you look closely on various manufacturers dipped machined risers you will see “blank” or light colored spots on the insides of the riser cut-outs. I suspect these are the types of “blemishes” folks are seeing in various places, but as I have not seen any on BowTech models I cannot say for sure. The Advantage Timber pattern possibly is the best transfer of a camouflage pattern I have ever seen. It comes across very three-dimensional and is pretty to boot!

Above the arrow pass is a fixed straight carbon cable-guard rod and inside slider. The slider is great, as it’s very easy to pop the cable/string out to wax them, yet they are still held very securely.

About mid-way of the PATRIOT’s riser sits what is probably the biggest point of contention among BowTech fans and detractors alike: The Grip. The grip on all Bowtech models while very well constructed, is somewhat of a relic from the early to mid 1990’s. It is made from various materials for the 2002 model year, including walnut, rosewood, a hard black rubber, and finally a laminated maple dyed grey, green and brown named “timber” which adorns my particular PATRIOT. The grip is one piece and is held in place with a long screw that threads through the grip on one side, through the riser, and back into the opposite side of the grip. It is well cut and shaped with no rough edges, possesses a fairly narrow throat (about an inch), and a wide, somewhat bulging heel. I have noticed that although the cut is supposedly the same, the Walnut grips seem to have a slightly narrower throat than the “Timber” models: the difference is very slight though. The Bowtech grip reminds me very much of the laminated wood grips HCA was using on their bows in the mid 1990’s and is also similar to the wood grips used by the now defunct Oregon Bow Company. While some would argue that you cannot please everyone when designing a grip (And I wholeheartedly agree), the fact remains that in this day and age where very narrow throated, low profile grips are commonplace in the industry, the BowTech grip is way out in left field. Even companies who still employ these “style” of wood grips on their products (such as Jennings, Champion, McPherson/Pearson, etc.) have made a decided effort to thin them out, and keep the profile as low as possible without compromising durability. The archer basically has 3 options: Learn to shoot the stock grip (which will help your form if you are grip grabber, or torque any grip normally), Take the grip off and shoot the riser (which is very comfortable for most archers, though it will alter your draw length by about ¼ to 3/8”), or Invest in an aftermarket custom grip such as those made by Loesch Enterprises. The latter is probably the best all around fix for most folks as you will keep the warmth of the wood and not have to fiddle with the draw length while being able to have the grip designed to any style of wrist and color you desire. The only negative is the $60 plus you will have to spend on it (realistically, if you have $700 to throw around on a bow, another $60 is probably not going to put the hurtin’ on your piggy-bank, but I’d rather spend that $60 on a new sight, ½ dozen A/C/C’s, quiver, stabilizer etc). In the grip’s defense, I will say that compared to the other BowTech models I have owned, the grip on the PATRIOT is not nearly as sensitive due to the extra stability built into the riser. I can live with the grip If I had to, though I do plan to order a Loesch or Shrewd grip for it. Still, it is my opinion that Bowtech would be shooting themselves in the foot if they fail to address this issue and “pull a Mathews” (who took 8 years to figure out that their grip design promoted torque, and needed refinement).

