Cross bows

[Iron mike]

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Does anyone have experience with crossbows I have been giving a lot of thought to the concept of keeping a low profile and noise discipline lately and figure it would be a good way to hunt post shtf to not draw a lot of attention to myself while gathering food any recommendations on brand and equipment books anything really I have no experience with them whatsoever

[johnnie l.]

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Mike I used to sell the things still have one they are a good close range weapon I don't have any experience with the newer more expensive ones But I would prefer to use compound bow shoots heaver arrow and the learning curve is about the same although the crossbow is easier to teach Most people can shoot much faster second shot with compound than crossbow
there's nothing magic about them you still have to be sure game is in range and make a good shot.

[2crows]

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I shot recurves and compounds until I damaged both shoulders pretty extensively. I switched to a crossbow. They are a whole different world - kind of like a rifle in a lot of ways. Mine has a distinctive 'twang' on release, but that can be minimized with string silencers. My biggest objection is trying to stalk with one. I find it very awkward and cumbersome. Stand hunting isn't a problem though. I'd say go for it... you can find them pretty cheap and even if you don't like it, it's still good to have one in your arsenal.

[Iron mike]

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Thanks guys I have a compound bow and a recurve bow and hunt with both when ever I am in port which is less and less these days I am just exploring options and I would have to get my wife to buy off on it.

[MasterMynd]

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I love my Excalibur Vortex! Unbelievably accurate, powerful, and reliable weapon. Because Excalibur is a recurve and not a compound design, it is a totally user serviceable weapon with no fancy pulleys or other crap you have to take to a pro-shop to get fixed. To me that is very important! What if there is no pro-shop around and you pop a string on a compound? you are now the owner of a useless pile of crap!
Any crossbow will be a bit louder compared to a compound bow but still relatively silent compared to a rifle or shotgun so thats something to think about. It is definitely not nearly as quiet as a compound bow. I had to give up on compound bow hunting due to a neck injury, so for me a crossbow was a good middle ground compromise. I did a ton of research on different crossbows before settling on the Vortex. I do miss my compound bow though
If you do decide to go with a crossbow, dont fall for the "crossbow specific" mini broad-heads, like Slick Tricks with a 1" cutting diameter. Total garbage! They try to sell them saying they have a 2" total cutting diameter because they have 4 half inch blades but guess what, they they could have 6 half inch blades and they will STILL only cut a 1" hole that, unless it is extremely well placed, will not bleed the animal very well. In other words, no room for error. If you are going to use a crossbow of any type, get Rage 2 blade 2" broad-heads. They give you a little bit of room for error and bleed em like an open fire hydrant!
Crossbows have so much penetration that you dont really have to worry about penetration issues so use the largest broad-heads you can, practice a lot, and aim well. I'm sure that most can agree that if you have bow-hunted for any real amount of time you have at one point or other made a bad shot that ended up in a disastrous and emotional day of tracking. If you have not then consider yourself lucky. Nothing sucks more than making a bad shot on a deer! Especially when you then devote the next 2 days to tracking it and still never recover the animal! Dont ask me how I know about this but I can say that a larger broad-head will minimize the chances of disaster! The name of the game is quick and humane. Besides, who wants to track a deer for hours and hours?!
All in all I think that a crossbow is a great choice for hunting in general so good luck in making your choice and I hope my post helps a little in your decision

[stairman]

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Ive bowhunted for 22 years and never put any thought into a crossbow but somethings going on with my right shoulder, probably arthritis, and will be getting one for this years bowseason. On one hand, I feel its cheating a bit, but was unable to shoot this season and t came on last season so being 50 and a sore shoulder all the time, Idont want to damage it any worse. I will get the fastest shooting one I can find, since they are noisy and Ive had more than one deer jump the string. I dont like the wide profile but its something Ill get used too I suppose.

[coxmw]

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Does anyone have experience with crossbows I have been giving a lot of thought to the concept of keeping a low profile and noise discipline lately and figure it would be a good way to hunt post shtf to not draw a lot of attention to myself while gathering food any recommendations on brand and equipment books anything really I have no experience with them whatsoever

I got my crossbow about 10 years ago and love it. I've been bow hunting for 30+ years when I hurt my back in the Army so I started using it. I miss the Bow but you just can't beat a good crossbow.

[Doublelung]

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I had to go to an X-Bow. Ended up trading an old firearm for one. I have to agree w/ master mynd.... Excaliber is the way to go. Less parts to go bad, and very reliable. I have a Horton 150 for now, very heavy to stalk with. Within the next year I am going to purchase the Excaliber.

[Doublelung]

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I like to use fixed blades, 125g. Shuttle T. For the simple fact.... less moving parts to get hung up, or break, come loose, etc.

[ChuckM]

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For a survival crossbow, it is critical that you be able to maintain the unit and that includes being able to change the string without requiring specialized equipment. For me, that rules out compound bows that require a bow press and that really leaves Excalibur and Kodabow as the best choices.