Crossbows are NOT more accurate than Compounds

[Robhuntandfish]

Most guys pick up a compound maybe a month before season shot a few dozen arrows and then never shoot another all season unless it's at a deer..  most are not avid archers that practice year round,  of all the members here ( who already have a bias as they are more avid and choose to participate in a forum) its still  the same 20 guys that post..  the 1st shot post are the same group, you cannot say all bow hunters practice all the time. I will say most do not . 

I said many not most. I don't know anyone that needs to practice xbow all season or even a month before season though. Me and my hunting buddy laugh about it every year. Get the xbows out shoot 2 bulls at 40 and go there ..... Guess we're set...

Sent from my motorola edge 5G UW (2021) using Tapatalk

[Lawdwaz]

2 hours ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

I mean it seems everyone is so concerned with their method being harder than the next. But besides Trial, I don't see anyone on here consistently bowhunting through all gun seasons like I do on bowsite. 

[Nomad]

As far as most bow hunters I know ,and there were dozens and dozens on the job, and new guys joining us every year . The overwhelming  don’t shoot in leagues , know next to nothing about tuning a bow, they shoot a few times anywhere from a month to a couple weeks prior to hunting . And they do well . Modern compounds are not difficult to shoot well out of the gate , hell i killed a buck my first year in ‘88 shooting fingers with a single brass pin and a flipper rest, today’s bows are miles ahead , oh and I had no mentor to teach me .

My friend Paul is a lot like Lawdwaz, he’s going to kill two nice bucks every darn year . He doesn’t bow hunt till the rut and seldom shoots his bow till a week or two into October , to “ see if it’s on .”

But whatever .

 

[Four Seasons]

1 hour ago, Belo said:

People often forget in 2022 that the archery season began as a challenge. It wasn't meant to reduce deer populations, it was intended to challenge the hunter beyond the challenges of the centerfire. I will admit my first bow was a compound with carbon arrows and a release, I cannot help when I was born. But I'm from a long line of hunters and I've seen the bins full of wooden and aluminum arrows with giant fletchings. The first few compounds and the recurves, the thumb tabs etc. 

I understand that technology has blown way past what the first generation or archers had in mind. I understand that state fish and game have now seen this season as more of a heard reduction exercise than it was ever intended to be. So much so now that many states allow full inclusion and even this state now has an early firearm season for god's sakes. 

It's the same old argument here. Why do you care? You can hunt with a recurve and set your own limitations. For sure, that is absolutely correct. And no, no I don't think you're killing "my deer". But yes you can call me an elitest, but I prefer purist because I do love pulling back on a my bow at just the right time when the buck is behind the tree and praying with every ounce of spirituality that I have that he doesn't stay behind that tree too long. Praying that I have enough calm to slow the pounding in my chest and still the trembling of my knees while keeping my peep in focus and not blurring out so that when he does step out I can slip one behind his shoulder. I pray that I remember to keep my bow arm up, I pray that I follow through and had my grip correct and level so that IF I'm lucky enough to see the arrow penetrate, that it landed where I intended.

Finally, I'm walking the blood trail with nervous anticipation because unless you saw him go down, you're never really quite sure are you? Then that moment... that moment where you walk up on the animal and all those hours in the spring and summer, all that time, all that practice, all the money and effort has paid off. It's f*cking beautiful. I don't like the idea of a young kid starting out with a crossbow and you can't change my mind on that. I've never come close to experiencing what I just described with raising a gun and putting the crosshairs of a gun on a deer and I've shot some dandies with one. I imagine i's so rewarding because it's not easy. Some here will say it is, but you're not the norm. Taking a nice buck with a bow is hard. And anything in life that is hard, is worth doing and that much more special when you're good at it. The crossbow just erodes at that challenge, it chisels away at what it means to be a bowhunter.

You may consider me thick headed, stubborn or even ignorant but I've always considered myself pretty open minded and the idea or using one of these in the woods just cannot and does not conjure up the challenge and pureness of archery. So what that there are cams on my bow and a fiber optic pin? So what that I pull it back with a strap around my wrist? It's still archery in every same body-mechanical way that it was 60 years ago, even if it's more advanced now.

This... this just isn't.

But you know the best part of your rant is?  You can have all that and then some. While another hunter gets his jollies off like you did using a crossbow. See how that works? You play with your tool in your tree and don’t worry about the other guy in the other tree playing with his tool. You both get off in the end. 

[Just Lucky]

1 hour ago, Nomad said:

As far as most bow hunters I know ,and there were dozens and dozens on the job, and new guys joining us every year . The overwhelming  don’t shoot in leagues , know next to nothing about tuning a bow, they shoot a few times anywhere from a month to a couple weeks prior to hunting . And they do well . Modern compounds are not difficult to shoot well out of the gate , hell i killed a buck my first year in ‘88 shooting fingers with a single brass pin and a flipper rest, today’s bows are miles ahead , oh and I had no mentor to teach me .

