Diamond Fear No Evil Review

Editors' review

The team at Bowtech was asked to produce a special edition rig for Chris Brackett and Fear No Evil TV, thus we have the Diamond Fear No Evil bow, sold through Dick's Sporting Goods. Many say what came about was the re-introduction of the Deadeye, but with new stickers. Regardless, with a 32" ATA, 6 1/8" brace height, and an outstanding 343 fps IBO, this rig will not disappoint. This rig is fast and accurate, and will fit well on the 3D range or the tree stand.

Finish

This bow comes in the Realtree APG camo in the In-Velvet finish. The In-Velvet finish is soft to the touch, and helps reduce noise when banged around during normal use.

Risers/Limb

The riser is a fully machined lightweight aluminum riser. The ends of the riser are capped with a pair of Center Lock limb pockets that ensure the utmost precision and accuracy. These limb pockets were created using a proprietary machining process that removes all tolerances between the riser and limbs within the limb pockets. This creates a critical alignment necessary to produce accuracy. The limbs for this bow are 7-layered laminated limbs that provide increased power and durability. This is a very reliable technology where each layer works in conjunction with the other allowing for better stress distribution across the entire limb. This single piece limb design generates power shot-after-shot. These limbs come in 60# and 70# peak weights. The weight can be adjusted approximately 10# by turning out the limb bolts.

Other Components

This bow also comes with FLX-Guard cable guide that reduces cable torque and vibration instead of directing it to the riser, rotating modules that make adjustment to draw length simple, a twin-machined center-lock limb pocket system for exceptional accuracy, hand-built hand-stretched Octane strings that are reliable and reduce string stretch to almost zero, and a carbon rod string stop. If this rig is purchased with the Ready-Aim-Kill package, it also comes with a wrist sling, quiver, Hostage rest, and a stabilizer.

Eccentric System

The Fear No Evil is a single-cam bow that features Diamond's Throttle Cam Technology. This is purported to be the fastest single cam technology on the market today. This cam setup generates a 343 fps IBO. Not only does this cam create speed, it has an easily adjustable draw stop that helps to eliminate creep making this bow easy to shoot.The cam also contains a rotating module for adjusting the draw length. The draw can be set for 26" - 30" in 1/2" increments without the need of a bow press and only using only a hex wrench. The draw length can be further adjusted in 1/16" increments by using the draw stop. The cam also allows for easy adjustment of the draw stop, giving the bow up to 80% let-off.

Draw Cycle/Shootability

This rig is shootable and accurate, but does have a fairly aggressive draw cycle. It starts hard and builds throughout the cycle until it reaches let-off, and there is a pretty stiff hump to get over to transition to let-off. This aggressive cam, combined with the strong limbs and riser kick out an arrow at 343 fps IBO on a very flat line. If the draw stop is properly adjusted, this rig can be held firmly at let-off as it has a pretty solid back wall. The quality of this special edition bow is outstanding, just as you would expect from a Bowtech product. Once the shooter gets used to the stiff draw cycle, everything else will fall into place. With virtually no vibration, a solid feel, and some excellent speed, the shooter will be sending arrows downrange with precision and ease. The peak draw weights for the FNE are 60# and 70# and can be adjusted approximately 10# by turning out the limb bolts.

Silencing Package

The Diamond Fear No Evil was a special edition bow and has some built-in noise elimination features, but you would expect it to be quieter out of the box. The rig comes with an FLX-guard cable guard to absorb cable torque and reduces vibration and noise by transferring it to the riser. The carbon rod string stop also does a good job at reducing string noise, but this is all the rig comes with for noise suppression. The addition of some string silencers, limb dampeners, and a quality stabilizer will make this rig virtually silent.

Comparisons

Bow	Diamond Fear No Evil	Martin Alien
Version	2014	2013
Picture
Brace Height	6.125 "	7 "
AtA Length	32 "	32 "
Draw Length	26 " - 30 "	25.5 " - 30.5 "
Draw Weight	50 lbs - 70 lbs	35 lbs - 70 lbs
IBO Speed	343 fps	335 fps
Weight	3.95 lbs	3.5 lbs
Let-Off	80%	80%
Where to buy Best prices online	Not available now. Please check later.	$675 Compare prices
	compare more bows

Since the Fear No Evil is said to be the re-introduction of the Deadeye, it seems reasonable to compare the two, but let's not. The FNE is also comparable to the Martin Alien. The FNE offers 8 fps more than the Alien, but is 8 fps really noticeable? The Alien also has a slightly wider brace height at 7", less than one inch more than the FNE. The Martin offers the shooter an extra inch of total draw length than does the FNE, but both are fast, smooth, and accurate. The FNE is also an inch shorter ATA. Both of these bows easily fit into any archery situation. Since the Alien is not a special edition bow, and is sold through more than one outlet, it can be found in a variety of color schemes, where the FNE is sold through Dick's Sporting Goods, or online only, and only comes in one color pattern. Each of these rigs uses proprietary cam systems, producing considerable speed, and each uses a rotating module for draw length adjustments. The Alien lists for $800 for the bare bow, while the FNE list for $699 bare bow. Each can be ordered in a Ready-to-Hunt package for an additional $150, as can most bows purchased today. The Diamond Fear No Evil also comes with the usual lifetime warranty given to all Bowtech products.

Usage Scenarios

Although this rig will be a good fit in any situation, it was designed for the hunter. It can use a little work to make it quieter, but it is not so noisy that it could not be taken into the woods from the box. The technical specifications of the bow have everything the hunter would want - speed, light weight, forgiveness, accuracy - the bow is also pretty compact. With a 32" ATA and a 6 1/8" brace height, this bow can easily be carried around on any type of hunt without causing too much fatigue.

Value

This bow retailed for $849 for the Ready-Aim-Kill package, and $699 for the bare bow when it was introduced in 2013. The RAK package comes with a 7-inch Octane stabilizer, alloy peep, Hostage capture rest, wrist sling, TruGlo 4-pin sight, Octane Deadlock Lite quiver, Dura FLX-string silencer, and a D-loop. This is the average price for this type of rig, and the RAK package is worth the added money.

Summary

The Diamond Fear No Evil was created in partnership with Chris Brackett and Fear No Evil TV to be sold through Dick's Sporting Goods. As expected by any Diamond product, it continues to carry the typical Bowtech/Diamond quality that we've come to expect. This Diamond was part of the 2013 line and provides the shooter with a solid performing rig producing a reliable, accurate, and respectable 343 fps IBO.This single-cam bow comes with several features that only enhance the shooting experience. From the 32" ATA, 6 1/8" brace height, light weight, and speed, this rig will fit comfortably in any shooters hand. It does have a fairly stiff draw, but it is smooth, and easy to hold once let-off is reached. This bow should not be overlooked.