Crossbow Review: Excalibur Mag Max

If you’ve read my wife’s or my Excalibur crossbow reports in previous Bowhunting World issues, you know we’re proponents of the brand’s simplicity. While some incredible ultra-technical crossbows are on the market, there’s something to be said for fewer moving parts. For 40-some years, Excalibur crossbows have featured recurve limbs. While most other brands chase after futuristic craftsmanship and drive the velocity needle higher and higher, Excalibur makes calculated improvements without forsaking its roots. I respect that a ton.

Of course, recurve crossbows don’t appeal to everyone, but neither do the most technologically advanced compound crossbows that blast bolts downrange at more than 500 fps. There are different crossbows for different tastes, making our industry more interesting. There’s something for everyone.

That said, the point of this article is to discover the ins and outs of Excalibur’s latest model, the Mag Max. In the following paragraphs, I aim to help you answer these questions: What about the Mag Max will win a bowhunter’s favor? Follow along.

Test Crossbow Specs

• Make/Model: Excalibur Mag Max
• Finish: Mossy Oak Bottomland
• Mass Weight: 6 pounds (without accessories); 7.9 pounds (with accessories)   
• Overall Width: 25.75 inches (uncocked); 22.5 inches (cocked)
• Overall Length: 32 inches
• Draw Effort: 14 pounds (with optional crank)
• Power Stroke: 13.2 inches
• Bolt Length and Weight: 16.5 inches; 350.9 grains
• Manufacturer Listed Velocity: Up to 350 fps
• Test Velocity: 346 fps (350.9-grain bolt)
• Manufacturer Listed Trigger Pull: Not listed
• Cocking Device: Rope Cocking Aid (included)
• Scope: TACT Hunter
• MSRP: $799-$899 
• Contact: excaliburcrossbow.com 

Simple, Affordable Package and Seamless Assembly

The Mag Max comes with the basic accessories needed to hit the woods, and there are a few different configurations. I tested the Mossy Oak Bottomland model, so I’ll run through the accessories related to that package. First, it includes a new rope cocker, which is now rigged with the CeaseFire Decocking Hook; the Decocking Hook used to be a separate piece that you had to add to the rope aid in order to decock a crossbow. This new all-in-one cocking and decocking rope assembly streamlines the process and is so small that it fits in my palm. Huge win.

Next, the Mag Max in Bottomland includes the Tact Hunter Scope with 1-inch rings. It features red and green illumination, flip-up scope caps to keep rain and snow off the glass, and a reticle with hold points out to 70 yards. Other inclusions are Excalibur’s 4-Arrow Quiver, three Quill 16.5-inch bolts, three practice tips, R.E.D.S. Suppressors, and the ultra-effective Sound Deadening System. This package comes in at an ultra-reasonable $899. If you calculate the average of all crossbow prices from low end to high end, it’s about $1,200. The Mag Max is a few hundred bucks below that. Bowhunters who want high performance but are on a budget will find this to be their answer.

Assembling the Mag Max is as simple as attaching the limb and riser assembly to the stock with one bolt. Mount the scope, attach the quiver, thread the practice points into the Quill bolts, and install the Ex-Shox Sound Dampeners. Done. 

Tactically Compact, Beautifully Balanced

One of the Mag Max’s most remarkable attributes is its diminutive platform and light mass weight. At 7.9 pounds (accessorized), it is lighter than many scoped deer rifles, due to the skeletonized stock and lightweight yet powerful High-Output Limbs and minimal riser assembly. Although a recurve crossbow’s limbs will never be as compact as some of today’s narrowest compound crossbows, the Mag Max feels very compact. I’d be 100 percent comfortable with shooting it from a box blind, a tight saddle setup, or any other hunting ambush. It would even be a piece of cake to maneuver while belly-crawling on a spot-and-stalk hunt.