At the far end of the bottom limb comes the PATRIOT’S power-source: The Infinity Post feed single-cam. The Infinity cam is a modular design with a series of posts for the return side of the string instead of the normal angular track. Originally the intent for the posts was to allow for small increments in draw length adjustment (similar to a PSE Synergy Cam, or Hoyt’s Control or original Command Cam) as well as help to smooth out uneven nock travel. However BowTech opted to leave the posts simply for the latter task, and designed the cam to use modules for draw length adjustment, so that the timing could be maintained for optimum performance and tuneability. With the newer Infinity cam, the PF design was taken a step further by allowing minute draw length and letoff adjustment by means of a sliding draw stop. The stop slides in a track on the perimeter of the cam, and is tightened down via an allen wrench when the desired draw length and/or letoff is determined. At that point the stop comes in contact w/ the surface of the limb resulting in the hardest wall you have probably experienced. The only real negative aspect of this system is that one cannot adjust for length of the valley and letoff separately e.g. If you like a long valley and 60% letoff, you are out of luck. Same way if you like a narrow valley at 80%. The stop effectively lengthens and shortens the valley. The great thing is that each individual archer can minutely adjust the cam for the best fit. The only way I could see BowTech improving the functionality is by offering draw length modules in ½” increments as well as the standard 1” increments so that people could really get down to the nitty-gritty. The Infinity cam works especially well for me, for when I adjust a 29” module to my preferred letoff setting of 60-65%, I end up getting my perfect draw length, a valley length that is comfortable and, In my experience, the valley length that is most conducive to consistent accuracy with a single-cam design. For those of you who shoot a string loop, you can fiddle quite a bit to zero in your perfect draw length with the combination of the Infinity cam, release, and loop length. The half-moon modules are held in place with 2 countersunk allen head screws that are easily accessible without the need of a bow press. Many of the Bowtech’s also come to the shop w/ factory “written” timing marks. Not all do, but most. It seems at the busiest times of the year, more bows go out the door without them. Really it’s not a big issue with a Bowtech model, because unlike 99% of the manufacturers out there, BowTech actually supplies cam timing information in each owner manual. It involves a simple measurement taken from the distance between one of the module’s allen screws and the limb. Make your own mark, and you are good to go. The bushings for the cam are oil impregnated bronze. In this day and age most manufacturers use synthetic bushings whose only real benefits are cost effectiveness and ease of replacement. Metal bushings of any type (assuming they are of high quality) offer better longevity and more stability to combat cam lean.

I should also note that my PATRIOT (as well as my 2 Mighty Mites) have all been extremely well lubricated out of the box.

Finally we have the “glue” that holds the bow together: the Winner’s Choice string and cable. The WC strings and cable/s are a two-color “twist” custom design, intended for use as an after-market replacement for “factory” strings and cables. In 2001 BowTech started using them as standard equipment on all but their lowest price point bows. The WC strings and cable are made using a proprietary process that takes all “stretch” or “creep” out of them before they are built. By the time you get your BowTech model and it’s been shot at the factory (all BowTech bows are hand shot at the factory for a speed test before they leave), they are virtually maintenance free other than waxing (which they need often). In the course of a thousand shots plus, in varying weather conditions, w/ 3 different BowTech models, I’ve only had to put ONE twist in one cable on my first Mighty Mite. Perhaps If I still lived in the South where the climate is more humid over a more prolonged period of time, I might have to make another small adjustment, but where I am now, I have not had to. By far this is the best string design I have seen from a tuning (or lack there-of) standpoint. In my experience whether you own a one-cam or dual-cam model, the bow is as only as good as the string and cable/s holding it together. If you have to keep fiddling with it, it won’t shoot consistently, it ruins your confidence, and then you will tend to blame the equipment for mistakes you are making. Nothing is perfect, so what are the negatives? First is that they do dry or “fuzz” up rather quickly, but this is easily fixed by regular waxing w/ a silicon impregnated wax (ML6, Seal-Tite, Black or White Lightning, etc). Also due to the small amount of elasticity left after being built, on some bow models they are quite loud. On my Mighty Mite bows, they are. On the T-29’s I’ve shot they are not. On the ES option 1 models they are. On the ES option 2’s, not quite as bad. It seems to vary from design to design. On the PATRIOT, I have found them to have a very “soft” feel and extremely low noise. I fully expected much more string noise on my PATRIOT and it’s just not there. Sure I have a low pitched rubber band type sound with it, but it’s so low pitched and so low in volume I have elected to forego putting on string silencers: something I have only done one time previous for a bow I plan to hunt with.

