From March 2, 2017 by Dana R. Rogers

I love bowhunting turkeys, being fortunate enough to chase them in several states successfully over the years. The old adage is definitely true when it comes to bowhunting wild turkey: Roosted doesn’t mean roasted, but if you get on a pattern and use the terrain and seasonal preferences to your advantage, you can consistently arrow a tom or two each spring.

In vast public settings, like National Forests or Grasslands, after arriving in an area cold I’ll spend time driving and hooting every mile or two, attempting to locate a longbeard to set up on come morning. The standard M.O. for most turkey hunters is to slip into their scouted area to determine which roost tree holds that loud-mouth, love-struck bird to set up on at O’dark thirty. I love to roost birds late just like everyone else but when the toms aren’t talking you may have to use different tactics to get them to give up their location, or aggressive western tactics on open-country birds.

Don’t get me wrong, I carry the full array of box, slate, glass, diaphragm and other assorted friction calls. But if you’ve roosted a bird and come in on him the next morning, and he’s been pressured to the point his beak seems glued shut, you’ll need to get creative. Turkey hunting tactics like hitting them with coyote calls to elicit a shock gobble often does the trick for me. Coyote calls are loud, high pitched and cut through wind or dense timber, often revealing the location of a spring strutter when nothing else will.

If I’m in country with mixed open and rolling terrain I’ll spend time putting my Leupold optics to work. I’ve found turkeys often work the same circular pattern off the roost — to strutting zones, on to feeding areas, and then loafing grounds later in the day. Don’t forget your binoculars in big-field areas either. Additionally, game cameras aren’t just for whitetails. You can often track movement and pattern flocks with Swiss precision until a food or breeding cycle changes. Get some cameras out and discover where and when gobblers are spending time on their daily routes.

Advancements in decoys and ground blinds over the past 20 years is amazing and has really transformed bowhunting turkey from the realm of a fools’ errand to something that can consistently put dinner on the table.

There are so many great options I won’t get into them all here, but there’s an option that’s fairly new, and an exciting way to chase spring strutters. Kansas turkey hunter Garrett Roe developed the bow-mounted Heads Up Decoy System. With a preserved gobbler fan you can create realistic decoys shielding you from approaching birds.  A bit of ground cover helps conceal your torso, but you can really move around and intercept birds instead of being locked into cumbersome ground blinds. If you enjoy the freedom of run-n-gun hunting, give it a try and I’m sure you’ll become hooked.

Turkey Hunting: Bowhunting Turkeys – Tips and Tactics

As always read more on insidearchery.com

National Turkey Wildlife Federation Link

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From CenterPoint’s Website – CenterPoint Archery has evolved in design and performance with the introduction of the innovative CenterPoint Archery CP400 with Silent Cranking Device. Utilizing licensed HeliCoil technology together with a custom-designed riser, CNC-machined cam system and adjustable stock, CenterPoint Archery has raised the bar in crossbow design and performance.

CenterPoint Archery CP400 with Silent Cranking Device extremely narrow axle-to-axle width is an incredible 6-inches when fully-drawn, produces speeds of up to 400 fps and generates a knock-out punch of up to 142 fpe. This evolutionary design delivers amazing power and downrange accuracy.

The CenterPoint Archery CP400 with Silent Cranking Device’s anti-dry fire and auto safety, a unique dual purpose folding stirrup/bipod and a 3x32mm illuminated scope. CenterPoint Archery offers a 5-year limited warranty. This hybrid crossbow will surpass your expectations in the field.

FEATURES:

Featuring anti-dry fire and auto safety, a unique dual purpose folding stirrup/bipod and a 3x32mm illuminated scope. CenterPoint Archery offers a 5-year limited warranty. This hybrid crossbow will surpass your expectations in the field.

FEATURES:

• CNC-machnined aluminum cam system with licensed HeliCoil Technology for perfectly balanced cams
• Custom designed riser with aluminum rail, innovative folding stirrup, adjustable stock and crank cocker for ease of draw
• Incredible 6-inch axle-to-axle width when fully-drawn
• Delivers speeds up to 400 fps with 142 fpe for downrange accuracy
• Anti-dry fire and auto safety
• Includes a 5-year limited warranty, two 20-inch carbon arrows, quick-detach quiver and 3x32mm illuminated scope

Learn more at CenterPoint’s CP400 Website

CENTERPOINT ARCHERY SUPPORT

CenterPoint Archery strives to ensure that every customer is satisfied with their purchase of our product. Our US-based Customer Service team is ready to answer any question you may have about your archery product. CenterPoint Archery bows carry a 5-year limited warranty and we stand behind our product with a customer service team that strives to exceed customers expectations in both quality, value and customer care.

