Well, I've had a few weeks to warm up to the Satori, so I thought I'd make a preliminary report.
I bought my Satori from 3 Rivers, a sponsor, and they were typically responsive, with my order correct and on time. Mine is 64" with a 21" riser. It has the Hoyt traditional carbon X tour limbs, and the Jager Hoyt 3.0 grip. I am using the Hoyt string that comes with it, which seems well made and fits perfectly (unlike some other strings I've gotten with new bows that don't, which seems to me like buying a new Porsche and having trouble closing the door: "Don't worry about that; just pull up on the doorknob a little as you swing it shut"). Mine is 40# @ 28", adjustable within a 5# range, which I haven't tried to do, as mine measured 40# out of the box, which is what I wanted. Same with the tiller; mine was even tiller out of the box, so I left it alone.
The only trouble I had was the side plate, which I discussed above. I received a replacement side plate and, after experimenting around and determining how many spacers to use, 2 in my case due to my skinny arrows, I tightened the side plate screw as much as I dared with a dab of locktight on the threads. The replacement side plate came with the stud glued in. Maybe this is Hoyt's fix; I don't know. But if the replacement breaks down the road, I have a friend who will make me one out of aluminum, which is probably what Hoyt should have done in the first place.
I have shot both the stock limbs and the upgraded limbs, and I think the upgrade is worth the extra money. At least it feels that way to me. Of course, being ILF, the sky is the limit as far as what kind of limbs you want to get.
I'm still trying to love the Jager grip. I started with the stock wood grip, which is very similar to a Black Widow stock grip, in other words, slim. It felt fine to me, as I like BW grips. I have never used a competition grip before. Maybe they're not supposed to be comfortable. I mean, a race car seat isn't supposed to be comfortable, and a racing bike seat is damn sure uncomfortable. I guess they figure there is plenty of time to be comfortable while you're drinking beer after the race. It's the same with this grip. After the first week, it had worn a blister on my thumb bone at the vee of my thumb and forefinger. I put the wood grip back on and shot it for a week while the blister healed. When I put the Jager grip back on, I examined it very carefully to determine where I should put my hand so it would fit. I was sorely tempted to grind off the part that gave me a blister. But instead I put my hand in the one position it would fit somewhat comfortably, without pressing on the spot where I had had the blister. I guess that's the point; on a competition grip, there is only supposed to be one place where you can hold it. Whether that's the right place for ME to hold it or not is still an unanswered question. I mean, we're talking millimeters difference here. But I do shoot very well with this grip, but then I shoot very well with the stock grip too.
Which brings us to the bottom line. I shoot this bow more accurately than any other bow I have ever shot. There really isn't any question about this in my mind. I've never claimed to have stacked arrows before, because I usually don't. Usually, a good group for me is getting all the arrows in a 6" circle. But with this bow, I stack arrows, not all the time, but often enough.
I wouldn't hunt with this bow, even with heavier limbs. It is too big, heavy and clunky for me to want to hunt with, and I darned sure wouldn't want the Jager grip poking me to remind me that it wasn't in exactly the right position. Those same factors, however, together with the overall smoothness, are probably the reasons I'm more accurate with it, and it will surely get a workout this year at 3D tournaments.
I shoot Victory VAP 600 spine shafts cut to 29", with 110 grain glue in points, giving a total arrow weight of 286 grains, or 7.2 gpp. Arrow speed is approx 192 fps.
Topic: Warning - Hoyt Satori bow (Read 3131 times)