GENERAL IMPRESSIONS

The PATRIOT is likely to be a “love it or hate it” bow when it comes to aesthetics. I’ve never thought that BowTech models were particularly good looking, even for a compound bow, but I’ve never thought they were flat-out ugly. I will say that the pictures in catalogs, and magazines do not do it justice: it’s much more eye-pleasing in person, though still not “beautiful”. The riser is also “beefier” than I expected. As I said in an earlier thread, the bow reminds me somewhat of my 2000 Hoyt Defiant Redline: a lot of riser, and solid! Unlike the Defiant however, the PATRIOT is not “clunky” feeling or unwieldy. It points very, very well. Were someone to pick one up and not know it’s axle to axle length, they would likely think it’s 38” or longer. When set-up the PATRIOT has (as Matt has lovingly termed it) “that target bow tumble” feel when shooting a medium or high wristed grip. When shooting a low wristed grip, I find it has no movement at all, unless I move it in some way. I had shot a 29” 70 LB target model a few weeks ago and was flabbergasted at the “feel” for the actual speed it was putting out. Trying to be objective I went home and shot my Mathews Q2 model which is one of the lowest recoil/shock bows I have ever owned. Since the comparison was not side by side, I was a bit conservative, but I still felt that the 29’ 70 Lb PATRIOT might have a slight edge even shooting 5 grains per LB (whereas my Q2 was shooting 6 grains at 76Lbs and 28 5/8” draw). After that I knew I HAD to have one (after 2 weeks of unsuccessfully trying to get one ordered from my closest dealer; long story). A couple of weeks later I called again, and lo-and be-hold, he had the 60 pound camo model in stock. In 2 days I was at home with bow with daylight waning, excited, but possessing a severe headache from a bad day at work. I floundered my way through setting the bow up. After dinner, with it barely light enough to shoot, I flipped the light switch for my deck on, and shuffled outside. I stepped up as close as I could get on my deck to the target, which was about 12 yards and let one fly. I had shot the bow through the chrono that day at the dealer, but the bow was bare, I used the owners release, etc. It felt really good, but between the awkwardness of the different release, the hour drive in highway traffic, and my head pounding, I jut wasn’t thinking about how good the bow felt at the shop: I smiled weakly as the numbers rolled up on the chronograph, paid my money, and started on the journey home. On the deck, outside, set-up for myself, with my release, sight, peep, stabilizer and whatnot, it made me forget about my headache real quick. I honestly expected the bow to be louder, significantly louder. I pulled the arrow and shot again. Still the bow was very quiet, just some string “flub”. Then for about 10 shots I just concentrated on how the bow felt: how solid it aimed, where the best grip position was for me, etc. I then went inside grabbed a string leech and used my “string spreader” to put it in. I took one more shot, and while the leech basically nullified any string sound, I just did not feel it was needed and took it off. Overall I can sum up my initial impressions in 2 words : HOLY CRAPARONI!

FURTHER ON UP THE ROAD

The next day I was off to my local Hoyt/Mathews dealer to pick up some arrows/shafts that were spined correctly for a 60 pound bow. When the owner finally got a free moment, he came over to BS like we usually do. He saw the PATRIOT, and started asking me some questions. I went over the bow and BowTech in general with him and he related his positive experience with shooting it at the AMO show. Eventually I asked him if he wanted to shoot it, and he did. After the first shot was just a big smile. Then he shot it again, and again, and again, and again, and again. This is a dedicated Hoyt/Mathews guy too!

A little while later, off home I went with a dozen Easton A/C/C 3-39 shafts and components. When I got home I quickly fletched 3 of them with AAE 4” PlastiFletch, and cut them to length on my saw. Now the real tests could begin.

