MikeE51848

You know, I read your posts about the Amish and was thinking about that last weekend when I drove to Lancaster. It seems they, like all farmers today, farm their land from road to road. If the corns not standing, which it is not at this time of year, where would deer go? Are you sure you guys are not overstating the situation?

MikeE51848

I'm thinking of selling my flintlock and buying a crossbow. What's their effective range?

T_in_PA

You would be better off using the flintlock.

PABowhntr

Mike,

The effective range of a crossbow is not any more than a typical compound in terms of both Kinetic Energy and trajectory. However, you might get a bit more accuracy with the scope and the stock to hold it steadier.

MikeE51848

Maybe, but at least it would fire if it's snowing, unlike my flint this year!

T_in_PA

Put a calf's knee cover over your lock if it is getting wet.

Jerry/Pa

I had to think about this for a couple days before I responed. I don't want to change the direction of this thread and make it into a crossbow debate. My first thought is a crossbow is not comparible to a compound or trad. bow. I don't want to get into a debate on this thread it's just my opinion. I keep wondering why bowhunters are treated like the step-childern in Pa. Why do we as Pa. bowhunters have a bullseye on are back with the commissioners. From all the polls and the conversations I've had with other bowhunters I meet hunting and 3-d shoots through out the state the crossbow is not wanted in the archery season. Yet the commissioners and the manufactors keep pushing it in every slut they can untill they eventually have it in the archery season. it seems to be thry're altimate goal. If they think it's going to make such a big impack on the deer herd then put it in rifle or give it it's own season. The commissioners have already made it clear that if the buck harvest increases in the archery season the biologist will recommend our season shortened. If thats the case why add another eliment to the season. I think they should add a hunters committee to the commission so we have a voice in the decision making. Maybe we could get some of the politics out of game management.

The only thing I don't see in last year and this years proposal is what is Alt doing to adress the declining deer numbers in some counties or state game lands. I hunt SRA so I'm excited to see the increased time I'll have to hunt. The problem is still excessibility to privet land. I'm consistly looking for new properties to replace the ones I lose through urban squaw. Increasing time and tags won't decrease the deer numbers if the proporties are not excessible. He has to come up with programs or incentives for private property owners to open land to hunters in SRA. I also have a problem with these little groups that tie up all the private land around Delaware and Chester counties. I know of three or four groups that may tie up 20-30 properties and have only 10-15 members. How many properties do you need to harvest a couple deer? Alt needs to devert land owners with different incentives so more hunters have opportunities to these small tracts of land. Now with crossbows add to SRA the added hunter numbers will make it even harder to find open properties. YOU ASKED. LOL Jerry

PABowhntr

Jerry,

I don't want to give anyone the impression that I am in support of having crossbows in our regular early archery season. I am not. However, even that stance on my part at times seems to be wavering. I see so many small game hunters, muzzleloader hunters and rifle hunters in the October woods now that throwing crossbows into the mix doesn't appear as unattractive as it once did.

Part of me wants to think that if we add crossbow guys to the archery mix then maybe we will carry more weight when it comes to making decisions regarding the overlap of so many of the seasons. That is probably not the case but it is one of the few thin threads of hope that I still possess.

As for why they would continue to want to push crossbows into the archery season.....from what I have read on some of the other PA sites it would appear that it is for a couple reasons. One, the crossbow manufacturers want a slice of the PA pie and until the crossbow is more widely used in the various seasons they will not rest. Two, some folks have suggested that there is a long term plan that those opposed to archery hunting have been working on for some time. By adding crossbows to the mix the harvest could potentially go up...not just because of the advantages of the weapon but rather because of the increased numbers of hunters in the woods. If that were the case then the archery season would be shortened thus making those opposed to the current length of the season much happier.

Jerry/Pa

I hear ya Frank. I'm not against the use of the crossbow by no means. If bowhunters in this state didn't have the opponents against us and our season had the room I wouldn't have a problem with crossbows. I think it's the trojin horse for us. There is room for the crossbow in the Pa hunting season just not in the archery saeson. The commissioners can make there deals with the manufactoures and make the room but they insist on the archery season knowing the outcome.for us It's so obvious it's almost funny the back deals that are going on. It has nothing to do with game management. It's back wood's politics and I really think someone in the Harrisburg should investigate kick backs from the manufactures. Hello! Thats why I think there should be a hunters committee in the commissionors office so we hunters have a say in matters we bank roll.

I was in Canada on a bear hunt with three crossbow hunters from Ohio a few yeras back. I spent a week hunting and shooting with them. It gave me the opportunity to really look at the crossbow. I wasn't impressed. Even with my shooting skills (0r lack of) I still out shot them with my compound.(it was a durango to boot) Maybe out to twenty yards they might be equal but once you stepped pass that they drop off fast. Even to 25-30 yards I was suprised at there lack of proformence. Take off the scope it's not even close. Besides that, there's nothing to play with. Sight-in and shoot it. No tweaking the set-up, No playing with arrows, no where near the accessories the compound has. Forget it. I'd rather shoot trad equip. I think the archery shops in the state lose money after the sale.

I think that this crossbow battle has brought out the lack of integrity of some of the commissioners and legistrators, the good old boys politics and the obvious mark on our backs as bowhunters. Thats the part that goes up my butt. I'll live with what ever the out come is and make the best of it no doubt. It's just a shame we don't have a say or some controll of the whole thing. Jerry

PABowhntr

As funny as it may seem, that statement right there is probably the primary reason I never became interested in the weapon itself. You just can't fiddle with it in the manner you can a compound.