New to Crossbows.

[GarryMitchell]

Hi,

I am looking for a crossbow that is easy to use and easy to repair. I like brands like Ten Point and Horton, Parker. I did goto Basspro and they are pushing Parker over everything else. They say Excalibur is good Parker is the best. They even say that Parker is the best value for money over ten point and Excalibur. I love the tradional look of the Excalibur. I was wondering since they use no nocks on the bolts. Is that a problem when finding bolts at pro shops? How quiet is the bows now with the new string dampeners? I like the Idea of teh new Parker Concord with its CO2 auto cocking system. But wondering if it would last. Its going to be for both me and my wife to use. Since she is a southpaw and I am right that makes since. What other companies makes bolts for the Excalibur? Can a pro shop customize bolts for the Excalibur? How wide Spread are Excalibur service centers or any pro shop can repair the bow? How dose it Stand up to the Ten Point, Horton, Parker, The model I am thinking about is the Equinox kit from Basspro. Thank you Guys.

[papa bear1]

HI GARY, Welcome to the forum

I own a equinox aka the beast, and i wouldn't trade it for anything else, It is built Ford tough, and simple and the thing i like about it the most is in case you dryfire accidently and you most probably will it's not going to fly apart on you Do that with a compound crossbow and you will be sending it to the factory ( along with your wallet ) for repairs And you won't need a pro shop to do anything to it . you can change your own strings without a press. And you can buy arrows about anywere, even custom arrows & strings, & stocks , right here on the forum As far as you and your wife useing the same bow, you will likely need a crankaroo .But once you both fall in love with it she's going to want her own. Happy shooting

Dave

[Raymond]

Best decision you will ever make as far as what brand of crossbow to buy. Make it an Excalibur. You will also find this is one of the friendliest and best sites on the net.
Raymond

[wabi]

Welcome to the forum!

I think the Excalibur line is by far the simplest to operate & repair. Most repairs are easily accomplished by the owner, about the only part that ever needs replaced is the string.
No need for a pro shop, and it's rare to have to send one in for repairs but if you do need major repairs the USA warranty rep (Dan Miller in Ohio) will amaze you with his fast efficient service!
In over a decade of shooting Excaliburs I've had one major failure (limb cracked) and Danny had me shooting again in less than a week.

[awshucks]

Welcome! If you peruse the various xbowforums, you'll see Excal problems are scarcer than hen's teeth. 99% of the time, if you call Danny, you'll get him on the phone, the other 1% it will be his wife. His shop is at his home. He sells everything you would ever need, makes the strings for Excal, and is great on prices.

Another testament is Excals resale values, they bring near new prices for a reason.

Give him a call at [740] 483-2312 and you can get an inkling of what we mean about him.

The diff in nocks is a long winded one, short version, it's a sign of quality, imho.

[gerald strine]

Welcome to the Forum Gary.
When it comes to quality, dependability,ease of servicing,cost of servicing,customer service and satisfaction Excalibur is second to none.
The re curve bows allow the owner to change their own string and service their own bow which is a huge benefit and cost savings .
Cross bow strings stretch out and wear out servings very fast buy the nature of the high poundage and friction on the rail and pressure of the string latches on the serving.
on a Excalubur you can change a string out your self at home in less than 60 seconds and a string is $15 with a compound you will have to take your bow to a shop and have them use a bow press and spend a tone of cash to get it done.
I would get the Excalibur and dont look back.

[taz3]

I'm also new to the sport of crossbows, my wife actually picked out my crossbow, with the help of a couple other hunters and Excalibur has me sold. I'm so pleased with the simplicity of their crossbows, it's almost scary. I watched the video that came with it and I was confidently target shooting. I can easily put a shot from 35 yards into an 2" grouping, I'm more concerned about breaking arrows, because the grouping is so tight!
Bass Pro sells their arrows, in both carbon and aluminum, and the string interchange can be done by anyone in seconds literally. Everything about the crossbow screams K.I.S.S., which can be a good thing when you're out in the field on a hunt, plus there's that much less to go wrong. I'm sold on them and proud to own one!!

