Considering a Crossbow

[Dave Markowitz]

I am considering buying a crossbow for hunting Pennsylvania whitetail deer. A friend of mine lives in Chester County, has plenty of deer on his land, but he's in a special regulations area. I.e., only bows, crossbows, shotguns w/slugs, or muzzleloaders are legal due to the population density. I hope to hunt there eventually with one of my traditional bows but until I feel competent with them, I plan to use a muzzleloader or maybe a crossbow.

Two crossbows I'm looking at are the Barnett Jackal and the Excalibur Axiom SMF.

The Barnett is a compound crossbow and is less expensive. The Excalibur is a recurve but about $200 more (comparing prices at Amazon). Both seem to get good reviews.

Does anyone here have experience with either of these bows, and if so, how would you rate them? I'd also be interested in reading about alternatives in the sub-$500 range.

Thanks in advance.

 

[T.R.]

I'd avoid Barnett products because they're made of cheap plastic components. Reputation among knowledgeable crossbow shooters is zilch.

For an affordable crossbow, look to Parker:

- made in USA with lifetime warrenty
- models such as BuckBuster and Spartan sell for great prices on eBay
- fast & accurate
- sturdy and well built with quality parts

I've struck out with land owners in Chester County. No one said yes to me.

I do most of my crossbow hunting in northern Maryland.

TR

 

[Dave Markowitz]

Thanks, T.R.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk.

 

[Zeke/PA]

Dave,
Since a Crossbow investment can be substantial, I would strongly suggest a trip to Lancaster Archery and consult with the folks there.
Very knowledgeable plus a huge inventory of archery supplies in general.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

Thanks, Zeke. I was at LAS back in April and bought a Samick SLB-II longbow there.