Summary
The Barnett Quad Edge is a solid entry level, to mid-level, crossbow. It has good performance (340 fps.), a solid design, and all the safety features you would expect from a crossbow these days.
Not only that but this bow has earned a solid reputation in the accuracy and shooting department, and certainly can stack up the arrows. All in all the Barnett Quad Edge has everything the everyday shooter and hunter could ask for.
Table of Contents
Intro
The hunting gear we choose to buy and use is often a reflection of our personality.
Folks who show up to the range with the fanciest, tricked out, and high performance bow generally have personalities to match.
On the other hand, some people just want a bow that gets the job done. They are looking for a blue collar bow. The Barnett Quad Edge may be the right bow for someone with that in mind.
It won’t blow you away, but at the end of the day, this bow can be a capable and hunting, and target shooting, tool.
Ratings, Pros and Cons
What we liked:
- Good arrow speed
- Accurate
- Lightweight
What we didn’t:
- Lacks a supplied rope cocker
- Loud
Features / Specifications
| Draw Weight: | 150 lbs |
| Power Stroke: | 14.625″ |
| Bow Weight: | 6.9 lbs |
| Speed: | 340 fps |
| Kinetic Energy: | 109 ft. lbs. |
| Bolt Size: | 22″ |
| Axle-To-Axle: | 21″ Uncocked |
| Overall Size: | 36″ |
| Price Range: | Low-Mid |
| Color: | Black |
| Warranty: | 5 year limited lifetime |
Videos
Who’s it designed for?
The Barnett Quad Edge is a step up from an entry level bow.
It is a little faster than the entry level bows, and has a few more bells and whistles. That being said, if you are looking to buy your first crossbow, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say this might not be a bad choice either. It is sort of a ‘tweener in that regard.
What can I hunt with it?
If you are looking to hunt with the Quad Edge you are in luck. This bow produces nearly 110 ft. lbs. of energy upon impact. Using the accepted guidelines for big game energy standards, this rig will allow you to hunt anything you can settle the crosshairs on. If you hunt the standard deer, turkey, and black bear, you’ll have absolutely no worries with this one.
Crossbow Comparison Tables
All the bows we review (and some we haven’t yet) get added to our crossbow comparison tables alongside a guide that helps you understand what features and specifications actually mean. They’re a great place to get a quick overview of what’s on the market, and find something that fits with your requirements.
In-Depth Review
Assembly
Assembling the Barnett Quad Edge is not a big hassle. You have to attach the riser with a few hex bolts, making sure the string and cables are in the correct locations.
After that it just takes a little wrench turning to attach the stirrup, quiver, and scope. The ease of setup makes this ideal for anyone, but especially people with limited mechanical skills.
Accessories
Scope
The scope that comes standard with this crossbow is the same 4×32 Barnett puts on all their mid-level crossbows. We found this scope to be adequate once properly dialed in. If you need something better however checkout our guide to scopes where we pick out some of the best on the market today.
All in all we feel that the scope is adequate. That is especially good news for new shooters, or those who may not have a favorite scope yet.
Cocking Device
The Quad Edge does not come with any sort of cocking device. Once in awhile Barnett throws in this curveball into their packages. Fortunately cocking devices can be picked up for less than $20 pretty easily.
You certainly can cock this bow without the aide, although accuracy tends to suffer. If you currently have a rope cocker this may not be a big hangup, but if you are just getting into shooting crossbows you’ll most likely want to pick one up.
Quiver and Bolts
Barnett includes their 3 bolt quiver and three 22” carbon Headhunter bolts with this bow. The Headhunter bolts are of good quality and stand up to the rigors of shooting.
Although 22” inch bolts are not the norm, they certainly are not hard to pick up. This means if you’d like to try some other bolts, you should be able to find a good fit easily.
Trigger
The all metal trigger on this bow is about par for the course with Barnett’s other mid-level bows and has about a 3.5 pound pull.
The crisp break will attribute to accuracy down range.
Anti-Dry Fire and Auto Safety
Like all crossbows these days, the Quad Edge comes with an Anti-Dry fire system. This is a great feature, and ensures you won’t damage your bow upon the shot.
Barnett also includes a brush arrow retention system that will make sure your bolt stays on the rail when the string is released. Additionally, the auto safety engages as soon as you reach full draw. This feature makes the bow more safe, which anyone can appreciate.
Styling
The Quad Edge is a fairly plain bow in terms of styling. It is offered in only the flat black color option. Although it is only one color, black works well in hunting situations, and is generally just a sharp looking color all around.
In terms of branding, Barnett put a few logos on the limbs, and small logos on the stock. If you are not looking to stand out in a crowd, you’ll probably like this bow’s style.
Stock and Limbs
The stock of this bow has a few key features shooters should appreciate. First off, the foregrip is pass through, and has a flared finger guard as well. This increases the safety design, and should keep your fingers out of the flight track.
Another feature about the stock you might find appealing is the ability to mount a mechanical cocking device. These must be purchased separately, but really ease the cocking process and make your bow much more accurate as well.
Finally, Barnett did use a unique stock design. It has a long sweeping guard that connects to the pistol grip. This contributes to the bow weight of less than 7 pounds, feature folks who do lots of walking when they hunt can appreciate.
Shooting
The Barnett Quad Edge is a fine shooting crossbow. It shoots tight groups at short ranges, and even inexperienced shooters should be able to step back to 60 or 70 yards within a few shots.
One thing that will stand out is the relatively loud report when the bow is shot. Loud bows are certainly not ideal while in the woods, although the 340 fps arrow speed should help diminish any negative effects.
If you hunt close ranges the noise shouldn’t be a big issue.
“How does it compare?”
Quad Edge vs Jackal
If the Quad Edge seems a bit too much bow for you at the moment, the Barnett Jackal might be a better option.
The Jackal is Barnett’s true entry-level bow in both price and performance. This bow still hits arrow speeds of 315 fps., which still makes it an adequate hunting tool for short distance shooting.
If you are looking to take your first dive into crossbow shooting the Jackal is a good place to start. Here’s our review.
Quad Edge vs Whitetail Hunter
If you are looking to go a step above the Barnett Quad Edge, you might take a look at the Barnett Whitetail Hunter.
This bow has garnered a large following for its speed, performance, and wicked good looks. Although it boasts the same 340 fps. arrow speeds as the Quad Edge, it only weighs 6.2 pounds and is just a shade over 18” axle to axle.
This makes the Whitetail Hunter an ideal hunting bow, that can fit into the nooks and crannies whitetail hunting sometimes requires. Not only that, but the Whitetail hunter is one that people simply rave about its accuracy.
Quad Edge vs Ghost
In case these bows still don’t have what you are looking for, you might appreciate Barnett’s flagship bow, the Ghost 410.
As the name indicates this bow is capable of hitting arrow speeds of up to 410 fps. That makes this bow scary fast and ideal for any hunting situation.
It is also worth noting the Ghost isn’t all about speed, and it may actually be one of Barnett’s most accurate bows as well. If you are looking for the complete package, the Ghost 410 should pop up on your radar. Checkout our review.
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I have the quad edge my dad got it so I could bow hunt easier the cocking device for these can be problematic the rope pops out of the guides sometimes but the bow itself isnt that loud or heavy I never miss with it
The only problem I see with the barn and jackal is the safety my safety sticks a lot on it if anybody has any suggestions just hit me back up or if you know someone that works on them.