It’s rare to see a company launch and almost instantly cause widespread panic among its competitors, but in 2015, Ravin Crossbows began a journey that would cause major market disruption and flip the crossbow industry on its back. The company has grown from its humble beginnings to become the industry standard. Ravin prides itself on the motto: “3 inches. 100 yards. No rivals.” And that applies to all models in their lineup, including the new Ravin R470 crossbow.
Ravin was born from a market need, from identifying a lot of things in the crossbow market that could be better. Ten years ago, crossbow bolts were lightweight and had a slow flight. Bows were heavy, long, and had a large footprint with wide limbs. As far as accuracy, by and large, consistency was lacking across the board for every crossbow on the market, and that was mainly due to strings riding directly on a rail and overall underwhelming designs. Ravin changed it all by making lightweight, compact bows featuring ground-breaking technology; it’s what put them on the map.
The introduction of the R9 completely changed crossbows as we know them, and Ravin certainly didn't stop there.
Ravin R470 Crossbow Design Details
The new Ravin R470 is, without a doubt, built for hunters. It hurls bolts at an impressive 470 fps, making it one of the fastest xbows you can buy. It’s also one of the most compact and lightweight.
The R470 also includes all of Ravin’s cutting edge design tech. It’s outfitted with the proprietary HexCoil Cam System that rotates the cams a full 300 degrees, along with the company’s HeliCoil technology that coils the cables away from the top and bottom of the cams in helical grooves to ensure they stay perfectly balanced. It also features the Tac-Trigger Firing System that slides forward on the rail and securely clasps to the string every time, allowing for straight nock travel.
The VersaDrive Cocking System is one of my favorite features; it’s a dual screw drive which moves the Trac-Trigger Firing System back and forth. The internal clutch within the VersaDrive System eliminates over-cocking and allows cocking or de-cocking to be stopped at any time during the process. In other words, it takes the “pucker factor” out of cocking and de-cocking a crossbow.
All that comes together in a package that’s only 26.75 inches long and weighs in at 8.4 pounds; that’s one compact, easy-to-handle crossbow.
Each bow is tested once assembled; Ravin cuts no corners when it comes to quality. Once the R470 is fully built and assembled, it is sold/shipped with a 100-yard illuminated 550 fps crossbow scope, three bolts with field tips (400 grains total), a removable draw handle, built-in sling mounts, and a quiver/mounting bracket.
Ravin R470 Crossbow Specs
Speed (400 gr.): 470 fps
Kinetic Energy: 196 ft. lbs.
Product Weight: 8.4 pounds
Length: 26.75 inches
Draw Force: 17 pounds
Powered By: Hexcoil Cam System
Limbs: Fiberglass
Riser: Aluminum CNC
Stock Material: Composite
MSRP: $2,549.99
Road Trip To Ravin HQ
I was fortunate enough to visit the Ravin headquarters in Superior, Wisconsin, last spring for an outdoor-writers event and meet some of the staff and a lot of the people who have been there since the beginning of the company.
Learning about the different places that Ravin has called home is a story in itself. I knew when I approached the current headquarters that the building looked eerily similar to one I’ve been in many times before. I later learned it was once a Target. When they found out that Target was moving to a larger space, Ravin gutted it and turned into a crossbow factory.
At one time, Ravin called a space in a shopping mall headquarters; some of the folks who were there back then told me stories about driving forklifts hauling pallets through the mall. As the employees talked about the old days with laughter, I could feel a sense of family, and of community.
The company name is a giant in the industry, but the company itself is still small enough to have that family feel and for staff to talk about their families getting together to barbecue on the weekends and for potlucks during the holidays.
What started out as roughly 10 employees has now grown to over 140, and each of them wears more than one hat.
Shooting 200 Yards with a Ravin R470 Crossbow
My visit wasn’t only to learn about the company and their history. I was there with a purpose: to build my very own R470 along with several other writers who were doing the same.
This bow was engineered to be the complete package: a feature-rich powerhouse. It’s also a good-looking crossbow with a good feel and quality build and not only seeing how they’re built, but actually participating, was an incredible experience.
The Ravin R470 On The Range
After seeing the Ravin factory, hearing about the company, and learning all about the build process, it was time to hit the range with my R470 for a day of shooting planned to push the crossbow to its limits.
I was at the range with John Hernandez, Ravin’s director of product integration, and Doug Guthrie, the company’s VP of product development. These two bleed Ravin, and bowhunting.
They had some of Ravin’s older crossbows available for us to shoot, as well as some long-range and more specialized bows. Then, we turned all of our attention to the R470.
I looked out at the range and realized we weren’t just going to be sighting in our bows. There were steel gongs sitting at 200 yards, exploding pucks, moving deer targets, and bolts — lots and lots of bolts.
We started by breaking in our new R470s. After a thorough safety meeting, we were instructed on the use of the draw handle and learned how to cock and de-cock the crossbow. Cocking was simple, quiet, and fast. Then we moved on to shooting targets at 20 to 50 yards after being warned not to shoot the same spot twice unless we wanted to wreck bolts. We proceeded to get chrono readings and dial in our scopes.
My first shot came in at roughly 478 fps. The limbs and the string on any new crossbow need to settle in a bit; it took roughly 10-12 shots for my R470 to settle in, with a regular velocity of about 473 fps.
Once I was dialed in, and had broken the nocks off several bolts, it was time to try some long-range shooting and to push the limits of the R470.
At 50 yards, the R470 is incredibly accurate. Clusters of bolts touching, or nearly touching, were common. At 100 yards, I didn’t break any nocks, but I came close. There was a slight left-to-right breeze, but hardly any adjustment was needed. The included 550 fps scope was really simple to use, with easy-to-read yardage. It also had red and green illumination, which is a nice additional feature.
After the 100-yard shots, things got interesting. Trying to hit a steel gong at 200 yards with a crossbow is a trial. But, after some adjustments, I believe everyone at the shooting benches were able to do it at least once. Ringing that gong at 200 yards with a crossbow felt similar to my first 1,000-yard shot on steel with a rifle.
Finally, the last challenge in store was to hit a moving target at 50 yards, shooting off hand. Tracking was easy with the compact R470. It’s light enough to really swing with ease, but solid enough to keep on target. I was able to hit the “deer” with both shots I took (one may have hit a leg).
Each test was unique, and let me get to know my bow, and going through the paces, starting slow and moving up to a big challenge, instilled confidence.
The Final Verdict
I couldn’t have walked away more impressed. It wasn’t just about the speed and accuracy, but also the features, functionality, and easy of use. I really don’t know what more a hunter could ask for.
The R470 met and exceeded all of my expectations. If you’re in the market for a high-end crossbow that you’ll likely shoot for many years to come, check out the all-new Ravin R470.
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