Wanting to buy a crossbow. Where to start?

[El Viejo]

Today as the wife and I were at Lake Grapevine to buy my lifetime National Parks pass for old folks, I asked the lady behind the counter about hunting opportunities there. I ended up filling out the permit for general hunting (hogs, primarily) and threw my hat in the ring for the deer hunt. Since my shoulder can no longer pull back a bow, I feel like I should get a crossbow. However I know very little about them. I looked at them at Bass Pro just to get an idea of what's out there. GOOD GRIEF, there's a price range! I guess my questions are:
1) Why the great price range in crossbows?
2) What are some must haves in terms of options?
3) What kinds of questions should I ask if getting something for general hunting and backyard target practice?
4) What's your favorite X-bow and why?

My son and I plan on going to Cinnamon Creek Ranch in Roanoke on Saturday to look around, but I want to have some basic knowledge before that.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you might have.
Bill in Irving

[T-roy66]

Bill you can get a lot of good information from crossbow nation web site. Read the reviews on the Sniper 370. For the money(less than $400) you can't go wrong. I will put this x bow up against any x bow costing 3 times its price. Plenty fast and with a trigger upgrade from txguy on the forum it is plenty accurate.

[Texas8point]

I use the tenpoint invader. Im sorry to say by the time you are finished you will have spent about $1K.
The crossbow has a built-in cocker, which is very nice. Case, block, bolts, broadheads, red dot scope.... it just adds up.
At the end of the day you can use it a long time and its a super fun alternative to stay in the bow hunting family.

[Ksbowhunter]

Compound bows have come a long way. Even a 45lb bow has plenty of efficiency to kill hogs and deer.

[Thumper]

I don't have clue, might try the NRA.....


Try shooting different makes and models at BassPro? Good luck with you're search.

[stinkbelly]

If you have a bad shoulder where you can't pull a bow, you will need a crossbow with a crank or some sort of automatic cocking device. It is harder to cock a crossbow than it is to pull a compound bow.

[SolocamShooter]

Check out the Killer Instinct KI350. My dad just got one and that thing is awesome. Very high quality, made in the USA, very light and compact. 350 FPS shoots like a rifle and it's very reasonable. A lot of people like that sniper and it seems like an ok bow but that sucker is bulky and heavy also