Barnett Vengeance Review

Model	Draw Weight	Stroke	Velocity	Suggested Arrow Length	Crossbow Length / Weight
Barnett Vengeance Crossbow Check price on Amazon.com	140 lbs.	18"	365 FPS Crossbow Academy: ballistics, sighting, tuning	20"	34.75" / 8.1 lbs.

Package Contents

Welcome to this review of the Barnett Vengeance Crossbow. With its Reverse Limb Technology and Carbon Riser, this is one of the most powerful and fastest crossbows Barnett has ever manufactured. Each package delivered by Barnett includes the following items:

• The Barnett Vengeance Crossbow, including Riser and Prod
• 3 x 32mm scope
• Quiver
• 3 22” arrows
• Field tips
• Rope-cocking device

Assembling The Crossbow

The Barnett Vengeance isn’t the easiest crossbow to put together. There are some tricky bits to the assembly process, and it sometimes takes quite a bit of pressure to get all of the parts to line up flush for assembly. I used a rubber mallet, gently, and this helped quite a bit. In addition, the assembly instructions leave quite a bit to be desired, lacking decent-quality pictures and specific explanations for how the parts fit together. If you can convince your bow technician or salesperson to assemble the crossbow for you, save yourself a lot of time and frustration by doing so.

Accuracy And Power

The Barnett Vengeance is as mean shooting as it is mean looking. With its 140# draw weight and reverse limb technology, the Vengeance shoots…with a vengeance, if you’ll pardon the pun. Arrows blister off the rail at 365 fps, and the arrow is propelled into the target ahead of 118 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy. This is powerful enough to rip completely through a compressed foam target at 20 yards and still have enough energy to drive the arrow 4” into the tree behind my target.

Once I had the scope sighted in, which took almost no time at all, it was time to start shooting. I was able to maintain a frightening level of accuracy with this crossbow, shooting 1” groupings from 30 yards. Backing up to 50 yards, I maintained 1.5” groupings, and was able to shoot 3” groupings from 75 yards.

The Vengeance was my first reverse limb crossbow, and I think the balance given by the reverse limb technology is what truly helps with accuracy. There is almost no frontal heaviness to this crossbow, so there’s nothing pulling your aim up or down when you fire the crossbow. The results are astounding, and I may never willingly return to traditional crossbows after shooting the Barnett Vengeance. Except for review purposes, of course, and the fact that if it’s a bow or a crossbow I…well…I have to shoot it.

Ballistic Data For The Barnett Vengeance

Your actual results will vary slightly depending on weather, and significantly with arrow weight change. See our Crossbow Ballistics Guides section for a complete understanding of how we conducted our tests and why this data matters.

Hunting: What To Expect

The Barnett Vengeance is an absolute monster for hunting, with enough power for any game that you can legally hunt in North America. With 118 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy, arrows from a Vengeance have enough power to go clean through a large Cape buffalo.

The small form factor of this bow makes it ideal for carrying through the woods. Crossbows are often cumbersome, because of the wide limbs hanging at an awkward angle. With this reverse limb tech, though, the crossbow tends to seem smaller than even a compound bow. I added a padded sling to my Vengeance, and the bow sits nicely along my back without protruding and getting snagged on branches and limbs.

I took the Barnett Vengeance moose hunting, and was able to bag a large bull moose with a shot that went completely through the animal’s shoulder and out the other side. Once through the animal, the arrow still had enough energy to fly for an estimate 10-20 additional yards, finally coming to rest partially buried in a hill. The moose ran off for about 50 yards, and then bedded down for the last time.

You can always check out our recommendations for other hunting crossbows.

