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Crossbows

C1295

C1295

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Joined
Aug 26, 2022
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EAST TN
How far out you all sighting in your Cross bow? how far out are you all comfortable at taking a shot? I am shooting a recurve crossbow with 175lb draw weight and 20" arrows about 400 grain with arrow and tip together. I am getting about 35-40 yards max. After that it drops drastically.
 
Sighting mine in at 30 yds this year and holding over if it's a farther shot. Last year was the opposite, sighted in a 50 yds and I had to hold low.....my brain couldn't comprehend that. Something about looking at the dirt and taking a shot just doesn't make sense to me.

I'm comfortable out to 50-60 yds. Disclaimer: I missed 4 times last year at 35, 40, 45 and 60. Lack of experience (first year with a crossbow) and lack of practice....and I pretty much suck at bow hunting in general.
 
Specializedjon said:
Sighting mine in at 30 yds this year and holding over if it's a farther shot. Last year was the opposite, sighted in a 50 yds and I had to hold low.....my brain couldn't comprehend that. Something about looking at the dirt and taking a shot just doesn't make sense to me.

I'm comfortable out to 50-60 yds. Disclaimer: I missed 4 times last year at 35, 40, 45 and 60. Lack of experience (first year with a crossbow) and lack of practice....and I pretty much suck at bow hunting in general.
Click to expand...
What kind of scope you using?
 
I have a TenPoint RS470 Vapor shooting in the low 450's. I'm using 19" Zombie Slayers, 449 grain with broadhead. My self imposed limit is 50 yards with a clear broadside or quartering away shot. My scope has a speed dial and I find it accurate to 70 yards but haven't shot it any further. The reticle goes all the way to 100 yards. I also have a Barnett Hypertac Pro 430 but the new TenPoint has taken its place as my hunting bow.
 
CCAGLE95 said:
how far out are you all comfortable at taking a shot?
Click to expand...
About 35 yds.

Never mind that my set up, if can range-find the target first, is very capable of hitting a deer's vitals (with no wind) consistently at 75 yds.

But when shooting at a deer beyond 35 yds with ANY crossbow, there's a couple factors that can really mess you up, often resulting in a gut shot, miss, or wounded deer.

The fastest crossbow sails an arrow at a velocity a fraction that of a 30/30. Three to 400 fps is VERY SLOW compared to 2,000-plus fps. Then arrows lose velocity @ 10-plus times faster than a rifle bullet.

Forget that the speed of sound is 1100 ft per second, and thinking a deer won't have time to react to the sound at say 50 yds. And it's often not the sound they react but instead they actually see the sudden movement of the bow limbs. Deer commonly "jump" the string. And they can at 40 yds with a fast crossbow if they "see" those bow limbs quickly twitch.

That said, in the right circumstances, such as a feeding deer, head down, a little beyond 35 yds can still be high probability, unless it just suddenly decides to take a step as you release. Then you have a gut shot deer.

I usually set myself up when bowhunting (even if fast crossbow) where I'm unlikely to get a shot beyond 35 yds. But then, I also do this much of the time when I'm carrying a rifle instead of a bow, simply because heavier cover is what I hunt most.
 
My scope is a Vortex Crossfire II crossbow scope. It zeroes at 40 yards. It has under zero (30 & 20 yrd) crosshairs as well as over zero (50-100 yrds). Personally I have shot 2 deer at 43 yards. I guess I would go to 50 yards if it was a "perfect" shot and a trophy. But as a rule I keep it under 40 yards. It's not that my bow can't handle the distance, it's the fact that the greater the distance the more that can happen. The deer turns or steps forward, drops down in flight mode, etc.

I'm including a link to the scope. This is at the Vortex website. You can get the scope in all the normal discount places like Academy Sports, Amazon etc. I'm sold on this optic, it's great.

vortexoptics.com

Crossfire II 2-7x32 Crossbow Scope

XBR-2® RETICLE (MOA) Reticle | 30mm Tube
vortexoptics.com vortexoptics.com
 
I'm shooting an Excalibur Mag 340 and have it zeroed in at 20 yards. With that zero, I can hold square on from 10-25 yards with only minor variation in POI. That crossbow is stupid accurate out to 50 yards using the drop compensator built into the scope but I won't take a shot past 30 yards. When I'm looking at a spot for a stand setup, I'm typically thinking about what stand location can give me a shot of 25 yards or less.
 
20-30-40-50-60 on my crossbow scope hashes. Only 2 shots I've had with it were 21 and 22 yards, and both were dead deer. Closest deer other than that was 75 and I wasn't about to even try it. I'd be comfortable out around 45-50 if all conditions were favorable.
 
TheLBLman said:
About 35 yds.

Never mind that my set up, if can range-find the target first, is very capable of hitting a deer's vitals (with no wind) consistently at 75 yds.

But when shooting at a deer beyond 35 yds with ANY crossbow, there's a couple factors that can really mess you up, often resulting in a gut shot, miss, or wounded deer.

The fastest crossbow sails an arrow at a velocity a fraction that of a 30/30. Three to 400 fps is VERY SLOW compared to 2,000-plus fps. Then arrows lose velocity @ 10-plus times faster than a rifle bullet.

Forget that the speed of sound is 1100 ft per second, and thinking a deer won't have time to react to the sound at say 50 yds. And it's often not the sound they react but instead they actually see the sudden movement of the bow limbs. Deer commonly "jump" the string. And they can at 40 yds with a fast crossbow if they "see" those bow limbs quickly twitch.

