Mathews Monster Safari Review

Editors' review

The 2013 Mathews Monster Safari is probably the highest quality hunting bow moneyavailable to the public. It has great speed and amazing quality. This bow is at the verytop end and sets the bar far above anything else in the archery market. It's fit and finishis flawless and its strength is amazing. It has awesome power and has the ability toproduce over 115 ft./lbs. of kinetic energy. The strength and smoothness of the Safaricombined with its speed and quality make it one of the best bows money can buy.However, it takes a lot of money.

Finish

The only color options available for the Safari are Lost Camo, and black. Both colorslook great and the black has a mean look. They are both durable with no chipping orflaking. Mathews does outstanding with their finishes and has always done a great jobwith the endurance of them. Both of the finishes appear to be mostly flat in texture withvery little gloss.

Riser/Limbs

The riser on this bow is one of a kind and has an amazing strength to weight ratio. TheHoneycomb Core Technology looks exactly like its name with a honeycomb pattern.The pattern promotes lots of CNC machine work that may play a partial role in theSafari's high price tag. It has exotic wood inlays for its badging and its integratedgrip. Combined with the limbs it creates a 33" axel to axel measurement. A also has astabilizer bushing like nearly all bows do these days.The Quad V-Lock Limbs provide tons of power and the weight doesn't keep building upduring the draw. They are extremely durable and will last an infinity due to the weightbeing spread over a larger service area creating less stress on the limb. A 6" brace heightis created with the riser/limb combination. It is built mostly for hunting with its reallysmooth draw with lots of power.

Grip

The grip on the Safari is not the standard Walnut Slim Fit Grip that comes on the restof the Monster line up. It has African wood insets as a side plate type grip. It has a richlook and a good feel. It seems to balance better and settle in the hand better that the otherMathews grips. It is torque free and easy to find that comfy spot in your hand. It may geta little cold on some hunts with a large amount of metal riser around the grip, but nothingthat can't be accommodated for.

String Suppressers

A Dead End String Stop by Mathews comes standard on this bow. It does great atdampening vibration and cancelling out any extra noise that could exist at post releaseof the string. The Safari is a very quiet bow and this string stop plays a large role to thisaffect. It has a large and squareish thick rubber black boot at the end to soften the impactof the string. The suppresser is also adjustable.

Eccentric System

The Safari's cam system is titled the Advanced Vectoring System (AVS) and is newfrom Mathews. It allows for high levels of performance and efficiency while beingsuper smooth. These cams are modular specific and are adjustable from 25.5" to 31" indraw length. It is adjustable in .5" increments and each .5" change requires a differentmodule that can be changed without the use of a bow press. The draw is super smoothwith virtually no hump. The back wall is stiff and the cable stops do a great job ofcreating this feel. It is available with 65% or 80% let off and also has draw weights ofa 70lb. max or a 85lb. max. The Safari has an IBO of 350 fps with a 30" draw, 85lb.draw weight, and 425 grain arrow. This is a pretty awesome speed and produces anenormous amount of kinetic energy also that would be lethal to any of the biggest andmost dangerous large game in the world.

Draw Cycle/Shoot Ability

The silky smooth draw on this bow is amazing for its speed. It doesn't feel like thereis a big mountain to roll over at all. It has that well balanced feeling in the hand andfeels very stable at full draw. The solid back wall feels like you're really locked in.The valley is really generous and deep. It feels assuring to be able to have that muchmovement without the string wanting to jump back forward on you. Although it is not anecessity, a stabilizer would probably help a little at holding the bow a little more steady,but a lighter one may be best since it is already a heavy bow and quite quiet. It has greatcomfort and is altogether nice to shoot. The Roller Guard also assists in making the drawcycle smooth by reducing friction and guiding the cables on wheels.

Silencing Package

The string stop along with String Grubs on the bow string are what aid in reducing noiseon the Safari. They both do well with the bow having little vibration and being quitesilent. The String Grubs are made to reduce vibration while gaining more speed at thesame time.

Comparisons

Bow	Mathews Monster Safari	Mathews MR5
Version		2014
Picture
Brace Height	6 "	5 "
AtA Length	33 "	33 "
Draw Length	25.5 " - 31 "	24 " - 30 "
Draw Weight	60 lbs - 85 lbs	40 lbs - 80 lbs
IBO Speed	350 fps	360 fps
Weight	4.8 lbs	4.5 lbs
Let-Off	65% or 80%	65% or 80%
Where to buy Best prices online	Not available now. Please check later.	$60 to $80 Compare prices
	compare more bows

The Monster Safari and the MR5 are both extremely impressive bows from Mathews.Both of their speeds are amazing and the Mathews MR5 may even be a little faster. The Safariweighs .3 lbs. more probably due mostly to the stronger Honey Comb Riser. It's braceheight is 1" longer than the MR5 at 6". The MR5 cams do not have the honey combpattern. Although the MR5 does not have some of the luxury items like the Africanwood inlays or the Honeycomb Core Technology, it seems to be a much better value withtons of speed for $1,100 less. The MSRP for the Mathews Monster Safari is $2,100 andalthough it is an amazing bow it may be somewhat over priced.

Perfect Usage

The Safari is a perfect bow for hunting the biggest of big game, like its name, ideally onAfrican safaris. For those looking for the most possible kinetic energy, can draw highweights, and have the deep pockets to pay for it then look no further. It may be usedin some 3D competition, however, there are a lot of specifically designed target bowsavailable if one has this much money to spend. In the end it all depends on the individualand their shooting preference.

Summary

This is the most valuable bow ever made by Mathews and it has the assets to prove it.The AVS cam system, the Honeycomb Core Technology throughout, and the AfricanWood Inlays are the biggest differences that gives the Safari its value. The dual cam bowproduces awesome speed and power. It is comfortable to shoot and is enough to harvestany animal in the world. The one of a kind riser has an amazing strength to weightratio. The solid back wall locks you into hit your target dead center. It is quiet with agenerous valley. Mathews already probably has the best fit and finish in the archerymarket and this bow is above and beyond even the rest of their line up. It may have a bitof a narrower niche by only being available in 70lb. or 85lb. draw weights. However,its price tag is what will make its niche even narrower for those who can afford or arewilling to pay more than double most top end bow prices.