Dragon X8 Compound Bow Review

I tested the Dragon X8 compound bow to discover what speed the Dragon X8 shoots arrows at the various draw lengths. I tested the change in draw weight that occurs as you change the draw length of the Dragon X8. All of this information is listed in the data chart provided below as well as in the downloadable PDF I provide a link for in the next paragraph. Included on this data chart is a picture of the draw force curve associated with the Dragon X8 compound bow. If you would like to order this bow or look at it on the manufacturer’s website, use the link HERE. They offer Sean’s Outdoor Adventures a small kickback when people use this link, so thank you to all of you who use that link to purchase your bow, because it will also help to support my business.

To download a free copy of the data chart I created while testing the Dragon X8 compound bow, click HERE. Please note that you may not publish this chart without express written consent from me, Sean McVeigh, of Sean’s Outdoor Adventures. Also, if you are interested in ordering this bow, please use the link below.

On the top left of the chart, in the green section, you will find some of the basic specifications for the Dragon X8. The ATA (axle to axle) length that I measured was just under 30 inches. The brace height (distance from the handle to the string) was six and a half inches. The Draw Length range that I tested for this bow was 18 through 31 which is noted in the DL Range section. While the noted draw weight range for this bow is 0 through 70 pounds, I only lowered the draw weight to 18.5 pounds. The weight of the bow was 4.76 pounds with all of the accessories installed. When at full draw, I like to pull harder into the back wall to see if a bow has any give. I did notice a little bit of “give” which you will see in yellow.

Now let’s look at the draw length and draw weight in more detail. For this type of bow, the draw weight will actually decrease as you lower the draw weight. Keep in mind that the bow does this on its own. The draw weights that I noted in the main part of my chart are with the limb bolts remaining tightened all the way in the whole time. As you will see, the peak draw weight (DW) goes down as the draw length (DL) goes down. In the second, third, and fourth columns, I have a column for the advertised draw length and the actual draw length that I measured along with the peak draw weight that I measured at the corresponding draw length. You will notice that at the 31-inch draw setting, the peak draw weight measured 69.97 pounds. This means that if you want to shoot the bow at the advertised peak weight, you will also need to shoot it at the 31-inch draw mod setting. If you look down the draw length column and locate your actual draw length, you will be able to see what you can expect the maximum draw weight to be. For instance, if you have a 27-inch draw length, you can expect the peak weight to be right around 65 pounds.

If you are not sure what your draw length is, stand upright with your arms straight out to the sides similar to what you might imagine if you think of Jesus the Christ hanging on the cross when He gave His life for us. While in this pose, have someone measure from the tip of your middle finger on your left hand to the tip of the middle finger on your right hand and divide by 2.5. That number will be close to what your draw length is (depending on where and how you anchor for your shots.) Once you have your draw length, look on the chart and note what your peak draw weight will be.

The next three columns on the chart refer to arrow weight and the corresponding speeds that the bow delivered. The darkest red column to the right is for the 350-grain arrow. By using the information in this column, you can compare this bow to what the other bows I reviewed with a 350-grain arrow. You will notice that at the 31-inch draw length setting, the Dragon X8 bow delivered 320 feet per second speeds. If you look at the 30-inch draw length setting, there are additional speed ratings in the 325-grain arrow column and the 300-grain arrow weight column. The way I obtained those speed numbers was by lowering the draw weight to 65 pounds for the 325-grain arrow and loosened the limb bolts further to drop the draw weight to 60 pounds and used a 300-grain arrow. By doing this, I tested the IBO and ATA ratings for this bow at 30-inch draw length. As you will see in the chart, the Dragon X8 bow provided the exact same speed for the 65 and 70 pounds draw weight settings and almost the same speed when lowered to 60 pounds and shot with a 300-grain arrow. This shows that the bow is able to maintain its efficiency even if you are not shooting it at peak weight. The fact that the Dragon X8 bow did this is a big plus for it. I’ve shot bows that retail for $1,000 at 70 pounds with a 350-grain arrow, then lowered the draw weight to 65 pounds and shot a 325-grain arrow and the bow lost 6 feet per second in speed. This means that that $1,000 bow doesn’t hold its efficiencies when it is not shot at peak weight. As you look at my data chart, you will notice that I have added an * before the speed ratings in the 30-inch draw length row under the 300-grain and 325-grain columns. This is because these are the only two tests where I loosened the limb bolts to obtain these test results. ALL of the other speed ratings on the chart were obtained while the bow was at peak weight with the limb bolts tightened all the way in.

The final two columns, located on the right, indicate what the draw weight was for each inch of draw length as I pulled the string back utilizing a draw board with a scale attached. As you may notice, this bow hits peak weight around 17 inches of draw length and then gradually drops off as you move toward full draw. This can be seen in the draw force curve at the bottom-center of my data chart.

On the bottom left of the data chart, you will see the draw weight of the Dragon X8 after loosening the limb bolts one full turn at a time. I did this test with the draw mod settings at 30-inches. If I was starting at the 27-inch draw mod setting, the peak weight would have been 64.71 pounds. Regardless, you can see how much weight came off for each turn of the limb bolts. Something I noticed was that as I got down to about 10 limb bolt turns and beyond, the draw force curve dramatically changed. The peak weight was not reached until much later in the draw circle. The draw weight climbed very gradually, peaked closer to the middle of the draw cycle, and then gradually dropped back off. The draw force curve looked more like a standard bell curve with the high point in the middle. This change in the draw force curve may make it easier for a young person to draw, which means this can be viewed as a very good feature for young people.

Below are the videos I made on my YouTube channel which review the Dragon X8 and show how to set up and tune this bow as well. If you would like to win a compound bow for free, make sure you subscribe to the newsletter on this website and also subscribe to my YouTube channel while clicking on the bell icon so that you are notified every time I go live or upload a video.