Crossbow Types
There are two main crossbow types available to the crossbow shooter today, it is down to personal preference as to which crossbow you choose. The main difference is that the compound crossbow has a cable and pulley system to enable the prod to delivery more power and to make cocking the crossbow slightly easier. The recurve crossbow depends on the strength of the prod to determine the power generated. The higher powered recurve crossbows with require a cocking device as they can be just too hard to pull back by hand. New this year is a lower powered compound crossbow designed to fire a smaller crossbow bolts acurately over long distances.
A recurve crossbow is a bow that has tips curving away from the shooter. The recurve bow's bent limbs have a longer draw length than an equivalent straight-limbed bow, giving a more acceleration to the projectile and less hand shock. Recurved limbs also put greater strain on the materials used to make the bow, and they may make more noise with the shot.
A compound crossbow is the modern crossbow, the limbs are usually much stiffer than those of a recurve crossbow. This limb stiffness makes the compound bow more energy efficient than other bows, but the limbs are too stiff to be drawn comfortably with a string attached directly to them. The compound bow has the string attached to the pulleys, one or both of which has one or more cables attached to the opposite limb.
The new lower strength compound crossbow has a reduced draw weight of around 85lbs compared to a standard compound crossbow of 150lbs. The distance is achieved by using a smaller lighter more aerodynamically designed crossbow bolt. These compound crossbows have the advantage of being easy and quick to cock without placing any strain on the shooter or the need for a cocking device. This will allow the crossbow shooter to release more bolts and reload quicker than the traditional recurve or compound crossbow.
