9 replies to this topic

[mojohand]

a buddy of mine was talking about getting one, not necessarily for hunting, more just to have fun with. But it got me thinking, why aren't crossbows a more popular weapon choice? I know they're illegal in certain staes, but I think they're legal in CA; Any thoughts?

[jephs422]

I would think mostly because for hunting, it is considered a firearm, not a bow, so it can't be used during archery season. Other than for messing around at a range, I don't think it would serve a real purpose. I think they're cool though. I have a little 80lbr to smack rats with.

[mojohand]

Yeah, but it still can be an effective weapon, is relatively easy to use, and not very expensive. I'm just not sure why it hasn't really caught on with more people.

[Thumper Dunker]

I think one would be good for coyotes in some cases no gun shot to scare the others off. They shoot like rifles now.The way I think if your getting a c cc compond just get a cross bow

[boarn2hunt]

try out varmint als hunting page. it has instructions on how to make a e-call , i made one for about 50 - 70 bucks . still need to try it out though .good hunting

[fakawee]

For the last few months, I've been hunting with my crossbow (BowTech Stryker) because the desert has been too warm and the yotes have been too scarce (till it gets cooler). Anyway, I've moved my hunting into the city limits near parks and river bottoms and killed yotes at distances between 12-52 yards with it. Most of the kills have been at night or late in the afternoons. I use night vision goggles to spot them when they come in to my kitten calls. When they're within my comfort zone, I flip up the goggles and hit the flood lights. They usually stand looking at the lights for a few seconds. More than enough time to shoot. I'm so happy with the Stryker! It's fast (over 400 fps) and quiet now that I've put limb savers on it. Only drawback was the price, over $1,200 for the whole package. It's been worth every penny though, since I couldn't kill coyotes in the city limits without it. I recently had a police officer look at it but thought it was cool that someone was taking care of the coyotes that they used to scare away with whistles and flashlights. We had a long talk about shooting safety but once he found out that I was extremely safety conscious, he told me to carry on (after he ran my info in the computer). Anyhow, those of you interested in another form of keeping the hobby alive, take up crossbow hunting urban coyotes. They're pretty easy targets!

[wannakillacoyote]

Couple questions for ya FAKAWEE:1. Do you know of any other decent crossbows that aren't sooo expensive? That's more than I have spent on any of my firearms. :)2. What is the legality of shooting a crossbow in city limits?

[ShooterJohn]

Most cities ban shooting even regular bows within city limits. Unincorporated areas are different.

[lilwes278]

Most cities ban shooting even regular bows within city limits.

Hence the urban coyote problem...

[fakawee]

Couple questions for ya FAKAWEE:1. Do you know of any other decent crossbows that aren't sooo expensive? That's more than I have spent on any of my firearms. 2. What is the legality of shooting a crossbow in city limits?

Wannakill, the only decent crossbows are all as expensive as a good rifle set up. I used to own a $400 Barnett crossbow that shot really nice groups up to 40 yards but it ate bow strings like crazy. The problem with inexpensive ones is that they shoot badly or are really noisy and the safeties are questionable.As far as the legality of shooting in city limits? It's considered the same as discharging a firearm in city limits if you run into the wrong LAO! Our problem down here is that there have been so many calls about coyotes eating pets and destroying property that most of the LAO's turn the other way as long as you're extremely safety conscious and don't get any reports of logging an arrow into someones house. You wouldn't believe how many shots I've passed up on because of concerns where the arrows go after a pass thru. I even use knocks that light up after they leave the string just so I don't leave any arrows in the field for some kid to find later.