The spec sheets, side by side
Every figure here comes from the tracked listing for that model. Where a maker does not publish a number, the row says so rather than carrying an estimate — a blank is a finding about the listing, not a hole in our research.
| Spec | Burner 415 | Hellion 400 | Lethal 405 |
|---|
| Advertised speed | 415 fps | 400 fps | 405 fps |
| Published draw weight | Not published on the listing | 185 lb | Not published on the listing |
| What is in the box | Scope, quiver, arrows, rope cocker | Hunt Ready Kit — scope, quiver, broadheads | Scope, quiver, arrows, rope cocker |
| Broadheads included | No | Yes | No |
| Stock | Adjustable | Not published on the listing | Not published on the listing |
| Relative weight | Lighter of the two | Heavier than the Killer Instinct pair | Compact and light for a budget crossbow |
| Our value score | 8.9 | 8.6 | 9.0 |
Difference 1: fifteen feet per second is nothing
The headline on this comparison is 415 against 400, and it is the least important row in the table. At whitetail ranges the gap is inside the noise: both bows put a broadhead through both lungs on a broadside deer at 40 yards with margin to spare, and the difference in arrow drop between them at that distance is a fraction of the size of your sight picture. Our guide to how fast a crossbow needs to be for deer walks through why everything from about 300 fps up is a solved problem for deer-sized game, and why speed is the specification budget crossbow marketing leans on hardest precisely because it is cheap to advertise.
What speed does change is noise and arrow choice. A faster bow is generally louder — both of these listings have the same honest weakness, which is that they benefit from string dampeners before you hunt with them — and a faster bow is harder on cheap arrows and cheap broadheads. That is an argument for spending the price difference on consumables, not on fifteen feet per second.
Difference 2: the Hunt Ready Kit, priced honestly
CenterPoint’s package is the genuinely distinguishing feature here, and it deserves credit: broadheads in the box is rare at this end of the market, and on many listings the kit also carries a case and a sling. If you have never bought archery gear before, that matters more than it sounds, because the real cost of a first crossbow is not the crossbow — it is the pile of small purchases that follow it.
But price it out before you pay for it. A three-pack of fixed broadheads that we would actually hunt with sits in the same bracket as a tank of fuel, and our budget broadhead rankings show what that money buys. Set that against the live gap between these two bows in the ledger above. On most days the Hellion’s included accessories do not come close to covering the difference, which is why the Burner wins on value even allowing for the extras.
There is also a quality point that cuts both ways. Included broadheads in a budget kit are entry-level broadheads. They will kill a deer, and they are not the heads we would choose. The included scope on both bows is the same story — fine inside 30 yards, not the glass you want if you plan to stretch it.
Difference 3: weight and width, where the Hellion does win
The Hellion is the heavier bow, and the Killer Instinct pair are the compact ones. In a ladder stand with a rail to lay the bow on, weight is irrelevant. On a walk-in hunt where the crossbow rides on your shoulder for a mile and a half of public land, it is one of the two things you will actually notice, which is the kind of trade our public-land gear list is built around.
What the Hellion buys you for that weight is a narrow cocked width, and that is a real advantage in exactly one place: a tight treestand or the window of a ground blind, where a wide bow catches on everything and a narrow one does not. If you hunt from a hub blind or a hang-on with limited room, put a heavier thumb on this row than the spec sheet suggests.
Difference 4: the scope, and what to do about it
Both bows ship a basic multi-reticle crossbow scope, and both listings carry the same honest limitation — the included reticle is fine for close range and not precise far out. The right response to that on a budget is not to replace the scope. It is to sight it in properly and then hunt inside the range where it is honest.
That is a skill rather than a purchase, and our crossbow sight-in guide covers the whole sequence: bolt weight consistency first, a stable rest, 20 yards before 40, and the fact that a crossbow scope’s stacked reticle marks are only true at the speed the bow actually shoots. If you are new to crossbows, read that before you decide you need a better scope.
What neither of these bows includes
Both are described as ready to hunt, and both still need things before opening day. Budget for them now rather than discovering them in the truck:
- String dampeners and wax.Both listings note it in their own way — the Killer Instinct bows are loud without dampeners, and the CenterPoint’s factory strings benefit from a wax-and-tune before the season. This is the cheapest upgrade on the list and the one that most changes the experience.
- A target you can shoot a 400 fps bow into. A cheap foam block will not stop these arrows and will eat them. This is a real line item.
- Spare arrows.Two arrows in a box is not a season’s practice.
- A broadhead you chose. Our broadhead weight guide explains why 100 grain is the default and when it is not, and why a crossbow-rated head matters at these speeds.
- A harness, if you hunt elevated.Non-negotiable, and unrelated to which bow you buy — see our harness rankings.
The verdict
The Burner 415 is the better buy for a whitetail hunter: faster on paper, lighter on your shoulder, adjustable in the stock, and the cheaper of the two by a margin the Hellion’s accessories do not close. Buy the Hellion 400 if you want a single purchase that leaves nothing to buy, or if your stand or blind demands the narrowest cocked bow you can find. If the Burner is out of stock, the Killer Instinct Lethal 405 is the same argument at 405 fps — our full Lethal 405 review covers it, and our Lethal versus Burner head-to-head splits the two Killer Instinct bows against each other.
