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Over the past eight years, I have spent some resources preparing for the most "likely" SHTF scenarios.
Big problem I have is that we really have no certainly about what will cause the SHTF scenario. My vote is for economic collapse due to the house of cards that we are resting upon. Figure we can count on the low lifers to be the first to start home invasions when their disability check becomes meaningless.
Figure the military will try to restore law and order via heavy handed martial law. Guns may be grabbed. Plus they are extremely loud.
Archery takes a lot of skill and practice as well as strength and maneuvering room....if a fast arrow is desired.
I have, more or less, concluded that a crossbow may be reasonable insurance. Any regular posters reach a similar conclusion?
I have an "old fashioned" recurved bow--I don't want all those fancy pulleys and inter- woven strings on the compound bows getting caught in the brush while I'm crawling around like a reptile, evading & escaping, trying to survive. Nor do I want to have to fashion a 12 ft string out of weeds & vines when one of the fancy ones breaks.
Other advantages of a bow--as long as there are branches around, you can't run out of ammo, and... they don't go off accidentally.
I have, more or less, concluded that a crossbow may be reasonable insurance. Any regular posters reach a similar conclusion?
The problem with it, to ward off 'low-lifes', is you need a really big quiver of arrows, compared to a much more compact and readily-loaded magazine for a firearm. Make that magazines, plural. Cost per round is much less with a firearm, than to lose an arrow every time you make a hit.
Presently it is legal to own and use a firearm. In many states, it is not legal to use a crossbow unless you are handicapped and cannot use a recurve or compound bow. Check your state laws.
All good points so far. Crossbow arrows are not cheap at all.
I used to have a lot of hunting arrows. Over the years, many of my possessions have been stolen. Another possibility....archery arrows may not be built to handle the torque that many crossbows impart.
A typical crossbow draw weight is ~150 pounds. Likely delivering the ~ energy of a 100 pound bow. Just a wild guess really.
The crossbow predates practical firearms. Even today the crossbow is found among the activities of German and Swiss shooting festivals. There are many different sorts of crossbows including bullet crossbows and repeating crossbows. I have several; I find them interesting with the potential to be effective in some situations. First, however, it's necessary to learn about the history and technology. The best introduction is without question Payne-Gallwey's. It's critical in learning about the crossbow.
I have used a Chinese repeating crossbow that an enthusiast had commissioned. It was interesting but not terribly powerful.
I believe that the bullet crossbow has real possibilities as a survival weapon. I'll link to one that Joerge Sprave reviewed favorably. The crossbow he describes uses arrows as well. They require a steel screw in the base as the projectile is held in place by a magnet. The crrossbow described uses steel balls in its primary ammunition. My research has shown that steel is a poor choice for a projectile because of its comparitively low cross sectional density. Using a lead ball with a steel screw mounted accurately would work much better. I bought one of these crossbows several months ago, but I haven't used it much. There was a crossbow designed forty years ago that was said to perform well using a variety of .30 caliber bullets. The STS AR 48 described below should be able to do the same. Installing the screw in the center of mass is critical as base deformation destroys accuracy. The arrow has better enetraion. but the ball may have better shock. A chrongraph will provide the answer to that question.
I urge the interested tyro to visit museums that have collections of crossbows. A traveling display of crossbows from the Met was my first real experience in studying them. I made several lengthy trips to the Denver Art Museum while they were there. I'll link to a publication showing outstanding examples. To become expert in utilizing the crossbow is not an overnight task. I devoured Payne-Gallwey and went from there. He built many of these weapons based on medieval designs and learned their various and interesting secrets.
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I used to shoot field archery. Both compound and recurve. I no longer have the arm strength. Have shot some crossbows in the past but don't currently have one.
The guy on Walking Dead with a bow, that's a joke.
Cheap crossbows are toys.
Go for a recurve, not the compound with the pulleys, too much to break.
Draw weight, 150 lb is for small game, 175 for deer, elk, up to the massive Excaliber models at 275-345 lbs that will take bear.
175 should work well for people.
Be sure you can hand draw, they make battery powered crank machines for some. Yeah, that'll work well in shtf, LOL.
Remember expendables. Strings, harnesses, parts break.
Bolts, the arrows are called bolts. You have to match them somewhat to the bow. As example if you fire a wood arrow out of a 290 lb Excalibur it will probably shatter in flight. The back of the arrow will be trying to push the front out of the way so fast the arrow will bend and snap in half right out of the gate, or fly off course.
Watch slomo video of arrows. They flex in flight. Cheap arrows do not fly straight. Problem is, good arrows cost about $15+, each. And that doesn't include the tips. You aren't going to just go whittle up new bolts if the world ends.
I didn't know they were illegal in some places.
They are not silent. A big difference is bolts and arrows fly between 150-350 fps, vs 1000, 3,000+ for bullets. A deer can hear your bow fire and jump out of the way before a slow arrow arrives on target. I forget what they call it, "jumping the bolt?"
Seems like a great way to poach meat in a "semi SHTF" or to get caught poaching. Kinda hard to hide a crossbow.
I think a crossbow bolt into the brain stem would be pretty effective. I want one!
I have considered cross bows but have found that air rifles maybe a better alternate weapon. Air rifles have come a long way since most countries have strict regulations on firearms and the people in these areas have required a weapon to controls pests. The industry has seen this and now has numerous varieties available from .177 caliber to 44caliber that can bring down a deer at 100 yards.
I have numerous firearms and will not give them up, but air rifles serve a more stealthy purpose because of their quite and the price of the ammo. I can kill any small pest from mice to turkey with my air rifle at distances of 60-80 yards. I have a 22caliber air rifle that has a muzzle velocity of 950FPS. It is quite enough to be used within 50 yards of another human and they would not even hear it. However a 22 firearm can be heard 1/4 mile away and bring all kinds of unwanted attention.
Here's another advantage, pellets for my rifle are only $9 for 250, so storing enough for 10 or 20 years after TEOTWAWKI will be cheap.
Pretty sure that feet per second is more important than weighted draw strength. It is always about the placement....not the speed. Practice will do a lot more good than an Excalibur.
Then we have HWy with another wormhole: " First, however, it's necessary to learn about the history and technology. The best introduction is without question Payne-Gallwey's. It's critical in learning about the crossbow." Huh?
There is a guy who hunts/kills bears with this .22 revolver. Another fellow used to hunt/kill elephants with his 7 MM.
Most people will live in poverty if they try to prepare for anything and everything and "buy the best" every time. First we address the plausibility of having a crossbow. Suddenly 175 lbs is needed for deer? That is not true. I took my first deer with a 45 pound bow. Slug slow compared to an efficient 150 pound crossbow. Then 175 lbs is needed for people? Our skin can be cut with a sheet of paper.
Preppers may well be right but I'm not at all sure that we should assume a smug air of intellectual superiority due to our gut feelings of a possible doomsday scenario. Every prior generation of American prepper should have lived more and prepped less. Having said that, these are extremely unique times.
Even in countries where the government collapsed, things didn't get near as bad as many of these painted scenarios that abound on the net.
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