Crossbow vs. Birdfeeder Rat

B

bird_dog

New member
I live in NY state. Crossbows just became legalized here for specific seasons. I was always an archer, but never had interest in a crossbow since they weren't legal for hunting. Back and shoulder issues have lowered my enjoyment of bow shooting, so I bit the bullet and picked up a Barnett Jackal crossbow.

In just a few minutes, I had the red dot scope sighted in for 20. Within an hour, I was hitting at 45 yards with dead-on accuracy. I've been itching to get out small-game hunting with it, but haven't had the chance yet.

My house is near a creek, and a runway for all kinds of critters. The other night, my wife spotted a rat at the bird feeder. I went out the door, snuck around the house, and let the rat have it at 14 yards.

First kill of the year, such as it is. Can't wait to get out for some squirrels this weekend!

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Congrats on your purchase. This will be my 2nd season with a crossbow. It looks like that arrow doesn't have a tip on it. Please tell me you haven't been firing the bow with arrows lacking tips.
 
Hey Doyle....no....I've been at the archery game for a long time, but thanks for the concern.

The field tip remains embedded in a very large maple tree, to which the rat was pinned. I have photos of that, too, if you're interested. I knew I'd be sacrificing the bolt, and didn't mind it to be rid of a rat.

Due to the penetration into the tree trunk, I had to snap the tip off in order to remove it.

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I think I would have pulled out one of my wood chisels and dug the arrow out of the tree. Holes in trees grow back. Broken arrows don't. :(
 
I've been hunting with a crossbow for many years, ever since an accident fractured my elbow badly. The modern crossbow is super accurate and quite fast which is a deadly combination in the deer woods. More brands to choose from than ever before but I still hunt with my older Hunt Master. This company changed it's name to Ten Point after a litigation issue.

This Maryland buck never knew what hit him!



Jack
 
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Yeah... Shooting rats with a crossbow seems like a waste of a good arrow. Nice shot though. I would use a air gun instead. Some of the new ones that have Nitro Pistons in them really pack a punch without making too much noise. If you get the .22 or .25 calibers, they will take out squirrels easily too.
 
If you get the .22 or .25 calibers, they will take out squirrels easily too
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Back in the '70s, I took out a boatload of squirrels with my Crossman .177 pump. I can't even imagine what I could do with the more powerful ones available today.
 
Originally posted by Brian Pfleuger;

Those arrows are WAY too expensive for me to use them on rodents. There ain't a rat in the world worth me spending $10 on.
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^^^Same here. Just too many other options for me. Besides, if you see one rat....you got twenty. I'd invest in some rat poison Bird Dog.
 
Take that you dirty Rat!! Nice shooting. Whom among us has not shot at something similar, squirrel etc. and not considered until afterward that Hmmm that arrow is really gonna be hard to get out of that tree? Blunts and judo point work well too.
 
Panfisher said:
Whom among us has not shot at something similar, squirrel etc. and not considered until afterward that Hmmm that arrow is really gonna be hard to get out of that tree?
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The cost of the arrow is the only thing that's kept me from shooting untold numbers of obnoxious squirrels during deer season. Only twice have I given in, despite the cost.

Once because I was so sick of the squirrel that I didn't care, that arrow still (AFAIK) resides high enough in the tree you'd need a ladder to get it... might still have a squirrel skeleton hanging off it.:D

The other time, it was on the ground and I was in a tree so I knew I'd get my arrow back and I have a near life-time supply of replacement blades for that particular broadhead.;)
 
In northern Missouri there is a tree with an offset truck about 6 feet off the ground, which was hollow. After a weekend of abysmal shooting on my part, missed 1 deer (twice) and a turkey, this big old red squirrel came out and was prancing around on the ground. I had an arrow with a field point and one of those star things that goes on behind it to fling at squirrels and such. OK Mr. Squirrell I bet I can make you run, twang - WHACK right square in the middle, I do the I got you little no good blankety blank dance in my stand, high fiving the air, fist pumping, you would have thought I had killed a P&Y buck. I look over at my trophy only to see it struggling to its feet, climb up the trunk and go down into the hole, I could hear the aluminum arrow shaft rattling around. OK so he got the last laugh, but at least he won't be coming back right. WRONG about 10 minutes or so later out of the hole come a red squirrell with a big red spot on his side, moving a little wobbly but making good time, and runs off down the creek. To this day I think the squirrels along that creek laugh at me as I go through the area.
 
