Xbow Purchase Countdown

[johnwilliamson062]

Put this off and mulled it over as long as I could, but if I don't buy this weekend I am going to put it off until next year or wait for a crazy good deal on craigslist.

As far as budget, my seasonal contract ended on 10/19, so I really need to keep this inside budget. I'll probably get more work in the next few weeks and I have the money to hold over that period with ease, but want to minimize expenses in the time being. Before you criticize the purchase, I am hoping I can use the crossbow to get out a bit and meet some people while I am practicing at my local club and out hunting. Also another thing I might have in common with anyone interviewing me. Plus the greatest enemy of the unemployed is boredom sitting at home.

Keep in mind this is an absolute starter utilitarian tool. I will probably only use it three years at most as my primary crossbow. If I still want to bow hunt I will get a much better one at that point and this will be relegated to back-up & new hunter loaner duty. I still want one that if stored correctly will last a while so i can use it for those purposes. Probably one of the reverse draw ones.
Narrowed it to two options:
150-lb. Summit HD

Arrow Precision Inferno Blitz II

I think the Blitz II is sufficient, but the price difference on the Summit is so small it has me considering it. I am comfortable with both considering reviews on Amazon and a few other sites.

Horton is a big name, does anyone have experience with their warranty?
It seems about as good as the one I got with my wife's engagement ring: "If none of the prongs are damaged..."
Of course, Arrow Precisions link to their warranty info is not very insightful either. I interpret that failure as indication of what I can expect from a warranty.
My general experience with warranties is warranty service usually costs more and is more problematic than not.

[shortwave]

I can't tell you about the Blitz as I have no experience with them.

The Horton Summit is a decent bow and should be a good starting point. It's a basic but fairly rugged bow and very capable to deer hunt with. If that's your quarry. Shooting light bolts tipped with 100grn. broad heads should fly nicely.

Don't think you'll go wrong starting with the Summit.



I've had Horton bows close to 20yrs and have just never needed their warranty so I can't answer that question.

JUST DON'T DRY FIRE!!!

Additional expenses should include:

bow string wax

rail lube

additional bolts ( 3 won't be enough. You'll want a few for zeroing/practice and a few set aside for hunting)

broad heads if deer hunting the same grn. weight as field/practice tips. suggest 100grn.

crossbow target(many reg.archery targets won't stop crossbow bolts)

[sc outdoorsman]

My son has a Horton 175lb draw with a reddot scope. It is accurate and shoots tight groups to 40 yards with 125gr broadheads. I like a scope much better that the pins so if you can get a package deal i would go that way.

[johnwilliamson062]

Will have the Horton in 3-5 days.

[12GaugeShuggoth]

I bought a cheap Horton 150 about 10 years ago or so and it's never given me any kind of problems. Still shoot it with no issues to speak of........wish I could say the same for my Parker. It's not fancy or expensive, but it works. Hopefully you'll have the same experience with yours.

[johnwilliamson062]

Just off the phone with Cheaperthandirt.com

They don't know where my X-bow is.

They don't know if it ever left the warehouse.

Worse, they started off telling me it was in transport and today was the fifth business day since 11/4. I asked how they calculated that and they indicate 3-5 is shipping and they have an additional day for handling. It should be here when UPS delivers. UPS already went by, but my house is on a street that borders two routes or something and we often get multiple runs this time of year so I was thinking maybe it could.

I asked if they normally send shipping confirmation e-mails. They do. I never got one and there is no tracking number available.

When I bring this up they finally say 'We are having some trouble at the warehouse that ships this item. It may be 4-5 additional business days.'
I'm thinking, well now they made a mistake, lied to cover it and I caught them. If customer service is worth a darn I am going to get something decent for free. They refunded my ground UPS shipping of 16.95. Not what I would consider impressive. They could have at the least expedited it since everybody involved knows the item is either sitting in the warehouse waiting to be picked.

My real fear: They don't actually have this item in stock and they would not admit it. Almost nobody else still carries this item. They will play games through most of hunting season.

On my CTD account i have three orders listed. On one they sent me the wrong item and fought me on it. This order is all messed up. One order did go through without issue though.

[johnwilliamson062]

Received a shipping confirmation last night and item showed up today. Refunding shipping and expediting to next day leaves me happy.

No one told me the bow wasn't assembled though! Not too big of a deal the pieces seem pretty easy to assemble, but...

Anyone want to comment as to the amount of force used to seat the bow on the stock? The instructions say "slide." It definitely isn't "slide"ing on. I leaned on it and hit it a bit with my palm and it isn't seated. I don't want to take a mallet to it or something without checking.

[johnwilliamson062]

I called Horton today and the automated voice said it would be 45 minutes. I made it 15 before deciding to go ahead and apply force. In my work-out area I have some of those jig saw like foam pad set up so I held the top in place and slammed the but against the ground. I figured if it is safe for my K11... Anyways, a few hits and it all came together. I'm actually pretty impressed with the quality. Nothing fancy, but nothing wiggles, bends, or appears in any way sloppy. The stock is solid. It came with two sight systems. A red dot and something I haven't quite figured out yet involving a rear peep sight and a fiber optic loop. I'm going to use the red dot, so won't spend much time investigating that right away.
Now for more threads about broadheads.

[shortwave]

john,

If your model has two capscrew bolts that screw in from the front bolting the limb to the frame, you want to apply some 'BLUE' Loctite to the bolt threads. They have a tendency to work loose after awhile and you won't be able to keep zero'd if they're the slightest bit loose. Plus the torque on the limb with loose bolts may be dangerous to you and the bow.

[johnwilliamson062]

Has two set screws that hold the foot stirrup in and two more that hold the quiver. I will put a little on all of them. No reason not to.

[shortwave]

Excellent!