Barnett Predator Crossbow

The Predator was built around AVI limbs paired with a redesigned high-velocity cam and cable system, and a shoot-through foot stirrup that extends the power stroke to 15 inches - long for a Barnett of this era. That combination is listed at 375 FPS from a 175-lb draw, for 133 ft-lbs of kinetic energy, at roughly 8 lbs bare weight.

Packages bundled a scope - a 4x32 multi-reticle on some listings, a red dot on others - along with a quiver and carbon arrows, the standard inclusions across Barnett's mid-tier packages of the period.

There is no Hyper in the Predator's name, so the rule holds: it takes standard-diameter Headhunter bolts, not the narrow Hyperflite shaft. The string length confirms it independently of the name - aftermarket makers cut the Predator's bowstring at 38.5 inches, the same figure documented on the fit by model page, and sell one string listing covering both the AVI and CRT badge.

That shared string length is the practical evidence the two names sit on the same platform, whatever a given retailer calls the one in front of you.

The Predator came from the generation of Barnett crossbows built around dedicated AVI limb geometry rather than the shared CCD-ready platforms Barnett sells now - the same era as the Jackal, Ghost series and GameCrusher still sought after on the secondhand market. At 375 FPS and a 175-lb draw it sits below the Alpha 410 and well below the Hyper Raptor line on raw speed, but all three still take Barnett's long-running Headhunter bolt, so switching between a Predator and something newer in the lineup is mostly a cocking-method and scope upgrade rather than a bolt-fit decision.

The Predator is not part of Barnett's current catalogue, and there is no new crossbow listing for it - only the 38.5-inch string and cable set turns up as a live Amazon product today. What else is still easy to find: Headhunter bolts in 5- and 12-packs and rail and string lube wax.

Before buying secondhand, check the limbs, cams and rail the same way you would on any older Barnett - those structural parts are not made aftermarket once stock runs out. If the bow checks out, budget for a rope cocker or crank if it needs one, and re-zero the scope at 20 yards before the first hunt - see the sighting-in guide.