I shot quite a few arrows through it that weekend up to 30 yards, and even destroyed one of my brand new A/C/C’s. So far, So good. I was very impressed with how much more stable it was compared to my Mighty Mites, and my Extreme Solo, as well as most of my other bows. The PATRIOT is steadier in my hands than any other bow I’ve owned in the 38” and shorter axle to axle length category that I can remember. That doesn’t mean it’s the steadiest bow I’ve owned ever, but it surely puts a lot of bows to shame no matter how long they are. I found it quite easy to hold, and also quite easy to recognize exactly what I was doing wrong at any given moment with the bow: In my experience a very good sign. Nothing is more frustrating than getting some highs, lows, lefts, or rights, and feeling like everything you did was perfect, or at the least near perfect. With the PATRIOT, even when I goofed, I knew where the arrow was going as I shot. I’m anal about accuracy, mainly because I don’t have much natural talent for it. I’m way too critical of myself when it comes to accuracy. On the other hand, w/ a bow like the PATRIOT, I know what I did wrong when I would miss, and then I corrected the problem: no MYSTERY arrows. THAT gives me some peace of mind. So for 5 days I came home from work, shot 10 or 15 arrows and then went in to eat dinner and play with my son or give him a bath. One night unlike the others, I was shooting consistently to the right and became a bit frustrated. The arrows were tight, but about an inch and a half to the right. I checked the bow over, and finally I thought that maybe I was off a bit looking through the peep (I look through the peep slightly different with the PATRIOT than I am used to because I am using a different sight). Sure enough I centered the pin how I was supposed to and the arrows were dead on.

THE ACID TEST

The biggest problem I’ve had with the numerous “shorty” bows I’ve owned has been stability. Some are more stable than others, but none as stable as I’d like them to be. Even my HavocTec, and Q2 which are the steadiest shorty bows I’ve found so far still were not “up to snuff” as far as I was concerned: too much pin bouncing around, which hurt my consistency as I got out to 30 yards and beyond. So I was not looking forward to the 40 yard test. I’d been so enamored with the PATRIOT that I didn’t want to be let down w/ a poor showing at longer distances, and lose confidence. But, I knew I had to, and Friday morning I had the day off, and was ready. I pulled my arrows from my morrell, and then put it down at the edge of the woods in my backyard. I then walked back what I had ranged as 40 yards w/ help from Kim (w/ a Stanley Tape Measure, no less: I lost my rangefinder!). This was almost out into the main road, and I have a hard time shooting sometimes w cars driving by 10 yards away at 45 miles an hour. I took out my wrench and guess-timated where my second pin should be for 40 yards. W/ no prior practice shots, I aimed right at the top of the heart area on the deer side of the target, squeezed off and concentrated on my follow through. I didn’t see the arrow flight but heard the arrow thump the target, and saw the hit. Absolute perfect heart shot (a couple of inches low to where I had held the pin). I tried not to get too cocky and figured I must have been lucky. After a few seconds I aimed again in the exact same spot, squeezed off and “CLANK”…heard and saw the 3-39 A/C/C smack the one already in the target. I didn’t know whether to be pissed-off or happy. I nocked the third arrow, and proceeded to shoot about 6 inches low, and 4 inches to the right…CRAP! I walked down, inspected my near robin-hood (whoa boy would THAT have been something!), pulled the final arrow and walked back. Another shot: this time 4 inches to the left and 3 or 4 inches low. What the H$%&? I checked my bow on the walk back to see if the sight pin or sight had loosened, etc. Everything looked fine. As I nocked the arrow, I noticed the problem…

MY LIMB HAD CRACKED!

Heh…you wish….

The florescent yellow cock vane showed a bit of black marking, and I rotated the nock and fooled w/ the clearance by eye till I thought I had it right. I then adjusted my pin so it would be dead on instead of having to aim a couple of inches high. Drew back, aimed, squeezed off and split the difference between the two already in the target! I was whooping and hollering like a 5 year old on Christmas morning, and I’m quite sure some of the traffic stopped for the school bus behind me thought I was having a seizure of some sort.

Now I assure you, this is not normal 40-yard accuracy for me, I’m not some Randy Ulmer or Burley Hall. The diameter of a soda can or slightly larger is my “good average” size for 40 yard groups with the right bow, and some days or with some bows it’s the diameter of a 5 gallon bucket!

Later that afternoon I took about thirty more 40 yard shots and while my groups were not always as tight as that first one, My average was definitely below my prior “good-average”. Best thing of all is that I was grouping very well, without feeling like I was struggling to obtain those groups. That’s all I can ask for in a bow, the rest is up to me.

The PATRIOT passed my 40 yard test with flying colors! As long as I used fairly good form it would help put ‘em in there for me. If you are a hunter first, but don’t like to look like an idiot on the 3D range, the PATRIOT is right up your alley, and I would not be afraid to compete with it on a semi-serious level if you need “one bow to do it all”.

