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| Crossbow Pistol |
I have the plastic (Zytel nylon/resin) version of this 80 lb crossbow
pistol. Here are a few tips that may interest new buyers of this gun:
1. The wrappings that reinforce the bow string ends and middle will begin to fray and/or separate as you shoot a lot of bolts. The pressure from the cocking rods, pulling back on the middle of the string, causes the wrappings to separate. You can push this spiral wrapping back together with your fingers by pushing from either end of the wrappings and then secure the wrapping by dripping some Superglue along its length. You don't need a lot, but apply it evenly. You can do the same to the wrappings at both ends of the bowstring -- apply a couple drops of Superglue to keep it from fraying/unraveling.
2. The aluminum bolts are junk. The black plastic fin section WILL break off. Don't order more of these. Order the plastic bolts that are available from Amazon and many other sites. They will last much longer.
3. There is a main screw that holds the prod (bow) on the gun. This screw will loosen on its own due to the vibration of shooting. It will loosen to the point that the holding plate and plastic vibration dampening chip will fall out. To avoid this, remove the main screw (the one that you have to tighten with an allen wrench) and apply a couple of drops of BLUE Locktite (not RED!). Read the bottle regarding application directions/drying time.Then reinsert and tighten this screw -- do not overtighten; just firm. This will solve this problem.
4. Gently check and tighten all screws on the gun periodically.
5. Out of the box, the sights are not really set and will shoot bolts quite high over your bullseye at close ranges (50' or less). To bring the bolts down closer to the bullseye, screw the top wheel/screw down quite a bit.
6. Be sure to tighten the small Phillips head screw at the base of the sight mechanism because it may be loose and this will allow the entire sight system to shift left or right. Once it's tight you can adjust left/right bolt strikes using the side adjustment wheel.
7. The trigger is quite hard to pull and this can throw off your aim/shot. I find that I get a smoother shot if I extend my normal trigger finger a little further than normal through the trigger hole and use the index finger on my opposite hand to assist in pulling the trigger. I'm resting the "extra" index finger on my regular trigger finger and pulling with both, adding to the pulling power and resulting in a smoother release.
8. This will be difficult to describe here, but the way that I was able to compress the bow (aka "prod")in order to get the bowstring on was to: a. install the fiberglass bow on gun body as shown in photos on the box, b. use a piece of substantial rope and tied it near one end of the bow and then ran the rope back behind the pistol handle and around to the other end of the bow. Here's where it gets a little tricky. I used a trucker's hitch/knot (you can find pics of this online)to gradually pull the bow tighter and tighter until I could get the string on. The trucker's hitch uses two knotted loops to multiply your pulling power. A strong friend is also helpful.
9. This is a powerful weapon and should NOT be used by children alone! However, it is fun to let kids shoot it under close adult supervision. For target shooting, I found that several layers of old or remnant deep pile carpet stacked or folded will easily stop these bolts and leave them fairly easy to remove.
Enjoy!
1. The wrappings that reinforce the bow string ends and middle will begin to fray and/or separate as you shoot a lot of bolts. The pressure from the cocking rods, pulling back on the middle of the string, causes the wrappings to separate. You can push this spiral wrapping back together with your fingers by pushing from either end of the wrappings and then secure the wrapping by dripping some Superglue along its length. You don't need a lot, but apply it evenly. You can do the same to the wrappings at both ends of the bowstring -- apply a couple drops of Superglue to keep it from fraying/unraveling.
2. The aluminum bolts are junk. The black plastic fin section WILL break off. Don't order more of these. Order the plastic bolts that are available from Amazon and many other sites. They will last much longer.
3. There is a main screw that holds the prod (bow) on the gun. This screw will loosen on its own due to the vibration of shooting. It will loosen to the point that the holding plate and plastic vibration dampening chip will fall out. To avoid this, remove the main screw (the one that you have to tighten with an allen wrench) and apply a couple of drops of BLUE Locktite (not RED!). Read the bottle regarding application directions/drying time.Then reinsert and tighten this screw -- do not overtighten; just firm. This will solve this problem.
4. Gently check and tighten all screws on the gun periodically.
5. Out of the box, the sights are not really set and will shoot bolts quite high over your bullseye at close ranges (50' or less). To bring the bolts down closer to the bullseye, screw the top wheel/screw down quite a bit.
6. Be sure to tighten the small Phillips head screw at the base of the sight mechanism because it may be loose and this will allow the entire sight system to shift left or right. Once it's tight you can adjust left/right bolt strikes using the side adjustment wheel.
7. The trigger is quite hard to pull and this can throw off your aim/shot. I find that I get a smoother shot if I extend my normal trigger finger a little further than normal through the trigger hole and use the index finger on my opposite hand to assist in pulling the trigger. I'm resting the "extra" index finger on my regular trigger finger and pulling with both, adding to the pulling power and resulting in a smoother release.
8. This will be difficult to describe here, but the way that I was able to compress the bow (aka "prod")in order to get the bowstring on was to: a. install the fiberglass bow on gun body as shown in photos on the box, b. use a piece of substantial rope and tied it near one end of the bow and then ran the rope back behind the pistol handle and around to the other end of the bow. Here's where it gets a little tricky. I used a trucker's hitch/knot (you can find pics of this online)to gradually pull the bow tighter and tighter until I could get the string on. The trucker's hitch uses two knotted loops to multiply your pulling power. A strong friend is also helpful.
9. This is a powerful weapon and should NOT be used by children alone! However, it is fun to let kids shoot it under close adult supervision. For target shooting, I found that several layers of old or remnant deep pile carpet stacked or folded will easily stop these bolts and leave them fairly easy to remove.
