# APex 8



## Harperman

rsarns said:


> Anyone ever shoot a Mathews Apex 8 and if so what did you or do you think about it? 42.25 ATA and 8" BH, 310 FPS....


Ren.....I had two of them...."Pro's"...I loved the grip, Draw cycle is pretty smooth, well balanced, and they hold on target nice...Also, a good looking bow, to my eyes, anyway...."Cons"...I could never get the tune that I wanted, (or at least that I could get much easier with my Hoyt's), they are a bit heavy, the long shoot string is prone to stretching, and the cable serving rolling through the roller guard bothers some folks, I also felt that the single cam rolling over disrupted the feeling of the draw cycle, and some folks think that the Apex has a bit more after-shot vibrations than they like.....The "Cons" are a bit nit-picky, I know, but I just mentioned them because they might or might not bother You...Overall, I think that the Conquest Apex is a pretty good bow for Fingers, and just a pretty good bow over-all for multiple use, especially if the archer has a 28" plus draw length....Superb Indoor Spot bow....Hope this helps 'ya out..........Take care!..........Jim


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## NCBuckNBass

Prime One looks like it might be a good finger bow at 29"


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## rsarns

Jim,
Appreciate your review. The Apex 8 intrigued me as it is one of the few bows still made that is over 42" ATA nd has some speed to it. I am going to have to try one and see, thanks again!


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## rsarns

NCBuckNBass said:


> Prime One looks like it might be a good finger bow at 29"


Too short for my tastes, 39" ATA puts the string angle at a extreme. I am between the Hoyt Pro Comp XL and the Mathews Apex 8 rightnow. I have a Maitland X-Factor on order, but recently made a switch and these are the 2 bows I am thinking of getting.


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## MR get greedy

Love my apex8 I'm shooting 31" dl and it works perfect. Shoots so good I was able to take first at Cleveland ibo indoors


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## rsarns

MR get greedy said:


> Love my apex8 I'm shooting 31" dl and it works perfect. Shoots so good I was able to take first at Cleveland ibo indoors


Are you shooting fingers?


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## MR get greedy

Yes I am shooting fingers with my apex8


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## NCBuckNBass

rsarns said:


> Too short for my tastes, 39" ATA puts the string angle at a extreme. I am between the Hoyt Pro Comp XL and the Mathews Apex 8 rightnow. I have a Maitland X-Factor on order, but recently made a switch and these are the 2 bows I am thinking of getting.


What's your draw length? I'm 29" and my last bow was 42" 8" bh and it was comfy. I'd be surprised if 39" was too short for me, but not sure. I may get a chance to find out next week-end.


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## rsarns

NCBuckNBass said:


> What's your draw length? I'm 29" and my last bow was 42" 8" bh and it was comfy. I'd be surprised if 39" was too short for me, but not sure. I may get a chance to find out next week-end.


I have tried 38 nd 39 " bows.... the string angle is pretty extreme, not saying it won't work but I really prefer the ATA to be at least 42". I currently am shooting 45" ATA and love them (Hoyt Vantage LTD) but looking for something a bit newer and quicker.


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## arrowhunterguy

Can't go wrong with the Apex 8 . I have three of them and they very high performing bows. Incredibly accurate indoor , field, and 3d bow


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## rsarns

Well we shall see soon how the Apex 8 is for fingers and how I like it. It was put on order today.... Should be a decent bow for BH class...  I love good deals....


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## wchamp06

Hey Ren: I am shooting a Session (40") and it shoots fine. I draw 29" and it shoots good. Seems like you shot that zues pretty good last summer. Think I cud shoot the Session pretty good if I could see better. If you want, Gregg could shoot your bow and give you a report on how it reacted. Gerald


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## rsarns

Gerald,
Those Sessions are good shooters, did you let Gregg tune it up for ya?  No way I let Gregg shoot my bow, hate getting beat with my own bow...... :mg: Yep that Zeus did me well last year...


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## arrowcrester

I shoot an APEX-8 with fingers. Its the best finger shooting bow available that I've found these days. I've been shooting archery seriously for about 45 years. Most all of the first available compound bows were 48" A-T-A with round wheels which resulted in a draw force curve with rounded shoulders and a rather wide valley. When I first started. I was taught to shoot from the middle of the valley. Most of today's bows have a very shallow valley and if you relax even a little bit they;ll jerk you out of your anchor. Or, if you shoot from the front of the valley your shots will be high. With these bows it is difficult to shoot consistently with fingers when you have such a narrow valley. Especially with my fat fingers. 