See more at insidearchery.com

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Watch as Jeff Johnston reviews the 2018 Barnett Crossbows TS 390!

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By Jeff Johnston

Parker’s latest crossbow is called the Parker CenterFire XXTreme. It’s a 170-pound draw weight crossbow that’s 34.25-inches long, 7.6 pounds in overall weight (with the scope) and fires an arrow at 350 fps thanks to aggressive cams and a 14.125-inch powerstroke. It’s rather compact at 20.75-inches axle-to-axle un-cocked and 18.5-inches cocked with a 13½ inch length of pull. Parker is committed to building no-gimmick, solid crossbows that shoot supremely accurately, and are extremely quiet, safe, powerful and inexpensive. You’d be hard pressed to find a better crossbow for the money.

Parker is known for its beefy, machined risers that provide a solid foundation for the entire bow, including its limbs and limb pockets, barrel and eccentrics. Parker is willing to add a few ounces to its overall weight in exchange for such a riser. The XXTreme is no exception, and you can see that in its performance—namely its quietness and accuracy. 

That’s because the XXTreme’s riser, which is about 13/16th inches wide at its thickest, provides an anchor-like platform for attaching the CenterFire’s laminated split limbs. Its limb pockets are serious pieces of metal that anchor the limb ends and serve as a pivot point to provide a fulcrum for leverage. Behind the limbs, two sound dampeners accept the string’s excess energy and dissipate sound waves that would otherwise lead to excess noise. All told, it’s as solid as risers come these days, and no doubt a big reason why the bow is so quiet. The CenterFire XXTreme registered around a 93 on my informal sound meter while shooting outside, which is right up there with the best I’ve ever tested. This is a testament to the XXTreme’s overall solidness. 

Two giant “inverted” cams are oriented upside down so the string is further from the fire control system. This simple, yet ingenious way of mounting the cams on the bow elongates the powerstroke by about 4 inches—or the width of the cams—by merely flipping them over. As a result of the lengthened powerstroke, the bow’s speed is increased tremendously. All this comes without extra cost. It’s simply an advantage. 

Parker has one of the best-feeling finishes in all of the bow, crossbow or even rifle industries. Its polymer chassis is coated in a thin film of rubbery plastic that feels soft and slightly sticky to the touch. It’s warmer in cold weather, and much quieter when it brushes by sticks and treestand seats while in the woods.

The CenterFire XXTreme’s fire control system is solid. A molded polymer retention finger keeps the arrow on the barrel while Parker’s noted anti-dryfire device prevents the string from being released when an arrow is not loaded and the trigger is pulled with the safety on fire. This crossbow’s trigger is made of metal, and it’s lighter than most. It broke at 4 pounds, 6 ounces.

Perhaps my favorite thing about Parker crossbows, other than the machined aluminum riser and soft-touch stock, is the safety. It’s located on the rear of the receiver, so it’s naturally ambidextrous. I call it a “lightswitch-style” safety because that’s exactly what it looks and feels like. It’s also marked and labeled appropriately so there can be no mistake: Up (red) is fire, while down (green) is safe. It’s automatic, quiet, simple and one of the best. 

Another aspect I really like about Parker crossbows is their roller-style rope cocker that significantly decreases friction while using two pulleys to reduce the strength required to cock the bow. I consider Parker’s roller rope cocker the gold standard for rope cockers. Parker also includes it with the purchase of the CenterFire XXTreme, instead of charging extra for it.

Overall, the CenterFire XXTreme gets very high marks for all performance traits, including accuracy (it measured 1.2 inch groups at 30 yards) quietness and robustness. It’s built like a tank. A small sticker on the limb indicated that my test bow had been “Custom Built By B. Snyder.” It’s apparent that this fellow took pride in making, assembling then testing the bow, as the excellent illuminated reticle Hawke 1.5x-5x-32mm scope had been boresighted at the factory and was only 1-inch off zero right out of the box.

