Fishing, Hunting and Camping

Bowhunting: Crossbow vs Compound Bow

Vince

When it comes to bowhunting, most hunters have a preference on what they like to use. Some swear by compound bows only with the thoughts that compound bows gives more of a challenge than crossbows. Today, we are going to go over crossbows vs compound bows and why one may be a better fit for you over the other. So let’s get started…

State Laws

Depending on what state you live/hunt in, there may be laws that help you with this decision. For example, up to only a few years ago, you could only use a crossbow during gun season in Indiana. Since a crossbow has a trigger, they were considered a firearm. Then the law was changed to you could only use a crossbow during the second half of the bow season. Today, you can now use crossbows during all seasons.

Before deciding to move to a crossbow, you will want to make sure what the laws are in your own state.

Per state rules as of February 26, 2018 are listed below. The below list is only intended as a quick first glance at if considering a crossbow may be worth the purchase. You should check your current state DNR site for full rules.

State’s crossbows legal deer hunting seasons

Compound Bow vs Crossbow

crossbow

Credit: Dwight Stone

Crossbow

Hunting with a crossbow is similar to hunting with a rifle but not the same. It is more challenging to hunt with a crossbow then a rifle but not a challenging as with a compound bow.

A crossbow would be a good fit for someone that may not be up to pulling back 75+ pounds, someone who might be physically challenged, or someone that gets cold/stiff easy when sitting in a deer stand all day. I’m one of those people. It may also just be more convenient to use a crossbow if you have never used a compound before but want to tale advantage of bow season (in some states). I always say, the best hunting happens before the guns start going off.

Here are a couple advantages of using a crossbow over a compound:

Credit: john skewes

Compound bow

Compound bows are the most widely known bows used for deer hunting. They take a lot a lot of practice, patience and strength to use.

Many people prefer compound bows for a couple of reasons. Firstly, people say that it about the hardest way to hunt today. So if your looking for accomplishment, this can go down as a pro. Compounds take a lot of skill to use. Think about how much work goes into using one.

Some people want the challenge of using a compound bow, I know I love it. It takes a lot of practice shooting from different positions including different height levels. If you already bow hunt, I’m sure you know that. Shooting from an elevated position (tree stand) shoots different than making our shot at ground level. We have all had that miss from the tree because you over shot… If you are thinking about buying a compound bow, I suggest reading our article titled 3 Best Bang For Your Buck Compound Bows of 2018.

Here are a couple pros for using a compound bow:

Conclusion

Though, some say bows are inferior to crossbows, it really comes down to personal preference. Whichever choice you make, you will need to prepare and get to know your tools. Each requires you to set them up personalized to your style. You will want to practice as much as possible and shoot from as many angles/heights as possible.

Sources: Images used under Creative Commons. Images have not been changed.

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