n b y s t e v e b a r t y l l a

world of archery

50 | Mathews | Bowhunting whitetails Mathewsinc.com

shaping theFor 20 years, Mathews

Inc. has set the bar For pIoneerIng InnovatIons.

I wIll never forget the day I met Mathews’ founder and Ceo, Matt McPherson. I’d been writing for just a couple of years, and a magazine editor called to say he and the magazine’s top ad guy would be in my home state of wisconsin to interview McPherson. he suggested I meet them for lunch.

although McPherson is extremely gracious and disarming, I admit I feared I wouldn’t really fit in. after all, I’d only writ-ten about 10 articles and was by far the least important person sitting at the table. to my surprise, I never once felt like that the entire meal. In fact, despite the magazine staffers being there to do a piece promoting Mathews, McPherson seemed to spend more time making sure I felt like the most important person at the table than he did promoting Mathews. I left Sparta that day the newest member of Mathews’ Pro Staff, without ever having asked for the honor. fifteen years and more than 700 articles later, I still look at that day as one of the most significant in my career.

yet, Mathews has done so much more than help me step into this industry. this amazing company has shaped the archery world. nearly every advancement they’ve unveiled has been major, and there have been truckloads of them.

world of archery

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shaping the

t h e w o r l d o f a r c h e r y

SoloCam RevolutionThere is no questioning the pure simplicity of the Single Cam bow. Subtracting a cam resulted in highly efficient, faster, more accurate, more forgiving bows with solid draw walls, less noise, less recoil, less vibration and no synchronization problems. These cams have continued to evolve and become even more advanced.

1992Original Solocam Standard

1998Straightline Maxcam

2010/11ZX Cam

2008/09Reezen Cam

2005Dual Perimeter Weighted

Straightline C1 Cam

“what drives me is that i’m always working on making the shooting experience

better. it means making bows faster, lighter and smoother,

but those goals fight each other. it’s like trying to build a race car

that rides like a luxury car and has the fuel efficiency of a hybrid.”

— matt mcpherson

Doing the ImpossibleBefore I dive into the impressive technologies Mathews

has brought to the bow world, I think it’s important to note how they have been able to pull off the seemingly impossible feat of not only breaking into the highly competitive bow market, but becoming the leader in the field and remaining there — all in just 20 years.

It is an inspirational story of the american dream: a rise from a startup two-man shop back in 1992 to become the only archery company ever to make Inc.’s top 500 list of fast-est growing companies (in both 1998 and 1999), producing their millionth bow in 2010 and hold-ing the crown as the largest bow manufacturer in the world.

It begins with having a passion and an idea for a better product. and for McPherson, it started as a child. his mother didn’t like guns, so bow-hunting was the only option for the McPherson boys. Matt was 6 years old when he made his first bow. at age 13, he made his first compound. In fact, before starting Mathews, he started and later sold McPherson archery. this spring-board allowed him to fine-tune his art, creating a better mouse trap by pioneering the first high let-off bows.

“what drives me is that I’m always working on making the shooting experience better,” Matt revealed. “that’s a different approach. It means making bows faster, lighter and smoother, but those goals fight each other. It’s like trying to build a race car that rides like a luxury car and has the fuel efficiency of a hybrid.”

obviously, McPherson’s creative mind, desire and the right approach have been key ingredients to advancing the bow world. however, as is often the case with new and innovative products, McPherson needed a vehicle for showing consumers why his products are superior.

“that’s why an aggressive ad campaign is critical for

us,” McPherson said. “Particularly with the SoloCam, because when we released it, it was so new and different that we needed a way to educate the public on how and why it was better.”

the other critical component of Mathews’ startling success is rarely mentioned. McPherson created a family-like company, where everyone feels great loyalty to the consumers and the products. a man of strong faith, he treats everyone as equals.

“really, everyone wants to be treated with respect and appreci-ated for what they do,” McPherson said. “I do my best to treat all of my employees like that.”

I sincerely believe that’s as significant as all of Mathews inno-vations in allowing the company to achieve such impressive success. If someone feels appreciated and sees others around them taking pride in their work, they push themselves even harder to do the best they can. It has fostered a company of innovation.

