How is a crossbow used
How To Safely Operate a Crossbow | TenPoint Crossbows
safety we've placed the safety segment
first in this instructional DVD because
understanding and practicing the rules
of safe operation are responsibilities
you must accept as a recreational
shooter or hunter do not dig into your
crossbows shipping box an attempt to
assemble load or shoot your crossbow
before watching this DVD and reading
your owners general instruction manual
and your model specific assembly
instruction manual these manuals contain
more detailed information than the DVD
as we present these safety instructions
danger warning or caution signal words
will appear on your screen these words
are American National Standards
Institute or ANSI signal words used to
alert you to the relative severity of
hazards the ANSI danger signal word
indicates a hazardous situation that
will result in death for serious
personal injury if not avoided the
warning signal word indicates a
hazardous situation that may result in
death or a serious personal injury if
not avoided the caution signal word
indicates a hazardous situation which
may result in moderate or minor personal
injury remember the danger signal word
means that failure to follow the rule
will result in serious personal injury
including the possibility of death the
warning signal word means that failure
to follow the rule may result in serious
injury including the possibility of
death today's modern crossbows like
firearms and other lethal weapons are
dangerous if you use them improperly or
unsafely as a hunter or recreational
shooter you must not lose sight of the
inherent danger in handling a lethal
weapon thumb finger and hand safety
while thumb finger and hand injuries may
not be lethal they are the most common
sustained by inexperienced crossbow
shooters and those who fail to focus
unsafe weapon handling practices
practice and repetition will help you
turn these simple safety rules into
hunting habits
never allow your thumb or fingers to
move above the crossbow barrels flight
deck and into the bow strings release
path or in close proximity to the cables
in front of the foregrip keep your
entire four grip hand properly and
securely on the grip if you allow either
a finger or a thumb to protrude above
the flight deck and into the strings
release path you will severely injure or
possibly amputate it when you pull the
trigger likewise
never hold or carry a cocked crossbow by
its barrel while walking handing it to
another person or sitting in a tree
stand or ground line if you do you
expose the hand to the strings release
path and face the possibility of severe
injury if your crossbow accidentally
discharges your fore grip and can also
be particularly vulnerable when shooting
from a bench rest if the grip is resting
on the bench again to avoid serious
injury and possible amputation make sure
you keep all parts of the hand below the
flight deck and out of the strings
release path on TenPoint models equipped
with a grip safety do not depress or
deactivate the grip safety until you've
made the decision to pull the trigger
press the grip safety button only with
the end of the thumbs distal phalanx or
tip do not press it with the base of the
thumb or palm because that may allow the
thumb to protrude above the flight deck
and result in serious injury or possible
amputation when you pull the trigger if
you're a left-handed shooter we strongly
recommend that you have TenPoint
reinstall your grip safety for
left-handed use just contact customer
service
before you use your crossbow crossbow
safety begins before you shoulder the
bow and pull the trigger before hunting
with your crossbow make certain you're
qualified and understand all of the
risks involved take a hunter's education
and safety course in fact most states
require that you complete one prior to
obtaining your hunting license always
seek a doctor's advice if you are taking
medication to be sure that you're able
to shoot and handle your crossbow safely
taking drugs or consuming alcohol before
or while using your crossbow may impair
your vision and/or judgment and make
handling your crossbow dangerous to you
or others around you wear safety glasses
when assembling cocking loading or
shooting your crossbow to protect your
eyes from injury if the limbs bowstrings
cables or cocking unit draw cords were
to break accidentally make sure you
follow your assembly instructions while
TenPoint and wicked ridge crossbows are
among the easiest to assemble in the
industry it is possible to make mistakes
during assembly that could cause serious
or fatal injury to you or others or to
cause damage to property inspect your
crossbow before you use it check for
loose or worn parts and frayed or worn
string cables and cocking mechanism
cords if your bow is not in top working
condition using it could be dangerous to
you or others around you do not make any
modifications to your crossbow and do
not remove or deactivate any of its
safety features doing so will void your
warranty but more important could make
your crossbow dangerous or cause it to
malfunction finally check your local
state or provincial regulations
regarding transporting a crossbow some
jurisdictions require you to keep your
crossbow in a case during transport
shooting safety safe crossbow shooting
practices are like safe firearm shooting
practices while they may make common
sense they may not be automatic
they require practice and repetition for
them to become second nature we
discussed hand and finger safety at the
start of this segment because those
accidents are the most common however
here are a number of other practices you
need to turn into habits during your
hunts and at the shooting range
never stalk walk or hike with an arrow
loaded in your crossbow there are
documented reports of fatal injuries
that have occurred when hunters have
tripped or slipped carrying a loaded
crossbow
while it is acceptable to carry a cocked
foot unloaded crossbow make sure the
safety is in the safe position and be
careful not to place any part of your
body into the bowstrings path when you
are at a shooting range make sure you
always keep your loaded crossbow pointed
toward the target accidentally pointing
your crossbow in the direction of others
is extremely dangerous and potentially
life-threatening make sure others are
well behind you when shooting someone
standing beside you could be seriously
injured by flying debris in the unlikely
event that a string or cable were to
break use only manufacture recommended
arrows when shooting your crossbow
arrows that are too light or otherwise
do not meet your manufacturer
specifications could create a dry fire
effect and cause your limbs to break in
addition make sure you inspect your
arrows prior to shooting specifically
look for damage to the nock and veins
