Rockhill

Hi to all I have been looking here sometime and I now have come up with a question for the Excalibur guys (or anyone else). For someone new to Xbow hunting because ofback problems can no longer use compound bow-- Which one of the Excalibur bows would be best for hunting deer Vixin, Phoenix,or Exomax? Most likely will never hunt anything larger than deer at my age as they are close to home.

Thanks for any info you can give

Hotburn76

Well I myself am a horton man but if I had to make the switch I would first try an excal for sure. I have not seen a guy called awshucks on here this weekend but he has talked alot about his Phoenix, which I think is excals entry bow and he has alot of good luck with it and pass through shots. DNK and Smoke are also big excal guys so you should get some info here real soon!

Dnk

Thanks Jason. First Rockhill welcome to our playhouse. You're going to get addicted, I hope.
The Vixen is the "entry" crossbow and is rated at 285 ft/sec. It has taken animals as big as moose. I have one as well as an old Exocet. You'll not need more unless you want to buy some insurance for breaking big bones or compensating for poor distance judgement. Under normal circumstances you will get nothing but pass-throughs. My two bows are pretty close to each other in power but I have not taken anything with my Vixen as of yet. The last arrow that took a deer went behind the ribs and out the other side through a ribs.
All the other bows have a longer stroke, more power, more speed, are harder to cock(but not really a problem with a rope cocker), more expensive and spend all the extra umph into the ground. All the other bows are impractical for 3D contests but are supremely accurate.
Check out the Excal website to help you pick a bow. I just gave a Vixen to a friend for his wedding present (LOL!!) and I know he got the perfect bow for deer or moose.
After having said that if I had to do it over again I might buy a Pheonix. But maybe not. My choice would be that close.

Green Pea

I agree with Hotburn all the way. I have a Horton myself and love it but the next bow I buy will be an Excalibur. I don't think you could go wrong with either model.

Green Pea

Also,

Which ever model you buy, I would definatly get a V-Zone scope for it. I have a red dot and it is decent but has a down side to it.

By the way, welcome to the forum.

Dnk

One thing I didn't mention. The Excals are probably the best choice if you become an arrow junkie and shoot a few thousand shots a year. It will be the bow that will give you the least amount of trouble in the long run. If you just shoot to practice just before the season a bow like a Horton will be, without question a fine choice. There are conviences ofcourse in owning an Excal like the simplicity of changing a string and having a great trigger in each and every bow you choose. The Vixen is pretty reasonable price wise as well. The last thing to tell you is that you will not be unhappy with any Excal you choose. You may want more but you will not need more than a Vixen.

awshucks

I have 3 Excals, two recurves and a wheel bow they only made for a few years. My two recurves are an E'max [225lb], and a Phoenix [175 lb] I got the E'max first or I would never have gotten it. It's a great bow, just more than what I/me/we/you will ever need. The Phoenix is my bow of choice. Like Dnk said the Vixen is the entry level bow for Excal, but I like the Phoenix as if you go to other weight arrows or gentler string choices, you won't lose as much fps wise, in other words, it's more versatile. Good Luck, anything out there will kill deer out to 30 yds.

smokepolehall

I use the Phoenix and its a great CB, so is the Exocet 200. Now as they said the Vixen is the entry Bow and it will take from deer to Moose. If you buy a Vixen and don't like it give me a holler and i will buy it from you!

Rockhill

Thanks for all the input I did the click-it thing on ebay andbought a Vixen savedenough to get most of what else I will need to go hunting. Since I have not bow hunted for about 8 yrs now and my compound was about 4 yrs older than that the Vixenwill most likelygive better preformance than what I had then.

What broadhead works the best with crossbows mechanical or fixed blade? And whichbrands give the best accuracy?

Thanks-----Guess Iam now a X MAN!!!!

Dnk

Rockhill thats a pretty lively subject or question. You might want to ask what eveyone here likes best or works for them best. Have you checked out the broadhead thread?