Horton Legend 175 Review

ModelDraw WeightStrokeVelocitySuggested Arrow LengthCrossbow Length / Weight

Horton Legend HD 175

Horton Legend HD 175

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175 lbs.12"305 FPS

How to sight a crossbow?
20"33.5" / 7.2 lbs.

Pros:

  • Lightweight Talon trigger pull
  • Very light crossbow for the power
  • Excellent scope for out-of-this-world accuracy

Cons:

  • No rope cocking device included
  • No warranty support from Horton, since they are out of business

Package Contents

Welcome to this review of the Horton Legend HD 175 crossbow. Each package delivered by Horton includes the following items:

  • The Horton Legend HD Pro 175 Crossbow
  • 4x32mm Mult-A-Range crossbow scope
  • Hunter Elite 3-arrow quiver
  • 3 20” arrows

Once you unbox your crossbow, take some time to read through the owner’s manual before beginning assembly. Then, move on to putting your crossbow together and getting it out to the range.

Assembling The Crossbow

The Horton Legend HD Pro 175 is easy to assemble, and you should be able to have it ready to rock and roll within half an hour. Assembly instructions are very easy to read and follow, leading you through attaching the prod to the riser and then attaching the foot stirrup to the crossbow. After that, you mount the scope and quiver and you’re good to go.

Accuracy And Power

I really enjoy the Horton Mult-A-Range scope, because it requires almost no work to sight it in. I had to make a couple of elevation adjustments to the scope, but then it was ready for some serious accuracy testing. I fired salvos at 25, 30, 40, and 50 yards to see just how accurate this crossbow could be. What I learned was that this particular crossbow is one of the most accurate I’ve come across.

At 25 yards, my shots were all dead-center on the bull’s eye, with the arrows actually touching each other in the grouping. I’d call that less than half an inch at 25 yards. From 30 yards, I was able to maintain half-inch groupings, and the same held true at 40 yards. From 50 yards, I was able to shoot 1” groupings, which is something I rarely find in a crossbow.

The Legend HD Pro 175 deals out 90 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy, making it powerful enough to drive the arrow clear through my target block and into the backstop behind my target, even from 40 yards.

Is The Legend 175 Good For Hunting?

At 90 ft. lbs. of kinetic energy, the Horton Legend HD Pro 175 is more than powerful enough to take on most big game in North America. I wouldn’t take it bear or buffalo hunting, but I’ve certainly relied upon my Legend HD Pro to take down deer, moose, and elk.

The Legend is light and easy to carry through the forest, small enough that it does not easily get tangled up in brush or limbs. I walked around all day with the crossbow on my back, and suffered no fatigue whatsoever.

I’ve used the Legend HD Pro 175 to take down several large bucks, including a 12-point buck. I’ve also bagged a couple of moose and an elk with the crossbow, most of the time watching my arrow pass clean through the animal and out the other side. I’ve never had to stalk a dying animal for more than 50 yards when shooting it with the Legend HD Pro.

Cocking the Horton Legend HD Pro 175

The draw weight on this crossbow is 175 pounds, which is a bit out of most people’s muscle range for hand drawing. I’ve seen a couple reviewers lament how hard the bow is to cock by hand, but I take a slightly different philosophy: you shouldn’t be drawing a crossbow by hand in the first place.

It’s unfortunate that Horton does not include a rope cocking device with this bow, but I would recommend you invest in one when you purchase your crossbow. Using a rope cocking device, you will reduce the effective draw weight down to about 80 or 90 pounds, and you’ll also be assured of an even, consistent string pull every time. This is essential to accuracy and safety with a crossbow.

The Crossbow Scope

The Mult-A-Range scope included with this crossbow is a 4x32mm illuminated red dot scope that features crisp, clear optics and excellent eye relief. The scope has awesome light gathering capabilities, so it works almost as well in low light as in full daylight. As previously mentioned, the scope was almost zeroed in straight out of the box, but the windage and elevation adjustment knobs are very easy to access and use.

Arrows

The Horton Legend HD Pro 175 includes 3 20” arrows, but I would recommend quickly replacing them with better arrows, like the Firebolt series of carbon arrows. The arrows that come with the crossbow are really only good for a few shots at the practice range, but they are not suitable for hunting because they break rather easily.

Safety and Design

The Legend series of crossbows is a lineup that Horton first brought on the market in 1998, and has been refining ever since. One of the most popular lines of crossbows in Horton’s history, the Legend HD Pro 175 has the same attention to detail that the first Horton Legend had, and is a fine-shooting crossbow. There is almost no vibration in my setup, and the noise level is lower than what I’ve measured with more expensive crossbows.

The Talon ultra light trigger has just the perfect break point, and the bow is nicely balanced for a crossbow with only a minimum amount of frontal heaviness. The lightweight, synthetic stock is weatherproof for poor condition hunting, and the anti dry fire mechanism works perfectly every single time.

Warranty

Unfortunately, you won’t find much of a warranty on the Legend HD Pro 175, because Horton is no longer in business. Some sellers may offer a return or exchange within 30 days, but even those offers are getting hard to come by.

Horton Legend Summary

Thanks for reading our crossbow review of the Horton Legend HD Pro 175. This is a finely-crafted crossbow, with just the right mixture of power and accuracy for most hunting needs. The main drawback to the crossbow is the lack of warranty support, now that Horton has closed its doors for good. Take a look at Amazon.com’s great price on the Horton Legend HD 175 if you’re interested.

7 Comments

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  1. I recently aquired a Horton legend 175 HD and was wondering what the distance is per click on the duel dial on the side …. a little help please… thanks

    1. I own a Legend SL with the same ” dial-a-range ” setting. I’ve found that each click will give you 8 to 10 yards depending on the arrow and broad head weight. Happy hunting.

  2. I shoot the legend and cannot get 2 arrows to hit the same. each arrow consistently hits in the same place but cant get them to zero the same. any ideas?

    1. I had a similar problem with a used legend with the Horton scope. Vertical Crosshair was not straight. The further out I shot, the arrows would move right. Nice groups at each range, just not on the bullseye. You should try a new scope. To get by until you do, try turning the scope slightly in the rings the opposite direction that the bolts are moving ( if bolts are moving right as you go longer distance turn the scope to the left until they come in towards center) Remember that if you are zero’d at 10 yards and off 3 inches right at 60, the best you can improve it is 1.5″ left at ten yards and 1.5′ right at 60yrds. But 1.5″ either way still spells dead deer in most cases. Again, this is only a “get you by” solution, but if your bolt groups are good, my opinion is that your aiming system is faulty. Hope this helps. Good Luck!

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