crossbow questions from a novice
 

hi all, i am very new to crossbows and my wife informed me that she wanted to go hunting with me this year.

i said ok what do you want to shoot.

doesnt want anything that kicks

cant shoot a compound well

pro shop guy said well buy her a crossbow and shows us a horton scout with 125 pound pull,.............ok im ok with that. i figure it should be pretty fast and shoot fairly flat for out to about fourty yards.
i go look at the website for the hortons and it shows the bow shooting around 250 fps..........first thing that goes thru my mind is ehhh? what gives.

i mean its 125 pounds.........shouldnt it shoot faster than that? then i started looking at a few others and they show some of the faster crossbows only shooting 350+ fps..............what gives?....do all crossbows have compound envy?

i want to get her in the blind with me to hunt deer, but i cant spend a big amount of money on a crossbow, and she wants one. the scout package was smaller, and light weight for her also which was a big plus...she doesnt want something that weights ten pounds.

educate me here. i know nothing about crossbows.....is the horton scout a good hunting crossbow out to what effective range?

thanks all .

the countdown has begun less than 2 months left for deer huntin.

.

RE: crossbow questions from a novice
 

Well, 350 FPS is very fast for a crossbow, I shoot an Excalibur Exocet 200 and it shoots 300 FPS, that isn't as fast as you may think if you are accustomed to a compound. A stubby little crossbow arrow doesn't stay moving fast for very long..
I also shoot a Jennings T-Master vertical bow, somewhere around the same speed of 300 FPS (at 60 pounds or so) but that arrow trajectory is much flatter. Don't get caught up in the draw weight of the bow, it takes a tremendous amount more draw weight to make a crossbow shoot the speeds of a compound.
So my 200lb crossbow is slower than my 60 lb compound.. Take some time and research some crossbows when you can, there are a lot of illusions out there on what they are capable of, the first thing most compound guys do when they hear that a crossbow is 150# is assume it will shoot a mile.. Your are restricted by the same principals of a 30 yard shot with either bow.
crossbows are a riot to shoot, but have a hard time keeping up with the speed and accuracy of a good vertical bow. You may want to watch for something used if cost is an issue.. Keep in mind that you are dealing with energy, the little limbs of a crossbow will still deliver some recoil, those limbs have to go somewhere right?
There are some pretty bright people around here, you will find what you are looking for. Your wife is in for some fun!

*edit*
I have a few of Horton's hunting videos, they seem pretty decent but I know nothing of the model you are asking about.
Range.. crossbows have a very limited effective range, very similar to a compound, 30 yards is a fairly long distance to get an arrow out of one without a bunch of experience. It is basic physics, again, don't get caught up in the numbers, it is still only an arrow.
I don't know what you mean by compound envy though, crossbows were around hundreds of years before compounds.. Not all crossbows are compounds, mine isn't.
Hunt safe!

RE: crossbow questions from a novice
 

If you don't want to spend much money, I would pass on the Scout and go with the Summit. It is a 150lb draw and should shoot about 260fps. It has been around for over a decade in some form or another and it just works. You should be able to locate a package version of that for mid $200s.
Then if she is serious about it and likes it, you can upgrade in a year or so.

RE: crossbow questions from a novice
 

I love my wife, but the woods is my time!!:D
Sorry, but that is a big no IMO. That little CB is a entry level CB made for close range shooting only. Most people use them to get there feet wet and then move to something bigger and use it for fun or fishing.
Welcome to finally understanding the myths or the CB world! LOL!! Them limbs are short and small. That in turn puts a real short power stroke on it. If you where to make a real wide CB with a long stroke on it, maybe it would go fast, but the only have between 13" and 15" stroke on them. That is why they are not as fast as you think when comparing the 125# to 175# range to a compounds 40# to 70# range.
I would say if you get a mid range Horton you should be OK for a starter CB. IMO Horton's are a little on the heavy side. If you want a good light CB that is a great shooter and simple to use and maintain then I would suggest a Excal Phoenix. I have the Excal Vortex and have not shot the Phoenix, but a few guys on here have it and spank the target pretty good and you can find them for around 350 I think. Simple, Easy and light.

RE: crossbow questions from a novice
 

i want to get her in the blind with me to hunt deer, but i cant spend a big amount of money on a crossbow, and she wants one. the scout package was smaller, and light weight for her also which was a big plus...she doesnt want something that weights ten pounds.

educate me here. i know nothing about crossbows.....is the horton scout a good hunting crossbow out to what effective range?

thanks all .

the countdown has begun less than 2 months left for deer huntin.

.
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I would not hunt with a 125 lb. crossbow, they don't make the critter you want by the time you get the speed and energy you need they are heavy, you might check into a Drawlock on a regular compound, which
gives you the advantages of a crossbow with a regular compound without the weight.

http://www.drawloc.com/
Martin