Best recurve crossbow.

[HARDWAY78]

I’m interested in buying a recurve crossbow.

Anyone here have insight as to the best out there for hunting. Budget is $1k or less. Primary game will be whitetails.

[Kirby86]

For a recurve it’s gonna be hard to beat Excalibur.

They’ve been doing it a long time. For sub $1k I’d take a hard look at the mag 340.

They have a lifetime warranty on the limbs. I’m not sure if it’s changed but years back the faster bows used to chew up center serving on the strings. I had an equinox that I had to reserve every 100 shots or so.

The nice part is if you buy the stringer, you can service the bow yourself with restringing, etc. They make faster ones, but once you get into the 400fps range you’re usually gonna need a crank to cock them.

[cricman]

There's not a lot of options for recurve crossbows. The top of the list is Excalibur. There is a lot of variety in their new and prior offerings, and they have great customer service. Super easy to maintain and operate with speeds from about 280fps upwards to 400fps (with the minimum arrow weight- not recommended!)

There are a few others out there that are less expensive, like the Barnett Wildcat, which is rated at 260fps and way less expensive than the cheapest Excalibur. With a heavy bolt an a good fixed broadhead, it will kill deer and hogs at a reasonable range. There are a few other import brands, that are similar.

I have Excaliburs in all of the limb lengths (Legacy, Matrix, and Micro) and they all shoot great and I got all but one of them used. With your budget, you could get a really good Excalibur setup, including a decent scope and bolts. There are plenty of new Micro MAGs, MAG Airs, and Matrix 340s on eBay well under your budget. They show up used here on TBH, Craigslist, and FB Marketplace, but you need to know what your looking at to make sure you get a good deal and not something that will require some work to get it ready to hunt.

Good luck on your quest!


cricman

[HARDWAY78]

Awesome! Thanks y’all! Excalibur it is!

[twosixteens]

Just out of curiosity why a recurve?

[HARDWAY78]

I want light weight to make it easier to carry and I want it to be as low maintenance as possible.

[Bayouboy]

I want light weight to make it easier to carry and I want it to be as low maintenance as possible.

Exactly why you want an Excalibur.

[HARDWAY78]

Kirby86, do you prefer the regular Mag340 or the take down version?

Is there any major advantages to the take down version or does it just take up a little less room?

[Kirby86]

So the take down version is just a fancier version of the bolt that connects the rail/stock to the fore end.

What’s nice about the take down is you can fit the whole crossbow in an AR case. I haven’t shot the takedowns enough to confirm POI doesn’t change but I don’t know how it would since it’s really secure.

Finding cases for recurve crossbows can be a pain because as crossbows keep getting narrower, cases do as well and recurves are just outside the main in that regard.

If it were my money and I were buying new I’d prolly just save the money for the non takedown but that depends on what storage vs money is for you.



And this is totally unrelated, but I prefer shooting a heavier bolt than the fire bolts that the Excaliburs come with.

Spinal tapps from southshore archery are about as good as it gets. They’re just higher tolerance black Eagle executioners which are great bolts as well. You do lose some speed, but it depends what you’re wanting out of a crossbow. No matter how fast you are, you’re not beating the speed of sound!

[Rubi513]

I know you said recurve, but look at the Mission bows. Skinnier, faster, and any maintenance can be done without a press.