Mathews V3 31 Review

Editors' review

If the V3 27 is the short, aggressive one, the V3 31 is the bow that just sits still and lets you aim. Mathews built both on the same 2021 platform - same Crosscentric cam, same 6-inch brace, same 342 fps rating, same flagship silence - but stretched this one to 31 inches axle-to-axle on that record-long extended riser. The payoff is a hold that owners kept describing as rock-solid: a long-bow aim you can lean into, wrapped in a chassis that still maneuvers like something shorter. Team shooter Brett Seng called his the year's tack driver, and the field data backs the nickname. Add the new Nano 740 damper and Centerguard cable containment and you get a bow that is both one of the steadiest and one of the quietest hunting rigs of its generation. It is aimed at the accuracy-minded hunter - the one who also shoots a little 3D - who wants forgiveness and stillness without giving up speed.

Finish

The V3 31 offers the same eight standard finishes as the rest of the V3 line, plus full custom options. Three solid colors - Black, Stone, and Green Ambush - sit alongside five camo patterns: First Lite Specter, GORE Optifade Subalpine, GORE Optifade Elevated II, Realtree Edge, and Under Armour Forest All-Season. The long riser makes the solid colors especially striking, and it is easy to see why so many owners of this model choose a solid Black or Stone to show off the lines. Camo shoppers get patterns spanning open western terrain and eastern timber, so the finish can be matched to the country you actually hunt. Mathews' Bow Builder program extends the personalization to colored cables, limb legs, and accents. Anodizing quality is consistent across the V3 generation and wears well. It is a generous finish menu for a flagship, with more solid-color latitude than most rivals provide.

Riser

The extended bridged riser is the reason the V3 31 exists. Mathews pushed the riser-to-axle ratio to the longest it had ever produced, so even at 31 inches the bow feels balanced and planted rather than long and unwieldy - one professional test noted it maneuvers in hand much like a shorter bow. The heavily bridged, machined structure places mass to steady the sight picture, and the extended Nano 740 damper hanging off the front adds a touch of forward balance that helps the pin float settle. Cable control is handled by the patent-pending Centerguard system, keeping the cables centered for clean cam timing and generous fletching clearance. The integrated dovetail rest mount indexes a compatible rest to the back of the riser with one repeatable connection, and the stabilizer bushing is built for a roughly 10% stiffer link to soak up more vibration. Setting one up, I found the long riser did most of the aiming work for me - the pin simply wandered less. This is a riser engineered to hold, and it does.

Grip

The V3 31 carries the Engage grip, a slim, textured panel seated centered in the riser to promote a consistent, low-torque hand. The narrow profile suits medium and smaller hands and rewards a relaxed grip, which pairs naturally with this bow's steady-hold personality - a torque-free hand plus a long riser is a recipe for a still pin. Because Mathews risers are honest about grip torque, a shooter coming off a bulky rubber grip should spend a session letting the bow sit in the hand rather than steering it. The centered placement makes finding the same reference easy shot to shot. Aftermarket side plates and third-party grips fit the platform for anyone who wants more fill or a different texture, and swapping is straightforward. For most hunters the factory Engage grip needs nothing.

Limbs

The V3 31 runs Mathews' beyond-parallel limbs on pockets redesigned to match the extended riser. The limbs rest well past parallel and curl inward at full draw, canceling recoil before it reaches your hand - a major contributor to how dead this bow feels after the shot. Reworking the pockets for the longer riser did not widen the bow's stance, so it stays trim on the shelf. Peak draw weight is offered in 60, 65, 70, and 75-pound options, and Mathews sets poundage through the cam module rather than by backing off limb bolts, keeping the limbs in their efficient range at full draw. That is part of why the heavier, longer-limbed 31 still posts strong speeds. The beyond-parallel design traces back through the Triax, Vertex, and VXR, so its long-term reliability is well established. It is a mature limb system with nothing left to prove.

Eccentric System

The V3 31 uses the Crosscentric cam with patent-pending Switchweight technology, in which one module sets draw length, let-off, and peak weight together - reconfiguring fit or poundage is a module swap, not a re-limb. Let-off is 80% or 85%, and factory bows commonly ship with 85% mods for maximum holding relief on a bow you may sit at full draw waiting on an animal. The 342 fps IBO rating is not marketing fluff here: on the chronograph the V3 31 produced 328 fps with a 350-grain arrow at 70 pounds and 30.25 inches, delivered 300 fps with a 400-grain hunting arrow, and pushed a 398-grain shaft to 286 fps for 72.22 ft-lbs of kinetic energy in independent testing - enough for any North American big game. One shooter clocked it as basically tied for the fastest of every hunting bow he tried that season. Because it is longer than the V3 27, it trails the short 27 by a single fps in a matched back-to-back test - effectively identical speed, the negligible cost of the steadier hold. The Centerguard containment keeps timing tight and vane clearance clean. For a hunter who wants forgiveness and speed in one cam, this is a highlight.

