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cecil30-30

cecil30-30

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2006
Messages
32,207
Location
Morgan Co
I see there are a couple here who have the excal matrix 380.I have mine ordered and should have it in about 2 weeks.Im debateing on what broadhead to use.I think im gonna go with the 125gr NAP spitfire.I'd like to use the NAP xbow killzone,but they only have cut on contact heads and Im not a fan of cut on contact.So what are you other matrix shooters shooting?
 
Not sure which broadhead I will use yet. I know for sure that I won't be able to use my old reliable 100 grain Muzzys though. I tried a couple and they flew terribly. Muzzy does market a broadhead that is "supposed" to be specifically for crossbows. Personally I think it's just a marketing ploy though.
I have some 100 grain spitfires laying around, they have flown great in every bow I have tried them in so I may give them a try.
It's a shame the Muzzys won't work in my Matrix, they shoot great out of my Barnett.
I may have to go with a heavier head to get the accuracy i'm looking for.
I'll keep you posted on the combination that works for me, and you do the same.
Congrats on the purchase of your new Matrix, i'm still loving mine. It is a little expensive for target practice, I've already robin hooded two arrows, lol.
 
I don't have my bow yet,still on order,hope to have it next week.I've heard real good stuff over on archerytalk and the excalibur forums about the 125gr ramcat broadhead.Its got a 1.5inch cut but its a hybrid of a fixed and mechanical head.Its more of a fixed if you ask me.Heading over to bass pro friday,gonna pick up a pack and try them out.
 
After shooting a couple of different bolt, broadhead and field point combinations. [18" Diablo, 20" carbon Express, 22" Eastons, 125 gr. Muzzys, 100 gr. Schwackers 150 gr. field points, 125 gr. field points and 100 gr. field points] I discovered that the 18" Diablo bolts and 100 grain 2 blade spitfires shot very well in my Matrix out to 50 yards. I was getting a little frustrated trying to get anything to group out past 40 yards. I thought it was b/c of the short 18" bolts but this combination hopefully will be what I will be using this Fall. My Matrix was grouping just about anything well out to 30 yards but after that you could actually see the arrows fishtailing on their way to the target, even the 150 gr. field points that came with the bow. I've found that 100 gr. field points and the 100 gr. two blade Spitfires so far shoot the best out of my bow. I'm not real fond of the two blade Spitfires [I don't know why, I've always had good results with them] but I did prefer the three blade Spitfires in my Matthews.
I have some three blade 100gr. Spitfires lying around and I may give them a try tomorrow.
It gets a little expensive shooting broadheads into a foam target but i'm not going to head into the woods until I know "exactly" where my arrows are going to hit.
I'm still experimenting and will let you know how tomorrow goes with the three blade 100 gr. Spitfires and anything else I can find lying around.
 
CR500AFX said:
I would check the FOC balance of the completed bolt. 20-25% is good for xbows. Don't settle on a short bolt that might be close to being under weight. There is no need to go with a heavy (150 or 175grains) broadhead. Also, a good complete bolt weight with broadhead is 400 to 425grains. The following links will help you.

http://www.excaliburcrossbow.com/phpBB2 ... hp?t=26256

This link shows how to calculate FOC.

http://backcountrybowhunting.com/articles/foc.php
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I can't get anywhere close to 20-25% FOC on anything I have.
The best performing combo I have come up with is the 18" Diablo bolt [Which Excalibur recommends with the Matrix] and a 100 gr. Spitfire either two or three blade. I only get an FOC of 10% with this combo but it shoots remarkably well.
On the other hand with the 18" Diablo and a 150 gr field point I get an FOC of 15.79% and it shoots terribly at 50 yds.
With a 22" bolt and a 150 gr field point I get an FOC of 13.44% which isn't very accurate. With a 100gr Spitfire and the 22" bolt I get an FOC of 8.33%.
I don't have anything that weighs 175 gr.+ so I can't do any research on that but from what I have seen it would probably take a 175-200 gr. head to approach anywhere near 20-25% FOC.
I have come to one conclusion and this is my opinion only and that is I don't think ANY fixed blade broadhead will be very accurate out of an Xbow shooting as fast as a Matrix out to 50 yds or more, i'm thinking any fixed blade broadhead going that fast is going to windplane, and the further the target the worse this wind planning effect will be. Like I said this is just my opinion, I suppose someone with the resources, time and money could "possibly" come up with a better combination and could find a fixed blade broadhead that will shoot out of the Matrix. I can get just about any combination to shoot well out to 30 yds. But I do want my Matrix to be at least a 50 yd performer just in case I get a longer than usual shot.
All in all I'm satisfied with the performance of the 100 gr. Spitfires and is the broadhead I will probably be using come deer season. I "may" try a 125 gr. Spitfire, but at $13 a pop I don't know if it will be worth it especially since the 100gr head is so accurate.
Just when I thought I was done I looked on the bench and saw that I have 6 18" Diablo bolts with Luminox on them. I'm pretty sure these aren't going to fly to the same point as the Diablo's with the regular flat nocks. I hope the Luminox do ok as I am really wanting to use them.........time will tell.
 
