Im wanting to get my girl a crossbow for her 7th birthday that is coming up soon. I shoot a compound and know very little about crossbows. What would you guys recommend?

Take her to Cabela's or BassPro and see which ones she can handle. Parker Challenger II was a good one for kids but Parker has gone out of business. The Challanger is the lightest shortest hunting crossow I know of

You might could still find one online

Wicked Ridge Ranger. This is a youth/ small frame adult crossbow. It is manufactured by Ten Point and has the best warranty service in the industry. You can get a complete starter set on Amazon for $445.00 which includes the bow with an integrated ACU draw 52 cocking mechanism, anti dry fire mechanism, 3 bolts , 100 gr. practice heads and quiver. I started my 7 yr old grandson on one and he was shooting bullseyes at 30 yds the first day he shot it.
https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-Ridge...ay&sr=8-3-fkmrnull&tag=hydsma-20

I would stay away from Parker bows, All of their bows are at rock bottom prices because they are going out of business.

Thanks guys!

The Barnett Recruit is a small, lightweight (5-6 lbs.), 125lb. pull crossbow with 300fs I believe for right around $250. May be something you'd like to check out. I've thought of getting one myself for the size and ease of shooting. I own 2 x-bows and what you find pretty quickly is that they can get bulky and heavy..

I looked at the Barnett Recruit for the same reasons you list. The big difference was the clarity and quality of the scope that came with the Barnett vs the Wicked Ridge.

For the price difference you could easily upgrade the scope on the Barnett to one better than what comes on the Wicked Ridge.


I worked on crossbows for almost 6 years and Barnett had more warranty work than Tenpoint, Parker, Excalibur, Center Point and Carbon Express combine. Do not get me wrong Barnett makes some good crossbows but make some good crossbows but make some . good crossbows but also make some junk and it is not just a certain model but within models you might get a good one or a bad one time will tell on which you have.

That’s true about the scope. A major issues with the Barnett Recruit in a lot of reviews was an unusual amount of string breakage which is a safety concern and can cause a multitude of other problems.

I would hate to know how many strings, cables, limbs and cams I replaced on Barnett bows in just a couple years. Had one new recruit that the first time it was made ready to shoot on the in store range still on safety with the customer looking through the scope the string broke. Him and 2 more that were waiting to try barnetts left with other brand bows. I also showed them the shop where there were 10 barnetts, one parker and one tenpoint in for warranty work. The Tenpoint and Parker were user caused issues that the companies were covering for them.

Lucky no one got hurt. Parts tend to fly when limbs are bent and let loose without a string.
I had an old Jennings that the laminate let loose around the pin holding the eccentric wheel on the upper limb. Had pieces stuck in my ceiling and walls.

I guess I've been fortunate with both my Barnett Penetrator and Hellcat. Both shoot 350+fps and accurately. I have had to replace strings/cable on both of them but no limbs.

Like I said they do make some good bows but for over a year almost 1/3 were back in a matter of days or a month or two. Trigger groups locking up were another issue but not nearly as often as string issues. Most of the time when a string snapped no other damage occured but there were some that did need new limbs and or cams after string breakage.

Barnett has made some cool and very functional innovations in crossbows. Their flagship bow for a while the Razor almost all w sold were back within 2 months with broken string ( they actually included extra string in a compartment in the stock) but plastic and pot metal bells and whistles are prone to break or malfunction and for $1300 people expect more

Thanks for all the good info! We are going shopping this weekend

Did you get a crossbow? I would get an Excalibur and not look back. They are nearly bulletproof. No cams, cables, timing. You don't need a press to change a string or adjust the string. Super accurate, quiet and dependable. There are models starting at $500 and they go up to $1500. My boys started with an Axiom and they have taken over 27 animals in 6 years between them. They are still using that one and I got a Matrix 380 that is a little smaller yet a little faster. We've got thousands of bolts fired between them and not a lick of trouble. when we travel, you remove one hex head bolt and take the front off to put it in a small take-down gun case. When we arrive, put the bolt back in - still sighted in and ready to go. Lifetime Warranty!

Would have to agree — for a starter crossbow there is nothing simpler and more reliable then Excalibur. Used them for years with great results — I did manage to break two of them (I’m notoriously tough on gear) but Excalibur fixed them for no charge.

Took both a Matrix Bulldog 400 and an original Matrix 380 (no longer in production) to Zambia and took everything from Hippo to Oribi — accurate, rugged and durable. Of course I upgraded both the triggers and scopes on mine. Another thing — the bolt length is important — NEVER GO LESS THAN 18 INCHES, and 20 is even better. Unfortunately, Excalibur has jumped on the “compact” + “speed” wave and now builds shorter power-stroke bows with featherweight 16 inch bolts to maximize initial speed specs — don’t be fooled — a 16 inch bolt simply cannot hold momentum at distance and really looses its “smack.” Generally speaking, the longer the bolt the more stable the flight, especially with broadheads at distance. I use Black Eagle bolts and love them — can get QAD Exodus 125 to give good 50 yard groups.

For full disclosure, I’ve moved on, got a bit more sophisticated and now exclusively use a Scorpyd. Shoots a 22 inch, 460gr bolt @ 430fps. Gets great groups with Rage Hypodermics out to 70-80 yards with a solid rest. Took it to South Africa Last year and all were very impressed. It’s a high performer and very rugged, but not something I’d get for a beginner. Excalibur would be a better choice.

Not sure why no one has mentioned the Center point 370. Very inexpensive and solid as a rock. Come with 4 bolts and 100 gr field tips, scope, quiver and sling.

Only reason I did not mention that value for the $ crossbow is it is heavy for a 7 year old

whatever you get needs a self cocking crank action especially for kids use. 14-17lb cocking effort vs 125lb minimum

I started with the 370 and I LOVE it. Shoots great out of the box. I plan on giving it to my little girl when she gets a bit older. It's definitely heavy for her but she'll likely be shooting of sticks anyway. At least until she gets older. for about 300 bucks you can't really go wrong with it.