here in pa. you can use crossbow in archery season if you huntin certain countys.

other countys, you have to be DISABLED.

now, in rifle season you can use crossbow ANYWHERE,no restrictions on health.

same in late muzzleloader season.

now, the recurve/compound archery hunters dont like the crossbow being used in ARCHERY SEASON.

there reason is it puts MORE hunters in woods,they dont like that.

am i seeing this, yes, i see more hunters in archery seasonwith crossbow NOWthan i do with a compound.

crossbow is still a close weapon, 30 yds,they are heavy, make noise and are not cheap to buy and they do break if you own a compound crossbow with wheels etc.

so, why own one over a compound bow used now..
YOU DONT NEED TO PULL BOW BACK AND SHOOT WHILE AIMING AT DEER.THIS IS PLUS FOR SOMEONE OUT OF SHAPE OR CANT PULL A BOW.

you cock bow, arrow in and aim and shoot.

that is only advantage to crossbow.

you still have to practice and beyond 20 yds,you can be less accurate than a compound bow if you are not in shape to lift the heavy crossbow and if you did not practice.

weight of crossbow is tough to master ,someone above 60 and not in shape, its hard to hold it.

heck, i wobble all over trying to hold bow freehand in my yard target shootingtoo and i practice a lot.

a little wobble and your arrow will hit many inchs off center out at 30 yds

i had very different view of crossbow before i shot it at 30 yds.

i thought they were just like gun, boy, i was wrong.

crossbow is a lot of fun to shoot, i shoot my horton hunter all time.
i broke my limbs,cost me another 125 dollars to fix,yes, limbs do SPLIT from shooting or from AGE from what horton told me.

so, there is cost with crossbow, you have string,cams,limbs that need replaced.
you have to take it to bow shop, so, make sure you have shop nearby or go with ones that dont break, get a EXCALIBER,they are recurve bow and no wheels etc and YOU can change the string yourself.

take care..