BigEasy, I'm in the crossbow market right now. The season opens tomorrow, and all the retailers are sold out of their lower end starter packages. Crossbows were just made legal for hunting in Georgia this year, so there is not alot of info avalible from my fellow hunters. I'm going to wait until Bass Pro or Cabellas restock their $169 starter packages and buy on of them. Cabellas catalog lists packages(crossbow, bolts[arrows], scope, and quiver) from $169 up to $699. I figure I'll start with a cheap crossbow and if I like it, I'll move up to a better one when I know more about them.
It seems to me, if crossbows are like compound bows, the most bang for the buck is in the middle price range(sounds like SPF, doesn't it). You hit the point of diminishing returns in the $400 dollar range with a compound bow. I know several people who buy the latest and greatest $800 compound bow EVERY year. When it comes to hunting, most guys go crazy. Case in point, my business partner has purchased a new 4 wheeler each year for the past 3 years, and if I took him by a Polaris dealer I guarantee he would by a new Polaris 6x6.
I'm kinda tight with my cash, I've got a used 4 wheeler, a 10 year old bow(that kills deer every year), and I don't buy the usual closet full of camo cloths each year like most guys. Heck, I kill most of my deer in blue jeans(me in jeans, not the deer
).
I'll probably get a Barnett crossbow, because they're the only name I recognize. Cabellas also sells Ten Point Crossbows and Horton Crossbows.
I'll update you when I get a crossbow.
www.cabellas.com