bobcat 10

why is that clint.
they won' t to get a chance at early season deer to.

go deep hunt hard.

rcd567

Years ago the guys using recurves and longbows didn' t want compound shooters hunting during " their" long archery season. Compounds aren' t anything like recurves. All those wheels and pulleys, only hold a fraction of the weight. Heck I could hold that all day. That ain' t fair! Now, if they' ve got a disability, that would be OK I guess. Ought to stick those compound shoots in with the gun hunters.[:@]

Some things change...some things stay the same.[:' (]

WalMart

Cardeer thanks for clarifying.

Those hunters...I use that term loosely....were definitely slobs and criminals.

notavegetarian

Clint your right on the money.

Crossbows are not archery period. The reasons should be obvious.

They can however, offer disabled persons who can' t draw back a bow an opportunity to hunt during the archery season (in some states, unfortunately I don' t think mine is one of them).

I can' t beleive they would combine the two in certain states. Maybe their needs to be a seperate X bow seasons or special units that are X bow only during the rifle season (for those who just simply choose to use a X bow, which is fine).

Don' t get me wrong I think X-bows are neat but the reason I chose to bow hunt was because it offers a greater challenge than rifle hunting did. If crossbows were legal to hunt with in my state I would still use a bow because of the greater chllenge it offers me. I want the people hunting during the archery season to have the same advantages and disadvantages I do. Yes there is a difference.

Kanga

Please explain.

xbows have been around for centuries they still have limbs, some with cams,they have a string and they shoot a shorter arrow commonly known as a bolt but an arrow non the less with a broadhead.
Sounds like archery to me.

People should forget what the next guy is shooting and concentrate on their own game.
The more we as hunters fight amongst ourselves just drives the wedge in further and gives the anti' s more fuel to use against us.

Instead we should be standing shoulder to shoulder, longbow,recurve,selfbow,compound and xbow.

Whats that old saying United we stand divided we fall.

Eclipse

I have hunted with a crossbow for three years now. This is after hunting with a compound for about 20 years. I was anti-cross bow before but now, due to my accident, I have had to gain an open mind if I wanted to hunt. One thing I learned - regardless of the wepon used - you still have to hunt! The deer don' t just start flocking up to you because you have a cross-bow.

To answer your question on differences:

Crossbow -
- usually very heavy (I have completly loaded rifles that weigh less)
- cumbersome to get through the woods
- very loud (nothing you can do about it either!) (like smaking a 2x4 aginst the tree)
- short power stroke (usually 11 - 15 inches)
- the arrows (bolts) are short and loose thier momentum pretty quick
- their fast (typically the good bows will shoot 290 - 300 fps) anything advertised above 300 fps is a lot of hype. You see advertisements of 325fps. This is with light arrows. When you read the fine print, these light arrows are not reccommended because you will most likly bend the axles. Trust me - you will bend the axles!
- the learning curve is very small.
- they are very, very accurate at the distance you sighi it in. Due to the short bolt and the loss of momentum, you must hold over or uner for other shots. There is a large arc with these
- usually create a high KE.
- shot distance is about the same as with a compound (about 30 yards max). The bow is very loud so the deer is going to move at the shot. Most good compound shooters can shoot farther than 30 yds anyway.
- you don' t have to draw the bow.
- broadhead flight can be real difficult.

If ther were two main differences that seem to cause a lot of problems with compound shooters it would be
1. the learning curve is very small. About 1 hour. (which was the same issue traditionalist had with compound shooter in the past)
2. you don' t have to draw the bow.

BUT YOU STILL HAVE TO HUNT. NO WEAPON WILL BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR GOOD WOODMANSHIP OR HUNTING SKILLS!

They are really not much fun to hunt with. If they allowed them during the regular archery season I think you would see a big influx for the first year or so. Then people would start dropping out because they are a pain-in-the-A$$ to hunt with. I am personally thinking of giving up archery because I am not having as much fun.

bmexline

crossbows are not easier to use than compound bows overall. they have some advantages over compounds, sure. however they also have some disadvantages. they certainly arent in the same class as a gun. anyone who says otherwise hasnt hunted w/ a crossbow. eclipse, laid the differences out very well. i' m a compound shooter but i have 0 problem w/ those who CHOOSE to hunt w/ a xbow. so what if they didnt have to spend as much time getting comfortable w/ their bow as i did. its not a competition and that hunter didnt cheat me or do anything to me. they simply chose to use a bow that is easier to learn than my compound. it doesnt lessen or cheapen the effort i put in getting comfortable w/ my bow. and given the fact that the effective kill zone is the same, they also dont have it any easier when we both go into the woods. ok, they dont have to draw, but my bow is near silent where theirs is loud as all get out. its not a competition and someone using a crossbow, even if its by choice, isnt stealing or cheating or taking anything away from those who choose to use a compound. i dont get the hatred/hostility towards crossbows, i really dont.

Clint.

Well then, if we are going to be fair to everyone....shouldn' t we open the seasons for bows and guns on the same date? Don' t gun hunters deserve a chance at an early deer too? If fairness is everones issue, who could possibly object?

Would some of you who are into competitive archery with your compound bow want to compete against an individual with a scoped crossbow with a 150-200 lb draw? If everone should have an equal opportunity....if there is no basic difference between bows and crossbows........, who could object?

Food for thought, not an argument
Clint

cardeer

Clint, some states are that way. I went to southj Carolina and could of used anything at the same time. And there deer everywhere. When I bought my license the lady ask and how many doe permits would you like??

notavegetarian

Aussie-guy.

I suppose it would take a team of lawyers to sit down and define what archery is and is not. I can certainly see your point. I was wrong to say crossbows weren' t archery period. I should have said it is sort of like archery. [>:]

IMO there are just as many differences as there are similarites. The differences in this case are enough to make hunting with a crossbow during archery season illegal in many states.

And just because I think they should have a different unit or season doesn' t mean I am contributing to the demize of hunting. I support all types of hunting and do beleive we need to all stick together but I won' t roll over on what I beleive is a fairness issue just because of the anti' s. If I did it would be the anti' s having the power to prevent me from voicing my opinion in this matter wouldn' t it?

Just my 2cents.