"im trying to find a crossbow fow under 400 dollars that is as good or almost as good as the excalibur vixen"

"As good as" is a relative term. Excals are very simple, very well built, and very reliable. The issue is that for $400 you get basicly just the bow and nothing else. You can easily get into $6-700ish range by the time you are done outfitting it. IMO, the Parker Buckbuster for a $400ish bow is a great deal and comes with everything you need in one package, but it is not a comparable bow to the Excal as IMO, recurves and compounds are two diferant animals. Direct package comparison, the Parker is a better "value" since it is a good little bow and comes with everything. As far as performance and such it is also IMO fairly comarable, but the simplicity of the Excal is a big factor. The size of the Excal may be an issue depending on where you hunt, but they are also alot lighter than any of the compounds. I would recomend you shoulder every bow you can get your hands on and see which one fits best. Once the arrow is on its way they will all take down deer very efficiently. but unless you have a bunch of extra bolts and a scope and such, keep in mind to add that to your budget with any bow you look at.
Wyvern