Crossbows vs. Longbows

[Wrana]

Originally Posted by BigDaddy

It appears there was much development with regards to the crossbow during the medieval period.

Yes. Particularly in bow material. You had probably heard about metal bows - which only became widespread in 15-16th centuries. Earliest devices had mostly plain wooden bows. At Crusades' era they were mostly composite.
As for actual arrow weight - I wonder. From what I heard crossbow bolts were often considerably heavier. But this may be mostly the case with late models - those with metal bows. Thanks for the source anyway.
Considering slings I've already mentioned that even at Tamerlane's times their use continued and was quite effective. Of course, they were even harder to learn than bows...