That got your attention ? I have seen time and again posts on how crossbows were so easy to use that they shouldn't be allowed in archery season. I have debated this over and over again and compared the compound to the crossbows to longbows and recurves. I have often wondered just how easy compounds are to someone who has never used one ?

Anyway, a coworker had a High Country Excalibur bow given to him. I took it home and spent about an hour tuning it. The tuning was NOT rocket science. I used a bow square to level the arrrow and the on the side to side I looked down the string and eyeballed it. Its a 65# bow, the arrows are 2314 and I think 30" long, a simple TM hunter rest and an old one pin Toxonics sight. Nothing fancy. It doens't shoot paper real well because A - its a two cam and I think they're off a bit, B - the rest hasn't got precise adjustments and C - I didn't really tune the arrows just used what came with the bow. However, with field points and mechanicals fletched with 5" vanes it shoots a hard straight arrow pretty good.


Anyway, just came in from shooting. He had never shot a bow before, although he does have a crossbow he uses. I showed him the basics, he strapped on the old Winn release and proceeded to shoot. Distance was 20 yards and he was shooting outdoors into a 3' x 3' target with a 4" square piece of survey tape to aim at. He shot 4 arrows, the first about 2" left and the other three inside that 4" square. Because he hasn't shot compounds before, he really whacked his holding arm good - I mean the blue, puffy knots on his forearm whacking !! He declined to shoot anymore until he got an armgaurd but was very impressed with how "easy" shooting the compound was.

I have no doubts that he could go out this evening and kill any deer that walks within 20 yards +/- of him.

Hows that for easy ? Can a crossbow be ANY easier ? In fact, I don't think crossbows are, he doesn't for sure and he shoots one ! I suspect I converted a crossbow shooter, but the underlying theme remains ..... is shooting a crossbow an advantage ? Why seperate them from archery season without also seperating compounds ??

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Edited by - stealthycat on 11/26/2002 16:01:31