It Started with a RevolutionMathews was founded with innovation — specifically the

revolutionary SoloCam. the Solocam Standard was the first dual-feed single-cam bow ever introduced, and it served as the first step toward revolutionizing the archery world.

the advantages of a single cam are both many and significant. however, the biggest is simply synchroniza-tion. with one cam, the bow can’t come “out of sync” like traditional two-cam bows. those of us that have shot two-cam bows (one sign of how significant Mathews’ inno-vations have been is how many folks no longer fall into this category) realize how difficult it can be to keep them tuned and timed properly. It’s a never-ending struggle, and critical for maximizing accuracy and efficiency. with a single cam, those concerns are eliminated.

t h e w o r l d o f a r c h e r y

52 | Mathews | Bowhunting whitetails Mathewsinc.com

Parallel Limb RevolutionIn 1996, Mathews introduced the Signature which featured a proportionately longer riser and shorter, more parallel limbs. Because the limbs were more parallel, the vibration and recoil generated by each canceled. Since 1996, Mathews bow models have featured limbs that continue to become more and more parallel. Over time other bow manufactures start to copy this revolutionary design concept first developed by Mathews.

Single cam bows are also quieter, provide a solid wall, offer increased accuracy, have less recoil and vibration, are more forgiving and require less maintenance.

although Mathews makes numer-ous advancements in SoloCam tech-nologies every year, the next massive breakthrough was the MaxCam. with the introduction of perimeter weight-ing, the MaxCam cancelled much of the vibration, helping the bow shoot smoother. also, the design lengthened and strengthened the power stroke, creating the fastest bow of its era.

next, the MQ1’s Straightline MaxCam introduced the bow world to straight-line knock travel. this brought accuracy and consistency to new

heights, as well as resetting the bar for a smooth, quiet shot.

from there, Mathews cam designs have been constantly increasing effi-ciency, performance and accuracy, as well as producing smoother and quieter bows with each new generation. after years of advancements, it almost sounds simple. It’s anything but.

“we’ve really got to the point where we are splitting hairs to get the most out of each new cam,” McPherson said. “Some of the bigger improvements were the Switchback Straightline C1 Cam, where we designed a rounder cam. with the reezen cam, we increased efficiency and output more than any before. the Z7 and ZX Cam are tweaked to be the most efficient cams I had ever seen.”

Make no mistake about it: each new cam might be “splitting hairs” to improve upon the previous, but those split hairs make a significant difference. anyone who shoots a new Mathews from one year to the next realizes each one is noticeably more accurate, smoother and quieter than the previous year’s models.

Cutting Edge Ideasof course, new cams aren’t the only

reason for increased performance and a better shooting experience. a bow is more than its cam, and Mathews has also made huge breakthroughs in bow design.

one of the biggest changes between bows today and those of the past is

1996 Mathews Feather LightAxle to Axle Length: 38”

Riser Length: 17 5/8”

2000 Mathews Q2Axle to Axle Length: 33 7/8”

Riser Length: 23”

2006 Mathews Switchback XT

Axle to Axle Length: 31”Riser Length: 25 1/2”

2007/08 Mathews DXTAxle to Axle Length: 29 3/4”

Riser Length: 22 7/16”

2010/11 Mathews Z7 XtremeAxle to Axle Length: 28”Riser Length: 25 16/25”

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t h e w o r l d o f a r c h e r y

shooting tips20. “When learning to shoot instinctive, begin shooting at moving targets with flu-flu arrows. Flu-flus will ensure recovery of all the shots you will miss. Your brain will learn a lot quicker and will train your body how to proficiently hit the center of moving targets. You won’t have time to aim. Your brain takes over and eventually calibrates the shot for you.”-Tim Wells

40. “Always take into consideration the size of your string loop when determining your proper draw length. The loop will usually add ½ inch.”-Kelly Ray

36. “Shoot every shot without fear of missing.”- Kelly Ward

87. “I never aim directly at the 12-ring if the target is over 35 yards. Aim just above it and don’t force yourself to be perfect on yardage. It could save you points.”- Randall Jones

