Horton crossbow owners can still find (some) parts for their no-longer-made hunting tools

With archery deer-hunting in full swing just about everywhere likely a few owners of crossbows made by the now-defunct Horton Archery Company may find themselves with a broken tool they cannot use.

Even though this blog space has noted in previous postings that a fairly large stock of Horton crossbow components exist out there, some archers are still wandering around in a funk they can't find necessary replacement parts.

However, there are a number of Internet sites operated by corporations that specialize in liquidations, obtaining in bulk parts, components and remnants of now-defunct other companies.

Among the firms stocking up on Horton crossbow parts is www.Fire-Sale.com. Here a Horton crossbow owner can explore www.Fire-Sale.com's and buy either a complete unit or such hard-to-find replacement parts as limbs, limb silencer kits, and limb silencers.

Today my aged Horton Hunter arrow retention spring (not a trust-worthy Horton component I found on another Horton crossbow model) rolled up and under the scope base and mount assembly. I can Jerry-rig a fix for now but a new one would save me from any unexpected grief should the spring decide to roll into a ball again or break off entirely.

Here, www.Fire-Sale.com has something like 17 different arrow retention springs for various Horton crossbow models. These retention springs run from $14 to $19. Compare those prices with an arrow retention spring for a currently made TenPoint crossbow: $9.

Other potential sources of Horton spare parts is www.compare99.com, www.best-deal.com, and to a lesser extent, www.shoppeet.com

So if an archer has a Horton crossbow and calculates that a parts fix is still more economical than buying a new and still-being-made crossbow, than scouting out sites such as www.Fire-Sale.com, www.compare99.com and www.best-deal.com makes considerable sense.

Note too some routine maintenance is a good idea. The same Horton Hunter in which the retention spring curled up also would not allow the bow string to set and cock, also returning the safety from on to off.

Full disclosure here must include that though the crossbow technically belongs to me in actuality it is used almost exclusively by my wife, Bev.

So when the additional problem developed I inspected the crossbow, noting that its innards were crudded with an accumulation of rail grease that ultimately jelled and took hold of dirt and grime.

A simple flush with an aerosol spray can of bore scrubber/degreaser allowed the cocking mechanism to function as originally intended.

By Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net

Jeff is the retired News-Herald reporter who  covered the earth sciences, the area's three county park systems and the outdoors for the newspaper. During his 30 years with The News-Herald Jeff was the recipient of more than 100 state, regional and national journalism awards. He also is a columnist and features writer for the Ohio Outdoor News, which is published every other week and details the outdoors happenings in the state.