Thread: Cross Bow Hunting

Due to an arm injury when i was 12 im now 47 i cannot use a bow so im looking at a crossbow for another form of hunting
the one i am looking at is a compound design and 165 draw weight so it can be used on Doc land.
Is there anything i need to look out for
Cheers

Knowing which particular bow might help answers. I shoot with a matrix 380 which is a 260lb draw weight recurve. My advice for crossbows is try and find the most proven reliable designs whether recurve or compound. Crossbows are right in the middle of an arms race right now. They were a stable technology for about 15 years, then with the advent of fast compounds the last few years, manufacturers have been trying to outdo one another every single season. More speed, lighter, more compact but the issue is some of the units are being released to the public before they have all the issues ironed out. I remember one of the scorpyds that came out in 2018, had accuracy or timing issues, and the fix recommended on the crossbow forums was to heat part of it up with a hairdrier and bend it! This is an item worth thousands. So anyway, yeah, do you background checks on the particular models reliablity is my main advice, or choose a model 2-3 years into production.

Originally Posted by 260rem

Due to an arm injury when i was 12 im now 47 i cannot use a bow so im looking at a crossbow for another form of hunting
the one i am looking at is a compound design and 165 draw weight so it can be used on Doc land.
Is there anything i need to look out for
Cheers

I would stay away from the cheap asian made xbows.
Plenty to choose from the lines of PSE ,Excalibur, Horton, Barnett just to name a few brands.
Buy quality bolts and broad heads then spin test them.
Just sold my last xbow (PSE Reaper) as shoulder can handle compound again. Been shooting 125gr NAP Thunderheads from it the last 5 years (am a fix blade kind of guy) as it was really accurate in that bow.
Am with sixtus on going with an older ,proven model.

I'd love to pick up a quality crossbow someday. I reckon they'd be super neat, and definitely provide more of a challenge than a rifle.

Lets face it - compound bows aren't 'real' bows either, so I don't quite understand a lot of the flack (serious) crossbow hunters get from the bow fraternity.

Now - if you're shooting apples off people's heads with a longbow, you may actually have some credibility...

Originally Posted by sixtus

Knowing which particular bow might help answers. I shoot with a matrix 380 which is a 260lb draw weight recurve. My advice for crossbows is try and find the most proven reliable designs whether recurve or compound. Crossbows are right in the middle of an arms race right now. They were a stable technology for about 15 years, then with the advent of fast compounds the last few years, manufacturers have been trying to outdo one another every single season. More speed, lighter, more compact but the issue is some of the units are being released to the public before they have all the issues ironed out. I remember one of the scorpyds that came out in 2018, had accuracy or timing issues, and the fix recommended on the crossbow forums was to heat part of it up with a hairdrier and bend it! This is an item worth thousands. So anyway, yeah, do you background checks on the particular models reliablity is my main advice, or choose a model 2-3 years into production.

The crossbow i was thinking of is the Carbon Express Blade or shoild i look at a different make like th ones Boar Freak mentioned

Originally Posted by Frodo

Lets face it - compound bows aren't 'real' bows either, so I don't quite understand a lot of the flack (serious) crossbow hunters get from the bow fraternity.

Now - if you're shooting apples off people's heads with a longbow, you may actually have some credibility...

After one day of ownership of a modern crossbow set up and tuned properly you will be deadly accurate to well past 70 yards .
After one day of ownership of a modern Compound set up and tuned properly you will ........ well lets just say “ Good luck with that “

Originally Posted by 260rem

The crossbow i was thinking of is the Carbon Express Blade or shoild i look at a different make like th ones Boar Freak mentioned

Its your coin but I would go with something else
There is a Tocix and an RDX on the yellow site atm

Thanks Boar freak thats just the answer i was looking for
Have seen a barrett compound i like the look of

Originally Posted by 260rem

Thanks Boar freak thats just the answer i was looking for
Have seen a barrett compound i like the look of

No worries.
Some good stuff and downloads here :
https://eastonarchery.com/2014/06/foc/
Let us know how you get on with it @260rem

Mission make really good crossbows, had one a few years ago, really good accuracy at 50m.

I had a couple of hunters use a Ravan 25-26 this year, bloody awesome rigs, shoot like a rifle to 75-100yds with bow length bolts/arrows & my buddy uses a Stryer 390 & recommends it !

Having a look on TM , they look cool , not cheap though.
How effective are they on Deer ? what kind of range do you need to get to to take a good shot ?

Mission MXB 400. Old but good. Like a AK47. Once its sighted in you barely ever have to touch it again.
Shoot very accurate.
Hardest part is to find a target to stop the bolts going straight through.

Originally Posted by JohnnyBlack

Mission MXB 400. Old but good. Like a AK47. Once its sighted in you barely ever have to touch it again.
Shoot very accurate.
Hardest part is to find a target to stop the bolts going straight through.

Yes Heard- a story back when I was a kid of an owner of one cleaning or tuning it in his two story home, he was down stairs while his wife was in the bath upstairs. Long story short it wasn’t the head she expected that popped up between here knees

@260rem how did you get on