IF YOU ARE STILL AWAKE

Here are the speeds I am getting from the bow. The Birth Certificate stated a 5 grains per LB speed of 298 FPS. Shooting a 323 grain A/C/C 3-28, With a Tru-Peep in the string and the brass nock it shot 289 FPS. With no peep and the exact 5 grains per LB I’m confident my PATRIOT would shoot within a FPS if not the same as what was stated. With the 362 grain A/C/C/ 3-39’s and the addition of a tied in eliminator button, It shoots in the 276 FPS average range (I got 277 & 275 on 2 different chronographs, so I split the difference). This makes my Kinetic Energy roughly near 61 foot pounds. Were I to install string-silencers I would lose 3-5 FPS or more depending on the type. One of the neat things I have found with the PATRIOT is that there is very little difference in noise levels between significant changes in arrow weight. The noise difference between my 362 grain A/C/C’s and a 467 grain 2314 I shot out of it just for grins is not substantial.

THE EXTRAS

As I stated before, BowTech bows come with an owner’s manual that gives specifications for cam timing, among many other useful tuning tips and discussions. They also come with the aforementioned “Birth Certificate”. Infinity cam models also include a sheet that graphically shows one where to set the draw stop at each module size to get a desired letoff setting. Unfortunately, my PATRIOT came with a green piece of paper that stated “2002 Owner’s Manuals will be shipped shortly”. Being that I’m a Fulfillment Coordinator for the Marketing department at the company I work for, I could cite a bazillion reasons as to why materials are delayed in getting to us by outside vendors, but it will only make me bitter, so I’ll spare you the details <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>. Luckily I’m familiar enough with the Infinity cam to get the stop right, but others not as familiar should get your dealer to set it up right. Still, the BowTech manuals are an interesting read, and I look forward to getting mine when available.

THE NITPICKS

Of course the PATRIOT is not perfect, NO bow is.

The grip is probably the biggest “downer” of the bow. I say that with every report on a BowTech that I write, but for me it truly is. I hope for the 2003 bows, they address this issue.

It seems that the PATRIOT might not fit all bow presses. In fact none of my short bows fit in my old APPLE Hydraulic press. For my setups though, I have not NEEDED a bow press. I either use a loop or tied in eliminator. I also use a string splitter to install my peep, and leeches If I am using them. Since the WC strings and cables have given me no peep twist, or creep, I have not had the need. I suspect some of the portable type presses would work OK if needed, but if the bow needed to be torn down for some reason it would definitely need a “real” press, and your dealers may or may not work depending on the type

As many folks have stated, the BowTech designs have stiff force draw curves. For some folks that might be a substantial negative. Draw one yourself set-up the way you would shoot it and make up your own mind.

There is a large cutout in the arrow pass section that makes it difficult to use some arrow-rests that are equipped with a set-screw. There are ways to work around it (like finding two bolts that have smaller heads and attaching them into both berger button holes), but I keep a watchful eye on my arrow-rest to make sure it does not move. If the PATRIOT recoiled like my Mighty Mite or some of the more aggressive BowTech designs, it could be a problem unless you were willing to buy another rest that will mount more securely.

Also the PATRIOT sight mounting holes are very high in the window. This might make it very difficult from some archers who use a high anchor, whose peep is close to the nocking point, and/or use a string loop, to be able to get their sight pins low enough. I use a fairly low anchor, and my peep is upwards of 5” from the nocking point, so I still have some adjustment. It’s not been a problem whatsoever for me, but could be for some.

Also as I have said before BowTech bows are not cheap. MSRP w/ the Infinity cam on the PATRIOT is $749. In my neck of the woods that is what one pays. My dealer gave me a break on the price of the Infinity cam because I have bought 2 BowTechs from him previously, so I “only” paid $699. I must say though that I’ve spent just as much, if not more money on other bows that were not put together nearly this well, or felt half as nice to shoot.