My friend Paul is a lot like Lawdwaz, he’s going to kill two nice bucks every darn year . He doesn’t bow hunt till the rut and seldom shoots his bow till a week or two into October , to “ see if it’s on .”

But whatever .

 

I have never tuned my bow, or been measured. It is my second bow I have owned.  First was an onieda, and 2nd is my bear anarchy. Neither were ever set up for me.Both have killed deer. I am self taught and probably shoot completely wrong. But I do it the same way everytime. 

I don't get mine out till about 2 weeks before season, maybe shoot 2 dozen arrows over that time period.  

Killing with a compound from the ground is not more difficult then a crossbow is.  Moving at the correct time will dictate success.

For me, the different weapons break the season up. I know people who use bow, or crossbow,  or gun,and  or muzzleloader.  It feels like multiple opening days with the season the way it is.

[G-Man]

15 hours ago, Jeremy K said:

I've always thought every hunter should have to start with a bow before being allowed to ever hunt big game with a gun ,that's not a popular opinion I've learned . 

It's not  the using the bow but the art of learning to get close to game and when to move , when to draw, and where to aim.  the whole reason a archery class should be mandatory for crossbow. 

It's a shame that nybh made it so It's " just like a gun" that narrative is the worse thing going for game.  It's arrows deflect the same as a bows , kill  the same way by hemoraging and require the same aiming spots and close ethical shots.  That's the main reason I want inbinnfull inclusion , so that those that don't want to take a course can't just sign a piece of paper and go just because like a gun ... that's the biggest fallacy going.

[G-Man]

11 hours ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

I mean it seems everyone is so concerned with their method being harder than the next. But besides Trial, I don't see anyone on here consistently bowhunting through all gun seasons like I do on bowsite. 

I have one friend that bow hunts all gun season ,he's in his 70s  it's nice having a choice, a crossbow in archery with same kill rate effects no one choosing to hunt with a bow..  one new hunter I know one used x bow 1ST year and was afraid of using a Bow because it was hard ( everyone told him that)..  set him up and he prefers bow because it seems easier to him as its much lighter and more maneuverable ( his words not mine) . Killed his 1st deer with bow, still hasn't killed one with crossbow. 

[Lawdwaz]

3 hours ago, G-Man said:

 a crossbow in archery with same kill rate effects no one choosing to hunt with a bow..  

What?

[fasteddie]

I shoot my bow a few times during the winter just to make sure I can still pull 60# . ThenI start shooting in the back yard around June . Then a couple weeks before X-Bow season I shoot a couple bolts at 20 yards and 30 yards and I am good to go . At 80 years old I want to make sure my equipment is okay .

 

[hueyjazz]

I'm glad I kept my recurve.  It gives someone a chance to see the difference that 50 years of technology made.

Edited February 24, 2022 by hueyjazz

[WNYTRPR]

21 hours ago, Jeremy K said:

I've always thought every hunter should have to start with a bow before being allowed to ever hunt big game with a gun ,that's not a popular opinion I've learned . 

Some are way to unethical with a gun ,a bow would be a nightmare .

[Five Seasons]

16 hours ago, Four Seasons said:

But you know the best part of your rant is?  You can have all that and then some. While another hunter gets his jollies off like you did using a crossbow. See how that works? You play with your tool in your tree and don’t worry about the other guy in the other tree playing with his tool. You both get off in the end. 

My whole rant was about the kid who never picks up the compound because he starts with a crossbow. Is there not things in your life that your dad introduced you to as a kid that you never would have known about otherwise? I caught a thousand blue gills as a kid and tossed them all back. A few years ago I started filleting and frying the big ones with my kids and it's amazing. I never knew what I was missing and even though I had a blast with catch and release, it would have been great to do this as a kid. My dad introduced me to baseball and it never much stuck, he wasn't a football player, but that's where I found my joy, so I carved my own path without a mentor. My dad was and is a big hunter and he introduced that to me and it's the greatest joy in my life after my wife and kids.

My rant isn't meant to shame those that use a crossbow, my rant isn't to say everyone should bow hunt and that everyone will have the same love for it that I do. My rant is that society is continually pushing for the easier, quicker, more instant gratification and my fear is that (like baseball) if the youth don't fall in love with the compound it will go the way of the dinosaur and that saddens me. Some things in life should be hard, some things in life should reward hard work and effort and again it's my belief that the crossbow erodes this away from the archery season. 

[Four Seasons]

54 minutes ago, Belo said:

My whole rant was about the kid who never picks up the compound because he starts with a crossbow. Is there not things in your life that your dad introduced you to as a kid that you never would have known about otherwise? I caught a thousand blue gills as a kid and tossed them all back. A few years ago I started filleting and frying the big ones with my kids and it's amazing. I never knew what I was missing and even though I had a blast with catch and release, it would have been great to do this as a kid. My dad introduced me to baseball and it never much stuck, he wasn't a football player, but that's where I found my joy, so I carved my own path without a mentor. My dad was and is a big hunter and he introduced that to me and it's the greatest joy in my life after my wife and kids.

