Crossbows are they a good choice
10-11-2005, 09:00 PM
#2
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 9,175
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
Just so we start off on the same page, it's not a bow at all.It's a crossbow. A weapon unique to itself. Calling a crossbow a bow is one of my pet peeves.
I've not shot a PSE crossbow, so I can't say whether it's good or not. Gotta be a giant stride or two better than the Barnett Wildcat I've got though. Couldn't get much worse than that. I wouldn't shoot mine at a deer any further than about 25 yards, but I'm sure it'd do the trick at that range. Like I said, it's pretty much bottom of the barrel - except for those Chinese imports -so maybe that can give you something to guage by.
I've not shot a PSE crossbow, so I can't say whether it's good or not. Gotta be a giant stride or two better than the Barnett Wildcat I've got though. Couldn't get much worse than that. I wouldn't shoot mine at a deer any further than about 25 yards, but I'm sure it'd do the trick at that range. Like I said, it's pretty much bottom of the barrel - except for those Chinese imports -so maybe that can give you something to guage by.
10-11-2005, 10:10 PM
#3
Spike
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: WI
Posts: 4
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
bradisthebest,
My friend got a Barnett Quad 400. The reason he got it was because of a disability, as here in WI you can not deer hunt with one unless you are disabled. The crossbow had a 150lb draw weight and shoot at 345 fps. The weight was 7lbs. I was excited to shoot the thing at the target.
I helped him sight it in since he could not pull the string back. I did not like it that much because it was heavy and big, I found it hard to shoot accurately. It did have some good speed though. Well, after a while we got it sighted in so it was shooting good groupings.
The first time my buddy used it, he ended up shooting over the deer's back. The next deer he shoot at he hit in the shoulder, and we track the deer for a long ways with no luck finding the deer.After this my friend wasvery upset, so we sighted it in again, and the thing was offa good amount. We got it sighted in again and my friend gave it a try again. This time he hit the deer withwhat seemed to be a perfect shoot, and we lost the blood trail after trailing it for a couple of hours.
After this my friend gave up on using the crossbow, he said that he rather hunt with his bow any day over hunting with the crossbow. So many people think that crossbows have such an advantage over bows. I disagree with this, I thing they are junk based on my experiences with them. They are heavy, clunky, and I don't think that they are that accurate. I think that the only advantage that a crossbow has is that you don't have to worry about drawing the bow back when a deer comes in. As for the penetration I could not tell you, it seemed to put the bolt pretty deep into The Block crossbow target.
If I had a choice to hunt with my compound bow or a crossbow, I would choose my bow every time. My advice is to stick with your compound bow. But if you have a disability then I would say go for it.
My friend was not some beginner hunter either, he has shot 12 deer in the last 3 years. He is a very good shoot with a compound bow.
My friend got a Barnett Quad 400. The reason he got it was because of a disability, as here in WI you can not deer hunt with one unless you are disabled. The crossbow had a 150lb draw weight and shoot at 345 fps. The weight was 7lbs. I was excited to shoot the thing at the target.
I helped him sight it in since he could not pull the string back. I did not like it that much because it was heavy and big, I found it hard to shoot accurately. It did have some good speed though. Well, after a while we got it sighted in so it was shooting good groupings.
The first time my buddy used it, he ended up shooting over the deer's back. The next deer he shoot at he hit in the shoulder, and we track the deer for a long ways with no luck finding the deer.After this my friend wasvery upset, so we sighted it in again, and the thing was offa good amount. We got it sighted in again and my friend gave it a try again. This time he hit the deer withwhat seemed to be a perfect shoot, and we lost the blood trail after trailing it for a couple of hours.
After this my friend gave up on using the crossbow, he said that he rather hunt with his bow any day over hunting with the crossbow. So many people think that crossbows have such an advantage over bows. I disagree with this, I thing they are junk based on my experiences with them. They are heavy, clunky, and I don't think that they are that accurate. I think that the only advantage that a crossbow has is that you don't have to worry about drawing the bow back when a deer comes in. As for the penetration I could not tell you, it seemed to put the bolt pretty deep into The Block crossbow target.
If I had a choice to hunt with my compound bow or a crossbow, I would choose my bow every time. My advice is to stick with your compound bow. But if you have a disability then I would say go for it.
My friend was not some beginner hunter either, he has shot 12 deer in the last 3 years. He is a very good shoot with a compound bow.
10-12-2005, 04:40 AM
#4
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 2,413
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
I bought a new PSE Vipper crossbow is it a good bow?
Deer season is upon us, and most would expect that you should already know if it's a good crossbow. How accurately can you shoot it? If you don't know this already, it could be hazardous to take it into the woods without a whole lot of practice.
10-12-2005, 08:06 AM
#5
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Middletown PA United States
Posts: 3,625
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
We used to sell them at our store. What did you pay for it---$200? Good ones cost $500 and up. That alone should tell you how good it is. You want quality then buy a Ten Point.
