broad head selection

[nyexhunter]

This:
Bad blood trails" generally translates to poor hits in my mind, although this is not always the case. Or someone has unrealistic expectations as to what a good blood trail is.
and This:When its all said n done even a field point low in the heart
/lung area pass-thru will have a decent blood trail. Some may wander out there a good ways before they fall 2-3-4 blades all work, so choose they one you like n kill them tick toters :
and This:You probably hit him with a high double lung shot. Takes a few seconds to fill up and bleed with a high shot and if he went 50 yards he was dead before the blood started to hit the ground. Had it happen several times.

Some Rules of the game that sometimes defies all rules -
Shot placement is the most important thing.
No broadhead - no matter what brand, will make up for a bad shot.
Even if you have good shot placement, sometimes a deer can go a long way - they are extremely tough and will use every last breath to get as far away from danger as they can - so even if you think all is right; things sometimes go wrong and you will have one that you will not find.
Up your odds by not hunting in the rain.

I personally have used many different broadhead brands including slicktricks for both vertical and crossbow. Presently I use the Carbon Express brand, 1" fixed blade model with good results.

What ever you decide upon make sure to not rush things, to not take a shot that is too far and to put your arrow in the proper spot.

Best of luck to you.

[wolfman2]

I have used Slick Tricks since their intro on the market. Until this past season have never considered switching. 3 deer with magnums and no or very poor blood trails. The no blood trail was a double lung pass through; not a single drop even where the deer was down. I have never experienced this before in my 40 plus years of archery. Presently I am attributing this to dull blades. I put new blades on for each deer, never use them twice. Don't understand at all. I harvested a 4th deer with a Wasp Jak Knife. Full pass through, double lung, blood trail a blind man could follow in the dark. Deer went less than thirty yards. I will be trying more Wasp heads.

interestingly enough, my first deer (p&y 135) was taken with my compound and the old wasp greeny 6 blade and they flew perfect with my 125 fp's... they were nothing but cut down injector razor blades. i shot several deer with them but finally couldn't get replacement blades so retired. then went to rothar snuffer 250gr and lobbed them at the deer. just too much for my 2117 shafts.
my theory/opinion is:with the new high speeds on these crossbows, you just pass thru too fast to tear tissue. cut yourself with a razor blade and i almost guarantee you won't bleed for a 1/2 minute or so at least. a deer can go a l--o--n--g way in a minute. .......and add in the adrenaline of the deer and they can really travel out....but that's my opinion and is only worth the paper this is printed on.. HA... of course this discounts cutting a major blood vessel or the heart...

[vixenmaster]

Solid sharp blades cut like a scaple/razor blade so on. The serraded does abit of tearin as it slices thru. Punch lungs n heart wid either n its blood pourin on the inside til it reaches the BH holes! The lower hit vitals the faster the blood flows out on the ground. Of course if'en you be a good shot n spine them or bust both shoulders or break their neck its all over right there

[JUSTANUFF]

Don't overlook the Magnus Buzzcut 150 gr,,,,they fly great,,super sharp serrated blades and best warranty in the business

[nyexhunter]

best warranty in the business

That's funny

[IronNoggin]

Only the second time I have not realized a pass through was this year's Mulie.

A few reasons
- The buck weighed in over 400 pounds
- The shot was 62 yards, quartering away
- The arrow passed through ribs, the liver, diaphragm, right lung, top of heart, left lung, ribs and then connected with the main lower shoulder bone on the off side.

Very good blood trail (starting at 25 yards) despite no pass through.
< 65 yard recovery.

Upon cutting the shoulder open:



Re-assembled bone to identify contact point:



The Buck:



The Broadhead - 125 grain Spitfire:



Practice Shot at 80 yards with same broadhead:



Entirely Unlikely I'll be switching any time soon...
Although that said, I will very shortly be testing the 125 grain Toxic's to see how well they fly from the 380...

Cheers,
Nog

[nchunterkw]

Nog,
Give a 125gr RamCat a fly. You might really like them. Be interested to hear your thoughts/observations.

