Martin Jaguar Takedown Bow

There are few things in life that you get and you know you found a good deal, I must say this is one of those times!A buddy convinced me to get this bow as a starter and not only was I impressed, he was too. The fit and finish of the bow is exceptional for the price! It is light at 2.7 lbs and well constructed, takes down easily, and you can purchase limbs for lighter/younger archers (down to 30 lbs) or take the full monty up to 55 lbs. I need to get into shape to shoot this bad boy!

Received this bow about 5-6 days before this review, so far I am VERY pleased. I am new to archery and going in I knew I wanted to start with a classic recurve bow, looking around online this seemed to be my best buy. The quality of the bow is excellent and seems it will last a life time. The string included is okay, but will need to be replaced sooner than later, but that is to be expected. The bow is extremely easy to put together, even stringing it, (bow does come with a regular stringer). As a new archer, it only took me a few sessions to get a hang of the bow and start decent groupings at 10-15-20 yards. Only downfall is the arrow rest, it is a piece of plastic junk, I would rather Martin just not include it as to not waste our time finding out it is crap and buying a new one. I suggest buying this bow with a decent arrow rest because you will need it in the near future. Overall, great starting bow, extremely fun. I purchased the 55 draw weight, I am a 19 year old male of decent build and it is a pretty tough draw, but I am glad I go it; just to give you idea of which to pick.

I am rating this bow a 4 because I have not shot with it yet. I have put it together and drawn it, and I am very happy with it so far. It shipped quickly and that's awesome. I don't particularly like the bow stringer it comes with because it has tiny little cups. It makes me feel like the limbs are just going to slip out and I'll get hit in the face somehow. Other than that I shall return to update once I've actually used it! Also the picture of the Jaguar on the bow is pretty nice. :)So I've shot a couple arrows with this bow. Its pretty powerful. Its going to take some getting used to, but I like it.

I am currently waiting to see whether the seller will help me out or whether the manufacturer will help me out. Once they help me out and replace the bent limb and I get to actually use the bow, then I will update my rating. As of yet, obviously I am pretty upset about the experience thus far. If I can upload a picture to show what I mean, I will.

I bought the 55# limbs. When I first started putting it together, I noticed that the top limb was protruding from the riser attachment point despite a meticulous job screwing it in straight so it wouldn't warp or damage it, etc. However after shooting it, every arrow flew differently. I had a pro watch my form and he said I was high above average in form for a beginner, and that there was an obvious problem with the bow. He then pointed out the limb twist in the top limb, where it makes a big swooshing curve to the right or left. Major defect. I have not seen a company let go of a box of garbage like that, I've heard the limbs are made by Regime in Italy. I'm going to demand my money back for the limbs (appx $75 limbs alone) and I'm keeping this riser for the heck of it, but what a let down.Pros:Riser is comfy, very uniqueGood as a starting bow (BUT MAKE THEM CHECK IT BEFORE THEY SEND IT)Sweet camouflage patternLight-weight, balanced (you don't need a counter balancing weight or any of that)Cons:Not traditional by any means except the wannabe limbsSlightly inconsistent drawVibration (even with upgraded string) at 55# at least, it was uncomfortable and I never looked forward to releasing that arrow, because it just caused me pain.Needed at least 4 musk ox whisker silencersPLEASE have a look at the Samick Sage or Samick Journey if you are looking for a smooth drawing, affordable, very traditional bow. This is just a quick throw together of Matin's spare parts with some sketchy limbs. It's a GOOD bow, but not great. IF you consider GOOD having to be lucky to get good limbs. Think hard before buying! Get what you pay for! But Samicks are cheaper...

Overall I like this bow. However, the arrow rest that comes with this is incredibly bad design. It is so bad that I consider it disingenuous that Martin's web site says it comes with a rest. I think it should say it comes without one. I bought a different rest (about $50) which is working well. Also, the grip is not well designed. Right above the grip is a flat area, so that if you grab the top of the grip, your thumb knuckle will rub on the flat area. Despite wearing a glove it took the skin off my knuckle in about 15 minutes of shooting. I find it very uncomfortable to grab the grip anywhere but the top, so I will have to glue some padding on it or something.

I am a beginner archer and I could not be happier with this bow. It was easy to put together and easier to learn to shoot it. The bow stringer was tricky to learn to use since I've never used one before. The one end fits over the tip but you would not know that by looking at it. You will need to stick you finger into that pocket and loosen the leather. Once you do that you are on your way. The bow itself shoots true and with real authority. I feel like I made a great choice with this bow. And even better is that the center piece that holds the limbs is solid, lightweight aluminum and you can add new limbs if it become necessary. A 50 lb. draw for a beginner is pretty tough to get used to. Don't be shy about going with a 30lb draw if you are just casual target shooting. I wanted to be cool with the stronger weight and I am getting a good workout. I might buy some lighter limbs for casual target shooting. I would buy this bow again if I had to do it over.

This is a great bow all around. I did a lot of work to mine and I wouldn't trade it for any other recurve. However the faults I have with it is, the rest and the string. In my humble but accurate opinion, both of which I think .... Suck. The bow is also very loud right out of the box but that can be solved with string silencers. An all around great buy for the price.