Injury has dictated that I can't shoot a compound any longer. I enjoyed just getting out in the yard and spending some quality time inside my own head and some competition shooting, although I was never what I consider a high caliber shooter.
Anyway, I had played with a few crossbows 25+ years ago and was underwhelmed with everything about them. I read and hear they are not the same dismal critters they were then, and with dwindling options, I think they may be the only alternative.
Shoulders are pretty shot and my rib cage on one side is pieced back together to the point I'm "show and tell" in an X-ray department. Heavy recoil from my normal rifles is out. An AR is looking like my new rifle of choice.
I will have to try a few to see if I can cock it, and what device will work best, if any.
So,,,,,,,,,,any pointers on a decent ~$250 ish bow would be appreciated. Maybe that is too low a price, but I want to see if it is worth the effort to pursue.

Tagged since I cannot shoot bows and buddy wants me to come to where he is to hunt deer yet for a crossbow I need something to pull the bow back cause I fucked up my arm so need ideas on automated things to cock the crossbow.

Ten Point makes crossbows with a built in crank to cock the bow. I have one, works very well.

JPK

I have a center point sniper 370. It retails for around $250.

The included rope cocker makes it's 185lb draw easy and when adjusted correctly limits the need to use your shoulders much. 


There are other crossbows that use a crank style of cocker but I have never used one. 

Got one also.  Works great and I even let the neighbor ladies shoot it in my backyard during pool parties.  Some of them are remarkably good shots.

Barnett and Ten Point are both good brands.

Barnett has a 420 FPS bow out.

Don't get caught up in the speed game.  

Yea, that is easy to do. It is the same with the traditional compounds as well, especially in competition.
Weight, speed, stealth, and the ability to even use the thing is what's for dinner.
The ones we messed with were 175+ draw weights, and a 40 lb standard compound would shoot a heavier arrow quite a bit faster with much more authority. THEN.
How do they perform now is the big question.

Keep it coming.

I'm not sure on yhe $250, but my dad has a barnett quad 400 that is a pretty good shooter. He got it used for around $250. I have an excalibur matrix 355 an that thing shoots like a laser (which it should $$$$). If it wasn't a gift I wouldn't have bought it. I would have probably gotten a barnett, better bang for your buck, but not as nice as the excalibur.  We both just use the rope cocking aids. It makes the 240lb draw weight nice. You might have to look at the crank cocking devices out there and the crossbows that they work with.  The crank cocking things look $$$ the last i saw.

Modern crossbows shoot a good bit harder than a modern compound.  Not that I would intentionally shoot for the shoulder but I have hit a couple and they go through to the vitals which is something most compound will not do.  To me the biggest thing with a crossbow is the weight.  Any modern crossbow from 300 fps up will kill deer to 40 yards but I want as light and narrow a crossbow as possible.  250 is a little low for most crossbows.  I would save a little more and look for something in the 400 range.

As I'm getting older too, 3 years ago I switched to a crossbow. I didn't want something I needed to fuss with and adjust cams and need a special press if I want to work on it, so I went with an Excalibur Matrix. Got the C2 crank to cock it with and couldn't be happier! Being a recurve, it is a little wider but that is the only drawback. It is rugged, durable, don't have to take it back to a bow shop for anything, and I can change the string myself in 5 minutes if I need to. And most important, it is consistently VERY accurate!

I have the Sniper also.  Its very accurate and easy to shoot.  Check, I break it out at pool parties for the neighborhood wives and kids to play with.  You would really need to screw up not to hit a 12 x 12 bolt target at 20 yards.

I'd suggest you visit crossbownation.com  There are various forums where you can get detailed information about everything related to crossbows.  Dave at wyverncreations is a great guy to discuss this issue with and his prices are good.