Scorpion Crossbow Review

Scorpion Crossbow Review

 

We start this review after I have sweated profusely putting the bow together. I don't know what sort of hulk they had in the picture, but I could not string it with one hand. I couldn't even string it with two hands so I caved and got my partner to loop the string while I bent the bow back. I dare say with a little practice I could find a way to string it solo but it's just easier with two. I can at least cock the string without requiring the foot stirrup on the front, so that's a little bit of messing around I don't need to do from now on.

 

Ok, so you can't expect amazing quality when you buy something like this for the very low price it costs, but at least they didn't skimp out where it matters. The body of the crossbow and the body of the bolts are both made out of aluminium. The bow itself is fibreglass and the sights, handle scales, trigger and the fetches of the bolts are all plastic. In total the crossbow itself feels pretty solid although the bolts could do with having the heads glued on, but again for the price this is higher quality than I was expecting.

At the moment I haven't gone out and tested it, so only time will tell if my concerns are justified and, in that regard, there are two things that concern me. First is the safety lock. It engages automatically when you cock the bow, which is great, but the way you switch to live involves pressing forward in such a way that I fear it might automatically fire the bolt, so don't have it facing anybody or any part of your body when you do this (although you should be doing either of these things at all). Remember this is a serious piece of equipment that can cause harm if you don't respect it. Second there is nothing that holds the bolt down to the body so I'm slightly worried it wont fly forward but fling it upwards or sideways so make sure anybody with you is behind you when you fire.

 

Well with my little health and safety warning over, its time to head out and see how this mini crossbow performs.

 

Well, unsurprisingly, my partner with his military training took the first shot and with sniper precision, lost a bolt immediately. I obviously mocked him and he retorted 'Well they don't train you to use crossbows in the army.', to which I had to confess I had crossbow training at university whilst studying journalism. No wait, I  didn't. He's just useless.

 

Anyway, like fools we fired at a tree which brushed aside the bolts like they were fly's on a windscreen, but we could see that it was accurate and had plenty of power.  The poundage was light enough that we could cock without the use of the stirrup and my worries about the safety catch were put to rest (somewhat) when it held just fine. The safety was a problem later in my home when I wanted to get some photos and the string caught my fingertip while I was trying to fix the mechanism. This was more likely due to my own messing with the bow for pictures, but just a warning that if the string does get stuck, use a stick or some other object to push the string rather than your own flesh. Thankfully I was expecting this so I avoided anything serious happening.

 

The bolts are a bit flimsy in a sense that the tips just want to fall off, but a bit of adhesive on the thread will sort that out. They are also very cheap to replace (I think a pack of 12 is about £3-5 depending on whether you want plastic or aluminium).

 

The whole set-up is really lightweight although, if you plan on keeping this in a backpack or bugout bag, then I suggest not attaching the bow to the chassis as its shape makes it a little awkward to fit in a pack and the string will last longer being unburdened. It's accurate and powerful enough that, if you had to, you could hunt some small game like rabbit, pheasant or duck although, with these bolts I think you are more likely to get a stunning blow on something rather than any sort of piercing shot. You would need some good stealth skills to get close enough to secure some food but it's definitely achievable and gives you a good tactical edge when fighting for survival. I personally would head down to the river and attempt some bow fishing in shallow water if I had to secure some food. It's definitely powerful enough for getting some fish close to the surface and if you had some cord to attach to the bolt then you could stop them floating away.  Not just that you are right next to a water source so it's generally a good area to set up camp.

 

So that's our scorpion crossbow review. Overall I love this thing, it's seriously fun and a nice addition to any mans toy box. At the price these go for it's well worth the money, even if you don't put it in a bug out bag or use it for any type of survival or hunting. Just get a target up (somewhere safe) and fire a few bolts, you can't regret making this purchase.

 

I got mine from here at a very good price and they also supply replacement bolts (something I must now purchase).

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