Well, I guess it's my turn. I'm pretty much strictly a hybrid guy. I've owned / shot recurves and ASL longbows but I'm a hybrid guy.
I do like the the looks of the forward / reverse / belly riser format that Kent offers. I've looked closely his 3-piece and really like what it offers, just haven't had the chance to shoot one.
The only criticism that I have of this bow would be the width of the riser. I'm used to shooting a bow that has more palm swell. That could be remedied by having Kent build a riser that's got more width. Easy to address.
The Apparition is also a lot lighter than what I'm used to shooting but that's an apples to oranges comparison (1-piece vs 3-piece). I actually like the weight of the Apparition. It's always a joy to shoot something so light in the hand that spits an arrow out like it does.
I think the Apparition draws very smoothly, right up to the stacking point. When it starts to stack, you're done drawing, it won't really go any further, functionally. I think there are some other more radical hybrid bows that might draw just a touch longer, but not much. That is probably because of the shorter riser of the other bows. I like the long riser on the Apparition. Don't know why but, I like it.
The Apparition has nice preload (higher draw weight at brace height) which I'm used to. I like that.
I really like the looks of the bow, overall. My wife said "that looks weird" when I pulled it out. It certainly "sticks out from the crowd" and I'm not afraid to do so.
It shoots an arrow with authority and seems to be a bit more tolerant of release problems than my current bow. If I were in the market for a new bow, I wouldn't hesitate to give Kent a call. There are only a few on the market that I'd be willing to put my money into and this is one of them.
I think Kent has a great design, functionally, and I think he's got something that nobody else has got. That's a winning combination.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to test drive this bow.
Warmest regards,
homebru