Duncan Busby tests out an innovative compound bow.
Merlin Archery has a unique place in our sport’s history. For nearly 50 years, it has been championing, developing and manufacturing compound bows, taking the discipline from relative obscurity to one of complete acceptance and familiarity throughout the UK and Europe.
In 2014 Merlin chose to rebrand the manufacturing arm of the business as Mybo and, using its pedigree, has released a line of compound bows that rival the best on the market yet are affordably priced compared with rival offerings.
The latest challenge was to create a compound bow that was completely reimagined from the ground up while maintaining the feel and ethos of the brand, a bow that contains all the latest technology and features but remains easy to set up and instinctive to shoot. After many months of designing, testing, tweaking and perfecting, Mybo was finally ready to unveil the third bow in its line-up: the 2021 Revolution.
Available in three axle lengths – 40in, 37in and 34in – the Revolution is the first compound from Mybo to use different-sized risers to achieve each axle length in order to produce a familiar feel across the range. The goal was to be structurally strong without weighing too much, and the double riser cage helps to cut down the overall weight of the bow while ensuring that it maintains maximum strength in the areas that need it most. The neutral geometry and multiple stabiliser mounting points give the Revolution a pleasingly solid and predictable aiming pattern and fully customisable balancing options.
The grip is an essential element of any bow; being the main contact point between the archer and the bow, it’s vital that it allows you to achieve a comfortable and repeatable hand position. After a lot of feedback and study, Mybo chose to slim down the grip on the Revolution to create a platform that will fit almost any hand size or shape. The thumb side of the grip is carefully moulded to accommodate the archer’s thumb knuckle while the finger side features an interchangeable shelf plate.
Some archers like to have an angled edge to the arrow shelf that they can sit their fingers under, others prefer a flat side to the grip to enable their fingers to sit in a more natural position without obstruction. The Revolution comes with both options, which are easy to switch between. The riser’s new low-set grip position allows the arrow to sit centrally in the bow, helping to deliver dead-straight arrow flight and further adding to the Revolution’s easy aiming feel.
The Revolution is fitted with preloaded split limbs, a popular choice in compound bow design over the past few years. These limbs give the bow a positive-feeling shot with plenty of feedback but little or no hand shock. The limbs are held securely in place by a new enhanced pocket system. Slimmed down and lighter, these new pockets house a clever design that allows you to fine-tune the centreshot position of the bow to compensate for any torque.
No matter how you shoot, it is inevitable that you will experience some degree of torque in your bow; whether it stems from your hand or the bow itself, this torque can create persistent left or right tears through paper and poor groups on the target. The ability to micro-adjust the bow’s centreshot position without the need for a press helps you to tune out this unwanted torque and achieve perfect arrow flight.
The revolution’s cool cams 
The limbs are held in place by an enhanced pocket system
The Revolution is designed with a four-track cam system. The draw curve of the cams ensures the bow is smooth to draw while delivering good downrange arrow speeds, while the adjustable cam spacing allows you to move the position of the cam on the axle to fine-tune your arrow flight.
The most important feature on any cam is adjustability; draw length needs to be easy and inexpensive to change. Typically, compound bows have either a rotating or replaceable module to allow you to adjust the bow’s draw length. Both systems work well but each comes with their own disadvantages, such as the expense of purchasing new modules or a compromise in the feel and tune of the cam.
Mybo has solved this problem. The Revolution’s cams feature a replaceable rotating module, which offers ¼in draw length adjustments. Each of the three base cam sizes includes two different modules to cover its full draw length range; this allows you to quickly make small adjustments to your draw length over a reduced range and should you need to make larger adjustments you can just swap the module over – this clever design prevents your cams from going out of specification and saves you the hassle and expense of buying multiple modules.
The Revolution cams also feature a customisable holding weight option, allowing you to fine-tune the let-off from 80% to 55% in 5% increments. This, coupled with the solid-feeling draw-stops, gives the bow a comfortable and consistent feel at full draw.
The bow is fitted with an adjustable carbon cable guard, which allows you to fine-tune your fletching clearance, ensuring you get zero contact whatever size arrow and vanes you use. The cable guard is complemented by the AAE Slippery Slide, which comes as standard, alongside SVL limb dampeners and adjustable string suppressor, which reduce noise and vibration after the shot.
Reign strings and cables are fitted as standard. Constructed with BCY X-99 material, these strings are expertly made and deliver consistent performance in any condition. The riser is coated in a matt anodised textured finish, which not only looks the business but on a practical note helps stop your hand from slipping on the grip. There are nine vibrant colours to choose from to reflect your style on the shooting line.
Whether you are a Mybo convert or you have yet to experience a UK-made compound bow for yourself, the Revolution is leading the way in compound technology, pushing the limits of design. Perhaps you could choose
to lead it with a Revolution of your own?
