Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting What accessories do I need for crossbow?

As I said in earlier post I have no experience with crossbows. But I picked a Barrett Recruit used and now I need to know what types of accessories do I need? Bolts, heads, etc. I do plan to use it for whitetail next season. If I like it I’ll probanly end up with a fancier model. Seems from what I’ve read it’s a good starter bow.

Let me know brands of accessories. Want some decent stuff to get started.

If you bought the Recruit used, I'd let a Pro Shop check it over, just in case there a problem that isn't obvious to a rookie.

Rail lube/string wax - can't tell you how many crossbows I see in our local archery shop that have burned up cables and strings from no lube on the rail and no wax on strings.

Brand - Rail Snot, Limbsaver, whatever - just get some and just use it - liberally.

Extra bolts - check your length, they come in 20 and 22 inch typically - you'll need one or the other. I like Carbon Express Hunters, but there other good bolts as well.

Make sure you know which nock the Recruit uses - Capture nock, Half-Moon, or Flat - and make sure the bolts you buy have the right nock on them.

Extra cocking rope - you'll lose/forget one some place, and not know it until you need it - I keep an extra in my day pack, and I've loaned it out enough to know that I'm not the only one that loses one.

Broadheads are a whole separate discussion - the opinions will vary widely - just find one that flies well with your bolts and crossbow - I like Rage, but I wouldn't hesitate to use a Slick Trick.

If you decide to use an expandable head, make it's crossbow rated - standard archery broadheads (blades) may pop open with firing the crossbow.

If using fix blade broadheads use a smaller diameter head. Two most valuable things I have found is a set of shooting sticks which I use bog pods and the other is a range finder.

Why thWhy the smaller diameter

Why the smaller head?

As many hunters as there are in my city, Montgomery, Alabama.(Population +-200,000) There is not a single bow shop in this county!!! Baffles me as to why.

I did find one in the next county that I plan to visit Saturday. Thanks for the advice.

I have to have it re stringed due to my stupidity. Shot one bolt. cocked it and decided not to shoot another. The I dry fired it. String came off. Lesson learned. Will purchase decocking bolt if thats whats recommended,

You'll need a decocking bolt. I've gone through quite a few over the past 5 years. This is the best one so far.

https://www.cabelas.com/product/BARNETT-THUMP-DECOCKING-SYSTEM/2393478.uts?slotId=3

Run your fingers over the limbs to make sure they're not cracked.

Limbs seem solid. But I plan to have it inspected by a professional

Have rangefinder as well as shooting sticks. My judgement of distance sucks so a rangefinder has been in my pack for years

I took my bow in to get a new string back in 2017. The first thing the guy did was started sliding his fingers up and down the limbs. He immediately found where they were starting to de-laminate. I had no clue. They sent the head back to 10 point and they replaced the limbs and string at no cost. It only cost me $35.00 shipping.

Ok - don't be surprised if the whole front end needs re-built, the dry-fire may have bent the cam axles, the cams, and cracked the one or more of the limbs - one or all of these items may be need replaced, you may be out more than the cost of a new Recruit.

Most important - be honest about what happened with the bow shop looking at the crossbow - it may save your fingers, eyes, and a doctor visit later.

I've had a string jump the bolt nock - same effect as a dry-fire - on a mid-range crossbow, took out the cams and one of the four limbs.

For decocking - you'll need to dedicate a bolt for shooting it for discharging - the discharge bolt tends to get beat-up pretty fast, but I use one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Carbon-Express-Nub-Crossbow-Cocking/dp/B00QDWU2ZM

After breaking multiple expensive "discharge" bolts ($18) - I use a ratty factory bolt with this nub screwed on behind the field point - does the same for less.

The other option is a "discharge target/bag" - like this: https://www.amazon.com/Morrell-Yellow-Crossbow-Discharge-Archery/dp/B07N5FWBXK

You swap the hunting bolt (with broadhead) out for a bolt with a field tip - and shoot the bag.

A range finder is handy. Lighted nocks, while not a necessity, have thier benefits too.

Edited to say

Alabama, after reading about the condition of where you bow is at now, and with no more hardware than you have accumulated so far, check out craigslist for a used Excalibur crossbow. If you can score a good deal on one you will be way ahead IMO.
You don't need a bow shop to work on one and you can decock it by hand.

Rereading your post - this comment stood out - you may have more issues than just the string and limbs, you'll need to the have bow shop look at the trigger as well.

99.9% of the newer crossbows have a anti-dryfire safety built into the trigger assembly - your Recruit should have this built in to it.

Generally - it's a small lever or rocker above the rail located where the nock rests when cocked, or it may may ride on the back of the bolt shaft between the vanes.

Intent is to keep the bow from firing without a bolt on the rail, or if the bolt slides forward off of the nocking point.

If you were able to dry-fire the Recruit without a bolt on the rail - the safety is not working, and needs to be checked.

AH64 has given you good advice. Take it. That bow need to be carefully evaluated By a good shop/tech. It might be a good idea to get an estimate for just the evaluation alone before anything gets done. Firing any compound bow and in fact most any bow without an arrow on it can cause a lot of damage and some of it can be very hard tospot. Firing it again without repair can hurt you. Bad.

If the bow needs repair tndrbstr gave you decent advice. The Recruit is not a particularly good bow. It has issues and as a result you have to believe it's likely that even after it is fully and competently repaired yours is likely to have issues again. Excalibur makes very good bows and most of what they have produced has been without issues. The few that have had issues were covered by warranty.

Accessories: String and rail lube. Arrows (bolts). Field points and broadheads. Lighted nocks (I consider these to be absolute necessities if you will hunt deer). A decent scope for the bow (also a necessity) A pick or pliers to turn off lighted nocks. A very good flashlight for tracking deer after the shot. A face mask/mosquito net to hide your face (you will be ~20 yards from Bambi).

XXClaro... The smaller head is to reduce the surface area of the blades to reduce the probability of planing. Even with a perfectly straight head, the flex of the arrow upon firing will present the blade(s) to the air at an angle even if very slight and that begins planing and may well cause a lot of inaccurate shots.

Speaking of rail lube, that stuff is quite expensive for the amount you get. I am new to crossbows myself and do any of you guys have a home made formula that doesn't cost 10 bucks for .75 of an ounce?

I don't use any rail lube. I might put a little car wax on the rail and bolts at the beginning of the season but that's about it.

Excalibur crossbows are not designed to run the string on the top surface of rail - the string should be about the width of the string above the rail and not touching.

For the Barnett brand, you need to use rail lube, the string contacts the rail for the length of the power stroke.

Not according to Excalibur. They do have an uncocked brace height recommendations and say the string is not supposed to contact the string dampers in the uncocked position. But you get a tube of rail snot when you buy the bow and they do recommend using it.

My string does contact the rail but with very little to no down pressure to wear the string so I don't mess with it. It just seems like something to collect dirt to me.

I couldn't tell you if my string contacts the rail on firing. It doesn't after. I put some lube on the rail once in a while. Mostly I use copier fuser oil (A thick silicone oil) and the silicone stays on the rail for a long time. Sometimes I put rail lube on, but usually the fuser oil is handier at my house. String lube feels to me like chapstick with a little silicone in it. I am sure a little chapstick would work just as well.

Got clean bill of health on crossbow. Just a new string was all that was needed.

Was a $35 lesson learned!