Mechanical or Fixed Broadhead

[learn2flyfish]

Okay, who likes what and why. The more I hear about mechanical broad heads giving trouble, the more I'm inclined to use fixed broad heads. But what do you guys/gals do?

Please vote and comment.

[yooper_man]

My vote is for fixed bladed broadheads, but I practise with both field points and broadheads. 150 grain Slick Trick Xbow Magnums.

I started with Excalibur's Boltcutter broadheads, but I like the four blades better.

I have never used a mechanical broadhead.

Andrew

[Kegbelly]

I guess I'm old school but I like fixed blades. Simple and reliable, like some recurve xbows I know of . Don't have to worry if they'll open early or won't open at all. I've had great results with Magnus Stinger 4 blades, ymmv. I practice with the same heads I hunt with, when it's time to hunt I hit 'em with a good BH sharpener and they're ready to go.

[vixenmaster]

I like n use both freely. I love the NAP Spitfire, never has it not worked & killed the game animal i shot it wid. I have even resharpened the blades & shot 3 animals wid a couple of them. Several fixed blade BH's i have used & will continue to use them.

[Cat power]

I won't use anything but fixed. Slick Tricks have never let me down and fly good out of my Ibex

[Normous]

My Excalibur, freezer and stomach like large cutting mechanicals over small bladed fixed. 20+ deer in a row now with mechanicals without an issue.

[Bullzeye]

I use the Excal X-Acts, killed my deer this year no problems and the poi is the same as my field points.

[UPSMAN]

Here's my take on broadheads. As a recent newbie to bow hunting, I have only killed 3 animals with my bow. 2 turkeys and 1 hog. I own 2 kinds of broadheads. Swhacker Mechanical and Muzzy MX3 fixed blade. Both get the job done but after shooting my hog, I have decided to stick with the Muzzy. Shot my first turkey with the Swhacker. Hit him square on the big drumstick bone and broke both legs. Believe it or not, it wasn't a complete pass-thru. Bird started to run off and broke my carbon bolt in half. He only went 40 yds but was still alive so I shot him again with a Muzzy. The Swhacker blades were trashed.Will have to install new blades if I want to shoot that head again. Turkey #2- was shot with the Muzzy with a grasshopper attached.Complete pass-thru and the head had no damage. It was the same head that I finished off turkey # 1 with. Shot my hog with that same Muzzy. Was very impressed. Complete Pass-thru with a really nice hole. What Impressed me the most was that the head was totally buried in the root of a huge pine tree. I was shooting downward from 30 ft up. I had to go to the truck and get a wood chisel out of my tool box to remove the Muzzy. The head was completely intact and only had 2 dulled blades. I took it apart and touched up the edges of the blades and it is now ready to shoot again. Both the Swhacker and Muzzy shoot the same out of my Equinox so that is why I have decided to stick with the Muzzy. It's just a much more durable head. Hope this helps you out. I know there are a lot of members here that have killed dozens of critters and will have their own opinion but for me, looks like I'll be having a future Muzzy Moment.

[racking up points]

For mechs, I had problems with the T3 and Rage. I had defective heads with both. with the rage, blades opened up prematurely, causing me to miss a good 8-pt by a good 6ft, took a hard dog-leg left. Thankfully it didn't result in an injured deer, but I'm still kicking myself over missing that buck. The t3 just didn't open, and didnt pass thru, I found the deer after a full days tracking, the wound confirmed my suspicion and the broadhead went straight into the trash bin.

I'll never experiment again with mechs. I did have success for a few years but these two instances are enough to stick with fixed blades. The montec by g5 and the Magnus Snuffer are rock solid and fly to the same POI out to 40y as my field points. They are simple, reliable and very effective.

[Riflemanz]

I use the Rocket Hammerhead 100gr
3blade 2" cut with 2 bands to keep it closed,
no problems to report.

[MJK]

I shot my first deer with a crossbow yesterday afternoon using an NAP Spitfire Max. I've always used WASP fixed heads on my vertical bows so I was interested in seeing how well these mechanicals would work for myself. One thing I didn't like from the get go was lack of blood at the point of entry. I didn't find any blood for the first 50 yards. It was a good thing I could see where the deer ran or it would have been one hell of a tracking job. After 50 yards I had real good blood tho and after recovering the deer he had two nice holes in him. As to why there was no blood in the first 50 yards I have no idea as I've never seen that before. Deer was standing with dead grass right behind him so I expected to see lots of blood there. Took a while to find the bolt too but it was covered with blood and the broad head was intact and still sharp. I cleaned it up and will use it again although that lack of blood still bothers me.

[bowmaker]

I just managed to kill my first deer with my new Axiom Sunday morning. Used a 125 grain Schwaker and a Fire Bolt with a Nocturnal nock. The shot was from a ladder stand at about 18 yards. What a deal!! Watched him work toward the stand for 15 minutes or so and when he stepped out from behind a tree the cross hairs settled and I watched the Nocturnal red glow go right through him and heard him crash about 75 yards away. The Schwaker 125 grain worked perfect and looks like it is good to go again. It cut through a rib going in and another one going out and made a very large slice through everything. From the size and placement of the exit wound I was a little surprised at the kind of light blood trail, but his chest was absolutely full of blood and air bubbles. I also have some 150 grain bolt cutters but will continue to use the Schwakers.

[VixChix]

I carry 2 fixed and 1 mechanical in my quiver.

I use the Rocket Hammerhead 100gr
3blade 2" cut with 2 bands to keep it closed,
no problems to report.

I carry one of these in my quiver for when I have a clear shot (no chance of leaves or grasses blowing in the way).

I also carry 2 fixed heads for shoot-through mesh or the chance of hitting leaves or grass on the way to the deer. Right now I've got Carbon Express XT Dual Blades (Like their F15's) which fly perfect and look nasty! Love their back-cut and extra blades.

[fuzzy]

...

[Tom]

First of all ......... good on you to do a lot of research and asking a lot of questions for things you are not sure of or you do not know.

Secondly, what broadhead to use question is like talking religion or politics on a forum, many different answers and everyone believes they are right

I use NAP Spitfire mechanicals. I switched because I liked the larger cutting heads, but when you get up to 1.5" fixed heads, the wind tends to effect the flight of the arrow too much. Your arrow grouping tend to open up quite a bit.

Here is a little thought thinking for you:

Mechanical headsdo need maintenance and care, more then a fixed head. Fixed heads tend to have wind effect their flight more then a mechanical.
- IF your mechanical head uses rubber bands or O - Rings, you need to make sure the rubber is not perished in any manner or you might get an early opening of the head. IF it uses the CLIP method to keep it closed, you must make sure the DIMPLES are full and not decreased. Clips should not be used more then 4 - 5 times or the dimples will loose some strength and might not hold the blades closed in flight.

Remember that either head requires a quality head. Cheap is not good and will only cause trouble and failure

If you are willing to make sure you do the up-keep for a mechanical head, then I would recommend a mechanical head for you. If not, then use a fixed head and stay in the smaller cutting diameter so there will be less chance of wind affecting your shots.

Tom