I have both and like them very much. You really can't go wrong with either. The ACS CX costs quite a bit more and is more of a semi-custom bow. It is very convenient to travel with, like most three piece takedown bows. It is stable, shoots very well, and is fast. But it is not some sort of super bow that sends arrows off at the speed of sound and defies the laws of physics. As was said above, it is probably about 10 fps faster than a comparable Shrew, which for your hunting situation will not be a big difference. The Shrew is totally a custom, one-man made bow that is crafted to near perfection by Gregg Coffey. I have five Shrews and all of them are wonderful. I particularly like the two piece model with the Bow Bolt as I wrote in a response in another thread. I have three Classic Hunter longbows, one Shrew Lite longbow (actually it is my wife's), and one Lil Favorite recurve. The recurve is the fastest of the five by a bit. Next would be the foam core Classic Hunter that Gregg has just now begun to build. I have two more Shrews on order with the Bow Bolts.
In my hands the ACS CX shoots more consistently accurately. It is definitely more forgiving of breakdowns in my shooting form. Part of that is probably the fact that the ACS is heavier; another is that the ACS is longer. Mine is a 64" model, but I have an extra set of limbs to make it a 62" model. As between those lengths, the 64" is noticeably better to shoot just because of the extra smoothness of a longer working springs and a longer lever arm that resists movement.
On the other hand, the Shrew (particularly the Shrew Classic Hunters in the 56" length) are just as smooth, if not more so, than the much longer ACS. I think my 54" Classic Hunter draws as smoothly to my 29 1/2" draw length (and beyond) as my 64" ACS CX. That is pretty amazing when there is a full 10" length difference between the two. The 54" Lil Favorite is just as smooth, but I was comparing longbows to one another. For a hunting bow, shorter is very often much better, as is lighter weight. Carrying a long, heavy bow through the woods all day is much more fatiguing that carrying a short, light bow. Shooting from a tree stand or out of a tent type ground blind is always much nicer with a short bow. All else being equal (which it never is) I would always choose a shorter, lighter bow over a longer, heavier bow.
Both the Shrew and the ACS CX point very well, but the Shrew definitely points better, at least for me. That is a big advantage with snap shots or shots at moving targets, but those are not the norm in hunting and definitely not in most target shooting situations. For formal target shooting I definitely prefer the ACS CX. The Shrew is great to shoot at targets, but it is not really designed to be a target bow. I like the forward deflexed riser design on the Shrew. I also like the grip a lot. The bow just fits me very well. The ACS fits well too, and it has a very nice grip and balance. If my form is spot on, I can shoot the Shrew as well as the ACS. It is just as inherently accurate. However, my form is rarely even close to perfect, and the ACS is definitely more forgiving of mistakes on my part. The deflexed riser on the Shrew helps add stability, but it does not make up for the extra weight and length of the ACS. The Shrew Lil Favorite recurve actually has a more deflexed riser than the Shrew longbows, and it is more stable and forgiving as a result. I still prefer the Classic Hunter over the Lil Favorite, probably because of the classic lines of a longbow.
I favor the Classic Hunter and the Lil Favorite over the Super Shrew and the Scout because of the shorter riser and shorter overall lengths of the first two. The shorter riser gives longer working limbs that draw smoother at long draws than the longer riser bows do even when they are several inches longer overall. To me, one of the main reasons for having a Shrew is to be able to get a top quality bow that is short in length, so it only makes sense to me to go with the Classic Hunter and the Lil Favorite. If you are shorter anyway and only have a 26" draw like Oddan, then you can pick any Shrew without worry, but his 54" Classic Hunter must be a dream for him to draw. The limbs are not even beginning to peak out at 26".
I have been wanting to try out a Black Mountain Sheepeater bow to see what a really short bow of that design shoots like. However, a two piece Shrew Classic Hunter would be much better to be able to travel with because it would break down shorter and would be much less bulky in a case without the large static recurve tips of the Sheepeater.
Sorry to be so verbose! I wanted to tell my thoughts about the pros and cons of the two bows you asked about without trying to convince you one was better than the other. By July I will own seven Shrews and one ACS CX with an extra set of limbs, so if I am voting with my dollars, you can see which one is winning in my books. Other people will go with the ACS and dismiss the Shrew, and they are not really wrong in doing so. Rod Jenkins shoots the ACS and prefers it. For what he wants a bow to do, he has absolutely picked the right one. If I could make a bow shoot the way he does his ACS, I might not shoot anything else either. But I am a very poor shot compared to Rod, so I shoot other bows too, and the Shrews are some of my favorites. I have a number of other bows besides the Shrews and the ACS that I own and am very high on too, but this thread is not about them, so I will not diverge.
Happy New Year to all you TradGangers!
Allan
Topic: shrew vs acs-cx (Read 942 times)