What gets me is, why do you buy it and then start asking these questions? Better yet, if you can draw more than 40# then get a real bow.
What gets me is, why do you buy it and then start asking these questions? Better yet, if you can draw more than 40# then get a real bow.
10-12-2005, 08:33 AM
#6
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Posts: 3,784
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
I am crossbow illiterate. [&:] But my best advice would be to checkout PSE's website and forums for some additional information/help. http://forums.pse-archery.com/
10-12-2005, 09:43 AM
#7
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blissfield MI USA
Posts: 5,293
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
I have owned both. In my opinion the compound is the better weapon. I have never hunted with a crossbow, but I did own one for a while. And I bought one for my girlfriends step dad. Just a cheap barnett or something, he doesn't want really want to hunt with it.
Crossbows seem like the ticket when you first think about it. You don't have to hold it at draw, it shoulders and aims like a rifle and 150-200 lbs of draw sounds very impressive. However in my opinion these things have some draw backs compared to modern compounds.
For starters most of them are sort of heavy and unwieldy. They don't handle like a rifle, or a bow. You don't have to draw them on game like you do a bow, but you do have to raise them and aim, and hold steady until you can make the shot. I have shot both and see no difference between the two. This is the biggest argued point of crossbows. "You don't have to hold them at full draw, or draw in the presence of an animal.". I don't see the advantage to be honest. I draw the bow the same time I raise it, it takes bout half a second. I don't feel it's any harder than raising a crossbow and taking aim. You have to do both when the deer is not looking, so the advantage is mute in my opinion. And I can hold my bow at full draw a lot longer than I can hold a heavy crossbow steady off hand. I think it is because of the tension on your arms caused by the holding weight. Much like shooting a rifle off hand with a sling.
Ok, they have 150 lbs and up of draw weight and shoot up to 345 fps. That sounds exciting. Except they really don't store as much power as an averge compound set up. They have more draw weight, but a much shorter power stroke. They also shoot a shorter lighter bolt compared to a longer heavier arrow. There are some bows with 30 inch draws and 70 lbs of draw weight that will shoot that fast or faster with an arrow twice as heavy. And while 300+ fps sounds impressive it really doesn't gain you much in the field. They are still limted range weapons and you need to know the limits of both you and the weapon. I think they extend your range over a regular compound by about 15 yards to be honest. And I am talking with lighter set ups like mine. Because of the increased speed they shoot fairly flat out ot 30 yards instead of 20 yards like most bows. Of course if you shoot a bow that is in excess of 300 fps you have the same advantage and more KE down range.
Also people beleive you can just throw a bolt in, pull the string back and hit quarters at 50 yards. I have news for you, they don't shoot that well and are not that easy to shoot well. The learning curve is faster because you don't have to master a release, worry about anchor points and form is not as important. However form does play a part in rifle and crossbow shooting. The biggest thing I have found is that if you don't pull the string straight back the same way every time your accuracy will suck. So they do that have that in common with a bow. Most mark the serving on either side of the rail so they can make sure it's in the same spot every time. However if you don't get it right it is a pain to let down and try again. Sometimes you can pull it back harder and move the string over. But if you are dissabled I doubt you will do that. I'm not dissabled and I have trouble drawing one back and locking it because of my small size.
Also bows have a lot of adjustment in order to get them to shoot well. You can play with arrow length and spine. You can adjust the limbs for spine, tiller, nock height and feel. And you can adjust the rest and knocking point in order to get perfect arrow flight. On a crossbow the bolt rides down a rail and is pushed by the string. The only thing you can really adjust is the sights. Of course because of the simplified design they probably don't need that much adjusting. However if you srew on a broad head and it shoots different than your field points good luck fixing it. Personally if I shot a crossbow I would just shoot mechanicals.
Not that crossbows don't work and are not effective. They do and are, they are just not the magical killing machines people make them out to be. My compound is much more accurate than any crossbow I have shot. And darn near as powerful. And I only have a 26 inch draw with a draw weight of 60 lbs. Crossbows are a big improvement over a long bow with no sights, but a modern compound with a release and sights? Not in my book.
And I'm not bagging on you either. I am usually the first person to defend a crossbow hunter. I have nothing against them. I just don't like poeple to get the wrong idea about what they are capable of. People will argue they allow slob hunters into the archery season. My counter is that they will be there any way. I see many of them that can't shoot a bow worth a darn and don't bother to learn or practice. They get thier bow out right before season and climb into a stand to wound yet another deer, or miss completely. At least if a crossbow is a bit easier to shoot they might wound less deer. I've been in two states where they were legal and it didn't seem to change the seasons much that I could tell.
Just my opinions any way. I don't know anything about the particular crossbow you have though. I agree with the above, check out the PSE sight, or some of the other crossbow sights. Do a search in any search engine and a few will come up. I had a post with a few links in it, I will see if I can dig it up.
