# Hoyt Game Master II & Dorado: my off the shelf set up + comparisons



## Daniel L (Nov 23, 2013)

Getting into Traditional and recurves and after a bit of searching I liked the GM2 and the Dorado (also bought a couple of Martin one piece recurves but that's for another day...) and the typical questions are:

1. How do I set up for shooting off the shelf?
2. Which one is better? GM2 vs Dorado?

A picture speaks a 1,000 words:

The GM2, with 2 felt furniture pads stacked, and a rug rest. YES - any Hoyt Pro Fit grips do fit!! (This is the rubbery Pro Fit 180)


















And the Dorado, again with 2 felt pads stacked, and a velcro rest. This has the black wooden Pro Fit. I never really liked the stock grip.









You will notice the Pro Fit grip doesn't blend as easily into the riser. If you have big hands it might be uncomfortable with the "spur" at the bottom grip. I have medium sized hands and no problem.









FYI each pad is .17" thick so x2 = .34"
I tried some 3M branded pads and they were .14" thick each, and when stacked did not seem to bring me to centreshot.

The GM2 and Dorado are meant to be 7/16" cut past center and I'm shooting Gold Tip Traditional 3555 (5/16" diameter) with 5" feathers. And YES it works... for me anyway!

*Which one is "better"?*

I did the smart thing and bought both LOL (albeit second hand)

They are both sturdy, well made bows, designed with hunting-proof simplicity. No poundage adjustment, no tiller adjustment. And make sure you bring an allen key to put the limbs on and off!

*GM2*
1. Feels heavier in mass (it is) and more stable on the draw to me.
2. It has the funky Tec riser which some people don't like - I'm used to it now.
3. I've read it is slightly faster (like 3-5fps) than the Dorado for the same limb.

*Dorado*
1. Definitely feels lighter in the hand, more so than the specs imply.
2. Looks more "normal" which many prefer.
3. It's 2 inches shorter than the GM2 (60" vs 62" of the GM2) which I didn't think was much but feels more in the hand.

Shock wise they are very low hand shock... but I don't have much to compare it against!! I would give the edge to the GM2 tho as having less hand shock, which was minimal anyway.

The limbs came with Limbsavers and I'm using SBD Bowstrings 8-strand with Twist Wraps and I installed cut down cat whiskers. The Cat Whiskers made a HUGE difference in removing the after shot vibration!! I tried with and without and the difference was night and day.

So for me, I'm currently favoring the GM2. I liked the stable feeling.. the extra mass is good. If you don't mind the look and the length, I'd say it is the "better" bow.

But if you're just purely into hunting, the "liveliness" of the Dorado could be YOUR deciding factor.

It's not quite over yet tho... I have some TT Black Max 25lb limbs coming so I can really work on my form... and do a post on the ILF conversion using Trad Tech's bushings.

And once I'm settled I'll sell one of the bows off... at least that's what I told the wife!!!


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## secretagentmann (Jul 6, 2012)

Daniel L said:


> And once I'm settled I'll sell one of the bows off... at least that's what I told the wife!!!


my wifes been hearing that for years she has great patience.. :thumbs_up


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## Daniel L (Nov 23, 2013)

In the end the Dorado got the chop and I kept and still enjoying the Game Master II. 
Only problem is buying 2 bows for each 1 I sell LOL


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## rattus58 (Jul 9, 2007)

Daniel L said:


> Getting into Traditional and recurves and after a bit of searching I liked the GM2 and the Dorado (also bought a couple of Martin one piece recurves but that's for another day...) and the typical questions are:
> 
> 1. How do I set up for shooting off the shelf?
> 2. Which one is better? GM2 vs Dorado?
> ...


Other than it's metal, I really like my Dorado. As for cat whiskers, I tie some braided nylon chord to my strings and after a few shots, the weave unravels and it is quiet as a whisper... I haven't had handshock with mine, maybe its the 700 to almost 1000 grain arrows I shoot, don't know.... :grin:


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## secretagentmann (Jul 6, 2012)

Jeez rat, I would hope after 1000gr arrow it would be quiet. That's heavy!


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## centershot (Sep 13, 2002)

My first question is: Why shoot off the shelf? What you have done should work, but doubling up the felt pads for a strike plate will probably not stay put and come off (usually at the worst possible time). If your are doing it to be more simple and 'bullet proof' then you may have outsmarted yourself. A simple centerrest is a very simple and reliable piece of equipment. Unless your shooting off the shelf to meet a dumb (IMO) IBO rule then a rest may be worth investigating.

FWIW I have been loosing about 3# from the stated draw weight with TT limbs on my Dorado - your 25# limbs will probably be about 22-23# on your Dorado. What weight are your bows now? - I just picked up a Tiburon so I will have a similar pair of bows with it and my Dorado, should be interesting to see how they compare.


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