Jim Timber
5 year old buck +
It's a legal weapon for your firearms tag. No indication of weapon used when registering harvest.
Brooks- Have you broken that down by zones or general areas?Archery take is off 24% from 2005 to 2013.
Read some internet reviews, compared specs, and looked over some crossbows at a few stores. Lot's of things to consider.....but the popular brands / models sure look capable. I'm a bit ignorant on sticks and strings.......still have some research to do. A couple of my box blinds will provide a great place to use a crossbow. Ranges and blind locations may be quite good for hurling arrows....IMO.
Most recently, I'm torn between spending $499 on a Barnet Ghost 350.....or spending $999. for a Ten Point Shadow Ultra Lite. Seems they are all very capable....it's just hard to know how committed I am to this type of hunt.
Sure would be nice to hunt in some reasonable temps tho....and spend time with the deer before the go nocturnal.
What brand do you own Art?I bought my crossbow in St. Cloud. They also have the Brainerd store on old 371.
Archery Country I think it was called.
I predict there will be a big upsurge in crossbow sales in the north country, and bet that within 5 years, many will give up on it as it is not as easy as it sounds.
A lot of rifle hunters will think they can shoot longer distances with the crossbow than what they actually can shoot.
I also think that many rifle hunters will find it hard to get close enough to a deer for a shot, especially with our low deer numbers. They will have to learn new skills if they were not experienced bow hunters in the past.
I have a tentative plan to take up hunting again during the archery/xbow season. I have not bowhunted for going on 18 years. Given the above statements by sandbur, it appears I am not the only one who feels that there will be a huge influx of horizontal bowhunters in the next 2 years. After that, I too anticipate the "new" will wear off quickly for a lot of guys, especially if they don't find success. That is where I will step in and outfit myself with a very nice 2 or 3 year old xbow for 1/3rd of what it cost new, as there will be a ton of guys wanting to recover some of the dollars they spent on getting outfitted for their experiment and then it will be time for me to get back into hunting during the "bow" season again. I have waited 18 years, a couple more isn't going to bother me at all.
Thanks foggy, I will have to check them out. $350-$400 is about the going price for a middle of the road used model.The Wicked Ridge Crossbows are really one heckuva deal. Basically they are the "old" style TenPoint Crossbows with a bit wider bows than current manufacture (and they do not have the premium ratchet cocking apparatus available). I see the very highly regarded Warrior Model available for under $400. If I didn't think I would need the ratchet cocking devise in the next years to come......I believe this is the model I would buy. Alas.....my parts are wearing out.:eek: Errrrr.....SOME of my parts are wearing out. :D
I have repeatably read to NOT buy used Crossbows. Dunno.....seems to me a person could check them over and shoot them to determine their worth. Still.....I have not seen any raving values on used stuff. No waiting for me......I'm not getting any younger. ;)
I see the start of a new retirement business, besides .......I pulled the trigger tonight. Bought a new Ten Point Shadow UL Crossbow with Accudraw. Smallest, lightest bow they make. Weighs only 6.4 lbs.....but I'm sure accessories add to it a bit.
Been reading and studying this stuff for a couple of weeks now.....and I don't want to wait till they become hard to get. It's a new model for 2014....but they have made something similar last year......so it's not like I'm buying new tech. ;)
I used to manufacture the Steady Eddy attachment for Ten Point back when I owned Stoney Point.....so I suppose I will configure some of my remaining parts to fit to my new bow to provide a rest. Never had much interest in sticks and strings back then....I was all about rifles at that time. Who knows....maybe I can improve on my old design. ;) :D