Horton Bone Collector Review

Model	Draw Weight	Stroke	Velocity	Suggested Arrow Length	Crossbow Length / Weight
Horton Bone Collector Crossbow Check price on Amazon.com	175 lbs.	14.75"	320 FPS Crossbow Academy: ballistics, sighting, tuning	20"	36-1/8" / 8.5 lbs.

Package Contents

Welcome to our review of the Horton Bone Collector. Each package delivered by Horton includes the following items:

• The Horton Bone Collector crossbow
• 4×32 Mult-A-Range scope
• 3-arrow quiver
• 3 arrows
• Assembly hardware
• Owner’s manual
• Warranty card

Once you’ve unboxed your crossbow, it’s time to assemble it and get ready for some archery!

Assembling The Crossbow

I’ve seen some pretty poor instruction manuals come out Horton’s doors, but this one was a pleasant surprise. The assembly instructions are clear and detailed, and the assembly process was quick and easy. All you have to do is attach the prod to the riser, then mount the scope and quiver. I had my Bone Collector ready for the archery range within 20 minutes, and was on to sighting in and performing my accuracy tests.

I will say this, though. The scope is very easy to get misaligned on the rail, and if you don’t have it attached just right it will vibrate loose after a couple of shots. Horton has engineered a special lip for the scope rings to sit in, so make sure you get the rings perfectly into that lip and you’ll be good to go.

Accuracy And Power

The first step to accuracy testing for any new crossbow is sighting in the crossbow. The Mult-A-Range scope that Horton includes with the Bone Collector is one of my favorite scopes, in part because it is close to sighted in straight out of the box. My first grouping of shots came in at less than half an inch at 25 yards, requiring only a few minor adjustments to the scope to be perfectly zeroed in.

Once I’d finished my adjustments, I started testing the accuracy of my shots. I was able to maintain those half-inch groupings at 15 and 25 yards, and had 1” groupings out to 40 yards. I decided to take the crossbow outside of my normal hunting range, and test the crossbow at 50 and 60 yards, and was very pleased with the results. I had 1-1/2” groupings at 50 yards, and 2” groupings at 60 yards. This crossbow is super-accurate, and I was very pleased with its performance.

Use our arrow ballistics calculator for more valuable information.

Ballistic Data For The Horton Bone Collector

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

With my 425-gr arrows, the Bone Collector deals out more than 95 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy, making it more than powerful enough to take on any legal game in North America. It is a bit on the heavy side, though, so you may experience some fatigue when you are moving through the bush with this crossbow. Not too bad, though, I’m just used to 8-pound crossbows.

With as crazy accurate as this crossbow is, I decided to give it a shot for squirrel hunting. It’s unusual for me to use a bow or crossbow for squirrel hunting, since fine-tuned accuracy is so essential for these tiny game animals, but I was impressed at how tight my groupings were and decided to give it a shot. Within just a few hours, I had my game bag filled with squirrel and even a couple of rabbits. That is how accurate this crossbow is!

In the deer hunting realm, the raw power of the Bone Collector makes the crossbow perfect for hunting deer. I’ve taken down easily a half dozen deer with the Bone Collector, filling my freezer time and time again with venison courtesy of Horton.

Cocking The Horton Bone Collector

With 175 pounds of draw weight, this is not a crossbow you will want to cock by hand very often. I always recommend using a rope cocking device, anyways, because that is the only way to ensure the smooth and consistent draw that is essential to an accurate shot. Unfortunately, Horton does not include a rope cocking device with the Horton Bone Collector, so I would recommend investing in one at the same time that you purchase the crossbow.

The string pulls back smoothly and easily, and locks securely in place without any wiggle room. The overmolded forearm makes it easy to ensure your fingers are free of the string when you fire the crossbow.

The Crossbow Scope

The included Mult-A-Range scope is one I’ve covered a number of times, and I simply cannot say enough how much I love this scope. It is usually zeroed in almost out of the box, and it holds true for entire seasons, no matter how much you bump it around and jostle the scope. The eye relief is almost perfect, and the optics are clear and crisp even on cold, foggy mornings.

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

Bolts

The included bolts are okay for target shooting, but not very durable. The included arrows were broken within a few shooting sessions. I quickly moved up to my professional deer-killing arrows—the Firebolt. Horton recommends 20” arrows at 425-grain, and this combination will deliver accuracy and raw killing power that will ensure you a freezer full of deer, moose, bear, or buffalo meat.

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

Safety and Design

The Bone Collector stands unique in its class for having an aluminum barrel. It is among the fastest and most durable mid-priced crossbows on the market, and is a real pleasure to shoot. The trigger pull is light and consistent, and the anti dry fire mechanism performs flawlessly on every shot.

This crossbow is short, having a length of just 35-5/8”, and is suitable for just about any bowhunter. The rubber stock and cheek rest make it comfortable to shoot, and the dampening inserts keep the vibration and noise down considerably for a crossbow.

The hand grip is adjustable, to help it fit a variety of hand and arm sizes. The design of the grip is a bit strange, and takes some getting used to, but it feels very nice in the hand once you have it set up the way you like it. The adjustable pull length is also an interesting, and nice, feature, making it easy to adjust the crossbow for shooters of smaller than average stature.

Warranty

Alas, Horton shut its doors last year. You can still find Horton crossbows on the market, but there is no longer a manufacturer warranty. Many sellers are offering refunds or exchanges if your bow is defective, but most seem to be selling the crossbows as-is at this point.

What Crossbow Case Fits the Horton Bone Collector?

The Carbon Express Deluxe Case is a nice soft case selection and at under $70 it is a good deal, build is not a first choice for larger scopes. The Plano 1133-00 Manta Crossbow Case is hard case which is around 120 dollars and it offers enough room for large scopes.

Horton Bone Collector Review Summary

Thanks for reading our crossbow review of the Horton Bone Collector. Even though Horton is no longer in business, there are a number of sellers who still have Horton crossbows in stock, so it should be easy to find the Horton Bone Collector. This is such a nicely-built crossbow that I’m amazed Horton went out of business, but there you have it. If you can do without the warranty coverage, this is a fine choice for hunting crossbows. The price is very reasonable, and after-market parts are still available for replacing strings and other problems that may (or may not) come up with your crossbow. Take a look at today's amazon.com price on this crossbow and check out our top 10 crossbows rankings for more.