Crossbow. Is it really necessary?

[Triple_sod]

I reckon as a general rule,
‘If you don’t do it now, don’t imagine you’ll be able to post-shtf’

Hunting’s like anything else, takes practice, not something you can do with any kind of bow, at least without breaking the law.

Besides if society did collapse overnight, how many other people do you think would be out there trying their luck,
what is it, about 19 million airguns in this country…

and would you really want to be ‘some strange bloke wandering about with a crossbow’ (probably on private property) in a situation without law and a lot of very paranoid people about?

[12mp82]

Besides if society did collapse overnight, how many other people do you think would be out there trying their luck,
what is it, about 19 million airguns in this country…

Let alone all the shotguns and Firearms belonging to assorted land owners protecting all they own

[gandelff99]

You lost me there triple.
What are you saying?
That owning and practicing with a crossbow makes you strange?
Or that post shtf air gunners rule cos well be over run by them because?of the numbers?
Hunting does take practice...so,hunting with a bow takes practice.
Stalking takes practice,marksmansip principles take practice, animal habits and tracking takes practice.
Just becauseyou own a bow/crossbow doesn't mean you be seen wandering the woods with it.
The elements of hunting can be achieved without weapons of any kind just your senses ,awareness to your surroundings and knowledge.
Adding a weapon whatever it is to a certain situation be it post shtf is just another tool to achieve your aims, be it shotgun,rifle,slingshot,crossbow crow bar etc etc.

Thinking back from wat my grandad used to tell me about life during word war 2.they had the home guard,each town /village had its home defense groups,a militia in there own right. Weapons where in short supply,those that had the carried guns,those that didn't carried pitch forks,pick axe handles and garden hoes,anything that could be used as a weapon.
Post shtf I wouldn't give a worry to what people thought if I was seen practicing with a bow.the thin blue line will have more to worry about,joe public will be too busy protecting there own backside. We could find ourselves in our own little homegaurd units and crossbows & bows would be used.
Anyhow,I think this is diverting from the o.post.is the crossbow really necessary?

[poppypiesdad]

Nothing old about that. The average guard room in all military bases have guard rifles but also a rack of pick axe handles to deal with (internal disturbances ) , for thoes times when the naffi has run out of microwave sausage sandwiches and the cookhouse has run out of fried bread

[gandelff99]

Heaven forbid the naafi running out of sausages...worse still,running dry of beer

[madmedic]

for thoes times when the naffi has run out of microwave sausage sandwiches and the cookhouse has run out of fried bread

i think people are totally underestimating the desire for sausages and fried bread!!

my whole take on the cross bow is that without practice you will not hit anything. any thing that uses a dedicated ammo (guns, bows, xbow) will all eventually run out.

a knife or pick handle is more than adaquate to defend your home. if you use something with a bit of range the people trying to get in use something with a bit of range or protection and then your chances of survival drop.

life all things use what you are comfortable with and can practice with, and have spare/redundancy.

i have rifles, shot guns, air rifles, and a bow all have advantages and disadvantages. but i compete and teach with them all regularly, (im not just a gun nut. Honest) and hope that when SHTF i will be able to select the appropriate tool for the job..

remember that unless it is a TEOTW event then law and order will return and when it does you have to be able to justify your actions. possibly in a court if you use lethal force.

[redskies]

I do like crossbows and bows - and I do intend to get some decent ones when the budget allows. Along with an air rifle, likewise decent.

What I have at the moment though is a Barnett Diablo, a catapult. And whilst I can use ballbearings with it, I tend to just use small pebbles off the beach. They're a decent weight, about the right size and I can be reasonably accurate with them. I'm a little out of practice atm, not had the chance to take it out for a while, but when I used the last one regularly, I could get a ball bearing a decent distance into a tree. At the time, was with ex, who enjoyed playing war games with pals and a load of BB guns in the woods. It was great fun sneakin up on them, popping out of nowhere and peppering them with flour bombs, before vanishing again

[Triple_sod]

Or that post shtf air gunners rule cos well be over run by them because?of the numbers?

Well by the end of the great depression in America (huge country, with a hell of a lot of land, at a time when half the population were still rural) game was practically wiped out in many areas.

Now translate that to Britain 2013....

How long would it be before you’re struggling to bag a sparrow, let alone a deer?

Post shtf I wouldn't give a worry to what people thought if I was seen practicing with a bow.the thin blue line will have more to worry about,joe public will be too busy protecting there own backside.

and what about the farmer/land owner, don't you think he'll be out protecting his backside?
Armed men, mooching about on his property…. probably within a few hundred yards of his home and family...

[gandelff99]

I see what your saying but it doesn't answer the question,if I'm correct,your suggesting that because. Of the shear number of air gunners and airguns out there that they'd all be running around killing small game trying to feed themselves?
So Are you applying to said farmers private land you mention. Becauseif said airguns are being used,then you bet your ass they'll be used on the farmers land or private land,so the argument would be the same as for crosbows.
So your joe farmer as you put it,will be out protecting his land/assets for his long term survival against air rifle users and crossbows.
The original post is are crossbows necessary?
Don't forget we are talking post shtf here,so I don't see what context you base your argument on.
The pros and cons for air rifle,bow,crossbow and shotgun,rifle etc have all been discussed to death.
Seems your argument is anti bow,but without a decent reason.

And as for me practising in this post shtf arena,why would I
be seen practicing when all common sense would be to keep as low key as possible, granted if I was seen then I wouldn't have to worry as much then as now as the police would be that busy and stretched in urban environments,assuming communications would more than likely be down ,but as has been mentioned
time time again practice and familarity are required with all weapons

A crossbow is for me necessary, for small to medium game,to be taken silently as possible in post shtf.
Not for now

[redskies]

It's going to depend on what the SHTF scenario is I think. If there's some sort of disaster, be it pandemic or social unrest, that seriously compromises population numbers, then the issue of natural resources ceases to be one.

On the other hand, if we simply run out of food/power/gas/oil/whatever, then it's going to take a wee while for numbers to level out, and during that time, yes, anything that moves is going to get nailed for food. Give it a bit of time and that will even include humans. It's amazing how the imperative to stay alive can override all that fuss about who was last inhabiting that handy source of protein!