Xpedition XLite 32 Review: Lightweight Powerhouse!

Hey y'all, Brody Swish with Bowhunting.com here back with another bow review. And today it's all about the new X-Lite 32 from Expedition Archery. Now, Expedition Archery is one of the newer players in the compound bow game coming on the scene in the last decade or so, but they've quickly grown a following both in the tournament archery world, as well as the hunting world with the X-Lite series of bows. They've got the longer axle-to-axle length of X-Lite 35, X-Lite 33, X-Lite 31, and X-Lite 29. But for 2025, they're coming in with that sweet spot, the 32-inch axle-to-axle bow, the all-new X-Lite 32. Lots of great features in this bow and a new riser material. Let's take a closer look at this bow from top to bottom. When we stopped in at the Expedition Archery booth at this year's ATA show, the buzz was all about this X-Lite 32 bow, particularly the riser material that this is built with. It's all about the new material called Magnite. What is Magnite? Here's what you need to know. The material is 30% lighter than aluminum, stronger than carbon, but it's also more vibration dampening than both carbon or aluminum. In fact, 20% more vibration dampening than carbon, 3% more vibration dampening than aluminum. So really slick material that these guys have used. We've seen several other bow manufacturers coming on board with it as well. Magnite is the material. That's what the buzz is about on this new X-Lite 32, but there are other great features built into this bow. We're gonna take a look at those, but before we do, let's take a look at the specs from top to bottom. Now, as the name implies, the X-Lite 32 is 32 inches axle-to-axle. It weighs in, again, at 3.8 pounds, zipping speeds up to 342 feet per second. It's got a brace height of six and one eighth. Draw lengths of 26 inches to 31 inches and draw weights of 50, 60, 65, 70, and 80 pounds. So when it comes to first impressions on this bow, again, the first thing that caught my attention was the lightweight design. The bow just really feels good in the hand. It's super light at just 3.8 pounds. As I mentioned, it feels lighter than that. I think a lot of that's just because of how balanced this bow in the hand. It fits just really good. Just the right amount of top heaviness to roll over at the shot for that follow-through. Just really balanced, but also notice just the good looks of the bow. It's free from all the crazy cutouts and radical riser designs we're seeing a lot of bows these days. In my opinion, they're just really ugly design bows. This one is sharp, it's sleek, it's simple. Just a really good looking riser design. Now, we're gonna take a look at the bow from top to bottom. We'll start with the cam itself, the HB32 cam. You'll notice that is a more aggressive cam design. You're gonna notice that in that shot. A little more aggressive on the front end of that draw cycle, but that's where you're getting that extra speed at 342 feet per second is coming from this HB cam system. Now, the cam has a dual mod design for that long draw shooter or the short draw. Really simple to adjust your draw length. No bow press required. I simply pulled three screws out, pulled that longer draw mod off, added the shorter draw for 28 inches, got it set up, adjusted the draw stops, and in just a few moments, was ready to go from 30 inches to that shorter 28 inch draw length that I needed, and we're ready to roll. Again, no bow press required. Just real quick and simple adjustments to get the draw length you need down to the half inch increments. As we're seeing on most all bows these days, you're gonna find split limbs on the X-Lite 32. Also really popular these days is the way we mount our accessories. The Picatinny rail mount out front is what you're gonna find for mounting your bow sight. Does still have the side mount options if that's what you prefer. IMS for your arrow rest in the backside. Again, these dovetail mounts is what everybody's going through these days. Keeps things foolproof, bulletproof in design and setup. Makes things really slick and simple to get your thing set up quickly, and brings everything center line, more balanced on your bow. Other features on this bow are the string stop and the roller guard. Fairly standard on this bow, but one thing I wanna talk about on this bow is the noise and vibration dampening. You're not gonna find a lot of built on, add on dampeners and different things to make this bow quiet, but you will notice that it is very quiet on the shot. In fact, it was one of those things I had to kind of pay extra attention to to see is this a noisy bow. Just didn't notice much at all in the way of vibration and noise at the shot. They've got these doiker dampeners built into the bow. Really simple nubs on the backside go in. You can screw those on and off, add two, take away, get you some extra weight if you desire. You got a little nub out front on the bow screws in here, just down below the stabilizer hole. Not a lot when it comes to noise and