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Suggest first crossbow
- Thread starter Olympus Racing
- Start date
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
I am a recurve crossbow fan. Recurves are a little louder and wider than the compound crossbows but more than make up for it in their utility IMO.
I have an Excalibur Exocet (200lb) recurve crossbow which I purchased a dozen years ago. I haven't been in an archery shop since. I build my own arrows; I change my own string and set my own brace height. It is a recurve so no press required.
A compound Xbow needs a press to adjust or replace the string, and time the cams.
If you get a recurve make sure to get, or make, a stringer so that you can change the string and adjust the brace height as necessary. The strings stretch a fair amount initially and do require adjustment. Maintaining a consistent brace height is important for accuracy.
Make sure that you get a cocking aid as well. It will help your accuracy and make the Xbow much easier to cock.
Enjoy. Crossbows are fun.
Bob
I have an Excalibur Exocet (200lb) recurve crossbow which I purchased a dozen years ago. I haven't been in an archery shop since. I build my own arrows; I change my own string and set my own brace height. It is a recurve so no press required.
A compound Xbow needs a press to adjust or replace the string, and time the cams.
If you get a recurve make sure to get, or make, a stringer so that you can change the string and adjust the brace height as necessary. The strings stretch a fair amount initially and do require adjustment. Maintaining a consistent brace height is important for accuracy.
Make sure that you get a cocking aid as well. It will help your accuracy and make the Xbow much easier to cock.
Enjoy. Crossbows are fun.
Bob
Rockrivr1
NES Member
I picked up a Barnett Jackal off of Amazon last year and Dick's has the model that I bought in stock. It's a good crossbow and was able to hit a deer target at 50 yards, which is the longest option at my club. It could have gone farther if the range was longer.
This is the model I have. The only down side is the time it takes to reload. Even with that I enjoy using the crossbow better then I like the compound bow I have as well. Plus it's more accurate.
https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/...ope-15bttujcklpkg405xabw/15bttujcklpkg405xabw
This is the model I have. The only down side is the time it takes to reload. Even with that I enjoy using the crossbow better then I like the compound bow I have as well. Plus it's more accurate.
https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/...ope-15bttujcklpkg405xabw/15bttujcklpkg405xabw
Excalibur is your crossbow. I have both the Phoenix and the vixen and with both of them I measure penetration on a deer by how far it goes into the tree behind them after a pass through. Like horizontal Hunter says you don't need a bow press you can have extra strings pre stretched and ready to put on in about a minute. Shooting a big heavy arrow trajectory demands you keep your shot at compound bow ranges. I would really stay away from cheap Dick's or Bass Pro crossbows. Ive seen more than a couple cheap compounds melt down and with draw weights of 200 to 300 pounds you dont want it coming apart in you face.
I would be very careful with an off the shelve big box store crossbow. You would be much better off looking for a used Excalibur Vixen or Phoenix. Withdraw weights of 200 and 225 lb the arrow is going to go through anything you shoot. Also Excalibur has a lifetime warranty that goes with the bow and not the original purchaser. If you make the mistake of dry firing a crossbow the chances are good that you will ruin the limbs. Excalibur will send you out a new set of Limbs which you can put on in 10 minutes and they will send it out before they receive your returned limbs. Being a recurve they do have a wingspan similar to a 747 so you're not doing much sneaking through the brush but they hit very hard and very accurately. I can keep my arrows in the black at 50 yards comfortably. The groups are in fact so tight that you shouldn't even shoot the same spot repeatedly or you will be ruining arrows. I haven't taken a shot at a deer at that range but I did get a complete pass through at 40 yards and that was breaking through one shoulder and still sticking in the tree behind the deer. The x-caliber Scopes have a graduated reticle that if you sight in at 20 yards you just use the next hash line for 30 yards or split the difference at 25 yards. I've also owned a pricey 10-point crossbow which was a great bow but I couldn't maintain it myself. If you're really interested in buying a crossbow I can't praise Excalibur bows or service any higher then I obviously am. If I could only have one weapon to hunt deer with it would be a recurve Xcalibur. Check out there forum and you may be able to find a good used bow for the same price as a piece of junk Barnett. Good luck and don't dry fire it.
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