Modern Crossbows; what they are used for

Modern Crossbows – what they are used for

Hunting wild Animals or shooting Targets

Crossbow shooting is becoming increasingly popular with the public as a precision sport and as a leisure activity. Many shooting clubs now offer this demanding sport for their members. Especially in the USA, Canada and some African countries in particular, the crossbow can be used as a hunting weapon. Famous manufacturers such as “TenPoint” or “Scorpyd” offer special crossbow models for this purpose.

Crossbow Hunting

Since becoming legal statewide for archery hunting 14 years ago, horizontal bows have accounted for a larger and larger portion of the archery kill with each passing year. The first year that crossbows were allowed during the archery deer season, only 33 percent of the harvest was taken with horizontal bows. But by the 2018-19 season, one decade later, they were already accounting for 63 percent of the archery harvest. Today, that number is approaching 70 percent.

Crossbows increasingly popular

While many states show crossbows making up a larger percentage of the archery harvest over time, it’s notable that the Southeastern states do not necessarily follow that trend, at least not at the same rate as many Northeastern and Midwestern states. However, in these states, the archery harvest tends to make up a smaller percentage of the overall deer harvest each year.

In most western countries, and the EU hunting with a crossbow is prohibited in almost all federal states according to the Federal Hunting Act and the State Hunting Act. In some special cases, it is possible to obtain an exemption from an authority in accordance with the applicable state hunting law.

3D Hunting Course

3D Hunting Course - Crossbow shooting

3D crossbow hunting course consists of shooting at stationary foam targets in the shapes of different animals set at varying distances, heights and angles around a course. The course may be in a forest, or on rough terrain. Each foam animal has scoring rings which denote different scores and between one and three arrows may be shot at each target. Since 2003, World Archery has organised the World Archery 3D Championships every two years. The competition rounds used at international events is set at distances of between 10m and 60m for all types of crossbows.

Target shooting with Crossbows

The sport with this device, which is similar to a bow and can be used to bring arrows and bolts made of wood, aluminum or carbon to the target, is exciting and demanding at the same time. With arrow speeds of up to 400 feet per second, significant forces are released when shooting crossbows.

The modern crossbow sport is practiced at today’s competitions according to the rules of the World Crossbow Shooting Association (WCSA) and the International Crossbow Shooting Union (ICU). The strict rules ensure that the competitions run smoothly and fairly. This takes into account the fact that crossbow shooting is not entirely harmless.

Crossbow Sniper

Crossbow Sniper - in the Army

Military units sometimes like to use modern high-performance crossbows because, in addition to their high penetrating power, they are also quieter than a rifle.

The Chinese military and police actually use crossbows in combat. Although they serve as silent weapons, they can be considered less lethal when taking out “Hijackers” or bomb attackers. In fact, a crossbow is very flexible; It causes no gunfire, has very little recoil, barely audible flying noise and can even penetrate armor. You can also shoot explosive bolts for special operations… that really exists… not just in the movies…

Some militaries also recognize their stealth abilities, including some in Latin America, and there is a possibility the US special forces could use it as a classified weapon.

And yes… No one can easily escape the appeal of the crossbow.