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Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
15 April 2013, 13:38,
#1
Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
I bought one of these yesterday on a whim after seeing it in a shooting stall on a Market

http://www.bladesandbows.co.uk/armex-tom...2143-p.asp

After shooting it today for a little while I must say I am very impressed with this little crossbow. The assembly could not be easier and took less than ten minutes. The hardest part is stringing the crossbow, and for one person not used to doing so could be a little tricky, my suggestion would be to wait till you have someone else available to slip the string into the nocks while you compress the limb enough.
After making sure everything was tight and safe, which it was I gave it a quick lube up on all linkages and moving parts. The string that came with the crossbow was of pretty good quality to be honest and was in tip top condition and well made for such a cheap weapon. I gave the string a good waxing with beeswax supplied by a friend and made sure the string was twisted a few turns evenly on each side.
The open sights are pretty rudimentary the rear being a V notch and front post. Elevation is taken care of by simply releasing the tension on the sight which is spring loaded by turning a knurled nut, allowing the sight to rise. Adjusting the sight for lateral movement is done by the nut on the right of the sight, turn clockwise to adjust Right. The rear sights can be taken off, as can the front post and sight and a red dot fitted etc. I intended to fit a red dot sight immediately, but after testing today I'm not sure you would need to.
The bolts that I got with the crossbow are 6.5 inches long and Gold coloured alloy with two rubber fletchings. To be honest when I saw these they looked pants, but after testing I am quite surprised, and seriously under estimated them.
I tested the crossbow at a measured ten yards on a 3.5 inch target in blustery conditions (in my garden not as bad though). The first 10 shots went high and to the Right. After a few minutes adjusting the sights I was shooting 3inch groups, and those little bolts just bury themselves into the target. The trigger is quite good with a little bit of creep towards the end, but nothing bad. I tested these bolts for penetration on a number of things including big Potato's plastic buckets of different thickness, and an old rotisserie oven. On the Plastic buckets, Compost bin and Potato's it just went straight through them, I was gobsmacked. When I shot the steel oven it penetrated and then bounced, leaving a hole in the steel. I honestly have no idea what footpounds of energy these little bows are producing, but I am confident at ten yards these are very capable of taking small birds and game (only in SHTF folks as it is very naughty to hunt with bows in UK tut tut)
All in all I can't recommend these enough great fun
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15 April 2013, 13:50,
#2
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
Shooting stall on a market. Tell me where?
Skean Dhude
-------------------------------
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change. - Charles Darwin
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15 April 2013, 13:54, (This post was last modified: 15 April 2013, 13:58 by Tartar Horde.)
#3
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
(15 April 2013, 13:50)Skean Dhude Wrote: Shooting stall on a market. Tell me where?
Skirlington Market East Yorkshire,
Sells bows , crossbows , air rifles, snares, nets, purse nets, decoys, ya get the idea. face to face Big Grin

(15 April 2013, 13:54)Tartar Horde Wrote:
(15 April 2013, 13:50)Skean Dhude Wrote: Shooting stall on a market. Tell me where?
Skirlington Market East Yorkshire,
Sells bows , crossbows , air rifles, snares, nets, purse nets, decoys, ya get the idea. face to face Big Grin
PM me for finer details SD
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15 April 2013, 14:11,
#4
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
so TH, you really rate this thing do you? after seeing the video i am impressed and very tempted, which is strange for me cos i'm dead against crossbows usually since NR put his back out with one. what could you see the uses for this is a post SHTF situation? would it be any good for hunting game or should i stick to my longbows.
Some people that prefer to be alone arent anti-social they just have no time for drama, stupidity and false people.
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15 April 2013, 14:24,
#5
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
Honestly I really am impressed, I've just been out again shooting it and at ten yards with the open sights you could nail anything from Sparrow size upwards. I'm taking it to Farm and will try it out at different ranges, but I have a lot of testing to do regarding making my own bolts and fitting R/dot. The strings are really cheap to get hold of as are the bolts etc so you could put enough spares to last you ages.
I will try to do a video in a few minutes to show ya and put it on Youtube.
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15 April 2013, 14:55, (This post was last modified: 15 April 2013, 14:56 by bigpaul.)
#6
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
(15 April 2013, 14:24)Tartar Horde Wrote: Honestly I really am impressed, I've just been out again shooting it and at ten yards with the open sights you could nail anything from Sparrow size upwards. I'm taking it to Farm and will try it out at different ranges, but I have a lot of testing to do regarding making my own bolts and fitting R/dot. The strings are really cheap to get hold of as are the bolts etc so you could put enough spares to last you ages.
I will try to do a video in a few minutes to show ya and put it on Youtube.

to be honest, 10 yards is not a lot is it? my air rifle is zeroed in for 30 metres, at 10 yards i'd probably be better off with my slingbow and arrows, time i pay £30 + whatever it is for a decent stock of bolts, would i be better off spending that on more wooden arrows for my longbow?

