| Model | Draw Weight | Stroke | Velocity | Suggested Arrow Length | Crossbow Length / Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stryker Offspring Check price on Amazon.com | 150 lbs. | 13" | 360 FPS How to sight a crossbow? | 20" | 37.5" / 6 lbs. 8 ozs. |
| Pros: - Easy to cock - Quiet - Can Manually Decock - First Stryker to Accept a Crank Cons: - No Auto Safety | Small Game Hunting? |  |
| Deer, Elk Hunting? | |
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| Moose, Bear Hunting? | |
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| Target Shooting? | |
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| Today's Online Prices: | Compare Prices | |
| Also Recommended: | Best Diamond Archery Crossbows |
Stryker Offspring Package Contents
The Stryker Offspring is offered as a complete package. Ours arrived with:
- A Deadzone Scope
- A 4-arrow detachable quiver
- Three Accustrike carbon arrows
- Three 100-grain field points
- A rope cocking aid
Everything was ready to go in short order and we were able to head to the range. Keep in mind that the arrows that ship are about 390 grains (with points), so you aren’t going to see the full 360 fps speed unless you drop to a 350-grain arrow.
First Impressions: Design, Safety, Comfort and Accuracy
The folks at Stryker have combined an Excalibur stock with a Stryker forend to create the Offspring (hence the name). The Offsrping allows the shooter to enjoy the power and performance of the Stryker barrel and limbs, while allowing for the customization of the stock that so many Excalibur shooters have enjoyed. Available in Black Ops or Mossy Oak Break Up, the Offspring is a creative combination of the two companies’ offerings.
This is the first Stryker that can utilize a crank cocking mechanism, which is something we have heard many Stryker shooters asking about for quite some time. Since the stock is an Excalibur, it is adaptable to the Excalibur C2 crank. Another nice feature of the Offspring is that it can be manually decocked without firing an arrow. We would have like to have seen an auto safety, but this is something that the shooter will just get used to, and is frankly something all shooters should do…make sure the crossbow is on safety anytime it is loaded!
Kinetic Energy of the Offspring
The Offspring really takes good advantage of its reverse-cam design, which allows for a longer power stroke and thus more speed. Using a 350-grain projectile, the Offspring is going to launch at about 360 fps, resulting in about 101 ft. lbs. of energy. If you up that arrow to a more ‘real world’ weight of 400 grains, you are going to slow to the mid 330s in terms of speed, but given the heavier projectile, are still going to be hitting in the 100-ft. lb. range at the muzzle.
Use our arrow ballistics calculator for more valuable information.Hunting with the Stryker Offspring
Hunting with the Offspring should prove to be a fun endeavor. Given the light weight you aren’t going to be too worn out by the time you tote Offspring to your hunting area. There is plenty of punch to bring down just about anything you would want to hunt and the variable speed Deadzone scope does a great job of taking the guesswork out of multi-distance shots.
The design of the quiver is well thought out as it mounts along the stock rather than across it as many other crossbows have. This means that once you have the crossbow cocked, you simply reach over and lift the arrow out of the quiver and right into the track. We also really like the fact that the Offspring can be manually decocked which means you can leave your hunting area without having to shoot an arrow, thereby not spooking any game.
How Quiet is the Offspring
The Offspring is a very quiet crossbow, especially considering there is no real dampening system installed. As with all crossbows, most vibration and noise ends up transferred to the forward-most point, so the stirrup ends up like a tuning fork. A few well-placed dampeners and you are going to have a very quiet hunting companion in the Offspring.
Cocking the Offspring
The Offspring was very easy to cock, especially given the long 13” power stroke. The reverse cams help in this regard as the string is actually on the forward side of the cams, so it ends up about 2” lower when at rest. This means that although it is a 13” stroke, you are only lifting as high as you would for an 11” stroke when cocking. The rope cocker really does make life much easier and the fact that you can now use the Excalibur C2 crank on the Offspring means that virtually anyone should be able to cock this crossbow.
As discussed before, being able to decock the Offspring without firing can be a real advantage. This is a result of being able to manually disengage the Guardian anti-dry-fire mechanism, thereby allowing you to let down on the string.
Quality of the Optics
The included Deadzone scope is certainly a good scope that will allow you to shoot in most situations. It is a nice feature that it has a speed dial, which is going to allow you to truly customize the distances for your specific arrow speeds. All in all, this should work for most shooting situations and we have not heard of any specific complaints.
See our detailed guide on how to sight-in your crossbowWhat Arrows to use with the Offspring
The Offspring arrives with 20” arrows that are a bit heavier than the speed-test weight of 350 grains. You can feel comfortable shooting arrows up to 400 grains, but we wouldn’t recommend going too much heavier as speeds are already dropping into the 335 fps range. You don’t need to be too concerned with a stiff spine given the 150-lb limbs, just make sure you pay attention to the overall projectile weight to ensure optimum performance. Stryker does not recommend an arrow weight of less than 350 grains with the Offspring.
You can also learn more about crossbow arrows and take a look at our broadhead recommendationsOverall Thoughts
The Stryker Offspring is a crossbow that is, well, the offspring of the collaboration of two great crossbow companies. We have heard it said that the Offspring brings the best of both companies, Stryker and Excalibur, and frankly we can’t disagree. Having the power and punch of the Stryker compound assembly combined with the customization of the Excalibur stock means you can enjoy power and comfort.
With its smooth trigger and ability to be manually decocked, this will certainly be a crossbow that has a lot of folks taking a second look at a first-time, first-rate combination. Take a look at today's amazon.com price on this crossbow and check out our top 10 crossbows rankings for more.
Which broad heads are the best to use on this bow for white tail deer hunting? How much fps would it be too Hunting in Wisconsin.
Chong,
I shoot 100 grain WASP mechanical broadheads with my Offspring for whitetail deer and turkeys. They do make “crossbow” broadheads that are less prone to open early, but I have not experienced any issues with using the same type as I do for my compound bow. I also shoot 100 grain WASP fixed blades on occasion.