Airbows and turkey hunting?

CRC

Old Mossy Horns
Should the Benjamin Airbow be legal for turkeys or is it not a sporting weapon?
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
LOL he wouldn't get another notch in his post count nor the attention he craves so much there.
 

shadycove

Twelve Pointer
Yeah, I get that but he is steady dragging folks up close to that very thin gray area of wildlife law that most of them need to stay away from.
I preach the reg digest on here so much that sometimes I hurt my own feelings, but so many hunt in NC without ever even reading a reg digest or calling the GW home office if they do have a question.
FWIW, I was present last January when the "airbow" WAS brought up at the NCWRC hearing in Wilkesboro. The moderators, GWs and all the other green jeans there could not say if it was legal or not. But it has been addressed since and it ain't legal here.
From the NCWRC reg digest 2016-17----Archery
l Archery hunting is limited to longbows and recurved bows having
a minimum pull of 40 pounds, com pound bows with a minimum
pull of 35 pounds and crossbows with a minimum draw weight
of 100 pounds. Only arrows with a fixed minimum broadhead
width of 7/8 inch or a mech an ically opening broad head with a
minimum width of 7/8 inch in the open position may be used for
taking bear, deer or wild turkey. Blunt-type arrowheads may be
used in taking small animals and birds, including but not limited
to, rabbits, squirrels, quail, grouse, pheasants. Poisonous, drugged,
barbed or explosive arrowheads may not be used for taking any
game. Bolts must use broadheads as described for arrows
 

GSOHunter

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Yeah, I get that but he is steady dragging folks up close to that very thin gray area of wildlife law that most of them need to stay away from.
I preach the reg digest on here so much that sometimes I hurt my own feelings, but so many hunt in NC without ever even reading a reg digest or calling the GW home office if they do have a question.
FWIW, I was present last January when the "airbow" WAS brought up at the NCWRC hearing in Wilkesboro. The moderators, GWs and all the other green jeans there could not say if it was legal or not. But it has been addressed since and it ain't legal here.
From the NCWRC reg digest 2016-17----Archery
l Archery hunting is limited to longbows and recurved bows having
a minimum pull of 40 pounds, com pound bows with a minimum
pull of 35 pounds and crossbows with a minimum draw weight
of 100 pounds. Only arrows with a fixed minimum broadhead
width of 7/8 inch or a mech an ically opening broad head with a
minimum width of 7/8 inch in the open position may be used for
taking bear, deer or wild turkey. Blunt-type arrowheads may be
used in taking small animals and birds, including but not limited
to, rabbits, squirrels, quail, grouse, pheasants. Poisonous, drugged,
barbed or explosive arrowheads may not be used for taking any
game. Bolts must use broadheads as described for arrows
He didn't say Is it legal. He said should it be legal. I don't see the difference between it and my crossbow. It's somewhere less sporting than a crossbow and more sporting than a shotgun. ;)

Damn...just fed the troll!!
 
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nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Actually I believe he has brought it up for deer and every other animal one way or another. SMH
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
are they loud?

if not i want one for deer. i need no further challenges for turkeys. LOL

what do the nc bowhunters association thing of this arrow weapon?
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
Please no. The fewer hunters in the woods during archery season the better. Selfish for sure, but it is what it is. I get the comparison to cross bows, but I always felt they were at the edge of what I considered archery anyway. these airbows seem to cross the line for ME. I get this is a subjective issue. To each his own but I personally want no part of airbows being legalized for archery season. Semi automatic bows are next I guess.

Edit: Sorry, disregard Archery season comments, realized he was talking about turkey season only. In that case, have at it, I dont care either way.
 
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oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
yeah it all comes back to how much challenge you want.

i desire no more challenge in deer hunting than getting one within 40 yds. dont care to practice every day to stay keen with a bow. been there done that.

now if these things are so deadly they would damage the population of the deer if they were legal in archery season that would be different.

just let us use them on the weekend. :)

selfish hunter i be. LOL
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
selfish hunter i be. LOL

ha, agreed and I say it proudly. Oh, and from what I have read they are considerably louder than a bow/crossbow but also considerably quieter than a shotgun....so whatever that means. One article referenced them as a good replacement for a muzzleloader due to the increased chance you can get a second shot opportunity if you miss the first..
 
