Horton Dakota SL

[oxman]

Hey folks, I inherited a Horton Dakota SL and want to give it to me 8 year old son to use next Fall in hopes of him bringing down his first deer. Want to get some thoughts on the Xbow from you and any reccomendations on scopes that I can put on her. I've heard the shooter really has to be careful with an arrant thumb that can be caught by the string but other than that I don't have much in the way of feedback. I assume it's going to take a 20" bolt and will be reaching out to Dan to pick up some Black Eagles for it. Bow looks to be brand new. Any feedback and info on the bow greatly appreciated!

[RexKay]

I had an explorer 150 once. I shot 20 in alum xx75s. Always watch the thumb on those. The ouch sucks. The yukon was a slightly cheaper model.Dakota 175 lb I believe. Should kill deer no problem. At 150 lbs,and no rope groove,cocking by hand wasn't to bad on the explorer. Mine had the dial a range,and 3dot red dot.. Took my 1st buck on local state land nearby with it. Good luck.

[tomcat]

I had one and it was a fantastic shooter(for a horton). It has the older style latch/claw and can safely be shot with flat knocks.
If you want it to shoot fantastic here a couple things you should do.

1.If it has a scope mount(and you plan to use a scope)
Eliminate the Dial a range by putting a screw/bolt through the rear hole of the "hinged" scope base into the stock/barrel(most stocks barrels were already drilled tapped. If you need help you can PM me as I've done a lot of them.
2.Buy either an Excal Varizone/shadow zone or the Horton variables available all over ebay for cheap....
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Horton-Archery- ... 5418aaf1b5
3. Invest in a rope cocker for consistency.
4.Shoot Flat knock 2216's(320gr+Point)...although 2219's will work(350gr+ point), they will be too slow to work out to 10 yd increments when sighted in at 20yds with the scope I've mentioned. The 2216's are cheap and still heavy enough to keep the bow from destroying itself over a bunch of shots.
5.DO NOT shoot any arrows which weigh less than 400 grains unless you want fight with everyone for new limbs on Ebay(the ONLY source now)....
6.Don't use rail lube or wax servings. Just get re-served when it needs replaced.
7.Most Hortons spit arrows out tail high due to latch/trigger design from underneath and your POI WILL be lower by a good amount than field points...Best fix for this...Mechanicals....but the challenge is these bows have barely enough juice to work well with most Mechanicals. SO...you are limited to Mechs known for good penetration(AKA-Not Rages and the 40KE Raghave fragile blades that break at close ranges ). Shwackers are known to be a good penetrator and durable if you like that design.
I think the best head for that bow(which my kids use in Their Yukons(150#) is Rocket Steelhead 100's as they are the best penetrating Mech out there.

Any other questions feel free to PM me..

[oxman]

This ladies and gentleman is why I love this site and hunters never cease to amaze me. Incredible response THANK YOU Tomcat!

[tomcat]

Just passing on what I've learned to save some heartache.
I've lived/grown up near Horton & Tenpoint(Hunter Mfg) all my life and have learned most of what I know about them from ex-employees.
These are just a handful of the tips I picked up from the guys in the Suffield Pro-Shop/Range. I've been into Vertical bows since around mid 80's and have listened to lots of "design" discussions between Hortons & Hunter Mfg/Tenpoints through the 90-s. Never really thought would need any of that as I lived in the Martin/Hoyt world until 2005 when I was hit on my motorcycle by a tired overworked illegal alien in a dump truck. I loss 3 muscles in my dominant shoulder and had no choice but to become one of the cheating "arrow gun" guys IF I wanted to continue to hunt. Anyways, I've gotten even the cheapest & worst designed Horton's (Yukon/Summit)to shoot really well with these tricks.
Tenpoint makes a fantastic "premium" bow that ALWAYS shoot great out of the box(and they should given their premium price), but with all the knowledge/experience I've gathered, all I CHOOSE to own/hunt with are Excals , except a Yukon SL I built for my 8yo. It's a light, short and fast/accurate enough setup to take deer out to 40 yds with the right shots/discretion.

[tomcat]

PS..Dakota SL = 150#. Originally equipped w/swaged cables it shot in the 250fps range and once converted(upgraded)to the ICAD(synthic harness) system you would pick about 10-15fps which coincidentally put you at the same speed as the newer Horton 150# bows...BUT the Dakota SL was one of Horton's best bows because had an machined aluminum barrel and came with a very good synthetic stock similar to a rifle. The fit/and eye alignment of this stock made it very easy to shoot well vs the ridiculous other stocks on the market at the time.

[Karrahahu1]

Hey folks, I inherited a Horton Dakota SL and want to give it to me 8 year old son to use next Fall in hopes of him bringing down his first deer. Want to get some thoughts on the Xbow from you and any reccomendations on scopes that I can put on her.

_____________________
James

[sproulman]

Good info on using 400 GR arrow or more.put 110 gr brass inserts.They do not make limbs for them and light arrows were reason for splits and reason I put new limbs on horton I am selling do not want old limbs splitting on anyone in future....These bows do cock real easy and shoot deadly with alum arrows..I put dental floss on my serving as you have to go to bowshop to have new string on it waxed dental floss worked real good...

[sproulman]

I had one and it was a fantastic shooter(for a horton). It has the older style latch/claw and can safely be shot with flat knocks.
If you want it to shoot fantastic here a couple things you should do.

1.If it has a scope mount(and you plan to use a scope)
Eliminate the Dial a range by putting a screw/bolt through the rear hole of the "hinged" scope base into the stock/barrel(most stocks barrels were already drilled tapped. If you need help you can PM me as I've done a lot of them.
2.Buy either an Excal Varizone/shadow zone or the Horton variables available all over ebay for cheap....
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Horton-Archery- ... 5418aaf1b5
3. Invest in a rope cocker for consistency.
4.Shoot Flat knock 2216's(320gr+Point)...although 2219's will work(350gr+ point), they will be too slow to work out to 10 yd increments when sighted in at 20yds with the scope I've mentioned. The 2216's are cheap and still heavy enough to keep the bow from destroying itself over a bunch of shots.
5.DO NOT shoot any arrows which weigh less than 400 grains unless you want fight with everyone for new limbs on Ebay(the ONLY source now)....
6.Don't use rail lube or wax servings. Just get re-served when it needs replaced.
7.Most Hortons spit arrows out tail high due to latch/trigger design from underneath and your POI WILL be lower by a good amount than field points...Best fix for this...Mechanicals....but the challenge is these bows have barely enough juice to work well with most Mechanicals. SO...you are limited to Mechs known for good penetration(AKA-Not Rages and the 40KE Raghave fragile blades that break at close ranges ). Shwackers are known to be a good penetrator and durable if you like that design.
I think the best head for that bow(which my kids use in Their Yukons(150#) is Rocket Steelhead 100's as they are the best penetrating Mech out there.

Any other questions feel free to PM me..

Sir your info on HORTON crossbows is just dead on correct even down to dia thing screw in side..Only thing I can add is use WAXED DENTAL FLOSS and save your serving....