What’s preventing the guy on the right from putting a bolt through his foot if something goes wrong while he’s drawing? Is the adoption of the stirrup just down to its benefits outweighing the safety risk, or were people good enough at not shooting themselves that it wasn’t a concern?
What’s preventing the guy on the right from putting a bolt through his foot if something goes wrong while he’s drawing? Is the adoption of the stirrup just down to its benefits outweighing the safety risk, or were people good enough at not shooting themselves that it wasn’t a concern?
You don’t put the bolt on the rail until after it’s cocked.
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…That makes sense.
With crossbows, you draw the string back and lock it in place, then raise it to horizontal, the you load the bolt into the carrier.