Mathews Drenalin Review

Editors' review

The Mathews Drenalin is yet another innovative solution from Mathews engineers. It's a lightweight and high-performance bow with good stability and great wall at full draw.

Limbs

To achieve such characteristics, Mathews engineers completely re-designed the limbs that are now more narrow, very tough, and durable. With the width of 1.1 inches the limbs are about half as wide as typical bow limbs, which contributes significantly to the Drenalin's trim appearance. According to Mathews, SlimLimbs last over twice as long as conventional limbs.

Limb pocket system

To complement the new limbs, Mathews came up with a new and compact limb-pocket system. The limb pockets are secure and thin making this bow even lighter.

Eccentric system

Many hunters and archers agree that the Drenalin cam system is exceptional. This is a fast bow with a smooth draw cycle and a solid back wall. While being a bit faster than Mathews Switchback XT it is as fast as the standard Mathews Switchback. Many hunters who shoot this bow say its StraightLine Perimeter-Weighted Cam system allows for a very smooth draw and let-off. After testing this bow some shooters even say it feels a few pounds lighter in draw weight compared to the setup. They also notice that the Drenalin is a high-performance bow. To achieve high performance, the Mathews design team engineered a non-adjustable eccentrics system. Keep this in mind when buying this bow - make sure a proper cam is installed to match your draw length.

Silencing system / Quietness and vibration

This bow is equipped with Mathews Six-Point Harmonic Damping System integrated into its riser, cable guard, and string suppressors. All these dampers are designed to eliminate noise and vibration. However we noticed that some archers do say this bow has more vibration and hand shock because it's so light. At the same time others claim it is as good as Mathews Switchback. When testing this bow ensure it's fully loaded to make your own judgment on how stable it is.

Other recommendations

Bow	Mathews Drenalin	Mathews Switchback XT	Mathews Drenalin LD
Version	2009	2008	2010
Picture
Brace Height	7 "	7.5 "	7 "
AtA Length	33 "	31 "	37 "
Draw Length	25 " - 30 "	25 " - 30 "	26 " - 31 "
Draw Weight	40 lbs - 70 lbs	40 lbs - 70 lbs	40 lbs - 70 lbs
IBO Speed	320 fps	315 fps	315 fps
Weight	3.85 lbs	4.25 lbs	4.15 lbs
Let-Off	65% or 80%	65% or 80%	65% or 80%
Where to buy Best prices online	$65 to $650 Compare prices	$75 to $599.95 Compare prices	Not available now. Please check later.
	compare more bows

When it comes to quietness some hunters like to compare this bow with the Mathews Switchback XT. They say that the Drenalin is almost as quiet as the Switchback. We shouldn't forget though, that the Drenalin is 5 fps faster.If you are a longer draw shooter have a look at Mathews Drenalin LD which is specifically designed for archers with longer draw length.

Summary

To conclude, the Mathews Drenalin is a lightweight yet high-performance bow with a great draw cycle. It weighs over one pound less than its main competitors but at the same time it doesn't lose in speed. This lightweight technology makes the Drenalin a great choice for mountain hunters or anyone thinking about carrying a lightweight and fully loaded package.