I haven't had this problem with the APEX-8. The geometry of the APEX-8 is such that I can draw to my anchor and relax while I aim and let my subconscious mind control the release. I've been much more consistent with this bow because I can relax while I concentrate on aiming without my subconscious mind worrying about being pulled off my anchor point.


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## bndhunter

arrowcrester, I just picked up and Apex 8 and want to shoot it fingers and with a sight. Could you tell me how you have yours set up i.e. what rest, sght, do you use a peep sight? any help getting set up would be appreciated. I have been shooting a longbow the last few years but have developed a bad case of target panic and hope it won't carry over to the compound. That way if I can't manage to beet my target panic with the longbow hopefully I will still be able to hunt this year.


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## rsarns

I was at the shop today setting my Hoyts up for outdoors when the UPS truck pulled up...  Yep one bow and it was my new Apex 8. Only had about an hour and first thing I noticed was how short the DL was. Well had my two Hoyts there, now I can tell you I have always thought my DL as 29.5... I ordered a 28.5" because I have been told that Mathews run long.... well I couldn't even get my anchor to my lips at that length. So we threw it on the draw board and low an behold it was perfect at 28.5..... SO put my Hoyt on the draw board and it was 30.5???? Now I understand the difference between AMO DL and what you actually draw at the plunger.  So the shop had a 30" cam, and we swapped it out (Thanks Larry!) Rechecked i on the draw board, perfect at 30.5 and fit me perfect. Threw a rest on and started tuning....  DId I say fast??? I said that out loud after the first shot.... Now that is in comparison to my Hoyt Vantage LTD with cam and half pluses... I will chrono it tomorrow, its IBO is not super fast 310.... but well faster than the Hoyt. I need to get nock height set right tomorrow and the rest tuned and I will be off to the outdoor range.... there is a safari this weekend that I will be shooting this at.


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## Supermag1

I think the Mathews keeps there DLs pretty much spot on in their target bows. My Triumph is dead on with the 65% cam and my friend's Conquest 2 (maybe 3) was dead on what it said as well.


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## rsarns

Love it so far. Did find out it requires a much stiffer shaft than my Hoyt Vantage LTD (converted to cam and half plus). I was shooting Lightspeeds (400's) cut to 31 wit 100 gr tip. They bareshaft just fine out of the Hoyt, but they are 2 foot weak out of the Apex, no kidding here ether 2 foot?. Same poundage but I am 15FPS faster wth the Apex. I tried a 340 cut to 31" with 100 gr tips, and they flew well (no Bare Shaft as it was a shop arrow). I have some CX Maxima 350's I am going to try out tomorrow. Ordered some Lightspeed 340's today.


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## Old Sarge

Ren, how is the finger pinch situation with thatA-A? I draw about 28 inches with 3 under. Also how is the back wall? I haven't shot compound BB for awhile, just my recurve but may start back soon. Is the wall soft like a ProVantage or is it one of those hard back walls that will rip the string from your fingers if you dare to relax into your anchor?


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## rsarns

No finger pinch at all its ATA is 40 1/4, I shoot 3 under. The back wall is pretty solid but its far enough back from the valley that it doesn't try to rip the string off your fingers as you go into your sequence.


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## Harperman

Old Sarge said:


> Ren, how is the finger pinch situation with thatA-A? I draw about 28 inches with 3 under. Also how is the back wall? I haven't shot compound BB for awhile, just my recurve but may start back soon. Is the wall soft like a ProVantage or is it one of those hard back walls that will rip the string from your fingers if you dare to relax into your anchor?


Old Sarge....I pulled mine through a Clicker, if that give You any idea/help??...Daggone it, Y'all are making me miss my Lizard green Apex!.......Jim


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## Old Sarge

Harperman said:


> Old Sarge....I pulled mine through a Clicker, if that give You any idea/help??...Daggone it, Y'all are making me miss my Lizard green Apex!.......Jim


Jim, I feel your pain! I am in the middle of a big debate with myself...buy yet another recurve or an Apex. At present I am low on bow inventory with only an old ProVantage, 4 longbows, and 3 recurves. The least I've had for many a year. Been shooting the stikbows a lot lately but miss my barebow compound also. Help! I'm so confused!


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