max,
first off let me say that the following are just a general opinions of mine and is no way a personal attack to any one useing a crossbow. just saying because sometimes this topic gets heated
generally im against grown men who arent disabled or elderly using a crossbow during primative archery season. it seems in your case you qualify for this and if it gets u in the woods brother by all means quit fiddle fartin and go get one, the season will be here soon. but for all able bodied men i beleive a traditional recurve, long bow or compound should be used. secondly im not against compounds as they are more than affective weapon for deer but i think they should be used during muzzleloader or rifle seasons, if state law allows. then this brings up the argument of crossbow like a gun or not. well yes and no. no as in ballistics, trjectory, holdover, shooting through obstructions, blah blah no a cross bow isnt like a gun. and yes you have to practice with a cross bow like a bow also. some may argue with the speed, sights, and technology packed into modern compounds now a days that bows are comparable to crossbows. you may have a point in a sense, but i remind you with a cross bow you have a magnified scope, better for low light shooting than a pin sight, less movement because you dont have to move to draw, less noise because you dont have draw, so this is what i use to eliminate the crossbow from archery season. in louisiana they have made crossbows legal for anyone. so im torn, if people use the opertunity to return to hunting or get in the woods and increase hunting numbers, then i think its a good idea. but i think the only reason the state changed things was to increase revenue. more archery permits sold increase revenue for sure. so in retrospect i think theres a place for crossbows in huntin no doubt but frown on the idea of allowing them during archery season. in louisiana we have 2 archery only seasons, i think allowing them during the second season weould be reasonable.
