Crossbow vs. Birdfeeder Rat - Page 2

Unlicensed Dremel · September 14, 2014, 03:16 PM

Very nice - an arrow running lengthwise is gonna leave a mark - I don't care what species you are.

Yeah, I've been shooting with guys at 3D shoots who stick bullfrogs along the way, but I'm with the "arrows are too expensive" crowd. I nearly had a fit when a PSE Tac-10 arrow fell out of my quiver and I lost it one day in thick grass when deer hunting - those things are $17 each - just for the arrow, not to mention the broadhead. The total cost of that one loss was almost $30!

I usually won't shoot at raccoons even when waiting on deer, though I'd like to since they eat turkey and quail eggs. I use mostly FMJ arrows which will bend despite a carbon inner. Several dillas walking by my stand have lived to see another day over the years, though I don't shoot them anyway now, even with a gun, since they do no harm which I'm aware of.

bird_dog · September 15, 2014, 12:20 PM

Being new to the whole crossbow thing, I loaded up on $4 bolts at WalMart, and they're just as accurate as the handful of more expensive ones I own.

My next quarry (yes, I've decided to move up from rats) is going to be some of the extra large gray squirrels in the wood lot across the street from my house. Hopefully, I'll catch one or two on the ground so my bolts don't have a similar fate to my rat-bolt...

Either way, just as when I took up handgun hunting for deer, I'm accepting the $4 a shot price tag, just because shooting a squirrel with the xbow seems like a great challenge.

Nov 1 (crossbow season for deer here in WNY) is still a long way off.

Rob228 · September 15, 2014, 10:04 PM

I'm on my HOA board and managed to get board approval to dispose of some of the rabbits in our area, as we are literally being overrun since our coyote pack seems to have migrated. For a while I was using a bow with small game heads (the nasty trident/corkscrew looking things) but I was still bending every other arrow, costing me about $4 a rabbit. The pellet gun is far more economical, however I can totally understand shwacking a rat with an arrow given the opportunity.

I'd leave the rabbit carcasses in the areas where the coyotes used to frequent to try to lure them back, I had limited success as the hawks would typically get to them first.

bird_dog · September 18, 2014, 09:31 AM

Finally moved up from rats. Looking forward now to deer....

And here's a tip I found online: I placed a small washer behind the field point. Heavy trauma, and an arrow that won't dig into the dirt and bury itself. No damage to the arrow, and it wasn't lost. Perfect.

September 14, 2014, 03:16 PM	#26
Unlicensed Dremel Junior member Join Date: February 13, 2014 Location: Flathead Valley, MT Posts: 2,187	Very nice - an arrow running lengthwise is gonna leave a mark - I don't care what species you are. Yeah, I've been shooting with guys at 3D shoots who stick bullfrogs along the way, but I'm with the "arrows are too expensive" crowd. I nearly had a fit when a PSE Tac-10 arrow fell out of my quiver and I lost it one day in thick grass when deer hunting - those things are $17 each - just for the arrow, not to mention the broadhead. The total cost of that one loss was almost $30! I usually won't shoot at raccoons even when waiting on deer, though I'd like to since they eat turkey and quail eggs. I use mostly FMJ arrows which will bend despite a carbon inner. Several dillas walking by my stand have lived to see another day over the years, though I don't shoot them anyway now, even with a gun, since they do no harm which I'm aware of.

September 15, 2014, 12:20 PM	#27
bird_dog Senior Member Join Date: May 26, 2004 Posts: 225	Being new to the whole crossbow thing, I loaded up on $4 bolts at WalMart, and they're just as accurate as the handful of more expensive ones I own. My next quarry (yes, I've decided to move up from rats) is going to be some of the extra large gray squirrels in the wood lot across the street from my house. Hopefully, I'll catch one or two on the ground so my bolts don't have a similar fate to my rat-bolt... Either way, just as when I took up handgun hunting for deer, I'm accepting the $4 a shot price tag, just because shooting a squirrel with the xbow seems like a great challenge. Nov 1 (crossbow season for deer here in WNY) is still a long way off.

September 15, 2014, 10:04 PM	#28
Rob228 Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2010 Location: Hampstead NC Posts: 1,450	I'm on my HOA board and managed to get board approval to dispose of some of the rabbits in our area, as we are literally being overrun since our coyote pack seems to have migrated. For a while I was using a bow with small game heads (the nasty trident/corkscrew looking things) but I was still bending every other arrow, costing me about $4 a rabbit. The pellet gun is far more economical, however I can totally understand shwacking a rat with an arrow given the opportunity. I'd leave the rabbit carcasses in the areas where the coyotes used to frequent to try to lure them back, I had limited success as the hawks would typically get to them first.

September 18, 2014, 09:31 AM	#29
bird_dog Senior Member Join Date: May 26, 2004 Posts: 225	Finally moved up from rats. Looking forward now to deer.... And here's a tip I found online: I placed a small washer behind the field point. Heavy trauma, and an arrow that won't dig into the dirt and bury itself. No damage to the arrow, and it wasn't lost. Perfect.