If there’s one bow that longtime bowhunters started out on more than any other, it’s likely the Bear Whitetail Hunter. It was an early classic introduced by Bear Archery founder, Fred Bear, in the 1970s. It was long, strong, and built to be the super-power of its day. Now, many years later, the company is offering the all-new Bear Whitetail Legend compound bow. The Whitetail Legend is a tribute bow to the Whitetail Hunter that pioneered the way.
Check it out in our Bear Whitetail Legend Review below…
Specs on the Bear Whitetail Legend
Axle to Axle – 31″
Speed – 320 fps
Draw Length – 23″-30″
Draw Weight – 45-60# / 55-70#
Brace Height – 6.75″
Let Off – 80%
Bow Weight 4.3 lbs
Finish Options – Olive, Shadow, and Fred Bear Camo
Price – $499.99
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- Bear Whitetail Legend
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- Top Limbs
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- Cable Slide
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- Bottom Cam
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- Grip
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- Limb Pocket
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- String Stop
First Impressions
The older I get, the more I appreciate the nostalgia of hunting gear from days gone by. So I couldn’t help but smile when I pulled the test bow from the box and saw it finished in the old-school camo pattern of Fred Bear’s own making. Despite its modern day build, it felt like a piece of the past was built in. The bow looks great, feels great in the hand, and draws super smooth.
A Solid Back Wall
The design of this new bow is built with compact comfort at the foundation. You’ll notice the shootability built in every time you draw it back. Bear built the new Whitetail Legend with a new draw stop and says it’s the most solid back wall of any single cam on the market.
Reducing Hand Shock & Vibration
The bow is built with what the company calls their ShockWave limb dampening device. The intent was to eliminate hand shock at the shot. These strategically placed dampeners absorb limb shock at the shot, delivering a much more comfortable – and quiet – shooting experience.
Ready to Hunt
Even from the beginning, Fred Bear’s mission was to make archery accessible for everyone. You’ll see this mission still being lived out through the company today, particularly with bows like the Whitetail Legend. This bow comes in a Ready to Hunt (RTH) package that’s loaded with quality gear from top to bottom, yet is budget priced under $500.
The kit includes a Trophy Ridge Volt 5-pin sight, Quick Shot Whisker Biscuit, Static 6″ Stabilizer, No-Tie Peep sight, and D-loop.
How it Performs
To best reflect hunting performance, I shot 3 different arrows at various grain weights through the chrono to get an idea of real-world hunting performance you can expect from the bow.
The test bow was set up at 28″ draw length and draw weight bottomed out at 69.4 pounds.
Here’s a look at the numbers I got from the test bow with the following arrows:
Arrow 1 – 398.3 gn / 268 FPS
Arrow 2 – 455.9 gn / 251 FPS
Arrow 3 – 544.5 gn / 233 FPS
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- 399 Grain Arrow
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- 456 Grain Arrow
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- 544 Grain Arrow
Conclusion
The bottom line on the Bear Whitetail Legend bow is that it puts a slick and nostalgic spin on one of the originals from days gone by. It’s a shooter friendly bow that comes in a nice and compact package with a ready to hunt package price that’s hard to beat.
Check it out at www.beararchery.com.
