Hoyt 38 Pro Review
from $539.98
Pros
- Long 38-plus-inch axle-to-axle and a tall brace near eight inches build a genuinely forgiving target-and-field platform that holds steady and hides small form errors
- StealthShot string suppression and RizerShox came standard in 2007 - an early built-in damping package, so a used 38 Pro shoots quieter out of the box than most bare-riser bows of its day
- Cam and a half Plus builds offer a draw-stop-peg let-off of 65 or 75 percent, letting a score shooter set a firm holding weight or a longer-hold comfort weight on the same bow
- Wide 40 to 80 pound and 25 to 33.5 inch fit range on the modular XT limb platform makes one used chassis work for almost any adult shooter
- Real Hoyt target engineering - machined TEC riser, laminated XT limbs, Cam and a half - at used-market prices rather than a flagship budget
Cons
- Any 2007-2009 bow needs its strings and cables judged on condition - a fresh set and a re-time is the standard first step on a used 38 Pro and restores the draw and speed it left the factory with
- Draw-length changes run through the module and limb setup rather than a tool-free rotating module, so dial in your exact draw at a shop before committing to a used example
- Heavier in the hand than a modern target bow - many score shooters actually prefer that mass for a dead-steady hold, but anyone counting ounces may want to shoulder one first
Editors' review
Years before "string suppression" was a spec every brand advertised, Hoyt bolted it onto a forgiving long target bow and called it the 38 Pro. Launched in 2007 as the next evolution of the accuracy-first ProTec name, the 38 Pro was Hoyt's answer for the archer who ranks a clean, repeatable hold above raw speed - a long 38-and-a-half-inch axle-to-axle bow with a tall brace height over eight inches, wrapped around a machined TEC riser and the C2 Cam and a half. What set it apart from the field-and-target crowd was that Hoyt's new StealthShot string-suppression system and RizerShox dampeners came standard, making it one of the quieter accuracy bows of its moment straight off the rack. It ran three model years, tightening from a 38.5-inch, 8.25-inch-brace debut into a 38-inch, 7.75-inch-brace build with XT1000 limbs by 2008 and 2009, and Hoyt marketed it squarely at the shooter who wanted one bow for the 3D range, the field course, and a precise shot at a deer. Today it is a used-market bow with no catalog price to anchor to, which makes it one of the more interesting value buys for a score-minded archer. This review is for the shooter deciding whether that long old Hoyt on the used rack is still the accurate, forgiving platform its reputation promises.
Finish
The 38 Pro shipped in Hoyt's mid-2000s target and field palette - the high-polish anodized target colors of the period alongside the hunting camo dips Hoyt offered on the same chassis, since the bow was pitched as a crossover between the range and the woods. Because production ended after 2009, the finish a buyer meets today is whatever the used market holds, and condition tells you more than the original color: a long target bow that has ridden to club shoots and field courses for over a decade will show handling wear at the limb tips and along the riser cutouts. That wear is cosmetic on a machined-aluminum bow and does not touch the structure underneath. High-polish anodized finishes of the era can dull or scuff with age, so judge the coating on the specific bow in front of you rather than on a catalog swatch. None of it changes how the 38 Pro shoots - the finish is the last thing to weigh on a bow bought for its geometry.Riser
The 38 Pro is built on Hoyt's machined-aluminum TEC riser, the Total Engineering Concept construction that gave the brand its reputation for stiff, torsionally stable target chassis. Weight-relief cutouts shape the riser without surrendering rigidity, and the geometry was deliberately tuned for forgiveness - a neutral-geometry riser at the 2007 debut that Hoyt shifted to a deflex layout in 2008, pushing the grip back to quiet the bow and calm the hold. The limb pockets seat the laminated XT limbs on solid, repeatable contact faces, and the riser carries the RizerShox dampeners that are half of the bow's standard string-and-riser suppression package. Standard stabilizer and accessory bushings mean period rests and sights bolt straight on, which matters for a used buyer piecing a bow back together. The practical point is that the riser is the part of a fifteen-year-old 38 Pro least likely to have aged - machined aluminum does not fatigue the way strings and dampeners do, so a structurally sound riser is essentially the same precise tool it was new.Grip