CR500AFX said:
Good luck this season. It's gonna be a good year.
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Same to you!! I hope you're right about it being a good year. So far it is looking promising around here. I've been seeing deer just about every day. Let's hope it stays that way. :)
 
Well,im haveing buyers remorse on this matrix.The trigger is about the most awful trigger one could ask form.Best groups I can get are 2 inch groups at 20yds and the scope is about as bad as they come.And to top it off,the Matrix is so loud it sounds like a double dry fire.Im not sure im likeing this.I wish I wouldn't have sold my pheonix now.I could bust arrows just about everytime at 20yds with it.I'm ditiching the dibalo arrows and have some black eagle executioners on order.Hope this clears up the accuracy issue,if not,there may be a Matrix in the classifieds for sale.
 
cecil30-30 said:
Well,im haveing buyers remorse on this matrix.The trigger is about the most awful trigger one could ask form.Best groups I can get are 2 inch groups at 20yds and the scope is about as bad as they come.And to top it off,the Matrix is so loud it sounds like a double dry fire.Im not sure im likeing this.I wish I wouldn't have sold my pheonix now.I could bust arrows just about everytime at 20yds with it.I'm ditiching the dibalo arrows and have some black eagle executioners on order.Hope this clears up the accuracy issue,if not,there may be a Matrix in the classifieds for sale.
Click to expand...
I was getting a bit frustrated with mine as well. I even put the 18" Diablo bolts aside and started experimenting with different length bolts until I discovered that "my" Matrix just would not shoot the 150 gr. field points with anything out past 30-40 yds. I finally discovered that the 100 gr. field points on a 20" bolt shot well. I then switched back to the Diablo's with a 100 gr. field point and am getting good accuracy and the bow is shooting very fast.
I wasn't impressed with the Excal scope either but it is a far cry better than the scope on my Barnett and better than a lot of the other Xbow scopes I have seen.
As far as trigger pull.............I guess that can vary from bow to bow but mine wasn't bad straight out of the box and it is getting better all the time. No creep at all and is pretty smooth considering that the trigger is holding back 260 lbs. Hopefully the trigger will improve on yours [if you decide to keep it] as time goes by.
The only thing I can give for advice is to check the screws on the anti dry fire mechanism which is also the scope base. The screws worked loose on mine after a couple dozen shots and was throwing bolts everywhere I tightened them back up and put a dab of blue locktite on them and they have not loosened up since. Also check the tiller on your bow. As the string stretches it will get out of tiller and will need to be unstrung and the string twisted to shorten it. There are no marks on my bow but after some research I found that you should have about a 1/8" gap between the string and the Reds suppressors. I've had to adjust mine a couple of times but it looks like the string has finally "stretched in" and has not had to be readjusted in quite some time.
One other thing, and I know this gets frustrating and a little on the expensive side is to experiment with different length bolts, different weight heads etc. What works for me or volsgo may not work for you. If all else fails, notify Excalibur, I hear they have a tech support team second to none.
If that doesn't work.......i'll give ya $100 for your bow. J/K, I hope you get it all sorted out and soon. Good luck!!!
 
volsgo1 said:
Diablos and 175 slick tricks are stacking them up for me.
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That's good to hear!! I've not tried a heavier head in my Matrix but it's great to hear that they will shoot a heavy head accurately. I may have to give them a try sometime.
Speed is great but if you don't have the accuracy to go with it there's no use having it.
 

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