2012 Pantera and Bengal

[MLN1963]

I thought the Pantera was supposed to be 35" A2A?

Jim

Did you make a typo? The Pantera is supposed to be 35" A2A.

[Spiker]

The website says 34"...

[MLN1963]

You are correct, it does say 34" now, but I am positive it said 35" before. I think I even have a post somewhere about that. So either I made a mistake in length or Martin corrected one. If I made one I apologize for wasting your time looking it up. Bottom line, it is advertised and confirmed at 34" now.

Edit***

I am positive now that Martin corrected errors in the catalog. The Silencer and Cougar FC are now at 32.25" just like last year. I remember someone being miffed when I said I didn't think they would make a 1" riser change. They didn't fix the pictures of the cams when they were in there. Wierd?

[gravedigger]

You are correct, it does say 34" now, but I am positive it said 35" before. I think I even have a post somewhere about that. So either I made a mistake in length of Martin corrected one. If I made one I apologize for wasting your time looking it up. Bottom line, it is advertised and confirmed at 34" now.

so what ya thinking about that rebadged ridge hunter,lol.im not so keen on it any more.just looks un finished

[MLN1963]

so what ya thinking about that rebadged ridge hunter,lol.im not so keen on it any more.just looks un finished

I have never liked the looks of it. I honestly don't think that would change in person but you never know. I'm a function over form person so If I shot it and it tripped my trigger I could likely overlook the looks.

At this point I won't buy another new Martin, used at a smoking price? Quite possibly. I don't really believe that the Rytera line is superior in any way or has any better QC than Martin but if I was to buy a new Martin product it would likely be a Rytera just to see if there truly is any difference.

I'm looking at a few used bows since guys are dumping their 2010s and 2011s to get 2012s. If something seems to truly be a bargain I will snag it. I hope I can get as lucky as Hawgenvy always seems to be! I like my shooting my FC400 (not all the hassles it had) but since it is the only bow I've owned I don't know if there are better out there or not?

[Money Man]

Jim,
Thanks for the reviews. You make it tough now. When the photos first came out, I liked the look of the Bengal, but saw the specs and it did not go to 31" so I looked more towards the Cougar FC, but now you say the DL goes to 31" Now I am stuck. Maybe a Cougar FC review is in the future?

[bfisher]

Good job, Jim. So I notice some small things. I notice that the cable rod on Bengal mounts into one of those unsightly slots with two countersunk screws holding it in place. Does this, in your opinion, cause more than enough cable clearance for fletching? In other words, too much side load and the resulting cam lean/limb twist? Did you check the cam/idler lean? If so then a doglegged rod might be a better option. I usually look for no more than 1/8" clearance between cables and fletching and do not use high profile vanes like Blazers.

[archerx7]

Good job, Jim. So I notice some small things. I notice that the cable rod on Bengal mounts into one of those unsightly slots with two countersunk screws holding it in place. Does this, in your opinion, cause more than enough cable clearance for fletching? In other words, too much side load and the resulting cam lean/limb twist? Did you check the cam/idler lean? If so then a doglegged rod might be a better option. I usually look for no more than 1/8" clearance between cables and fletching and do not use high profile vanes like Blazers.

Barry, Both the Pantera and Bengal use the same mounting method for the cable rod, and using a standard diameter carbon shaft fletched with blazers or similar high profile vanes, this setup gives just enough clearance when shooting cock vane in the up position, less than an 1/8". Using a small diameter carbon such as a Victory VAP this setup provides exactly an 1/8" clearance when shooting cock vane up.

I just checked for bottom cam lean on both bows, neither bow had any cam lean at brace. I don't really have any safe method to check it at full draw, so I can't comment on that. Out of the box, it only took one twist on the right side yoke of both bows to get the idler straight.

I would imagine that if someone was using a low profile vane and wanted to minimize the lateral pull on the cables, they could easily install an offset cable rod and adjust it for bare minimum clearance. The thing to remember here is that they design these bows for the masses, and most will be sold to hunters using a high profile vane or feather.

I would like to be able to give you and ES a review on the Scepter, but I don't have any on order and don't really plan on getting any in. I ordered 3 Shadowcats in 2010 and sold the 1st one in a few days, the other 2 hung around for almost a year, not enough demand anymore for bows over 36", the marketing genius's have everyone thinking they need a short bow to hunt with. I can still remember 6-7 years ago when 40" was considered short, now the best selling bows all have the same thing in common....... 32" or shorter A2A.

[archerx7]

Jim

Did you make a typo? The Pantera is supposed to be 35" A2A.

Mark, No typo, the website as well as the print catalog has it listed as 34".

Thanks for another great review. If you had to pick one out of the two, which would you choose?

I really had decided on the Pantera initially..........now I'm not quite so sure. If I do get myself a new one this year.......I do know it will have the FuryXT cam on it, I really like this cam and I've never been a big fan of single cams.

jim,great reviews.just top knotch.as much as i did like the bengal im likeing that cat up have up for sale a lot better.i did like the looks of the bengal from the shelf side but from the other it just looks un-finished.if it was cut out like the pantera the it might have gone on my list.

again a fine review from you and thanks for taking your own time to do this for us and all others to read.

here we are folke some real reviews from a real archerx7

GD, I really didn't care much for the looks of the Bengal in print or online, but it looks much better in person. The flat area on the sight side of the riser will provide for a nice stable platform for mounting the sight, and the sight bracket should breakup the looks on that side of the riser.

[bfisher]

Jim,

I won't hold it against you for not ordering a Scepter. In 2003 I filled in as a sales rep while being a shooter for Pearson. Meeting lots of dealers at the ATA show and later visiting them in my assigned area I came to understand more about the archery business. I came to appreciate the fact that the vast majority of shop owners are part time operators and are certainly never going to become wealthy in this business. I know you guys have to lay out your own money to buy bows and to recover that you have to order what is going to sell.

For what it's worth I remember the very early days of compounds in this area. Recurves were THE bow. Most notably brands like Hoyt Pro Medalist, Bear Take down, Black Widow and others. Many nay-sayers said they'd never shoot something as short as my 48" to 50" Jennings, Olympus, or Pearson compounds (1973-1979), saying there was no way they could be stable. Man-O-man, how things have changed. I remember doing some of my best shooting with a 1977 Jennings Arrowstar. Of course, maybe a younger body and eyes played a roll, too. LOL.

I've recently talked with the rep I shoot for and he only has about 4 sample bows at this time. I'll just wait till he gets them all and then get a good look at them all. Thanks for the reviews. I'm sure, by the amount of comments here, that they have piqued the interest of a few guys.