damaged arrows may not shoot as intended
and condemned your equipment and cause
serious personal injury or loss of life
inspect Carbon shafts and discard any
arrow that contains hairline cracks
firing a carbon arrow with hairline
cracks could cause it to shatter and
send sharp fragments flying in any
direction make certain you secure your
hunting arrows in your quiver broadheads
are razor sharp and handling arrows
fitted with unprotected broad heads can
cause serious personal injury or death
and of course keep your broad heads out
of the reach of children when loading an
arrow into a cocked cross
Oh hold it just behind the broad head
between your thumb and your index and
middle finger then you can slide it
along the arrow flight groove and into
the triggers string slot without
allowing your fingers and hand into the
bow strings flight path place a vein
into the arrow flight groove and slide
the arrow back until it seats itself
against the cocked bow string always
point your crossbow in a safe direction
never pointed at another person or
toward anything you do not intend to
shoot make sure you know what's behind
or beyond your target in the event you
take an errant shot an arrow can cause
serious personal injury including loss
of life beyond its effective hunting or
shooting range to avoid an accidental
discharge that could cause serious
injury including loss of life do not
move the trigger safety to the fire
position and do not put your finger on
the trigger until you're ready to take
your shot on TenPoint and wicked rich
crossbows the string sets the safety
upon cocking the bow this is visually
apparent by watching the safety move
from fire the red physician to white the
safe position never test your safety by
pulling or pre-loading your trigger if
you want to test your safety you can do
so by pushing the safety knob as far as
you can in the safe or white direction
it should move approximately 1/16 of an
inch and then bounce back or spring back
the same distance this bounce back means
the safety is engaged
if there is no bounce back the safety is
not engaged and you must re engage it by
forcefully pulling the bowstring as if
you were cocking the crossbow
when handing your crossbow to another
person make certain it is unloaded and
make a habit of keeping their hands and
the other person's hands out of the
boats trains flight path during the
transfer do not transport or store your
crossbow while it is cocked or loaded
tree stand safety tree stand accidents
are historically the most dangerous
debilitating and deadly if you are
hunting from a tree stand make sure you
use one approved by the tree stand
Manufacturers Association and that you
watch their safety DVD included with
your purchase
always wear a safety belt or harness
when hunting from a tree stand because a
fall could result in death or serious
personal injury also buy and install an
approved climbers lifeline with each
tree stand you purchase to guard against
climbing falls here is the typical
safety sequence you should follow when
crossbow hunting out of a tree stand
first
CUC but do not load your crossbow when
you arrive at your tree stand it is too
dangerous to [ __ ] a crossbow from a
standing position in your stand if your
crossbow includes an acute draw cocking
mechanism
you may [ __ ] it from a seated position
in your stand
it's not safe to [ __ ] your crossbow
manually or to cut with your AK you draw
fifty Accuro dead sled 50 a cue 52 or
rope cougar in a tree stand check your
safety harness to make certain it is
securely fastened and in good condition
and attach your harness safety strap to
your lifeline and keep it attached
throughout the hunt attach your unloaded
crossbow to your bow retrieval rope with
the buttstock pointing up do not carry
your crossbow while climbing up or down
a tree because you could lose your
balance or the crossbow could catch on
the tree or tree stand and cause you to
fall
hoist and lower your unloaded cocked
crossbow using your bow retrieval rope
to avoid a fall as you climb make sure
you anchor both hands securely with each
step you take once you're in the tree
stand fasten your safety harness to its
tree strap and check to make certain it
is secure before sitting down at that
point you are in a safe position to
begin pulling up your
bull
before you load an arrow check all of
your shooting lanes to make sure there
are no tree limbs or branches in the way
of your crossbow limbs if your crossbow
limbs were to hit a branch or tree limb
during the shot you could damage the
crossbow or injure yourself
finally carefully load your arrow and
hang it on a bow hook or hold it
securely in your lap making sure you do
not allow your hands to rest on the bow
within the bow strings release path when
your hunt is over
remove your arrow and return it to your
quiver attach the unloaded crossbow to
the bow rope and lower it to the ground
after you disconnect your safety harness
from the tree strap make sure you remain
connected to your lifeline before you
begin your descent
uncocking your crossbow you may have
noticed that we left one task unfinished
in this sequence and it is the source of
the most frequently asked question we
receive how do i uncock my crossbow if i
have not taken a shot the safest way to
one [ __ ] a crossbow is to shoot it
it's not safe to manually unload a
crossbow or use a cocking mechanism to
do it
TenPoint has created a solution for
uncocking the crossbow the cub or
crossbow unloading bolt it is a
single-use 2-piece biodegradable
unloading shaft which decomposes in or
on the ground over time after you shoot
it do not use Cubs to one [ __ ] crossbows
but our RDX reverse draw crossbow bo
assembly or any crossbow with a
bowstring angle when cocked that is more
acute narrower than 45 degrees the
severe string angle prevents the nock
end of the cub from properly engaging
the bowstring this condition may cause a
dry fire that could damage the crossbow
and or injure the shooter or anyone
nearby another option is to shoot an old
field tipped arrow into soft rock free
dirt or sand or into a target check your
hunting regulations first however for
possible restrictions on possession of
field tips while hunting while this
segment has addressed the most obvious
safety concerns you need to focus on
when you are shooting and hunting it's
not possible to cover every circumstance
or situation that could lead to an
accident in the end your safety and the
safety of others around you depend on
your mastery of safe handling practices
every time you pick up your crossbow
again crossbows are lethal weapons
designed to harvest wild game if you
remain focused on safety every time you
pick one up you'll enjoy many years of
trouble-free hunting with your new 10
point or wicked Ridge crossbow finally
be safe and responsible and obey all
hunting rules
you