i'm not really interested in a "toy", i want something serious for post SHTF whether that is for hunting or "repelling invaders"!!Angel
Some people that prefer to be alone arent anti-social they just have no time for drama, stupidity and false people.
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15 April 2013, 16:47,
#7
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
These little bows are controversial, some love them, others loath them. I seem to remember Timelord giving them a bashing. I have one, and rate it half as a cheaply made toy and half as a very useful tool. But one thing is for sure you can't go wrong for the cost of these things for tool or toy.
I have had a few different types.. they do fall apart... BUT the bits that go tend to be surplus to it actually working. The cocking mechanism can go, but at 80lb a kid can cock it just by pulling on the string. The sights can break... but it's pretty much just as accurate to aim by looking down it. In fact if you remove all the bits you don't need it's a rugged and compact unit. For survival you would just need a spare string and prod as with any bow.
The version shown in the review is the one I have now, and seems to be the best of the bunch... not a bit has fallen off yet! But it will.

Why I personally rate it as a good tool (with the crap stripped off - no need to do in advance, it will be self removing over time)
is that:

They are cheap and easy to get and keep multiple spares for.

They can be inconspicuously carried, and don't add much weight to a BOB even with plenty of bolts.

It is easy to make your own bolts for, as it isn't powerful enough to shatter dowl, like a 200lb crossbowwould, and the bolts are short enough not to require being too straight along their length like a longbow. Pretty much a stick with gaffa tape flights and a tin snipped broadhead from an old car door would do the job... it is not a precision instrument. I, erm, fired a wooden spatula out of mine only this afternoon... I got board and distracted whilst cooking.

They are surprisingly powerful at close range. I did some tests with full power (UK Legal) air rifles and pistols. It does not have the range and accuracy of a decent air rifle, but it matches an air pistol for accuracy (which is fair as they are about the same size) and for power it beats it into a pulp. I found the penetration at close ranges of about 8 yards to at least match the air rifle with the best pellets, but with a much heavier bigger diameter projectile.

That is why I don't think they can be dismissed as just a toy, even if they may seem in next to much bigger cross bows.

These pistols will bag a rabbit at the kind of range they let you get within before hopping off, and do it with easy to make ammo post SHTF.

They don't offer serious protection against raiders though... but may act as a deterrent. They won't stop a man, but they would bloody sting and be an infection risk.

Oh, and most importantly, with the aluminium bolts they pass the skull piercing test, so can theoretically keep zombies away... important for some.

You can also practice with it in a normal garden... it's hard to do this with big cross bow.

So I still value my air rifles and stores of pellets for birds and longer range use, and I favor my bigger bows for use against bigger buggers. And it's not going to replace side by side 12g, but there is a place for this little cheap piece of cast ally in my BOV.

Now that reminds me I need to go outside and retrieve that spatula before my wife gets home.
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15 April 2013, 18:18,
#8
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
Trust me this is not a toy it will kill you very easily. I have only tested it at ten yards so far, but judging by the speed and penetration these bolts get you would deffo kill a rabbitt at 20 yards and with a good red dot sight and handmade bolts you might push 30. For stuff like pigeons in your garden SHTF its a winner and very quiet, just another tool.
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15 April 2013, 18:25,
#9
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
(15 April 2013, 18:18)Tartar Horde Wrote: Trust me this is not a toy it will kill you very easily. I have only tested it at ten yards so far, but judging by the speed and penetration these bolts get you would deffo kill a rabbitt at 20 yards and with a good red dot sight and handmade bolts you might push 30. For stuff like pigeons in your garden SHTF its a winner and very quiet, just another tool.

there is a guy firing one on youtube over 35ft fairly accurately.
Some people that prefer to be alone arent anti-social they just have no time for drama, stupidity and false people.
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15 April 2013, 18:33,
#10
RE: Armex Tomcat MKII 80lb crossbow pistol review
(15 April 2013, 18:25)bigpaul Wrote:
(15 April 2013, 18:18)Tartar Horde Wrote: Trust me this is not a toy it will kill you very easily. I have only tested it at ten yards so far, but judging by the speed and penetration these bolts get you would deffo kill a rabbitt at 20 yards and with a good red dot sight and handmade bolts you might push 30. For stuff like pigeons in your garden SHTF its a winner and very quiet, just another tool.

there is a guy firing one on youtube over 35ft fairly accurately.

The bolts that it comes with are not the best as the heads are crimped on and so can rattle a tad, this will affect accuracy, and I'm certain once I can work out the best length and weight of bolt it will be more consistent. I have applied vaseline to the trigger sear and this has helped the smoothness of release. Ideally I would like to get a dead Rabbit and test it out at different ranges and get a definitive answer as to the lethality of the bow.
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