Draw Cycle/Shootability

Drawing the V3 31 is the pleasant surprise of the bow. The Crosscentric cam pulls firm off the front but stays remarkably linear - no hump, no spike - and it feels far lighter than the scale says; drawing mine set at 70 pounds, I kept second-guessing the number because it simply doesn't pull like 70. What separates this cam from Mathews' recent bows is the valley: it is a touch deeper, with a slightly more pronounced settle into the wall than the Vertex or VXR gave. Shooters who like a flat, seamless pull noticed the dip, and one shooter flagged it as his single nitpick; shooters who like to pull through the shot into a defined cable-stop wall will read it as a positive. It is a preference, not a flaw - but it is worth feeling for yourself. The wall itself is a pull-through cable stop rather than a rock-hard limb stop, which the back-tension-and-lean crowd tends to prefer. Then comes the part everyone agrees on: at roughly 96.8 decibels this was the quietest bow in the test lineup, two to three decibels under bows that normally read 98 to 100, and the Nano 740 leaves the riser stone dead. Combined with the long-riser hold, the V3 31 is a bow you can hold on target, break cleanly, and barely hear.

Usage Scenarios

The V3 31 is the accuracy hunter's V3. Picture a whitetail hunter perched in an open hardwood setup with a 40-yard shooting lane - the long riser floats the pin and the quiet shot lets the arrow arrive before the deer reacts. It shines for the western hunter glassing and taking a steady, longer poke across a canyon, where the forgiving hold pays off and the 342 IBO speed flattens the trajectory. It is a natural fit for the hunter who also shoots summer 3D leagues and wants one bow that does both, since the steadiness that helps on foam helps on game. With 300-plus fps using a 400-grain arrow and better than 72 ft-lbs of energy on tap, it covers whitetail, mule deer, antelope, black bear, and elk at honest bowhunting ranges. It is less ideal for the hunter squeezing into a cramped box blind or hauling through the thickest timber, where the shorter V3 27 tucks in better, and its 26-inch draw floor rules it out for very short-draw archers. For the shooter who values a dead-steady hold above all, it is close to ideal.

Mathews V3 31 vs Hoyt Ventum Pro 33, Elite Kure

Bow	Mathews V3 31	Hoyt Ventum Pro 33	Elite Kure
Version	2022	2022	2020
Picture
Brace Height	6 "	6.375 "	6.563 "
AtA Length	31 "	33 "	31.813 "
Draw Length	26 " - 30.5 "	26 " - 31 "	23 " - 30 "
Draw Weight	50 lbs - 75 lbs	40 lbs - 80 lbs	30 lbs - 70 lbs
IBO Speed	342 fps	334 fps	265 fps - 335 fps
Weight	4.5 lbs	4.67 lbs	4.6 lbs
Let-Off	80% or 85%	80% or 85%	70% - 90%
Where to buy Best prices online	$720 to $2000 Compare prices	$800 to $1300 Compare prices	$525 to $1000 Compare prices
	compare more bows

Among longer, steadier-holding flagships, the V3 31's closest cross-shops are the Hoyt Ventum Pro 33 and the Elite Kure. All three court the accuracy-minded hunter, and they bracket a similar price band - the V3 31 at $1,199 launch MSRP, the Hoyt Ventum Pro 33 near $1,349, and the Elite Kure near $1,099. The Hoyt Ventum Pro 33 is the longest and most forgiving of the trio at 33 inches axle-to-axle with a 6.375-inch brace, but its 334 fps IBO gives up a step of speed to the Mathews' 342 - the choice between them is length-and-forgiveness versus speed-and-silence, and the V3 31 clearly wins the quiet contest. The Elite Kure comes at it from the tuning angle: Elite's smooth-drawing S.E.T. adjustable riser and an enormous fit range of 23 to 30 inches of draw and 30 to 70 pounds make it the pick for a shorter-draw or lower-poundage shooter, or anyone who prizes micro-tuning, though it trades away the V3 31's top-end speed and that class-leading quiet. Against both, the V3 31's signature is combining a rock-solid hold with the quietest shot and a real 342 IBO. The decision comes down to priorities: the V3 31 for the hunter who wants steadiness plus silence plus speed, the Hoyt Ventum Pro 33 for maximum length and forgiveness, and the Elite Kure for the widest adjustability and the tuner's touch.

Summary

The Mathews V3 31 is the steady, forgiving half of the 2021 V3 platform - a 31-inch flagship that holds like a target bow, shoots like a hunting bow, and whispers like nothing else in its class. At $1,199 launch MSRP it sits squarely in the flagship field and earns its place with a dead-solid hold, a real 328 fps with a 350-grain arrow, and a roughly 96.8-decibel shot that was the quietest in more than one shooter's lineup. The Crosscentric draw is linear and feels lighter than its poundage, with a slightly deeper valley that pull-through shooters will love and butter-draw shooters should sample first. The beyond-parallel limbs leave the riser dead, and the long chassis does the aiming work so the pin simply wanders less - in my experience it is the kind of bow that quietly makes you a better shot. An excellent bow for the accuracy-minded hunter who shoots open country and a little 3D and wants forgiveness, silence, and speed in one rig. Buyers who need a more compact bow for tight timber and treestands should also look at its shorter sibling the Mathews V3 27, and those wanting the widest draw and poundage adjustability should consider the Elite Kure.