Keith

[carperdoug]

Although I am somewhat disappointed in my recent Slick Trick performance I would still recommend people try them. Ram Cats are on the list to try. I find them flying well and accurate out of my 355. The 125 is interesting as it has a 1.5 inch cut diameter; same as the Spitfire mechanical, a head that seems to get good blood trails and is rated well by many on this forum. My present theory is that the bigger the cut the better. I am not simply "jumping in" and leaving ST. I have spent many hours researching the various heads. My spouse is questioning my sanity!! There are many good ones out there and choice is difficult.

My reason for trying Wasp first is:
They are made in my home state!!!!!
They are a quality head
They are a very durable head
Independent lab tests show number one in sharpness (Peterson's Hunting 2012)
Their mechanical heads have been around for over 20 years and still rated very high.
My initial flight testing results of their fixed bladed heads is excellent

The real final test will be next season.

[Michiganhunter]

Been at this game for many years (52 years) and here is my take on some of these observations. I think just about any fixed or modern mechanical broadhead will take down any big game animal in a reasonable distance with a reasonable shot placement. However I think there is one major issue that is being over looked here. The fact that some of these shots are being made from an elevated blind and others are being made from ground level. An arrow entering an animal from an elevated stand will usually enter high and exit low leaving an exit hole low will allow for a better blood trail as the blood won't have to fill the cavity before pouring out. Likewise an arrow entering an animal from ground level tends to enter and exit at the same level of that animal. So a high entry shot also means a high exit hole preventing the outward flow of blood until the animal cavity fills enough with blood to allow the blood to exit out either or both holes. By then the animal is usually dead and a very poor blood trail was left on its trail. I know there are many variables but this has just been an observation of mine over the years.

[nchunterkw]

Most of my shots are from the ground and I aim middle body behind the front leg to try to center punch the lungs. This always leaves me with a good blood trail with blood starting within a yard or so of the shot. The circulatory system of a deer is under pressure. Blood sprays out. The body cavity does not need to fill up for blood to flow. Also after a very short time on lung hits, blood comes from the mouth and nose and the process of trying to breathe has the blood coming through the respiratory system as well.

A few years ago I had collected some data and had 2 other guys give me their collected data on how far deer travelled after being hit. Over 500 data points......And yes, the data was somewhat subjective as many people contributed to it, and no it did not take into account shot placement (there was some data there but way to subjective)

BUT......

analysis of that data showed that there was no correlation to how far a deer went after being hit with a broadhead based on:
number of blades
diameter of cut
total cut (radius of cut X number of blades)
fixed vs mechanical

The median distance was 50 yds, and the 90th percentile (meaning 90% of the deer) went less than 90yds.

Even with all the flaws, this data says shoot whatever you like and can shoot accurately and then look for your deer within a 100yd circle.

[Michiganhunter]

Yes blood is under pressure unless the heart is shut down from a bullet or broadhead then pressure is ceased as the pump is compromised.. blood or any fluid will take the path of least resistance be it internally or externally. However you still need a hole low enough to allow a sufficent amount of that fluid to exit the cavity to leave a blood trail. I have shot many deer, bear with blood spraying (under pressure) onto trees from both sides however because those shots usually did not stop the heart from beating. I will say bear tend to be a different situation as the heavy fat on a bear will plug both holes..lol. I realize there are many many variables but just my take on one variable that possibly is being over looked and yes I agree that any decent shot with any quality broad head should bring an animal down within 100 yds. Thats why I look for a broadhead that shoots well out of my equipment and pass on many opportunities at game that won't allow me a good angle or deflection free shot.

[nchunterkw]

I was totally surprised by what that data showed. Prior to that I was convinced the large cut heads would distinguish themselves. Just not true. I guess the lungs collapse pretty quickly no matter what and the deer go down in similar fashion. After seeing the data I'm convinced that all the large cut stuff is only marketing and I try to pick heads that are well made, tough and can be re-sharpened and re-used multiple times. The $$ we pay for a BH nowadays almost mandates that.

[Hillcountry]

Anyone ever see this? It's really amazing how this broad head affected a bull moose.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzRTb5WwfaA

[nchunterkw]

Yep. Blood coming from the nose/mouth very quickly. I initially thought the shot was too far forward, but apparently not!

[ohioexocetfan]

Anyone ever see this? It's really amazing how this broad head affected a bull moose.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzRTb5WwfaA

Awesome video... although as a hunter I would not be too proud of that shot placement! Obviously it worked. Amazing how quick it just pours out.