2. “The most crucial part of accurate shooting is hand to bow fit. Wherever you put pressure from hand to bow, it will effect your left to right or up and down. Low pressure will create high arrows, high pressure will create low arrows, inside or outside pressure will create left or right arrows. Your knuckles should be at a 45 degree angle and the center of the grip should follow the lifeline in your hand. Place your hand in this position and let the bow pressure your hand.”- Burley Hall

49. “Keep a log of shooting flaws or problems during the season. It often takes thousands of repetitive shots to correct these problems. Work on them during the offseason. There are often fellow shooters that have dealt with these problems and can offer suggestions that have worked for them.”- Robert Clark

62. “Hold your sight pin on the target until the arrow hits. A common mistake shooters make is that they move the bow while the shot is being fired, which causes the arrow to miss its mark. Remember to focus on the target and follow through.”- Michael Anderson

22. “Your release hand should come straight back and touch your shoulder.”-Chris Stachler 76. “Blank bale practice (no sight, no target, or with your eyes closed) is a great way to build muscle memory.”-Bill Lewis

38. “I always mount a camera on my bow to record my follow through after each shot. This also adds a little extra weight to the bow which helps build my endurance and trains me to not drop my arm.”- Freddy Harteis

1992 Mathews Standard: Original Cable Slide

1996 Mathews Signature: Teflon Composite Cable Slide

2005 Mathews Switchback: Angled Double Damper Roller Guard

2009/10 Mathews Z7: Reverse Assist Roller Guard

Roller Guard RevolutionMathews first introduced a carbon cable guard with a Teflon slider to combat noise. Mathews then came out with the roller guard to reduce friction even more. In 2002, Mathews angled the design and incorporated Harmonic Dampers to deaden vibration. In the fall of 2009, Mathews released another major innovation with the Reverse Assist Roller Guard. By reversing the cables — placing them in the front of the roller instead of the back — Mathews reduced friction, and people soon dubbed the Mathews Z7 the smoothest bow ever designed.

2003 Mathews Legacy: Ball Bearing Roller Guard

54 | Mathews | Bowhunting whitetails Mathewsinc.com

parallel-limb design. It’s an important part in creating a highly-efficient, top-performance bow. Simply put, paral-lel limbs cancel vibration and create a smoother, quieter bow.

Back in the early 1990s, Mathews designed a perfectly parallel-limbed bow, but no bow presses were designed to handle it. realizing hunters needed archery shops that were able to set up their bows, Mathews took the approach of gradually bringing them more and more parallel, allowing the bow presses time to keep up.

“In 1996, the Mathews Signature was our first step,” McPherson said. “we designed it to have a longer riser and shorter limbs. each year, we took it a step closer to parallel. now, our limbs have moved to being beyond parallel.”

Mathews has also revolutionized the cable guard. traditional metal rod guards were a source of high friction. they also squeaked in damp condi-tions. obviously, neither are good things for hunters. to combat that, Mathews first introduced a carbon cable guard with a teflon slider. the design created a smoother, quieter shot in all conditions.

never settling, Mathews then came out with the roller guard, reducing fric-tion even more. In 2002, Mathews angled the design, again reducing friction.

finally, in 2010, Mathews released another major innovation with the reverse assist roller guard. By revers-ing the cables — placing them in the front of the roller instead of the back — Mathews reduced friction and improved the smoothness factor yet again. the improvement in ease of draw is nothing short of amazing.

The Silence of Success

I’m a fanatical whitetail hunter, so for me, some of Mathews most significant innovations have been the ground-break-ing technologies that reduce bow noise.

the biggest cause of bow noise is vibration. Mathews realized that if they could stop vibration, they could reduce most of the noise. thus, many of the advancements created to help make the bow smoother and more comfortable also helped to quiet it. Parallel-limb design, roller guard advancements and the SoloCam itself are all examples.

