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Some bows possess instant charm. Others don’t. In that sense, bows are very much like vehicles. A single glance at the typical minivan reveals a utilitarianism that’s practical but hardly beguiling. The same glance directed at a sleek and curvaceous sports car, however, can take your breath away.

The new Rytera Alien-X is a breathtaking bow.

Its charm is squarely rooted in its outrageous riser. Rytera engineers apparently pulled out all the stops when designing the Alien-X riser. It’s machined aluminum in a fashion we’ve not seen before. Every line and cutout seems to flow, almost as if the riser is a living, moving thing. Almost as if the riser is alien. Beyond that breathtaking look, though, is a host of solid engineering. That alien configuration also delivers a stiffer, stronger and lighter weight riser.

If you look closely at the alien webbing in the bow, you’ll notice that nearly every edge is dramatically radiused. While enhancing the bold, airy look of the riser, that widespread radiusing significantly reduces riser weight, which is a great thing in any bow. At the same time, all that flowing webbing also dramatically increases the overall stiffness of the riser, and a stiffer riser tends to shoot more constantly.

What all this means is that with the brand new Rytera Alien-X you have a sports-car-like bow, dripping with charm and charisma while packed with performance enhancing technology. There’s that stiff, lightweight riser and a whole lot more. Of particular note is the minimalistic limb-pocket system, conveniently adjustable hybrid-cam system with rock-solid adjustable draw stop, advanced roller guard cable-control system, STS bowstring suppression system, five-layer laminated limbs, ingenious Vibration Escape Arrow Shelf and the bow’s accuracy-enhancing skeleton wood grip. Wrap it all up and you have a new bow that surprises, beguiles and delivers all in one.

How It Shoots

Charm can take you only so far. Then it’s time to deliver. The alluring Rytera Alien-X delivers in spades. The first point of contact on any bow is the grip. The grip on the Alien-X is unique. It’s flatbacked for a consistent feel, nicely angled for a comforting and solid low-wrist position and thinthroated to reduce torque. It’s the sort of accuracyboosting grip I’d expect to find on a world-class target bow.

For such a fast bow, the draw cycle of the Rytera Alien-X is surprisingly smooth. Draw weight does build quickly but the transition into letoff happens with such gradualness that I’m forced to use words like “velvety” and “silky” to describe the back end of that cycle. There is definitely no harsh or surprising drop-off.

At the back end of that letoff is a flat wall as solid and confidence-building as Mount Rushmore. There are several ways to build an adjustable draw stop into a bow. The most common include a projecting stop peg that pivots around with the lower cam to contact either the bow’s inside cable or the flat of the bow’s lower limb. Both work, although a limb-contact draw stop tends to be more solid and precise. The Rytera Alien-X has a superb limb-contact draw stop. The peg is comparatively large in diameter and is rubber coated so the system is both very solid and very quiet.

With the bow’s great grip, smooth-drawing cam system and rock-solid draw stop, the new Rytera Alien-X proved to be a very easy bow to shoot well. In my hands, the Alien-X seemed to practically lock into full draw, making aiming strangely easy and scoring a foregone conclusion. Leather pads front and back warm up the grip on cold days.

The Rytera Alien-X is also a surprisingly fast bow, especially for a bow that draws this smoothly. My test bow peaked at 60 pounds, which is at least 10 pounds less than I normally shoot. Yet it delivered arrow speeds that somewhat astounded me. At 70 pounds it would clearly make my chronograph sizzle.

Key Features and Benefits

Alien-Cool Riser

This is a very cool-looking riser, certainly one of 2009’s best new riser looks. It seems to almost flow and move from end to end. I also really like the bow’s minimalistic, almost-notthere limb pocket system. That system dovetails perfectly into the look of the rest of the riser and also reduces bow weight.

Vibration Escape Arrow Shelf

For decades, serious bowhunters have covered the arrow shelf on their bows with dampening moleskin, felt and even leather. You can lose all that if you own an Alien-X. Integrated right into the riser of the Alien-X is what Rytera calls a Vibration Escape Arrow Shelf. It’s a shelf-fitting soft rubber insert that makes this bow woods-ready right out of the box.

Rytera Roller Guard

The Rytera roller guard holds and controls the cables, separating them and passing them over twin rollers for a smoother draw and a quieter shot. It’s also short and unobtrusive for a tidier bow.

Rytera STS System

Just below the grip on the Alien-X is Rytera’s STS (Shock Terminator Suppressor) System. This string-bumper system stops and temporarily captures the bowstring at the shot, quickly deadening string vibration. It also stops the bowstring at brace height, enabling a crisper release of the arrow from the string and eliminating bowstring/forearm contact.

Skeleton Wood Grip

The right sort of grip enhances both shooting comfort and accuracy. The skeletonized wood grip on the Rytera Alien-X is such a grip. It’s sculpted so as to guide the shooter into a solid, comfortable low-wrist position that’s an indisputable confidence builder. Relax your bowhand into this grip, pull into the bow’s solid draw stop and shoot for the middle.

Hybrix Duo Cams

My test bow was equipped with Rytera’s Hybrix Duo Cam System, although the bow can also be ordered with the company’s Tranz Cam Single-Cam arrangement. The Hybrix System really is quite remarkable. It draws smoothly and yet is startlingly fast. Draw length is conveniently adjustable with a draw-length module and its draw-stop system delivers a reassuring rock-solid back wall.