KINETIC ARIOS 2 RISER - Any good?

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
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Has anyone got anything - good or bad - to say about this riser?

...and more specifically, is it a reasonable step-upgrade from a WNS Axiom alpha for a roughly intermediate freestyler? (me, ofc!)

(there are no online reviews I can find, just sales blurb)

- Up until a few days ago I had the WNS Forged Elite penciled in as my next upgrade but a variety of factors - including the fact that it's being replaced by the 'Motive' & may not even be available by the time I go riser-shopping again - has got me thinking about alternatives.
 

Emmadragon

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AIUK Saviour
My hubbie's got one of these, and it does seem a very nice riser. It came as part of an 'intermediate' package, so yes, it's definitely a step-up from the Axiom. He says it's very nice. I will say that the grip is particularly handsome, it's wood, stained in two different colours. He's certainly had no issues with it, and we see it keeping him going for a good number of years. The limb pockets are fully adjustable, and it's got all the usual bushings for stabilisers, clicker and all that good stuff.
 

brman

Member
I've got one, so has my wife.
I went into the shop fully expecting to get a wns forged but much prefered the feel of the grip and the balance of the arios. Having used it for a few months I really like it, nothing of significance to complain about. Feels nice to shoot with, looks like, good tough anodised finish. I am only a novice but one thing that suprised me was how balanced it feels without any stabilisers etc. Others I have handled (eg cheaper core riser) felt like they are top heavy and fall backwards or sideways quite obviously on release. The arios feels much more stable. I don't know how much of this is weight distribution and how much the grip shape but it definitely suits me at the moment.

If I had to be really picky there are a couple of things that could be better
1) No inserts in the button hole threads. I haven't looked but I suspect this is stardard for this price range but I can see years of taking out and refitting the button might eventually wear them out.
2) On mine I had to shim out (ie put a bit of plastic behind) the top sight mount to get the sight bar completely vertical. No problem with my wifes and it is likely this is actually a problem with sight rather than the riser. I never bothered investigating as it was a very easy fix.

I am only a novice but so far I cannot see any reason why I would want to upgrade for a good few years.
 

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
Supporter
All positive so far :D

I'm even thinking of tempering my gut reaction to get one in my usual black in favour of this variant, which they call 'tactical' but looks to me like 'fake' carbon fibre....

Arios 2 tactical.jpg

Have either of you seen one of these 'in the flesh'?
 

brman

Member
not seen the tactical in the flesh (I have black, my wife a smokey blue/silver). Ours are anodised, not sure if the tactical one is anodised (can they do patterns like that anodised?) or painted or even a wrap of some sort? Might affect how tough the finish is? (or I might be talking rubbish! )
 

Emmadragon

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AIUK Saviour
Yes, the shop where we went had one like that. We bought one in red, but the 'tactical' one was quite nice. We just preferred the red grip. The black one seemed to still be anodised, but was matt instead of glossy.
 

brman

Member
Yes, the shop where we went had one like that. We bought one in red, but the 'tactical' one was quite nice. We just preferred the red grip. The black one seemed to still be anodised, but was matt instead of glossy.
yes, both my black and my wifes smoke silver are matt anodised (well, a sort of satin) rather than gloss. I like matt black anodising. Looks smart but does not mark up like matt black paint.

Did the tactical look anodised too?
 

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
Supporter
AFAIK anodisation can only produce an 'even' finish but as I have the time I've emailed a trusted shop to ask them about it.

I'll let y'all know what they say.
 

LionOfNarnia

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Supporter
Another quick Q -
What BH & NP (& maybe tiller too?) have you found produces the best tune?
(There is no online manual or indeed info of any kind beyond sales blurb)
 

KidCurry

Well-known member
AIUK Saviour
If anyone is interested there are some great recurve riser bargains on 'the' auction site by the manufacturer of Mybo. Slight seconds due to anodising imperfections or marks. I just got a black Elite, brand new with a tiny scratch about 6mm long that you really have to look for. Cost £275 instead of £360 :)
 

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
Supporter
Here's the email I just received re - The 'Tactical' coloured Arios:

Hi Aslan,
I am not exactly sure, I will reach out to our supplier to get an answer for you. As soon as I hear back I will let you know. I may not get an answer until Monday.
Thank you,
(redacted)
Not a problem at all, it's not like I'm gonna order one soon.
 

chuffalump

Well-known member
FYI Alt Services are having a sale on the Kinetic Arios. A lot of Kinetic stuff is rebadged Chinese product but that doesn't necessarily mean its a problem. The low end Win and Win stuff is often made in China too. My budget compound was a Kinetic. Painted rather than anodised. Looked ok though. On the other hand, I've seen the Mybo Wave in real life. Looked pretty good. More money though.
 

chuffalump

Well-known member
Alt Services? Never had any trouble with them. I remember the payment procedure was a bit round the houses but theyve always delivered.
 

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
Supporter
I've been having a closer look -
The 'cheap' riser is an Arios, not an Arios 2.
My gut reaction is that anything that needs an upgrade after only a year should be avoided. Prolly explains why it's so cheap.
So I think I'll go with a British supplier - unless someone can correct my thinking.
 

Whitehart

Well-known member
I guess by the time you are ready to buy there will be a whole host of new risers from China to salivate over and the Arios 2 will probably be replaced by something else even if it is just a colour change...

The Wave is a full CNC machined riser, whereas the Arios 1&2 are Extruded Aluminium and CNC finished but that is reflected in the price still a good riser along with the slightly heavier Novius 1 & 2 from the same brand.

Given your desire to shoot a heavy draw weight bow the Mybo Elite again full CNC and bows in this price range like the just release Kinetic Sovren should probably be your starting point.

PS. The Shibuya Flow Fibre Pins as great but they are fragile and break easily so take care.
 

LionOfNarnia

Supporter
Supporter
...they are fragile...
That's why I bought 2 ;)

From what (little) I remember about metallurgy, there are actually advantages to forged/extruded pieces, in that a machined billet retains the 'even' crystalline structure of the original piece whereas a hot-formed piece encourages a structure which 'flows', meaning the force transmission is more even & avoids possible sheer-planes. Hence machine-finished should be less liable to failure, given the same quality of alloy used.

I'll have a shufti at the ones mentioned too, ofc.
 

brman

Member
Another quick Q -
What BH & NP (& maybe tiller too?) have you found produces the best tune?
(There is no online manual or indeed info of any kind beyond sales blurb)
not sure it will tell you much as I have not really tuned my bow but my tiller is as it left the factory (about 4mm iirc), brace height just shy of 9" (long limbs). The manual says 22 to 23.5cm for long limbs so I am roughly in the middle. (21-225cm for medium limbs)
Nocking point I can't honestly remember.
 
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