vibration dampening built into this bow, but I guess it's just not that necessary because this bow is very quiet at the shot. The other thing you'll notice is a lack of hand shock. Very little, if any, hand shock at the shot. Again, it was one of those things I had to shoot several times just to see what am I missing here? And that was the case, just very little, if any, hand shock on the shot, very quiet on the shot. So they've done a really good job, quietness bow, dampening the noise and the vibration. Another great feature on the bow is it comes standard with ABB, America's Best Bow Strings. The platinum strings, very popular these days. And I know the brand has gone to great lengths to try to find the perfect bow strings for this bow. That's where they've landed, ABB Bow Strings. Can't go wrong with that when it comes to stretch and creep. These guys have got it going on. ABB Bow Strings is where it's at. That's what you're gonna find standard on this X-Lite 32. Another great feature we're seeing on this bow is the Cerakote finish. This is something we're finally seeing brought over from the firearm industry, right? They've been doing it a long time. We're finally seeing it applied to bows as well. You're gonna find that on this X-Lite 32. Cerakote finish, it not only looks good, feels good, but it's gonna keep that bow looking newer for much longer, handling the abuse we dish out out there while we're on the hunt. And when it comes to the grip on a bow, we know the grip is everything when it comes to consistency, repeatability, shot after shot, having a good grip allows that. I think you're gonna like what you find on this. Rise your grip feel, sits in tight, no bulk, no extras, sits in tight, but it also comes with an extra grip you can add on depending on what degree of hand placement you want. You've got a simple screw on each side, pop that one off, add the second one on, several different options when it comes to the grip. So nice addition there to give you that perfect custom grip feel in the bow. So when it comes to a bow review, I feel like you need some pros and cons. The likes as well as maybe some dislikes about the bow. And that's hard to come by because there's not a lot of stuff I can pick apart on this bow when it comes to dislikes for the bow. Again, starting off with the likes, I love how light this bow is. It feels great in the hand. I love how balanced it is. It just feels good. Got the perfect feel in the hand. It's perfect blend of top heaviness to follow through forward, not left, not right. Just feels good. Lightweight design. I love the Cerakote finish of the bow. I love the way it looks. I love the way it feels. I like the fact that it's gonna be tougher, last longer, keep that bow looking sharp on down the line. It's 32 inches axle to axle, but it's compact in design. It's gonna be perfect for the tree stand or ground line. It's also got that shootability on a little bit longer axle to axle bow than what we've seen from some of these super short bows in recent years. When it comes to the dislikes on this bow, it's honestly a struggle because there's not a lot I can pick apart on this bow. But if I had to pick out just a few things, I would say the aggressive cam design to get that extra speed comes at a price. You're gonna feel it on that front end of that draw cycle. Little more aggressive. Again, not a big problem, but I just noticed it more at 70 pounds, maxed out on the front side of that draw cycle. When I cranked it down to 65 pounds, where I might hunt from, nothing at all to it. Really smooth, coming back nice, steady against the solid back wall. The only other thing I could say negative about this bow is the price tag. It's ringing up at 18.99. Again, you're paying for that Magnite material. More expensive material, I guess, lends itself to a more expensive price tag. So you're gonna find the bow coming in at 18.99. I hate to see prices continue to climb, but that's what you're paying for, for this revolutionary new Magnite material that's coming in much lighter in the hand. Stepping out on the range, we've got a look at real-world performance with my particular hunting setup. 420 grain Easton Axis Arrow, 28-inch bow cranked down at 70 pounds, and I was consistently getting speeds of 285 feet per second. So plenty of speed, lots of performance built into this bow. Again, 70 pounds, you're gonna notice a little more aggressive draw cycle when I cranked it down to 65 pounds. Nice, easy draw on it. Again, zipping speeds at 285 feet per second with my hunting setup. As I mentioned, Expedition Archery is one of the newer players in the compound bow game, but this bow, the X-Lite 32, has quickly found its place among the top. In fact, at this year's 2025 ATA show, this bow was awarded Best New Bow of the Year, as well as Best New Product for 2025 at the ATA show. So this bow is doing great things. I think it's one you wanna take a closer look at. Be sure to check it out at your local Expedition dealer or visit them online at expeditionarchery.com.