My final nitpick is that the PATRIOT is just too damn accurate. I cannot afford to keep buying dozens of A/C/C’s every few weeks <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

THE WRAP-UP

The PATRIOT is basically what I’ve been looking for the past 2 to 3 years. A short bow that I can use in my ground-blinds, that also has most of the stability you find in a longer axle to axle bow. I’ve been experimenting with the short axle to axle bows now for about a year and a half. Though I’ve found some better than others, this year I was ready to go back to shooting 38” plus models to get the stability that my less than stellar shooting form needs. The PATRIOT despite the actual size, really feels and holds like a 38” to 40“ model: it’s quite deceiving. Even the string angle is generous, and allowed me to get away with shooting off the string with no problems whatsoever.

After about 300 shots or so, I have yet to encounter any serving wear, string or cable creep, and my peep comes back perfectly every time without a loop. The PATRIOT is probably the easiest tuning One-cam I’ve had, at least in recent years. My past few onecam bows (including my Mighty Mite) have been a little picky about arrow spine. This could be because I was shooting them with a loop, because of the shorter axle to axle, or that the PATRIOT just tunes up a bit easier, I don’t know for sure.

The PATRIOT is not BowTech’s fastest model, but still is a high performance bow. It has specs that are almost identical to my 2000 Extreme Solo option 2. Both are 60 LB bows and have speeds within 1 FPS. The ES has about .25” less brace height and ¼” less draw length. The ES is a nice shooting bow, but is definitely outclassed in EVERY area by the PATRIOT. I would say the same of my Mighty Mite except that the Mighty Mite is about 5 to 7 FPS faster, otherwise, it too is outclassed by the PATRIOT as far as I am concerned (though I’m not sure the comparison is fair). In 2 years BowTech has made vast improvements to their line of bows, something I wish more manufacturers would try to do. So many companies tend to rest on their laurels these days, something that is VERY dangerous in today’s market.

BowTech has pulled out all the stops with the PATRIOT: It has taken the long riser, short limb concept and actually improved it, instead of just trying to copy it. It has minimal recoil, noise, and vibration with excellent performance & stability. Personally I don’t recall ever having a bow that sat so dead in my hands since my 1997 Martin Rage XRG w/ Zcams. The difference is that the PATRIOT is almost 25 FPS faster at IBO weights, with an inch and a quarter more brace height, and is worlds away the quieter bow than the RAGE.

I believe the PATRIOT will go down in archery company history as THE classic model from BowTech. Much like folks reminisce about HCA’s Supreme, Hoyt’s SuperSlam, Martin’s Firecat, Jennings’ Carbon Extreme, Darton’s Lightning, Mathews’ MQ1, and PSE’s Mach 6. in 10 years people will fondly remember & converse about the PATRIOT and how sweet it shot.

PABowhntr

Jeff,

I am speechless for the moment...not so much because of what you wrote...but more so because I haven't finished reading it yet...<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

I am going to print out a copy of this and read it while I am making dinner....looks great so far...

gromage1

Nice report Jeff(as always),I knew you were gonna do that, I hope my Mighty Mite gets here soon so I don't start second geussing myself!<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

gromage1

Edited by - gromage1 on 03/02/2002 15:20:53

moonge

I think I nead a new bigger monitor to read this!

Straightarrow

Jeff,

If the bow reports in the magazines were as detailed and complete, it might be worth reading them.

Great job!

cubdriver

Thanks for the quality and detailed report on the Patriot!

Sagittarius

Jeff,

All your reports are great but this was the most interesting and fun to read report of all.
Great job! I give it an A+



Sag.

~DREW~

Nice report jeff. If I can get my hands on one I will try it. sound like a nice bow.

JOE PA

Great job as usual, Jeff. Hope you don't get sued for being too positive!<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

Avoid the inevitable until it is absolutely unavoidable!

Antler Eater

Very nice report Jeff...Your enthusiasm is a joy to read and hard to rebutt. Anyone from BowTech that reads this should at the very least send you a Christmas present (an expensive one at that).

All I can say is this better not be your last one! <img src=icon_smile_dissapprove.gif border=0 align=middle> Keep'em coming!