Kinetic Energy Of The Barnett Vengeance

The accuracy of the Barnett Vengeance is definitely astounding, but how much force is behind those 400-grain arrows? From point blank range, you can reasonably expect an arrow shot at 365 FPS to deliver around 118 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy. Assuming a dropoff of few percent ft. lbs. for every yard out from point blank range, this still leaves you with a monstrous 110 ft. lbs. of KE from 30 yards. This is almost twice the recommended minimum kinetic energy for even the toughest game in North America, like the grizzly bear or the Cape buffalo. In other words, this crossbow has the accuracy and the power to possibly be the only crossbow you’ll ever need for hunting.

Use our arrow ballistics calculator for more valuable information.

Cocking The Barnett Vengeance Crossbow

It’s very strange cocking a reverse limb crossbow, because you watch the string go in a direction that’s completely opposite of what you’d expect. Even so, the draw is very smooth and easy, especially using the included rope-cocking device.

I’ve heard several people, mostly people shorter than I am, complain that they simply weren’t tall enough to cock the Barnett Vengeance. This problem is easily solved, though. Cut the rope. Perhaps people don’t realize this, but rope-cocking devices typically come in one size, designed for a man around 5’11” tall. So, you need to figure out how much of the rope you need, and then cut the rope down to that size. It’s an easy process, and you can probably even have your bow technician help you.

If you don’t want to mess with cutting the rope, a hand-crank cocking device will mount on the butt stock and work just as well, if not better, than the rope-cocking device.

The Crossbow Scope

The scope Barnett ships with the Vengeance is an illuminated 3 x 32mm multiple reticle crossbow scope. Mine was sighted in out of the box, and I didn’t have to make any adjustments to it. The instruction manual is very vague about adjusting the scope, but check the markings on the windage and elevation knobs for details on how far each click will shift your aim.

Once I’d confirmed the scope was sighted in, I started using the crossbow. I found the scope held zero effortlessly, and I have yet to have to make any adjustments to the windage or elevation.

See our detailed guide on how to sight-in your crossbow

Bolts

The Barnett Vengeance ships with 20” 400 grain arrows, which are of decent quality. They’re carbon arrows, which is nice considering the power of the bow. I’m particularly fond of the Firebolt arrows Excalibur makes, though, and have been using those most of the time.

The included arrows shoot just fine, and maintain their rigidity quite well. They’re sturdy and heavy, which is exactly what you need when hunting large game.

You can also learn more about crossbow arrows and take a look at our broadhead recommendations

Safety and Design

Between the reverse limb design and the Carbon Riser Technology, Barnett has managed to remove 43% of the riser weight from the Vengeance. The result is a vicious-looking crossbow that maintains a steady and well-balanced shot, since most of the weight of the crossbow is now shifted to your shoulder. Still, with a weight of around 8 pounds, this isn’t something you’ll want to hold at the ready for a long time, unless you’ve got a rest to set it on.

The Vengeance’s trigger has a smooth 3.5 lbs. of pull, and contains an anti-dry fire mechanism. I found the trigger pull to be very smooth and steady, with no problems.

The only problem I found with the design of the Vengeance is the tendency for the rubber string dampeners to pop off easily. I’ve thought about securing them in place with a few drops of Super Glue, but in the meantime I just have to watch carefully for these dampeners to come off so I can find them without too much difficulty.

Warranty

All of Barnett’s crossbows are covered by a 5-year limited warranty. In my dealings with Barnett’s customer service representatives, I’ve found them to be very friendly and helpful.

What Crossbow Case Fits the Barnett Vengeance?

The SKB Hunter Series Crossbow Case is a hard case which provides plenty of room to accommodate larger scopes, accessories, and quivers. It even has wheels for ease of transport. For those looking for something a little more affordable, the Carbon Express Deluxe Case is a $66, soft alternative.

Crossbow Review – Summary

Thanks for reading this review of the Barnett Vengeance crossbow. This is a good choice for a hunting crossbow, owing to its power and small size. While it is a bit on the heavy side, the Vengeance does an excellent job of transferring that weight to the shoulder, which allows for a much steadier and well-balanced shot. Take a look at today's amazon.com price on this crossbow and check out our top 10 crossbows rankings for more.