It goes without saying that some hunters simply aren’t as dedicated as others. I immediately think of people who hunt strictly for meat, leisure or to escape their business cubicles. They don’t have two dozen trail cameras peppered across the areas they hunt. They don’t wear high-tech Sitka Gear or KUIU camo. They aren’t concerned with shooting the biggest buck in the area; if that somehow happens, great, but if not, they’re happy just to have the chance to get out hunting once in a while and hopefully take a doe.

I’ll bet you know plenty of people just like that, perhaps even some who regularly visit your shop. They don’t spend a ton of money on hunting, either because they don’t have a lot of it, or because they’re just not serious enough to justify high-end equipment. And that’s OK. These people deserve great experiences in the outdoors just like the rest of us, but great experiences don’t always require expensive equipment.

The you-get-what-you-pay-for cliche usually isn’t truer of any hunting category than crossbows, but Barnett’s Recruit XP is an exception. So, if you have customers like those I’ve described in my opening two paragraphs, let’s discuss why the Recruit XP is possibly the ideal crossbow to save them money, yet help them have positive experiences in the woods.

Test Crossbow Specs

• Make/Model: Barnett Recruit XP
• Finish: Black and Matte Grey
• Weight: 6 pounds
• Overall Width: 13 inches (cocked)
• Overall Length: 35.5-38 inches
• Draw Effort: Not listed
• Power Stroke: 13.6 inches
• Arrow Length and Weight: 20 inches; 400 grains (including 100-grain field point)
• Manufacturer Listed Velocity: 330 fps (measured with a 380-grain bolt)
• Actual Velocity: 327 fps (400-grain arrow; found with Caldwell Ballistic Precision chronograph)
• Manufacturer Listed Trigger Pull: 3 pounds
• Cocking Device: Rope Cocking Device
• Scope: Barnett 1x30mm 3-Dot Red/Green Illuminated Optic
• MSRP: $299.99
• Contact: www.barnettcrossbows.com 

First Impressions

Let me begin by saying that the economical Recruit XP package retails for just $299.99. You’ll have a hard time understanding that once you read about its features in the next paragraph, but I’m getting ahead of myself. What exactly does the package include? Well, your customer will get a 1x30mm red/green illuminated optic, rope cocking device, Quick-Detach Quiver with a neat integrated broadhead wrench, string and cable wax, and two Headhunter carbon arrows. I would’ve liked to see three arrows rather than two, especially since the quiver has a three-arrow capacity. I guess it creates a situation for you, the dealer, to sell your customer more arrows. Overall, the accessories are adequate; sometimes all a person needs are the necessities.

Unreal Value 

Barnett claims that the Recruit XP is “Perhaps the easiest-to-use crossbow ever made.” I agree, especially because I’m a short-armed, smaller-framed woman. There’s no way around it, I’ve struggled to cock most crossbows with rope cockers. But, to my surprise, I could easily cock the Recruit XP with the included rope cocker, which elated me. A related point worth mentioning is that some people struggle to keep the rope in place while cocking a crossbow, but the Rope Hold feature, which secures the cocking rope onto the stock’s leverage point, solves that.

Most economically priced crossbows don’t have the “high-end” features that the Recruit XP does. For instance, most low- and mid-priced crossbows have composite flight tracks, but not this one — we’re talking machined aluminum, which produces consistent accuracy. Even more impressive is the TriggerTech trigger. Its attributes are a zero-creep, 3-pound pull, a silent safety mechanism, frictionless release and nock sensor, which minimizes dry-fires. It also features a tactical, five-position adjustable stock complete with measurement references for each setting.

Let’s talk about a couple of other notable details before we move on to talking about how the Recruit XP performs. The AVi (Anti-Vibration Isolation) rubber-coated foot stirrup provides extra traction when cocking, but it also provides silencing when the stirrup comes into contact with other surfaces, such as a treestand platform. Another sweet trait, the Recruit XP has three separate Picatinny rails located on the foregrip. One is for the quiver bracket, and the others can be used for other compatible accessories, such as a flashlight or laser (where legal). Nighttime hog hunting, anyone?  

Pulling the Trigger

With an overall weight of only 6 pounds, I found that handling the Recruit XP is a piece of cake. As a light-framed woman, I particularly love that aspect. The textured cheekpiece and pistol and fore-end grips boost comfort and control, while built-in wings on the fore-end grip remind the shooter to keep extremities below the string path. And the adjustable stock, which I outlined earlier, allowed me to experiment a little bit and find a fit and feel that works for me. I also appreciated the stock’s rubber butt pad, a feature that many crossbows don’t have, which provides a positive shoulder weld when you settle in to take your shot.

Accuracy? No problem for the Recruit XP. My husband and I shot it out to 50 yards, and it easily puts arrows in the vitals just like the high-end crossbows that we’ve recently shot and tested. Despite not having dampeners or silencing accessories, this crossbow is unbelievably quiet, which I didn’t expect from a $299.99 crossbow. And while it doesn’t break any velocity records, it’s plenty powerful for really any application.

Final Thoughts

The Recruit XP truly outperforms its price tag. It’s fast enough. It’s quiet. It’s easy to cock (even for a short-armed woman like me). It includes everything except broadheads. It looks really sharp, and it’s rigged with a trigger that compares to those of most high-end crossbows. I just can’t believe that it’s so affordable. 

So, whether you have a customer who’s a firearm hunter and wants to extend his/her hunting season with a crossbow, someone who’s on a tight budget, or someone who hunts primarily for meat or leisure, I challenge you to find a better crossbow for the money to sell them. Barnett’s Recruit XP truly sets a new feature and performance bar in the economical-crossbow market.

In-the-field photos by Darron and Becca McDougal