But for sound fanatics like me, the introduction of harmonic dampeners was huge. this amazing design absorbs vibrations, quiets the bow and reduces shock. Since its release in 2000, it has been incorporated into roller guards, sights, quivers, risers and string suppres-sors. the addition of the harmonic Stabi-lizer in the fall of 2008 reduced up to 75 percent of residual vibration and has

become a mainstay on Mathews’ risers.In addition, the String Suppressors,

released in 2002, and the dead end String Stop offered in 2009, result in less string slap. these technologies drain noise causing vibrations from the string faster than ever before. More silencing technology arrived in 2009 with the release of Monkey tails to further reduce string vibrations.

these technologies have changed the way I shoot at deer. I used to always aim for the heart. that way, if the deer dropped due to bow noise, I’d still get a lung hit. I no longer aim low. I’ve shot 26 deer in the past four seasons with Mathews bows. not a single one has dropped the shot. I now simply aim where I want the arrow to hit.

No End in Sightamazingly, all of this barely begins

to scratch the surface of the innovations Mathews has brought to the archery world in the past 20 years.

Mathews’ advances in riser technol-

ogy, such as the grid lock design, have lightened and strengthened the riser. the Se Composite Slimlimb design reduces bow weight. Sphere lock tech-nology ingeniously locks the limb in place and combines with limb turrets to spread stress across the limbs, allow-ing limbs to be smaller and lighter. String grubs help nudge the speed envelope further than ever before. the list of Mathews’ innovations is literally endless, and there are still many more to come.

this is the reason I shoot a Mathews, and why I will until either they stop making bows, or I can no longer draw them.

Steve Bartylla is a 15-year Mathews pro-staff member. He prefers Mathews Z-Series for its smooth-drawing Reverse Assist Roller Guard technology.

t h e w o r l d o f a r c h e r y

extra tips11. “If you have a little remote clearing in one of your bowhunting spots, you can turn it into a deer magnet by planting an alfalfa and clover blend seed mix that doesn’t require any plowing or heavy equipment to plant.” - Dick Scorzafava

97. “Always invest in the next generation: What we have is theirs and if we don’t include them now, all our efforts and memories are for naught.”- Thomas Allen

95. “Do your research extensively on an outfitter. Ask for references from hunters who did not tag out. Those will be the most accurate.”- Justin Martin

59. “Save all your hunting licenses and document your hunting trips in a journal. It’s nice to have documented proof of legal harvest as well as info as to where and when animals were taken.”- Tom Miranda

71. “Carry an eyedropper of vegetable oil with you for those unexpected squeaks that you may encounter while on your adventure.”- Mike Beatty

12. “Use a short piece of yarn tied to your stabilizer for a wind indicator.”- David Hale

84. “Buy a pair of clear safety glasses for navigating through the woods in the dark. They will help prevent you from getting a stick in the eye.”- Josh Cottrell

57.“Always be sure to tune your broadheads so they fly exactly like your field points. The broadhead should spin perfectly with no wobble. If it doesn’t, rotate the insert inside the arrow shaft slightly and spin again.”- Stan Potts

74. “You should never set your bow to a peak weight for whitetail season. Here’s why: The longer you sit on stand the less your muscles want to react at full power.” - Mark Kayser

47. “Most of the time, bow hunting is a one-shot deal. But if you bow-hunt long enough, there will be times when you might be able to get off a second arrow. Practice for this scenario or you’re bound to blow it.”- Gary Clancy

2000 Harmonic Dampers Introduced

2003 V-Lock Limb Cup System

2008/09 Harmonic Stabilizer

Introduced

2006/07 Sphere Lock Pivoting Limb Lock System

2010/11 SE5 Composite SlimLimbs

The Latest Limb TechnologyMathews limbs are cut from engineered composite plates on two state-of-the-art Flow Waterjet machines. Today’s revolutionary SE5 Composite SlimLimbs are dramatically thinner, yet subsequently more durable than other designs. They are attached to the bow with the revolutionary V-Lock Zero Tolerance Limb Cup System, which forces the bow limb into very positive and consistent alignment where it is attached to the bow handle. The result is consistent bow performance in terms of accuracy and an increased confidence level of the archer.

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