The 38 Pro uses Hoyt's Pro-Fit grip system, the interchangeable machined grip that let target shooters of the era tune the hand shelf to their preference rather than live with a single molded shape. That matters more on an accuracy bow than on a hunter: a repeatable, low-torque hand position is where a forgiving long-axle bow turns its geometry into tight groups, and the Pro-Fit approach indexes the hand consistently shot after shot. The stock grip is comfortable enough that many shooters simply leave it, but because the panels bolt off, fitting a thinner or differently angled grip is one of the easiest personalizations on a used 38 Pro. For a buyer, that means hand fit is adjustable long after the sale and not something to weigh heavily when choosing between examples.Limbs
The 38 Pro carries Hoyt's laminated XT split limbs - the five-layer, three-quarter-inch split-limb architecture that gave the brand's mid-2000s bows their energy-dense, durable character. The debut 2007 bow ran the stiffer XT2000 limbs paired with the long-limb C2 cam, while the 2008 and 2009 builds moved to XT1000 limbs; both span the full 40 to 80 pound draw-weight range, covering essentially any adult target or hunting setup. Draw weight adjusts through the standard limb bolts with an Allen wrench, no press required within the published band. This XT limb family ran across many Hoyt models of the period, so its long-term durability record is well established - the limbs are among the reasons a used 38 Pro is a reasonable bet rather than a gamble. The one honest caveat is age: any bow of this vintage deserves a five-minute limb inspection for cracks or delamination at purchase, which is true of every used bow of the era and not the 38 Pro specifically.Eccentric System
The cam is where the 38 Pro states its purpose. It runs Hoyt's Cam and a half - two cams linked by a single harness so they fire together - in the C2 form at its 2007 launch, a version Hoyt patterned after its faster Vector cam but engineered specifically for the brand's longer-limb bows like this one. That long-limb tuning is the whole point: instead of chasing top-end speed, the C2 delivers a rounded, steady draw that a score shooter can repeat all day. Let-off, the percentage of peak weight the hold drops to at full draw, is set by the draw-stop peg at 65 or 75 percent on the Cam and a half Plus builds, so the same bow can be held firm for a crisp target release or higher for a relaxed hold. The catalog IBO speed sits at 305 fps at the 2007 debut and 306 fps in the 2008 and 2009 builds, measured at the industry-standard 70 pound, 30 inch, 350 grain setup - modest by hunting-bow standards and exactly what a forgiving accuracy platform is supposed to trade speed for. There is no published chronograph data from independent testing on this bow, so a buyer should treat the IBO figure as the ceiling and expect real-world numbers to land below it at typical target draw weights and lengths, as physics dictates. Draw length spans 25 to 33.5 inches in the 2008-2009 configuration, set through the module and limb setup rather than a tool-free rotating module - so a used buyer wants the bow already close to their draw or a shop visit factored in. In my experience the one thing to understand before buying is that the Cam and a half feel is fixed: you can tune the string and shave the holding weight, but the smooth, deliberate draw is the bow's identity and the reason accuracy shooters kept it.Draw Cycle/Shootability
Drawing a 38 Pro, the C2 Cam and a half rolls up without the hard front-end spike of an aggressive hunting cam and settles into a defined valley - this is a bow built to be held, not muscled. Stock it sits on the firmer side of the let-off you selected, so it asks the shooter to stay engaged on a solid back wall rather than park behind a huge shelf, which is exactly what a target archer wants for a clean release. Where the 38 Pro genuinely stands apart from its contemporaries is the standard StealthShot system: a carbon-fiber rod tied to a Limbsaver Navcom unit that captures the string at brace height and, by Hoyt's own account, cuts string oscillation by more than 70 percent, with the RizerShox absorbing residual buzz in the riser. In practice that means a used 38 Pro shoots quieter and deader in the hand than most 2007 bows that shipped with no suppression at all - the damping a Trykon owner has to add aftermarket, the 38 Pro came with. The long geometry does the rest: what I keep coming back to on a bow like this is how much the 38.5-inch axle-to-axle and tall brace forgive, letting the pin float settle and hiding the small hand and release errors that a short, fast bow punishes. It is a heavier bow in the hand than a modern target rig, and here the experienced read splits from the spec sheet - a score shooter treats that mass as an asset, because it steadies the aim and holds the bow quiet through the shot. The honest summary is that the 38 Pro rewards the deliberate, accuracy-first shooter and only frustrates the one who wants a light, fast bow off the rack.Usage Scenarios