Good luck,
Paul
Crossbows seem like the ticket when you first think about it. You don't have to hold it at draw, it shoulders and aims like a rifle and 150-200 lbs of draw sounds very impressive. However in my opinion these things have some draw backs compared to modern compounds.
For starters most of them are sort of heavy and unwieldy. They don't handle like a rifle, or a bow. You don't have to draw them on game like you do a bow, but you do have to raise them and aim, and hold steady until you can make the shot. I have shot both and see no difference between the two. This is the biggest argued point of crossbows. "You don't have to hold them at full draw, or draw in the presence of an animal.". I don't see the advantage to be honest. I draw the bow the same time I raise it, it takes bout half a second. I don't feel it's any harder than raising a crossbow and taking aim. You have to do both when the deer is not looking, so the advantage is mute in my opinion. And I can hold my bow at full draw a lot longer than I can hold a heavy crossbow steady off hand. I think it is because of the tension on your arms caused by the holding weight. Much like shooting a rifle off hand with a sling.
Ok, they have 150 lbs and up of draw weight and shoot up to 345 fps. That sounds exciting. Except they really don't store as much power as an averge compound set up. They have more draw weight, but a much shorter power stroke. They also shoot a shorter lighter bolt compared to a longer heavier arrow. There are some bows with 30 inch draws and 70 lbs of draw weight that will shoot that fast or faster with an arrow twice as heavy. And while 300+ fps sounds impressive it really doesn't gain you much in the field. They are still limted range weapons and you need to know the limits of both you and the weapon. I think they extend your range over a regular compound by about 15 yards to be honest. And I am talking with lighter set ups like mine. Because of the increased speed they shoot fairly flat out ot 30 yards instead of 20 yards like most bows. Of course if you shoot a bow that is in excess of 300 fps you have the same advantage and more KE down range.
Also people beleive you can just throw a bolt in, pull the string back and hit quarters at 50 yards. I have news for you, they don't shoot that well and are not that easy to shoot well. The learning curve is faster because you don't have to master a release, worry about anchor points and form is not as important. However form does play a part in rifle and crossbow shooting. The biggest thing I have found is that if you don't pull the string straight back the same way every time your accuracy will suck. So they do that have that in common with a bow. Most mark the serving on either side of the rail so they can make sure it's in the same spot every time. However if you don't get it right it is a pain to let down and try again. Sometimes you can pull it back harder and move the string over. But if you are dissabled I doubt you will do that. I'm not dissabled and I have trouble drawing one back and locking it because of my small size.
Also bows have a lot of adjustment in order to get them to shoot well. You can play with arrow length and spine. You can adjust the limbs for spine, tiller, nock height and feel. And you can adjust the rest and knocking point in order to get perfect arrow flight. On a crossbow the bolt rides down a rail and is pushed by the string. The only thing you can really adjust is the sights. Of course because of the simplified design they probably don't need that much adjusting. However if you srew on a broad head and it shoots different than your field points good luck fixing it. Personally if I shot a crossbow I would just shoot mechanicals.
Not that crossbows don't work and are not effective. They do and are, they are just not the magical killing machines people make them out to be. My compound is much more accurate than any crossbow I have shot. And darn near as powerful. And I only have a 26 inch draw with a draw weight of 60 lbs. Crossbows are a big improvement over a long bow with no sights, but a modern compound with a release and sights? Not in my book.
And I'm not bagging on you either. I am usually the first person to defend a crossbow hunter. I have nothing against them. I just don't like poeple to get the wrong idea about what they are capable of. People will argue they allow slob hunters into the archery season. My counter is that they will be there any way. I see many of them that can't shoot a bow worth a darn and don't bother to learn or practice. They get thier bow out right before season and climb into a stand to wound yet another deer, or miss completely. At least if a crossbow is a bit easier to shoot they might wound less deer. I've been in two states where they were legal and it didn't seem to change the seasons much that I could tell.
Just my opinions any way. I don't know anything about the particular crossbow you have though. I agree with the above, check out the PSE sight, or some of the other crossbow sights. Do a search in any search engine and a few will come up. I had a post with a few links in it, I will see if I can dig it up.
Good luck,
Paul
10-12-2005, 09:50 AM
#8
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blissfield MI USA
Posts: 5,293
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
10-12-2005, 11:21 AM
#9
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Texas and Arkansas
Posts: 1,496
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
My brother in law has an older PSE (I'm not sure of the model) and swears by it. It surprises me at how loud they are. He shot a doe about 100 yards up from me on Saturday and it sounded like a cannon. My compound doesn't make near that much noise.
10-12-2005, 11:46 AM
#10
Dominant Buck
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Ramsey , Indiana
Posts: 22,545
RE: Crossbows are they a good choice
I'm not familiar with your particular model , but a crossbow in general is an excellent choice for bringing down a deer or other game . At ranges under 40 yards you can expect a pass through , ranges above 40 yards are dicey due to bolt drop .
