Across all manufacturers, the modern hunting crossbow has recently undergone many design and performance changes. In the past few years, advancements to hunting crossbows have allowed them to weigh less, shoot faster and harder, and have far narrower bow assemblies than anyone would have dreamed possible, even 10 years ago. But, have the technological advancements made to crossbows extended their effective hunting range beyond what has been traditionally accepted as ethical? Contrary to the belief of some crossbow hunters, the answer is a definitive xe2x80x9cno.xe2x80x9d Here are six reasons why attempting a long-range crossbow shot at an animal is still a bad idea:
1. Arrow Obstructions Downfield
The further away you are from an animal, the less chance you will see an obstruction that your arrow could strike on its way, possibly causing the arrow to hit inaccurately. Yes, itxe2x80x99s true that most modern crossbows use scopes that magnify your view, however, most crossbow scopes still will not provide you with enough magnification at long range to see that thin branch or briar that is perfectly positioned in front of the animal to obstruct your arrowxe2x80x99s path. An arrow can easily be diverted from its intended flight path by even the slightest glance off an object.
2. Arrow Drop
Modern hunting crossbows have blown past the 400 feet per second (fps) performance mark with some now shooting up to 470 fps. Shooting a crossbow arrow faster helps to cause the arrowxe2x80x99s trajectory to be xe2x80x9cflatter,xe2x80x9d or have less arc, during its flight, but this advantage only holds out to about 50 yards. Past this distance, even the fastest arrow cannot overcome the pull of gravity, and it will begin to lose energy and elevation at a very quick rate. For instance, a 400-grain arrow that travels at 400 fps from a crossbow will drop around 93 inches (yes xe2x80x93 thatxe2x80x99s well over 7 feet!) to hit a target at 100 yards. This means that you must have an open shooting lane between you and the animal wide enough for the arrow to fit through, but also high enough that the arrow will not strike an overhanging branch or vine along the way. Also, when an arrow drops at such a high rate, the angle of entry is quite steep, which can affect the orientation of the wound channel created by your broadhead.
3. Arrow Loss of Speed and Kinetic Energy
Most modern crossbow manufacturers rate the performance of their crossbows by giving them an xe2x80x9cup toxe2x80x9d speed rating. This value is typically the maximum speed that the crossbow can shoot the lightest weight arrow possible. In most cases, this light arrow is not the best arrow to be used for hunting. If you use a heavier crossbow hunting arrow, then your crossbow will shoot that arrow more slowly even than the xe2x80x9cup toxe2x80x9d speed. From the moment an arrow leaves your crossbow until it hits your target, it slows down. What is not reflected in the xe2x80x9cup toxe2x80x9d speed is how fast the arrow is traveling downfield. xe2x80x9cUp toxe2x80x9d speed only accounts for how fast the arrow is traveling as it leaves the flight rail, but some arrows can lose up to 15% of their speed and up to 25% of their kinetic energy levels by the time they have reached just 50 yards. The rate at which an arrow loses speed and energy downfield also increases the further downfield that you shoot. When you take a long-range crossbow shot at an animal (a distance greater than 50 yards), your arrow will be traveling more slowly and with less kinetic energy than you might realize. This loss in speed and energy over distance can lead to poor arrow penetration and a shallower wound channel, and it can ultimately result in wounding the animal rather than a harvest and recovery.
4. Wind Drift
Just like any projectile, crossbow arrows can be pushed off course by the wind. Depending on the strength of the wind, you could see a difference of inches in your point of impact at 50 yards. When you shoot at distances further than that, whatever behavior you are seeing in the arrow at 50 yards will be magnified. At 100 yards, you could see a point of impact difference of over half a foot! A 6-inch difference means that, depending on where your shot hits, you could end up missing the animal altogether, or worse yet, you could inflict a non-lethal wound to the animal. Another consideration is that the wind might be blowing harder downfield than it is at the spot from which you will take your shot, especially if you hunt on hilly terrain.
5. xe2x80x9cJumping the Stringxe2x80x9d
Even if your crossbow shoots your hunting arrow faster than 400 fps, there is still ample time left for an animal to xe2x80x9cjump the stringxe2x80x9d or react to the sound of your shot over a long distance. For example, letxe2x80x99s say that your hunting crossbow shoots 450 fps xe2x80x93 one of the fastest available on the market today. Also, letxe2x80x99s say your long-range crossbow shot is 100 yards. Assuming that the average speed of sound is 1,129 fps, it will only take 0.27 seconds for the sound to travel 100 yards, but it takes your arrow 0.67 seconds to travel that far. This means that the sound of your shot is heard by the animal almost a half-second prior to the arrow arriving. This is ample time for the animal to react to the sound of your shot and begin to move, increasing the likelihood of wounding the animal rather than delivering a lethal hit.
6. High Probability vs. Low Probability
As an ethical hunter, you have assumed the responsibility of taking the shot on an animal that you feel will yield the greatest chances for expiration and recovery. In other words, itxe2x80x99s your responsibility to take the shot that has the highest probability for success. Hence, the closer the shot, the less chance that it can be affected by an obstruction, the drop in the arrowxe2x80x99s trajectory, a loss of speed and energy, wind drift or the animal jumping the string. With a long-range crossbow shot, there is a greater the chance that one of these factors will play a role in diverting your arrow from the intended point-of-impact and lower your harvest chances. Ultimately, crossbow hunting is a game of probabilities, and the most successful crossbow hunter is the one who choses to take the shot with the highest probability for success.
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