I have really come to love crossbows over the past few months(just legalized for those under 65 here as well). They are just a joy to shoot. Nice shot on that rat, I'm sure he had it coming. :D
 
I'm an old archer from way back, but I faded out of the sport. I just rifle hunt now. I understand the cost concern, as I remember thinking $$$ when I released one of my broadhead tipped aluminum arrows. But just like reloading, can't you make "bolts"? Seems like those shorty arrows could be made cheap enough for regular rat shooting. Just thinking out loud.

Nice shot on the rat - keep it up!! LOL

...bug :)
 
BumbleBug said:
But just like reloading, can't you make "bolts"?
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Almost no one has the tooling and skills necessary to make modern arrows.

You can make wooden arrows and lots of folks do but there's no way a wooden arrow holds up to the acceleration of a modern bow or xbow.

I suppose if you could buy the appropriately sized aluminium tube you could cut your own arrows from it. No one (well, hardly anyone) uses aluminium anymore though. Same with the carbon tube. If you can buy it, you could cut your own arrows. I doubt it would be cost effective but maybe. You can certainly buy all the necessary inserts and vanes. Some folks make their own vanes (fletchings).
 
Almost no one has the tooling and skills necessary to make modern arrows.
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For several decades I've made my own arrows by buying bare shafts(wood, aluminum and carbon), cutting them to length, attaching nocks and inserts/tips and fletching them. Even have an old Herter's jig for cresting wood arrows. Pretty simple with the right tools. I also used to repair arrows for a local sporting goods store. No different than buying reloading components and rolling your own ammo. I intend to do the same with cross-bow bolts, but understand it requires the use of a different jig.
 
Yes, as I said, you can buy the pieces and put them together. It's rarely cheaper, in fact they often cost more than buying them finished, and they're not really better either. Very often, the bare shafts cost as much as the finished arrow.

The only reason you'd need a different jig is if it doesn't accept the shaft size for your xbow arrows.
 
Brian, I have a bunch of 2219 shafts left over from years of using them with a standard compound bow. Some have damaged fletching or splits on the insert end from shooting into something. Some are odd and ends left over from when I did another new batch and just put the old ones away. All I need to do is cut them down to 20'' from 31'', put nocks and inserts in them and refletch. I probably would have enough to last me till I die....for nuttin'. 'ell, I probably got enough 4'' feathers to do the same layin' around as I used to buy them in bulk when doing the arrow repair. I was under the impression that the profile of the fletching was different for crossbows than bows so my old fletching jig would not work.....maybe I'm mistaken? My jig is adjustable for shaft size and feather/vane angle.

As for not being any better, I dunno. Kind like saying reloads are no better than factory either. Nice thing about fletching your own is when you shoot off a feather/vane when target practicing, you can make it new again for just the cost of one feather/vane and a little cement. Once you find a combo that works well for you, you can continue to make that combo for years to come with little or no variance. It's also kinda nice to take an animal with something you made yourself. Like reloading, you don't really save anything, just get to shoot more for the same price.
 
:) Summer of '48 I went on an Indian kick. I cut and shaped pieces of barrel hoop for points. Nylon thread and airplane glue and store-bought bow string. Everything else came from the farm. Turkey wing feathers, heart cedar...

After many mess-ups and false starts in the learning curve, it all came together pretty well. A fox, two jackrabbits, a rattlesnake and one poor little nubbin buck.

So: At my level of ignorance about crossbows, why wouldn't a home-made dart of, say, 3/16" welding rod work for "rat shots" and such?
 
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