Crossbows have become more popular, as more and more hunters are legally allowed to use them to hunt. Deer hunting with crossbows has become a tradition for many hunters, and there are more and more crossbows coming onto the market every year. Every hunter considering switching to crossbow hunting needs to very carefully determine the best hunting crossbow for them. Continue reading this review to find out about how to pick your crossbow and some reviews of a few popular ones.
Considerations
Picking a crossbow out of the hundreds available to buy can be a daunting task. There seem to be so many great crossbows that are great values, as well as being high-quality. Some of the things to keep in mind when picking out a crossbow are characteristics like portability, maneuverability, speed, ease of use, and price.
Portability is important, as carrying a heavy crossbow a long way will make even the strongest hunter tired. Maneuverability is also important if you will be hunting from a treestand, blind, or in any tight spaces.
Speed is a vital consideration, as speed and energy are what take animals down. More speed generally means a quicker kill, which means a more humane kill. More speed also means more money spent on the crossbow.
Ease of use is important when dealing with crossbows, like elderly people or others with less strength who may not be able to set the crossbow as easily as others would want to keep this in mind. Price is always one of the most important factors, and it drives many of the other considerations.
If you spend less, your crossbow might not be quite as accurate, might weigh a little more, and might be a little harder to set. Things like warranties and the durability of products should also be taken into account, as these most certainly affect the price. With factors to keep in mind covered, let’s move onto some of the best hunting crossbows on the market.
Excalibur Matrix Grizzly
Excalibur has been making excellent hunting crossbows and building up a loyal fanbase for years. If you are looking for a great value, high-quality crossbow, consider the Matrix Grizzly from Excalibur.
Cocking this beast is easy, as it is just an 11.5-inch cocking stroke that gets you focused on the hunt sooner. The Matrix Grizzly is compact, as it is only 30” wide at the limb set and only a 33” total length. This crossbow only weighs 5 and a half pounds, making it excellent for anyone who has to take a trek to get to their hunting area.
The composite thumbhole stock is compact and lightweight and provides excellent comfort and stability. The Excalibur Matrix Grizzly can be bought for around $500, making it easy on the wallet while providing excellent features.
TenPoint Carbon Nitro RDX
If you are looking for a top-notch, best of the best crossbow for deer hunting, the TenPoint Carbon Nitro RDX is for you. Reaching blistering speeds of up to 385 feet per second is not a problem for this crossbow.
The Carbon Nitro RDX uses a reverse draw design that makes the crossbow only 10” from axle-to-axle when it is cocked, making this a highly maneuverable and compact crossbow. Hunting in treestands and blinds is no problem, as this has limbs that are only 13” in length, and the RDX has an overall length of 34.25”, making it compact while delivering blistering speeds.
This crossbow weighs 7.8 pounds, making it a little on the heavy side, but with all of the features, this is a great weight. The ACUdraw cocking system makes it easy to cock, and it also comes with a fully adjustable stock.
The TenPoint Carbon Nitro RDX can be had for anywhere from $1,500-$1,800, which is a bit pricey for many hunters. However, if you are someone looking for the best of the best, this is the perfect one for you.
TenPoint Wicked Ridge Warrior Ultra-Lite
While the last TenPoint crossbow discussed was very expensive, the Wicked Ridge Warrior Ultra-Lite is a great value pick for hunters who aren’t wanting to spend as much. This lightweight and compact crossbow are designed with the hunter in mind.
Firing crossbow bolts up to 350 feet per second, the Ultra-Lite only weighs 6 pounds. With a 15” axle-to-axle width, this thing is great for treestand and blind hunters. The stock and foregrip are designed with both strength and weight in mind.
There is a built-in Picatinny rail on the bottom of the barrel for any accessories as well. The Wicked Ridge Warrior Ultra-Lite sells for around $350-$500, and is an excellent crossbow for the money.
Ravin R20
Ravin Crossbows made one of the most innovative and high-performance crossbows when they developed the R20. Boasting speeds of up to 430 feet per second while shooting 3-inch groups at 100 yards, the Ravin R20 is built to perform.
With this much performance, you would expect the R20 to weigh more than it does at only 7.1 pounds. The overall length is 34.5” and axle-to-axle width when cocked is only 6”. The R20 employs Ravin’s HeliCoil Technology, keeping the cams evenly balanced, which helps it produce superior accuracy.
The stock is lightweight and very comfortable. There is a Picatinny rail below the barrel for any accessories you may want. Selling for around $1,700, the Ravin R20 is not a cheap crossbow. That being said, you are getting one of the most advanced crossbows on the market today, in addition to the quality that Ravin crossbows are known for.
When picking out what crossbow you would like to buy, it is important that you keep considerations like maneuverability, compactness, speed, ease of use, and of course, price in mind. Once you let these considerations guide your thinking and shopping, you will come to a conclusion on what the best crossbow is for you.
While some crossbows may be better for different individuals, it is important to remember that almost all of the crossbows on the market today are huge improvements on the older generations of crossbows.
With all of these improvements comes a need for you to see what you’re shooting at. A quality crossbow scope is very important, so consider checking out our crossbow scope review here- https://gunnewsdaily.com/best-crossbow-scope