ok chummer let me tell you how the chu ko nu (what you just described) really worked
You couldn't shoulder it properly as you needed to brace it against your hip for the reload. It only fit about five bolts, and the entire thing was fired by working the handle jutting out the side. Not to mention you can't really aim through a massive box. It was indeed also weaker than the cranequin arbalest, but this was usually made up for by mass fire. Masses of chu ko nu users had the highest rate of fire until the advent of the Gatling gun.