That said, in the right circumstances, such as a feeding deer, head down, a little beyond 35 yds can still be high probability, unless it just suddenly decides to take a step as you release. Then you have a gut shot deer.

I usually set myself up when bowhunting (even if fast crossbow) where I'm unlikely to get a shot beyond 35 yds. But then, I also do this much of the time when I'm carrying a rifle instead of a bow, simply because heavier cover is what I hunt most.
Click to expand...
It's been proven in studies that a deer, head down, can duck an arrow faster than a head up deer.
When a head down deer hears the bow, as it jerks its head, that motion forces its body down, resulting in the kill zone dropping.
With a head up deer, it has to lower its head to bend the legs, resulting in a microsecond where the vitals stay in the kill zone.
 
Looks like an instinctive move to avoid a cougar or some such coming in and planning to go up for a grab on the back of the neck.
 
agelessssone said:
It's been proven in studies that a deer, head down, can duck an arrow faster than a head up deer.
When a head down deer hears the bow, as it jerks its head, that motion forces its body down, resulting in the kill zone dropping.
With a head up deer, it has to lower its head to bend the legs, resulting in a microsecond where the vitals stay in the kill zone.
Click to expand...
Can't disagree with that.
Dr. Woods explains it very well.
What I should have said was a relaxed or distracted deer, as opposed to an alert one staring you down.
Another issue is wind & other sounds which can muffle your bow noise.

Let me rephrase this a bit . . . . .
TheLBLman said:
And it's often not the sound they react but instead they actually see the sudden movement of the bow limbs. Deer commonly "jump" the string. And they can at 40 yds with a fast crossbow if they "see" those bow limbs quickly twitch.

That said, in the right circumstances, such as a feeding deer, head down or head up, a little beyond 35 yds can still be high probability, unless it just suddenly decides to take a step as you release. Then you have a gut shot deer.
Click to expand...
My preference is for the deer to have it's head up, and looking the other way, as a part of it's routine "checking" rather than being "alerted" by something.

Dr. Woods made the case for always aiming at that bottom 1/3.
I've always aimed for the bottom 1/4, in part to likely still hit in the vitals if the deer drops (which they may or may not), and in part because a heart shot (or low shot) more often provides a quicker, better trail (and animal recovery) than a high shot.

Ideally, I like a steady breeze, rattling the leaves, and then have a shot at a relaxed deer, broadside, head up if not looking towards me. On feeding deer, it is sometimes possible to take advantage of opportune noise to release your arrow, such as when an airplane or helicopter's sounds peak, or when there is a wind gust peaking.

Another shot I like is with the deer actually steadily walking, but certainly under 25 yds.
While some say do something to "stop" the deer, I usually prefer to just take the shot,
with less risk of the deer "jumping".
Your mileage may vary.
 
TheLBLman said:
Can't disagree with that.
Dr. Woods explains it very well.
What I should have said was a relaxed or distracted deer, as opposed to an alert one staring you down.
Another issue is wind & other sounds which can muffle your bow noise.

Let me rephrase this a bit . . . . .

My preference is for the deer to have it's head up, and looking the other way, as a part of it's routine "checking" rather than being "alerted" by something.

Dr. Woods made the case for always aiming at that bottom 1/3.
I've always aimed for the bottom 1/4, in part to likely still hit in the vitals if the deer drops (which they may or may not), and in part because a heart shot (or low shot) more often provides a quicker, better trail (and animal recovery) than a high shot.

Ideally, I like a steady breeze, rattling the leaves, and then have a shot at a relaxed deer, broadside, head up if not looking towards me. On feeding deer, it is sometimes possible to take advantage of opportune noise to release your arrow, such as when an airplane or helicopter's sounds peak, or when there is a wind gust peaking.

Another shot I like is with the deer actually steadily walking, but certainly under 25 yds.
While some say do something to "stop" the deer, I usually prefer to just take the shot,
with less risk of the deer "jumping".
Your mileage may vary.
Click to expand...
You have a better chance of a deer NOT jumping the string because one of its feet will be off the ground, thus impeding the drop
 
agelessssone said:
You have a better chance of a deer NOT jumping the string because one of its feet will be off the ground, thus impeding the drop
Click to expand...
Yes, on a walking deer. Just needs to be close-range.

Although Dr. Woods stated he was aiming at the bottom 1/3, it still looked more like the bottom 1/4 to me.

I've always thought it made more sense to aim @ this bottom 1/4, not just because the deer may "drop" upon hearing or seeing the release, but also because of a misjudgment in range. If the deer is a bit closer than thought, then if I hit a little higher than where aimed, double-lung shot. If the deer is a little farther than thought, hopefully a complete miss with arrow going right under deer.

I'd rather miss the deer than have it later die (unrecovered) from a wound. One aspect of this some may be unware: Just because a wound can be superficial and not directly lead to that deer's death, it can indirectly lead to the deer dying.

In early archery season when the weather is hotter, a superficial wound is more likely to become badly infected, which can lead to weakness or death. But the bigger issue with any wound causing bleeding is that the smell of blood attracts coyotes & dogs, and can sometimes do so from a distance of several hundred yards. Then, if you have 2 or more dogs/coyotes "dogging" that deer, they can sometimes wear it down & kill it. (This also happens when bucks shed their antlers, the blood on their heads attracting predators.)
 

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