My rant isn't meant to shame those that use a crossbow, my rant isn't to say everyone should bow hunt and that everyone will have the same love for it that I do. My rant is that society is continually pushing for the easier, quicker, more instant gratification and my fear is that (like baseball) if the youth don't fall in love with the compound it will go the way of the dinosaur and that saddens me. Some things in life should be hard, some things in life should reward hard work and effort and again it's my belief that the crossbow erodes this away from the archery season. 

Again that would be a choice… Their Choice!  You can show them and they can pick which they would rather do. You talked about your experience with the bow and the deer. Well the same thing happens when someone kills a deer with a crossbow. Again a choice. I bow hunt and I crossbow hunt. Depends on the day, The stand and the location of the stand if I bring my bow or crossbow. Do you think I had all the same feelings with this buck killed with a crossbow that  you described walking up on your deer takin with your bow? Nobody should care what someone else is hunting with. 

[The_Real_TCIII]

18 hours ago, Four Seasons said:

But you know the best part of your rant is?  You can have all that and then some. While another hunter gets his jollies off like you did using a crossbow. See how that works? You play with your tool in your tree and don’t worry about the other guy in the other tree playing with his tool. You both get off in the end. 

What if he wants to use a rifle?

[moog5050]

Can someone please post a photo of the dead horse?  Or is someone actually being convinced to change their opinion?  

[Four Seasons]

1 hour ago, The_Real_TCIII said:

What if he wants to use a rifle?

If that’s what he needs to do. But he was talking about the greatness of walking up on a bow killed whitetail. 

[land 1]

1 hour ago, moog5050 said:

Can someone please post a photo of the dead horse?  Or is someone actually being convinced to change their opinion?  

thats a funny and true, 

[Five Seasons]

37 minutes ago, Four Seasons said:

If that’s what he needs to do. But he was talking about the greatness of walking up on a bow killed whitetail. 

And I stand by it. 

[Kmartinson]

5 hours ago, WNYTRPR said:

Some are way to unethical with a gun ,a bow would be a nightmare .

Archery should be a privilege. 

[Kmartinson]

4 hours ago, Belo said:

My whole rant was about the kid who never picks up the compound because he starts with a crossbow. Is there not things in your life that your dad introduced you to as a kid that you never would have known about otherwise? I caught a thousand blue gills as a kid and tossed them all back. A few years ago I started filleting and frying the big ones with my kids and it's amazing. I never knew what I was missing and even though I had a blast with catch and release, it would have been great to do this as a kid. My dad introduced me to baseball and it never much stuck, he wasn't a football player, but that's where I found my joy, so I carved my own path without a mentor. My dad was and is a big hunter and he introduced that to me and it's the greatest joy in my life after my wife and kids.

My rant isn't meant to shame those that use a crossbow, my rant isn't to say everyone should bow hunt and that everyone will have the same love for it that I do. My rant is that society is continually pushing for the easier, quicker, more instant gratification and my fear is that (like baseball) if the youth don't fall in love with the compound it will go the way of the dinosaur and that saddens me. Some things in life should be hard, some things in life should reward hard work and effort and again it's my belief that the crossbow erodes this away from the archery season. 

My father said the same thing when compound bows started to make all the advancements... I believe everyone should do thier own thing and be proud.

[grampy]

2 hours ago, moog5050 said:

Can someone please post a photo of the dead horse?  Or is someone actually being convinced to change their opinion?  

That poor horse has been beaten to death, time and time again here over crossbows!!

Not worth it to even respond anymore.

[The_Real_TCIII]

1 hour ago, Four Seasons said:

If that’s what he needs to do. But he was talking about the greatness of walking up on a bow killed whitetail. 

So youd be ok with one long season, any weapon. I understand why you wouldnt care with your 1000 acres to yourself but the majority wont agree

[Four Seasons]

2 hours ago, Belo said:

And I stand by it. 

And I agree.  But everybody else gets the same joy walking up to that Whitetail with their own weapon of choice. 

[Four Seasons]

1 hour ago, The_Real_TCIII said:

So youd be ok with one long season, any weapon. I understand why you wouldnt care with your 1000 acres to yourself but the majority wont agree

True That. It would not bother me in the least. Just as if someone is using a crossbow during archery season on state land while I use a compound would not bother me. 

[BizCT]

6 hours ago, Belo said:

Some things in life should be hard, some things in life should reward hard work and effort and again it's my belief that the crossbow erodes this away from the archery season. 

Try hunting from the ground and you'll rarely return to a tree. The satisfaction and adrenaline rush is euphoric