John Wenzel

Chalmette Bow & Accessories

Chalmette, Louisiana

They’re higher. I take phone calls from folks who want to get their kids into archery. Of course, I imagine that they’ll ask about compound bows, but then they ask what kind of crossbows I sell. Most of the kids aren’t starting out with compound bows. They’re jumping right into a crossbow.

I’ve been running this business for 35 years, so I’ve seen lots of different changes and trends come and go. Years ago, August and September were the busiest months. Customers were better about getting their equipment and practicing with it for weeks and even months ahead of their hunts. Today, our world is so fast. Customers commonly say they don’t have time for a vertical bow and just want a crossbow. It’s not unusual for them to buy a crossbow a day or two before they plan to hunt with it. 

I sell Mission vertical bows here. I used to sell about 75 of them annually. Now, I sell less than 20 annually. The difference is that crossbow sales have increased. Again, the younger hunters are picking up crossbows. And the fact is that crossbows are legal all around Louisiana and some of the Midwest states that aren’t too far to the north. 

My price-point crossbows are from CenterPoint. I just received 24 crossbows. I’ll sell half of them for $300 each, and the other half I’ll sell for $440 each. That’s a hot price range. I’ll sell all 24 of those this year. I also sell a decent share of Ravin crossbows in the $1,300-$2,600 range, and then a half-dozen or so Mission SUB-1s — the selling point of those is the lifetime warranty.

One more thing is that five or six years ago — when crossbows really became popular because many states changed legislation to make crossbows legal for any licensed hunter to use during the general archery season — a good number of compound shooters sold their bows and bought crossbows. A year or two later, they kept their crossbows but returned to buy a compound again because they found crossbow hunting less exciting and challenging. In 2025, I anticipate that my crossbow sales will roughly match my vertical-bow sales.

Al Kraus

Black Hills Archery

Rapid City, South Dakota

They’re definitely a little bit higher. Most of that is due to the technological improvements. Crossbows used to be so big and bulky. Now they’re so compact, lightweight and fast. They’re just easier to handle. They’ve come so far in the last 10 and even 5 years.

In our area, one thing that’s very different with crossbows from vertical bows is how often customers upgrade. Crossbow customers just don’t upgrade every 1 to 3 years or even every 5 years, which, in contrast, is very common with vertical-bow customers. Once someone buys one of these newer, more advanced crossbows, they hang onto it.

Here in South Dakota, crossbows are illegal during archery season but can be used on a rifle tag. So, there is a minimal crossbow market here in our state. We are, however, located not far from Wyoming, where crossbows are legal during the archery season, so that generates a good share of our crossbow sales. 

As far as brands, we keep it simple and handle only Ravin and Mission. From Ravin, we offer the original R10, R26 and R29. These models are highly proven, and customers are very satisfied with them. The Mission SUB-1s are really solid, and we sell some of those as well. Actually, I’ve never had one come back with problems — very dependable.

Most of my customers who buy crossbows are the older guys with physical limitations. When I travel to places where crossbows are legal for anyone, I notice that many youths are hunting with them. Here in South Dakota, it’s the older fellas.

Paul Finch

R&E Sporting and Avon Shoppe

Tomah, Wisconsin

I’d say our crossbow sales are pretty comparable to what they were 5 years ago. Some customers come in looking for our least-expensive options, but I’ve noticed that if a customer really likes a higher-end model, they usually don’t hesitate to spend the money. Here, we sell Ravin, CenterPoint and Mission. Ravin is our No. 1 selling brand.

Not many people shoot 50 bolts a day through their crossbow, meaning that crossbows don’t get the wear and tear that compound bows do. So, crossbow customers don’t come back to upgrade as often as compound customers, but they come back more than you’d think either to upgrade, or because they passed their previous crossbow to a family member and would like to buy a new one to replace it.

It’s hard to tell, but judging by our current trend, I believe crossbow sales will remain mostly stable for the next 5 years. There are always young people getting into hunting, and many beginner hunters go with crossbows because they’re easier to shoot accurately. Most want to hunt, but don’t want to do the work that a compound bow requires. I have no problem with anyone using whatever legal method they choose; I’m just sharing what we’re seeing here in our area.