The 38 Pro is a target-and-field bow first, and it fits that job cleanly. Picture the club-level 3D or field shooter who finds a clean 38 Pro on a classified listing, sends it to a good string maker for a fresh set and a tune, and walks onto the course with a long, quiet, forgiving bow that cost a fraction of a new target rig - that is the 38 Pro's most rewarding life today. The 38-and-a-half-inch axle-to-axle and tall brace make it forgiving enough for the shooter who values a steady hold and a settled pin over maneuverability, and the selectable let-off lets that same shooter set a firm target hold or a more relaxed one. Because Hoyt built it as a crossover, it doubles as a precise long-range hunting bow for the archer who prizes accuracy over a compact package - a whitetail hunter shooting from a stationary stand where the long axle-to-axle is an advantage, not a liability. The 40 to 80 pound range scales from a lighter-poundage target setup up to a full hunting weight, and the 25 to 33.5 inch draw span fits nearly any adult once it is set to their length. Where it is not the right tool is the tight-quarters, run-and-gun hunt where a 38-inch bow is simply too long to maneuver, and the shooter who insists on a tool-free draw-length change out of the box will be happier on a rotating-module bow.Versions
The 38 Pro was a single model that evolved across three years rather than a tree of package SKUs. The 2007 debut ran XT2000 limbs and the C2 Cam and a half on a neutral-geometry riser at 38.5 inches axle-to-axle, an 8.25-inch brace and a 305 fps IBO; for 2008 and 2009 Hoyt moved to XT1000 limbs, shifted to a deflex riser, and settled the bow at 38 inches axle-to-axle, a 7.75-inch brace and a 306 fps IBO with a published 4.6-pound mass weight. Across all three years Hoyt also offered the platform in additional limb and cam configurations - the catalogs point buyers to alternate limb and IBO options beyond the standard build charted here - so two 38 Pros of the same year can differ by how they were originally specced. There is no bare-bow-versus-package SKU split to navigate and, importantly, Hoyt never printed a launch MSRP in its 2007, 2008 or 2009 catalogs, so there is no original price to anchor to; the 38 Pro is a used-market bow whose value is set by condition, string freshness and mounted accessories. Within the wider 2007 family, the 38 Pro has a one-year-only sibling, the Hoyt 38 Ultra, which shares the TEC riser and StealthShot package but trades the Pro's forgiveness for speed - a lower 7.5-inch brace, the hotter Vector cam and a 310 fps IBO. A shooter who wants the most forgiving hold stays with the 38 Pro; one who wants more velocity in the same long chassis should read up on the 38 Ultra.Hoyt 38 Pro vs Mathews Conquest 4, Bowtech Constitution
| Bow | Hoyt 38 Pro | Mathews Conquest 4 | Bowtech Constitution |
| Version | 2008 XT 1000 (Cam & 1/2 Plus) | 2019 (MaxCam) | 2008 |
| Picture |  |  |  |
| Brace Height | 7.75 " | 7 " | 8.25 " |
| AtA Length | 38 " | 40.625 " | 41 " |
| Draw Length | 25 " - 33.5 " | 28 " - 32 " | 27 " - 30.5 " |
| Draw Weight | 40 lbs - 80 lbs | 30 lbs - 70 lbs | 40 lbs - 70 lbs |
| IBO Speed | 306 fps | 310 fps | 312 fps - 320 fps |
| Weight | 4.6 lbs | 4.4 lbs | 4.2 lbs |
| Let-Off | 65% or 75% | 80% or 65% | 65% - 80% |
| Where to buy Best prices online | |||
| compare more bows | |||
The long target bow of the mid-2000s, then and now on the used market, most often came down to a Hoyt, a Mathews and a Bowtech in the same 38-to-41-inch class, and the choice is a clean statement of priorities. The Mathews Conquest 4 is the defining single-cam target bow of the era - a 40.625-inch, 7-inch-brace bow rated 310 fps IBO that built its following on a quiet, forgiving single-cam shot signature; the shooter who ranks single-cam simplicity and Mathews' dead-in-hand feel first gravitates there. The Bowtech Constitution goes for maximum platform - a 41-inch axle-to-axle, 8.25-inch-brace target bow rated 312 to 320 fps, the longest and fastest of the three, for the archer who wants every inch of forgiveness and top-end speed a binary-cam target rig can give. The 38 Pro sits deliberately between them on speed and matches the Constitution's tall brace: its C2 Cam and a half is smoother than the Bowtech's binary and its 305-to-306 fps IBO splits the difference, while its selectable 65-or-75 percent let-off and standard StealthShot suppression are flexibility and built-in quiet neither rival offered off the rack. All three share the long, forgiving target geometry, so the decision comes down to cam philosophy and features: the Mathews Conquest 4 for the shooter who ranks single-cam quiet and simplicity first, the Bowtech Constitution for the one who wants the longest, fastest target platform, and the 38 Pro for the archer who wants Hoyt's Cam and a half feel with let-off flexibility and string suppression already built in.