Keep
It
Simple
Stupid

[nchunterkw]

Hi Gary and welcome to the forum. I own 2 Horton Legend compound crossbows . Bought the first one in 1996 and the second for my son a few years later. They have served me pretty well over the years, but I have replaced limbs on both, strings and cables. I have had pro shops put strings on one and screw up something else too. This year Iafter a new string and then having the bow come apart in my hands while cocking it, I had had enough. I bought an Excalibur Vortex and will absolutely LOVE it. Not only is it well made and simple to maintain (by me), it shoots lights out and the trigger is as good or better than on some guns I've fired. My primary reason for going with an Excal was for simplicty of design and self-maintenance. I got that , and a whole lot more. In fact, I'm putting both Horton's on Craig's list and am going to replace them with another Excal. Good luck.

[j.krug]

Welcome to the forum Garry. Go with an Excalibur...you won't regret it...guaranteed!!
Like it says at the top of the page: Recurve...Simply Perfect!!

[one shot scott]

Welcome to the forum!

Perhaps they are pushing Parker because they can make the most off of that brand.

Handle and shoot as many brands as you can and base your decision on that as well as what the customers have to say about their bows. Forums like this one is good place to start but go out there and get a feel for all the flavors out there.

It's is hard to go wrong with an Excalibur.

[Ont_Excal]

Hi,

I am looking for a crossbow that is easy to use and easy to repair. I like brands like Ten Point and Horton, Parker. I did go to Basspro and they are pushing Parker over everything else. They say Excalibur is good Parker is the best. They even say that Parker is the best value for money over ten point and Excalibur. I love the traditional look of the Excalibur. I was wondering since they use no nocks on the bolts. Is that a problem when finding bolts at pro shops? How quiet is the bows now with the new string dampeners? I like the Idea of the new Parker Concord with its CO2 auto cocking system. But wondering if it would last. Its going to be for both me and my wife to use. Since she is a southpaw and I am right that makes since. What other companies makes bolts for the Excalibur? Can a pro shop customize bolts for the Excalibur? How wide Spread are Excalibur service centers or any pro shop can repair the bow? How dose it Stand up to the Ten Point, Horton, Parker, The model I am thinking about is the Equinox kit from Basspro. Thank you Guys.

All sales pitches aside, you and the wife should have a look at a number of models. Excal does make versions that your wife would be happy with.

A number of my friends still use vertical bows and when they go on fly-in moose hunts, they carry an Excalibur as a backup just in case one of the bows goes down. No need for a right or left hand model as they built for either to use.

With the Excalibur, the string is common across all bows and so are a lot of other parts.

You can buy replacement strings almost anywhere and the same goes for the arrows.

I'm not a retailer, although my user-name may suggest otherwise. I'm just a satisfied customer, having bought two excals in the past and will likely buy one or two more in the future.

I can't comment on the other brands as I've not seen the need to leave excal. A number of companies manufacture recurve crossbows as of late trying to emulate Excalibur and catch some of their market and they may be good bows as well. However none of them can match the warranty and service of Excalibur!!

BTW, welcome to the forum and contribute often. Let us know how you make out with your purchase and feel free to ask any questions.

[GarryMitchell]

I am going to get a Excalibur for sure. But what company makes a hard case for it? Thanks.

[awshucks]

Piper Cub. you're much better off w/ 2 gun plastic case and take bow down a bit to fit it. Two riser screws, easy off and on, no change in poi.

Some guys have modded vert compound cases and did great jobs, but you still have to break it down some.

Welcome to the forum!

[JohnDoeHunter]

I'm pretty sure you're going to have a hard time getting someone on here to tell you not to go with an Excalibur. That said, probably 99% of the members here stand to gain nothing if you buy one. So why is every one so loyal to this brand? From my experience, Excalibur crossbows have the best triggers, they are the most accurate and are damn near bomb proof. I don't need a bow press to change my string or reserve it, not the case with compound bows. So if you don't want to buy a bow press that means taking it to the shop. Customer service is said to be the best in the industry, but to be fair they probably have more time to give good service because so few need it. LOL. In my opinion you will either buy an Excalibur as your first crossbow or you will end up with one later once you get sick of the others staying in the shop. This has been the case with all my friends with the exception of the guys that have Ten Points. To me that would be the only other crossbow I would consider owning.

[Louvp]

I am going to get a Excalibur for sure. But what company makes a hard case for it? Thanks.

I believe Plano makes a hard case to fit the Excalibur here is a link to the website
http://www.planomolding.com/2011/05/113 ... sbow-case/

Its in the Excalibur newsletter they say it fits all Excaliburs
http://app.e2ma.net/app2/campaigns/archived/1360626
/13e7db00900026a8506c29a449fba588/