And then there is the feature that makes this crossbow very attractive: For the aforementioned type of premium-type of performance, consumers will pay two or three times less than top-end bows with all the bells and whistles—bells and whistles they don’t really need for hammering a deer or a bear. So, for around $800, consumers get the bow, the best-in-class roller rope cocker, four Parker Hunter arrows, a Hawke optic that’s legit and a bow-mounted quick detach quiver. Plus they get a lifetime warranty for a crossbow that should never need it.

The CenterPoint XXtreme follows Parker’s longstanding tradition of building high-performance, solid crossbows for hunters right here in America. 

Learn more at Parker Bows’ website

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TRUGLO TitaniumX Broadheads in Action

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Horton Vortec RDX

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How To: NAP QuickFletch

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Easton FMJ Arrows

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Stealth Cam G45NG

learn more at gsmoutdoors.com

How To: Create A Mock Scrape

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NAP New Broadheads

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THE PROOF: Hog Hunting Success.

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 TenPoint Introduces Lightweight Carbon Phantom RCX Focused on Speed, Efficiency, and Adjustability

Mogadore, OH. Industry leader TenPoint Crossbow Technologies’ introduced its NEW Carbon Phantom RCX.  One of TenPoint’s three new crossbows for 2017, the Carbon Phantom RCX generates maximum efficiency in combining a newly engineered reverse cam bow assembly with a newly engineered stock and carbon fiber barrel combination.

“The goal from the outset was to truly push the envelope and create the easiest-to-handle bow with the lightest draw weight that still generates top-end speeds,” said Rick Bednar, TenPoint CEO. “The combination of speed, weight, size, efficiency, and adjustability make the Carbon Phantom RCX the most technologically advanced crossbow we have ever produced.  All indications point to it being the ideal high-end crossbow on the market.”

At the heart of the crossbow’s efficiency is the bow assembly’s new RCX Cam System. Measuring 13.375-inches axle-to-axle when cocked, the bow assembly creates an increased power stroke, at 16-inches, for a crossbow measuring just 35.5-inches long.  In addition, it allows the lightweight 160-pound bow assembly, equipped with 10.5-inch RCX limbs and new Brownell Rhino string and cables, to generate speeds up to 385 feet per second. Its newly designed, machined aluminum riser features Over-the-Top limb pocket and Zytel® Limb Suspension System both separates and isolates the limbs from direct contact with the riser to reduce sound and vibration, as well as pre-installed String Dampening Rods (SDR) that further reduce noise and vibration.

The Carbon Phantom RCX’s newly engineered ACX (Adjustable Comfort Crossbow) stock is molded from PolyOne OnForce polypropylene and features a one-piece adjustable cheek and butt plate. The butt plate simply slides along a rail and can be secured in any position within a 1-inch range to match the shooter’s length-of-pull. In addition, the stock is equipped with larger, newly designed rubber safety wings that include finger reminders when the shooter’s fore-hand is in the proper position on the fore-grip, further helping to prevent the fore-grip fingers and thumb from moving above the flight deck while shooting the crossbow. A fully enclosed trigger guard provides added safety as well.

Its 19.9-inch wrapped carbon fiber barrel dramatically reduces weight, noise, and vibration. It is equipped with a 4 ½-inch bullpup version of the company’s 3 ½-lb. auto-engaging safety trigger housed in a lightweight machined aluminum trigger box. Like all TenPoint models, the trigger assembly is equipped with a DFI (Dry-Fire-Inhibitor). Its weaver-style dovetail is fitted with a nylon-filament arrow retention brush that improves arrow grip and alignment to further reduce noise and vibration.

Assembled, the Carbon Phantom RCX weighs 6.9-pounds, measures only 35.5-inches long, and shoots a blistering 385 feet per second.

Equipped with the patented ACUdraw or ACUdraw 50, and illuminated RangeMaster Pro Scope, the Carbon Phantom RCX is double-dip fluid imaged in Mossy Oak Break-Up® Country camo.

The model sells only as a complete package that includes the cocking mechanism, scope, six Pro Elite carbon arrows, String Dampening Rods (SDR), and a quiver.

Carbon Phantom RCX MSRP: $1,699 with ACUdraw 50 or $1,799 with ACUdraw.

TenPoint Crossbow Technologies is 100% USA owned, operated, and all its crossbow models are manufactured in Mogadore, OH.

For more information, contact Brian Osterwalder, National Sales Manager,

TENPOINT CROSSBOW TECHNOLOGIES®

1325 Waterloo Road

Mogadore, OH 44260

www.tenpointcrossbows.com

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