It's been ages since I've last had a chance to post -- there's a lot of material I need to gradually add in. Coming up: review the River's Edge Arroyo recurve
Disclaimer: This is a review from one archer who's shot this bow enough to feel that she knows the bow well and thus is biased towards the short-draw archer who likes performance and comfort, preferably in the same bow.
Specifications
Bowyer: Marc Moriez
Length: 58"
Poundage: 40 lbs @ 26 (~46 lbs @ 28")
Design: 3-piece recurve with straight riser
Limb woods: Black walnut
Riser woods: Shedua and Imbuya
Arrows: BlackHawk Vapor 2000 with 125 grain points
For pictures, click on the title of this post -- my camera is still being really uncooperative. I suspect it's rebelling against me for some perceived slight or insult I inflicted on it when I tried to photograph a most hideous bow.
The Story:
This is the first ever Chek-Mate I ever owned. Originally, I had been interested in getting myself either a Martin Hatfield or a Martin Mamba and couldn't decide. Then one day, a greybeard at Pasadena Roving Archers showed me a beautiful recurve: a Chek-Mate King's Pawn and it shot really, really well. Only thing though was that I knew my days in LA were coming to an end and I wanted something easier to pack, plus I suspected that I would get stronger so I wanted some versatility in the bow. Long story short, my patience was rewarded with the Chek-Mate Hunter 1 and although I have come to bond with many other bows, most notably the Chek-Mate Crusader T/D and the Four Winds Phoenix T/D, this is still my old reliable that I return to when I need a break from the longbow.
Although the grip looks bulky to many people, it is surprisingly comfortable and is a bow I can shoot all day. The riser has enough mass to make this a forgiving, stable bow with no vibration at all (with silencers) and minimal vibration (without silencers), but light enough for even someone who only ate rice porridge for breakfast to be able to shoot for a long time before tiring from the bow mass. The draw is also extremely smooth for me despite an isolated report of the bow stacking past 26.5 inches, although later on it was revealed that the person in question had a 29" draw and wasn't used to drawing much more than about 40 lbs if that much. Performance-wise, it's a reasonably fast bow -- I have seen arrow speeds around 145 fps with a 25" draw and 360 grain arrow. After shooting bows like the Four Winds Phoenix T/D or the River's Edge Arroyo, it does feel a tad slow in comparison, but pound for pound at my draw length, this bow is still fairly fast. Tuning this bow was a challenge at first, but once tuned in with well-matched arrows, this bow shoots very straight and aims very intuitively (at least for a recurve in my book).
Not only does this bow do very well at 3D (where targets are typically 25 yards or less here in FL for traditional shooters), this bow also does very well in longer shots. I have been able to semi-reliably hit targets at 80 yards with this bow (ie, more than 1/10th of the time) and I have shot this bow well in spot shoots out to 40 yards, although the shortness of the bow does make it a bit more of a challenge at times. Still, though, the riser's mass helps make the bow more stable and easier to aim, making this the ultimate all-purpose bow. I can only imagine how I'd be able to shoot this bow if I got the 62" limbs! I prefer the Crusader or the Phoenix over this bow for the extra-long (40+ yards) shots, but this is still a great bow for all distances.
Just for a comparison between bow draw weights (at my draw length with an assumption of about 3 lbs per inch of draw away from 28" and at 28") and speeds. In all cases, I stayed with about 10 grains per pound, as it seems to provide me with a good balance of penetration, speed, forgiveness, and vibration (or lack thereof):
Chek-Mate Hunter 1
Poundage: 37 @ 25" (45-46 @ 28")
Speed: 140-145 fps
Chek-Mate Longhorn
Poundage 47 @ 25" (55-56 @ 28")
Speed: 150-155 fps
Chek-Mate Crusader T/D
Poundage: 39 @ 25" (48 @ 28")
Speed: 145-150 fps
Four Winds Phoenix T/D
Poundage: 45 @ 25" (53-54 @ 28")
Speed: 170-175 fps (need to be re-verified)
River's Edge Arroyo
Poundage: 41 @ 25" (50 @ 28")
Speed: No data, estimated to be 170-175 based on observations in comparison to the Phoenix
Pros: Comfortable grip, very beautiful, fast for poundage, very consistent, nearly silent and vibration-free when well-tuned, very maneuverable bow, looks and feels like a one-piece
Cons: Extremely long wait for bow unless someone happens to be parting with parts for the bow, shorter limbs may be a bit uncomfortable for taller archers, straight-handle design may not appeal to people who like long brace-heights
Best for: 3D, spot-shooting, hunting
Recommended For: Anyone who wants a beautiful, forgiving, fast bow with a lot of versatility
Overall verdict: This is a really fun bow to shoot and the only reason I don't shoot it more is because I just favor the longbow, but if I had to surrender all but one of my recurves, this is the ultimate keeper for me. For me, although I am more accurate with the River's Edge Arroyo at FL hunting distances (<15 yards), this bow wins out over the Arroyo because it also aims extremely well at longer distances. This is a great introductory bow for people who want a very well-crafted custom-made bow and are willing to wait a while or are lucky enough that someone is selling their bow. While not "the best" at any single "task", this is a great all-around bow for just about anyone.
Coming Up Eventually: Review of the River's Edge Recurve Arroyo
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