It’s been a busy fall season for the Elite Archery team with several big bow releases for their 2023 lineup. We recently took a look at their all-new Omnia compound bow. If you missed that review, check it out HERE. And if that wasn’t exciting enough for Elite shooters, the company has now launched their first entry into the carbon bow category.
The company says the bow ushers in a new era in carbon bow design. That’s why they’ve appropriately named it the Elite Era. Check it out in the video and review below.
First Impressions
“Dang, somebody finally designed a good looking carbon bow!”
Those were the first words out of my mouth when I pulled the Era from the box. Let’s be honest, there are some really ugly carbon bow designs out there, but that’s not the case here. The Era looks really sharp, with a beefy build from top to bottom.
The Elite crew was focused on delivering the classic fit and feel of Elite’s shootability, with a high modulus carbon fiber design that exceeds the tightest of tolerances. The outcome was a bow with a shooting foundation that has precision control, incredible forgiveness, customizable comfort settings, in a rock-solid design that’s light enough to pack into the backcountry. In fact, the in-hand feel of this bow was another factor that initially caught my attention. It weighs in at 3.95 pounds, but honestly feels lighter than that due to how well balanced the bow was designed.
Specs on the Era
Specifications on the Era include:
Axle to Axle – 31.25″
Brace Height – 7.25″
Speed – Up To 336 FPS
Weight 3.95 LBS
Draw Length 25.5″ – 31″ With 1/4” Adjustment
Draw Weight 40, 50, 60, 65 and 70
Finish Options – Black, Mountain Tan, OD Green, Sienna Brown
Price – $1,699
The Era includes a lot of the great features Elite shooters have enjoyed in the past. You’ll find their signature dual cage riser, adding rigidity where it’s needed most. Limbs that are shorter, yet wider, allowing shooters the ability to experience greater accuracy and strength on a lightweight and compact design that’s easy on the eyes and comfortable in the hand.
The Era also features Elite’s popular Simplified. Exact. Tuning. Also known as S.E.T. Technology. This tuning system ensures proper arrow flight so shooters can achieve superior accuracy. Best of all, there’s no need for a bow press.
SP Cam System
You’ll find plenty of features and performance built into the bow’s SP Cam system. The bow draws nice and smooth, with a little build-up on the back end of the cycle before the cams roll over. But it’s also surprisingly fast. In fact, it’s one of the fastest test bows we’ve shot through the chrono in our 2023 coverage so far.
The cam was designed for custom comfort with the industry’s first ever V2 Micro Mod Let-off adjustment, allowing shooters the ability to infinitely fine tune their holding weight within the 70-90% range. Even better, the bow allows for even tighter draw length adjustments, even down to the 1/4″. It’s truly a lot of technology built into one cam and mod.
Performance
I spent some time on the range to get a feel for performance and function of the Era bow. I put plenty of arrows into the targets as well as through the chrono. I used an arrow from my hunting setup to get a real-world feel for performance. Here’s a look at what I found.
Era Test Bow – 29″ Draw Length / 70# Draw Weight / Arrow Weight – 418 grains
Speed Through Chrono = 300 FPS
The Era features Elite’s industry-leading Limited Lifetime Warranty & Hunt Guarantee. So if you have any issues at home, or in the backcountry, you know you’ll be back in the game faster than ever. The bow is priced at $1699.
Check it out at your local Elite dealer, or online at www.elitearchery.com.
