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Boltguns?

Are boltguns archery equipment?

  • Yes

  • No

  • Are CBs archery equipment?

Results are only viewable after voting.
September/ October is 'archery' season.... propelling an arrow to kill a deer. Since crossbows were legalized, I see zero difference between them versus pneumatic propulsion of an arrow. There is a MUCH bigger difference between compound bows and crossbows than there is between crossbow arrow slingers and pneumatic arrow slingers. Heck, you could even use centerfire rifles during archery season in West TN past few years.

Besides, the only reason to have archery season is to allow additional hunting opportunity without negatively impacting game populations. That was critical back in the day when deer numbers were extremely low. Not so important in TN any longer.
 
mike243 said:
Name the parts of an arrow and a bolt, they are what kills the animal not the method it was launched.
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By this logic you can shoot rifles during muzzleloader season- the bullet in the projectile, after all.

The weapon type defines the season, not the projectile- hence nobody goes "arrow hunting" during "arrow season"
 
megalomaniac said:
September/ October is 'archery' season.... propelling an arrow to kill a deer. Since crossbows were legalized, I see zero difference between them versus pneumatic propulsion of an arrow. There is a MUCH bigger difference between compound bows and crossbows than there is between crossbow arrow slingers and pneumatic arrow slingers. Heck, you could even use centerfire rifles during archery season in West TN past few years.

Besides, the only reason to have archery season is to allow additional hunting opportunity without negatively impacting game populations. That was critical back in the day when deer numbers were extremely low. Not so important in TN any longer.
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I agree in part-however, when does the means of archery tackle begin to impact the population due to contributing to an easier kill? Boltguns extend range even beyond that of crossbows and continue to eliminate hunter movement, both of which should in theory increase kills.

I love the additional opportunity to be in the woods. I think part of the equation for me is selfish-I like the smaller crowds during archery season, versus the orange army of opening muzzleloader and rifle.
 
RDub said:
I agree in part-however, when does the means of archery tackle begin to impact the population due to contributing to an easier kill? Boltguns extend range even beyond that of crossbows and continue to eliminate hunter movement, both of which should in theory increase kills.

I love the additional opportunity to be in the woods. I think part of the equation for me is selfish-I like the smaller crowds during archery season, versus the orange army of opening muzzleloader and rifle.
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Totally agree... in the places it counts (archery elk/ mule deer/ antelope out west) archery is limited to vertical bows only to limit harvest and allow additional tags.

But it doesn't matter when it comes to whitetails in TN. Once you go down the slippery slope of allowing crossbows for everyone, you just may as well open up archery to pretty much any weapon, it won't make a hills beans difference in the grand scheme of things. If pneumatic arrows were allowed, I bet there wouldn't be more than 500 additional deer killed in archery season. It's getting close to the point where TWRA is going to start begging hunters to kill more deer.

It's great more hunters are becoming selective about what they harvest. Deer are so common that it's no longer any accomplishment to kill a deer. Folks want to kill something to brag about. But as a consequence doe harvest is lacking on many places leading to overpopulation. Why not allow a few additional deer to be killed with crossbows? Oh, wait, we already did that... well if that's fine, why not with pneumatic arrows as well? Don't see the harm honestly.

I can tell you, as land prices continue to increase, rental ag land rates will continue to go up, and farmer lessee losses from deer on their crops will become less tolerable. The number of deprecation permits will continue to skyrocket, and way more deer will be shot under deprecation permits than would be killed from pneumatic arrows.

But this is coming from a guy that also thinks we should go back to percussion cap side hammer muzzleloaders or flintlock muzzleloaders during primitive weapon season.
 
megalomaniac said:
I can tell you, as land prices continue to increase, rental ag land rates will continue to go up, and farmer lessee losses from deer on their crops will become less tolerable. The number of deprecation permits will continue to skyrocket, and way more deer will be shot under deprecation permits than would be killed from pneumatic arrows.

But this is coming from a guy that also thinks we should go back to percussion cap side hammer muzzleloaders or flintlock muzzleloaders during primitive weapon season.
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This is the issue that most concerns me about the future of hunting-with any weapon. Less public land, rates that price out most of your hunters who grew up with it as a way of life.

I've gone the opposite way when it comes to killing whitetails-with a bow everything without spots is fair game. I'll let young bucks walk but the older I get, the more I enjoy the kill-butcher-eat full-circle process.
 
IMO crossbows should not be allowed during archery, with the exceptions of for youth and hunters with an actual disability. Nothing about it is the same. It's cocked and loaded and shoots like a firearm. Would be ok during muzzleloader but not archery. I'd actually support a longbow/recurve archery season that started before the regular archery season.
 

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