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oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
ha, agreed and I say it proudly. Oh, and from what I have read they are considerably louder than a bow/crossbow but also considerably quieter than a shotgun....so whatever that means. One article referenced them as a good replacement for a muzzleloader due to the increased chance you can get a second shot opportunity if you miss the first..

if they are louder than my crossbow i want no part of them. :)
 

Longrifle

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I hear that. Last year at State one lady...one, a rather short, portly lady...shot in the crossbow division and apparently I was my turn in the barrel. By the end of the round I thought it sounded like a .22, I jumped a couple of times when it went off actually. She was amazed at how quiet my longbow was...
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
I wish they'd open up squirrel season in mid September.

well, I would certainly have more shot opportunities........on squirrels, but hey, the deer woods can be lonely in september. I might actually notch a september kill on my belt for once.
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
on the selfish side, i sure hated it when guns became legal on sunday...until i remembered the turkeys. :)

we all have our preferences on what the laws could be to help us.
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
on the selfish side, i sure hated it when guns became legal on sunday...until i remembered the turkeys. :)

we all have our preferences on what the laws could be to help us.

I could not agree more, that is why I always try to be clear that I am speaking to my personal preferences only. Seems this exact conversation always takes place, just insert different subject ( baiting, dogs, crossbows, airbows, drones, etc)......different strokes for different folks. We are all hunters, we have enough to worry about with antis to be fighting amoung ourselves over preferences.
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
HERE HERE!!

agree 100%

or even August,,,,,,,,

I have to admit I am curious about the reason for this? I dont squirrel hunt so speaking from ignorance here....are you just looking for a longer season or is there another benefit that I am unaware of? I was a little too embarrassed to ask Hawglips but not that 2 of you are agreeing, inquiring minds would like to know.......
 

turkeyfoot

Old Mossy Horns
I wish they'd open up squirrel season in mid September.

Me to Va always opens early Sept. I miss that squirrel is my 2nd favorite to hunt and I like to hunt when they are cutting by time it opens in Mtns leaves are coming off and the really good hunting is short lived
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
I have to admit I am curious about the reason for this? I dont squirrel hunt so speaking from ignorance here....are you just looking for a longer season or is there another benefit that I am unaware of? I was a little too embarrassed to ask Hawglips but not that 2 of you are agreeing, inquiring minds would like to know.......

call it nostalgia ,,,,,,I grew up in the 60s - 70s hunting squirrel in August (KY) and Early September (Wisconsin) and miss those seasons,,,,,,

guess I could travel,,,,,,,,
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
I see. Travel is often easier said said than done. I am intrigued by how enthusiastic squirrel hunters seem to be about squirrel hunting. I may have to give it a shot one day. Right now I'm having a hard enough time getting out to hunt turkey and deer.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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hawglips

Old Mossy Horns
I have to admit I am curious about the reason for this? I dont squirrel hunt so speaking from ignorance here....are you just looking for a longer season or is there another benefit that I am unaware of? I was a little too embarrassed to ask Hawglips but not that 2 of you are agreeing, inquiring minds would like to know.......

Have to tiptoe around deer season here in NC. Archery deer hunters don't want folks in the woods messing them up.
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
Have to tiptoe around deer season here in NC. Archery deer hunters don't want folks in the woods messing them up.

Yeah I realize it may have came off that way but I didn't intend it to. I actually think North Carolina archery hunters have it pretty good I just don't want to mess it up. And really when I look up these air Bows I have a hard time seeing as archery.


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shadycove

Twelve Pointer
This is my .02, your gonna have a long road getting to use this thing in archery season [or even firearms season]. I know folks who have been ticketed for hunting with a slingshot in rabbit season since it is not an authorized weapon.
To get the airbow [there is nothing bow-y about it--it is a gun no matter what the projectile is] legalized in NC, you will have to go to the NC General Assembly and get a new LAW passed, the NCWRC can't do it. Good luck on this, you gonna need it.
 
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oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
it will be interesting to see what Virginia does with this as well.

on the turkeys if approved for archery it would really open up some fall opportunities. you could start Oct 1.
 
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