Many compound crossbows are front heavy, which makes them a little more awkward to carry. Of course, the weight forward stabilizes the crossbow to some degree, but the Mag Max deviates and has more of a central balance point. It’s a joy to carry, and I find that it’s as easy as any other crossbow to aim when shooting off-hand (no rest). I have nothing but accolades for its overall fit, feel and balance.

The short 13.2-inch power stroke makes cocking the Mag Max with the included rope doable for many hunters. Not everyone wants the mechanics of a crank and the extra parts. It can be faster and less cumbersome to cock a crossbow with a rope. I found cocking and decocking easy and fast. Should you desire a crank after purchasing the Mag Max, it’s fully compatible with Excalibur’s removable cranks (sold separately).

Deadly Accurate and Whisper Quiet

During my field test, I shot the Mag Max out to the Tact Hunter scope’s maximum distance, which is 70 yards. As soon as I sighted in the scope at 20 yards — four shots is all it took — I moved back to 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 yards. It’s almost unbelievable how effortless it was to put bolts in my Rinehart 3-D deer target’s 10-ring.

Excalibur’s clean-breaking Premium Trigger is a big contributor to the accuracy. I know that 70 yards is a long shot even for a crossbow, but sometimes that’s all the closer you can get to a bedded pronghorn or mule deer buck. In skilled hands and fired from a solid rest, I believe the Mag Max can make that shot every single time based on my test results.

The Mag Max is also one of the quieter crossbows I’ve tested recently. The fewer moving parts are one thing, but Excalibur takes it two steps further with the R.E.D.S. Suppressors and Sound Deadening System. R.E.D.S. Suppressors are dual bowstring cushions that decrease oscillation and bowstring vibrations. The Sound Deadening System includes a foot stirrup with a rubberized over-mold, which eliminates metal-on-metal contact when cocking the Mag Max on a treestand platform. It also includes String Stars, Ex-Shox Sound Dampeners, and R.A.V.S. Limb Silencers. My only complaint is that at least one of the Ex-Shox Sound Dampeners has peeled free or fallen off while testing the Mag Max and other recent Excalibur models.

Other Notable Points

I touched on balance and maneuverability earlier, but along those lines is user control. Excalibur rigs the Mag Max with rubber panels on the two most important parts of the crossbow that give the shooter control: the pistol grip and the foregrip. Whether carrying the crossbow out to the backyard or addressing a difficult shot in the elk woods, the shooter can feel in control of the crossbow.

Safety features are non-negotiable with crossbows. The Mag Max features the same ambidextrous safety as other models, and it’s located conveniently just behind and above the trigger so the user can thumb it on or off with minimal movement. CeaseFire Technology ensures that the Mag Max cannot be fired when a bolt isn’t loaded or the Decocking Hook isn’t engaged. Another safety feature is the flared foregrip, which inhibits users from dangerously placing fingers or a thumb in the bowstring’s path.

Although the Mag Max isn’t Excalibur’s fastest model, it delivers all of the hard-hitting power needed to claim any huntable species on the planet. And, it’s 10 fps faster than the proven Mag 340. Excalibur rates it at 350 fps, and my Caldwell chronograph read 346 fps. The 4-fps discrepancy is nothing and likely due to my chronograph versus Excalibur’s. Excalibur has provided and continues to provide real list velocities.

While we’re talking about speed and power, might I query, how much is enough? I see no need for 500 fps when hunting deer and turkeys. In my opinion, a crossbow such as the Mag Max producing more of a mid-range speed is more suitable for such pursuits, yet beyond powerful enough for a dream hunt for elk, moose or African game.

Credit Roll

What makes the Mag Max attractive to bowhunters today? Let me summarize this report. The Mag Max is simple. It’s dependable. It’s compact. It’s lightweight. It’s balanced. It’s deadly accurate. All told, it delivers high-end performance that starts at $799, which puts it in the affordable category considering that the average crossbow price (all price ranges considered) is somewhere around $1,200. Have I said enough?

In-the-field photos by Becca McDougal