sproulman

i dont use crossbow but i do sight them in for others they are having problems and no time to correct them..

here is what i see on crossbows..

most of the shooters at our archery club use a compound or ,like me, recurve..

when i take those crossbows to shoot, many hate me..

why, becasue its easier to shoot for person that does not practice with compound or have time..

notice i said EASIER..it is with scope and how accurate they are..

now, i was surprised on the HATE for crossbow user, so, ole sproul had to INTERVIEW,you know me,ha to get at TRUTH..

well, TRUTH is, those archery hunters DONT WANT more hunters in woods in ARCHERY SEASON..by using crossbow, many new hunters will be out after same buck they are after..do to lack of deer here in pa, this is their worry..

now, when we get like 60 or so, most dont hunt anymore with bow..with CROSSBOW us older farts will be out in woods hunting archery..

MOST i talk to dont want crossbows because thats MORE hunters in archery..that is TRUE..

now, i will tell you why i dont like CROSSBOW..most i see using them DONT PRACTICE..they make shots at 50 yds,take them out 1 time a year to practice..i saw gang last year with all crossbows..they were DRIVING deer too, you believe that..

these misguided hunters think crossbow is rifle..i am finding bolts laying in woods ..

then you hear stories of park ranger picking up 18 bolts in the park in no hunting areas..

are they being used for POACHING..you BET they are!!

now, all this taken inton consideration,hunters that dont want MORE hunters in woods and poachers new weapon..

croosbows were always used to POACH..heck, i heard stories at work 25 years ago of 1 guy who got 100 deer with crossbow, they finally caught him..his answer was, well, i shot 100 and only pinched for 1,cost him 100 dollars..

sorry got off track..most of hate i hear is because BUBBA is now going out archery hunting and has new toy..ARCHERY HUNTERS dont want more BUBBAS out trying to get their buck..

i said this would happen when deer became less..my fear is that you are going to see MORE hunters at each others throats in near future..

it happened to me this year and i expect more of it in future..

awshucks

Sproulman: Some good points for sure, but gotta take exception to a few things. 1st off, being 60 yrs old this month,I learned along time ago there's a bozo on every bus. 2nd off, there was some statistics posted somewhere about how the Ohio Fish and Game [Arkansas name, not sure what Oh calls em] had just about an equal number of poaching violations between the vert crowd and the xbowers. I hate to see xbow poaching posts, because although there may be a few bozos on the xbow bus, it really makes the whole fleet look bad, and is one of the main arguements for the anti xbow crowd. It's easier to get last years taxes back that it is to shoot an xbow from a vehicle. I know that part of what you were saying about people hunting in a no hunting area is no doubt true. I myself have done this. Back in the late 70's early 80's times were hard. One thing about having a family, they get hungry whether you have a paycheck every week or not. As far as some bozo taking 100 deer w/ anything, that's truly a shame. We all know someone some where has poached a deer or more w/ alot of different equipment, just hate to see xbows labeled that way.

Dnk

Ole Sproulman, youns should check your pants, that bug might be poisonous! LOL! Dig deep!

GrumpyTom

Sproulman, I have to take offence to some of your comments. I also agree with some of them like that it is easier to learn to shoot. In otherwords, you get efficent quicker, but you still need to practice. I have actually seen hunters going into a local sporting goods store, purchase a compound to go hunting the next day. From his questions to the salesman, got me to wondering how knowledgable this individual was so I asked a few questions. This hunter had neverr shot a compound before, but he was going hunting the next day. I guess what I am saying is to hold the hunter, not the hunting tool acountable for the actions. Yes you might get a hunter go out the day before, or maybe the week before and purchase a crossbow to dtart hunting with. But they can and will do the same thing with the compound.

Your comments about 50-60 yard shots with crossbows, that they think that they are rifles, well I have for over 5 years tried to teach responsibility in the use of crossbows. The ANTI-CROSSBOW groups have for years claimed that crossbows are effective out to 100 yards and shoot like a rifle, so why would the people not believe that. Crossbow users are not making those claims, they have for years tried to correct the incorrect statements mad by the ANIT's. Again, I have had salesmen tell me that they, on a regular basis take deerr out to 60-70 yards with their compounds. Again, hold the user, not the hunting tool acountable for the users actions.

As for using crossbows as a POACHING TOOL, yes some probually will use it, but these users are not the smart ones and will get caught. Crossbows are not even a good choice for poaching. They are difficult to get a second shot, make most noise of the archery family and have the same range as the compound. It was a few years ago I read a report (sory, but I forget were it was from, but it was a State Agency) about poaching and they listed the 22 rifle as the weapon of choice for the poachers. I believe that it was an extreemly high precentage of poachers which choose the 22 rifle.

As I stated in that posted you quoted, yes crossbws do have some advantages over the compound, but the compound does have some advantages over the crossbows when compared to the longbow or recurve. You comments on triggers, scopes ectera ......... well do they not sell scopes, range finders, triggers, laser sights, holo sites, for the ccompound. In fact, is there not a compound bow on the market which is 99% letoff, which when at full draw, just the weight of the bow (when hanging down) will keep it at full draw with no strength needed fro the shooter.

Come on ........ trash hunters will always be trash hunters no matter what hunting tool that they choose to use. Hold people acountable for their actions, not the hunting tool.

Rebel Hog

Well saidTOM!

Dnk

Grumpy Tom meets Grumpy Spoulman!
GT, Ole Spoule is just having a gumpy day and is spewing. He doesn't mean any harm. He's venting and maybe mis-stating his case. But he still deserves a spanking! So put him in the barrel! Maybe you can convince him to edit his post!

sproulman

i can edit it,if you want..not grumpy only stating TRUTH of what i hear and see..again, i am not knocking crossbow, i may use 1 soon myself..


22 cal is poachers choice with crossbow being choice near homes and parks..

dont vent on me, vent on the hunters that dont want more archery hunters in woods..or vet on real problem,DCNR

Dnk

Ole Sproule, the 22 IS the weapon of choice of poachers. There is no serial stories of crossbows used in poaching in my part of the woods and thats big. I have never heard of a crossbow being used for poaching here.

Rebel Hog

But I have heard of Long Bows, Recurves and Compounds!!!!![:@]And with a Light. Look on the Hog Forum and see the lights for these bows!

GrumpyTom

Sproulman I was not venting on you. What I took offence to was your comments, I felt that they would have mislead some that did not know much about crossbows. Just about everything you have said against the crossbow could be applied to the compound as well. There are compound hunters that do not practice very much, nor are they proficient with their weapon of choice. Some will take extreemly long shots, which I think is not eithical. Some poachers use compounds. You see, it is not the weapon of choice, but the person that is useing it.

When you stated that poachers use the 22 rifle, but crossbows only near parks is incorrect. That artical, I do remember because it caught my attenton, made a point to say that 22 rifles were the choice because of the accuracy, range and not much noise made when being fired. This was in all areas, espically near homes and parks because with one shot you would not be able to tell where it was and the animal would have less of a chance to alude or too have to be chased. They would want a drop on the spot kill, not a chance for it to travel into an unwanted area.

Crossbows make alot of noise when being fired, some have even compared them to the 22 rifle, but I honestly think that is a far stretch myself.