Crossbow Nation banner

Single Cam Bows !

2K views 20 replies 19 participants last post by  Driftless Hunter 
#1 ·
Who still shoots/ hunts with a single cam bow.? What do you shoot and why. I’m going back in time to a Mathews z7x . I’m looking for your feedback. Thanks
 
#4 ·
Many of us here still shoot both. I mix mine up-like to keep up my skills with the compound, particularly when I go out of state to an area where crossbows aren't legal, plus I like to challenge myself a bit more depending on whether or not I'm hunting from the ground or from a stand. I use my crossbow 80% of the time because I am on the ground about 90% of the time. To answer the original question, I still use my Mathews Creed compound simply because it works, and I have put a ton of money into crossbows. I am always tempted to buy a new Mathews compound but I don't want to dump $1000 plus on a bow I will only be using about 20% of the time. I will actually be using my Creed tomorrow. I have used it a few times this year but haven't had a shot opportunity with it yet. I put on a new HHA single pin sight, which is much easier on the eyes, but I have to remember to adjust the optimizer (that part I don't like).
 
#9 ·
The first single cam I bought was a Bowtech freedom cam.( late 90's) I killed a truckload of deer with that bow. To this day the very best compound I owned was a Bowtech General. That was one of those bows that had a WOW factor, super quiet, plenty fast and was one of the first short axel to axel bows I could shoot really good.
 
#12 ·
I still shoot some 3 D competitions with my vertical bow but it's an Elite 2 cam bow, I've had several Mathews over the years and they are very fine bows I had a Mathews Drenalin and the Mathews Drenalin LD that I shot competition with. I'm still going to shoot both but most of my hunting is done with my crossbow.
 
#14 ·
I went through my search for the perfect bow with compounds. Had single cams by Mathews (5), Hoyt, Bowtech, Pearson, McPherson. Golden Eagle, Jennings, and Bear. ( Yeah, I had a bad disease ;) ). Always liked the feel and quiet of the Mathews (2-MQ1s, 2Q2XLs, Rival pro), but for me and my bad left shoulder, I didn’t find them very forgiving. Shot much better with my Darton Tundra than anything, pluse a couple of Champion bows with Darton copied cams. So easy to tune for just the right draw length, and bare shaft/field point/broadhead identical POI, and forgiving of my form errors. All that has led me to be much more content and less curious about crossbow minutiae.:)
 
#16 ·
Sold my last vertical at a garage sale 2 years ago, $10 was all I could get for it along with a handful of mismatched aluminum arrows, ofcourse being left handed reduces your market a ton.
Plenty of vertical intrest around here still. So much so that there is a sub forum for them.
 
#17 ·
Never shot a single cam hunting or at targets. Started archery seriously at 14 with a second hand 55# Kodiak Mag. That was my bow for many years. Went to a Jennings Super "T" , then a Jennings Arrowstar. Finally a PSE Mach III before returning to traditional bows. Shot nothing but Black Widows for the last 12 years before losing the sight in my right eye. Like Moon, thank goodness for crossbows as we age. No single cam bow experience, just a single eyed crossbower.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jac63
#18 ·
Went through a bunch of vertical bows over the years until I bought a Mathews switchback xt. Thought I'd never buy another bow, I liked it that much. But chronic arthritis in both shoulders forced me to switch to crossbows 4-5 years ago. I still have the switchback and dream about shooting it again but doubt I ever will. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my crossbows but I really miss that one Mathews.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Old Vet
#20 ·
I had to give up my conventional archery habit in favor of crossbow hunting, due to shoulder replacement surgery. My last bow was a Z7extreme with QAD micro rest, Axcel 5 pin micro adjust, T5 quiver and I think it was an Axion stabilizer. It was my dream bow that took me 20 years to obtain. Man, I really miss that bow and being able to shoot them.
 
#21 ·
I shot a Mathews Signature from 1996 to 2012. I still shot fingers in 1996, but changed to a release shortly after that. I only mention that, because axle to axle it was 41". I watched Mathews change something on their single cam bows every one of those years. Meanwhile, I still kept harvesting deer with what I had.

In the spring of 2013, I bought a G5 Prime Impact, & my best friend bought a one-year old Mathews Heli-m. We have both killed a number of nice deer with both bows since. I don't see him buying another bow any time soon. I don't see myself replacing my Prime Impact ever. I like everything about my compound bow. It's rock solid, more accurate than I can shoot, quiet, & comes with free lifetime cables/string (eligible every two years). A the time Prime was proving the strength of their risers by picking up a Jeep with one. I go about every 4 years on the free cables/string. I see no reason to buy another compound bow.

The speed of compound bows maxed out about 10 years ago in my opinion. My 2013 Prime Impact was rated at 340 fps.

A brand new 2022 Mathews V3X has speeds of 340 fps (29") & 336 fps (33").

Mathews Z7 was a classic. Buy it & shoot for decades! :)
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top