Mechanical Broadheads
International
I imagine this topic has already been covered, but I haven't found the thread. Has anyone used Rage Hypodermic's for African Plains game? I have used the same for large Black Bear and Deer quite successfully, so I thought it should be good for Impala, Gemsbok, Warthog and Wildebeest. Any insight would be most appreciated.
Mechanicals should be fine for the animals you listed but I'd check with the PH first. Some of them don't allow them.
IMO there are better options but I've had several clients use Rage heads quite successfully. No experience with the hypos but the other models have performed well. If you're determined to use them then go for it. As stated, check with your PH first.
My PH, a few years ago, was a HUGE Rage fan! I used Spitfires and a couple of Slick Tricks. The last of ten animals was an impala and I used a Rage, mostly for him. And when we walked up to it, he was all excited and exclaimed "..look at that hole, look at that hole!!". just like he was doing a paid commercial. It was funny!
After numerous bowhunting safaris all over Africa I've concluded that the game is just a bit more robust pound-for-pound compared to their NA cousins. Personally, have never regretted using a bit heavier arrow and stout fixed blade heads. It is likely that a typical Whitetail rig with expandables might work just fine, and it probably will on the Warthog and Impala -- but I shared camp with a guy or two who had penetration issues with "hearty" critters like Gemsbok and Wildebeest. In fact, my pro shop guy talked me into trying Rage hypodermics for bait animals on a 2015 safari - let's just say that I was glad the experiment was on bait, and swiched back to QADs. Anyway that was my actual experience -- others actual mileage may vary.
African Plains game are no harder to kill than NA game. Hit them in the heart/lungs and they will die just like every other animal. You did not say what you were using in the way of arrows/archery equipment. If you are using a setup that generates at least 66 KE, any size broad head will penetrate the animal easily. Any less than that, I would not recommend using a large diameter mechanical BH. Use a fixed BH like Slick Trick, Muzzy, or Exodus.
To add to my first post, I killed 7 African Plains game animals. All succumbed to a single rifle shot. A BH in the boiler room would do the same.
I once shot a deer with a 12 gauge slug at about 20 yards. The slug destroyed the left shoulder as evidenced by the way the leg flapped as he was running, He ran 200 yards across an open field and then another 50 yards into the woods. All of the animals that I shot in Africa and the ones my son shot died a whole lot closer than that.
Granted my experience in Africa is limited, and I would defer to Ken Moody on this, but I believe that African animals die at the same rate as ours do.
I used a Magnus Buzz Cut on all my animals in Africa. Shooting a traditional bow mechanicals were not an option.
As I have aged, I am finding that I can no longer hunt with a traditional bow as my shoulders won't take the wear and tear of the practice I love to/need to do. So when I went to Saskatchewan last year to bear hunt I took a compound. I hit one bear with a G5 Montec and we lost it. My guide was a Rage fanatic and talked me into using it on the second try. I hit that bear a bit farther back than I wanted to and it turned into a long tracking job that finally wound up with a dead bear found. My guide told me that we never would have found the bear if I had stayed with the G5 as the hole the rage opened up in him caused a big enough wound for us to be able to track him over several hundred yards.
Your results may vary, but I was impressed enough to go out and buy some Rage when I got back.
TMBB
If a quality broadhead is properly placed an African animal will go down as quickly as any animal in NA. If improperly hit however, an African animal, unlike ones from NA, will walk for miles and virtually never lay down. They will basically die on their feet if they die at all. A wounded Blue Wildebeest has been known to resurrect himself several times when being tracked. ??
Stick (no pun intended) with the odds in your favor- COC !!
You will not regret. ??
Ten days and only 11 posts, this is the shortest mechanical broad head thread ever.
Does the shirt and hat come with the broadheads?
Once again, everyone is making generalizations and they don't know his setup. If he gave his setup, maybe we could fine tune our recommendations.
ELKMAN even sportin' the RAGE shirt!! Now THAT's a believer, lol
This ones for Ohio... ;-) ___ Mountain Zebra, all free range in Namibia.
"How do you keep your vanes so clean?"
Here we go....... Your vanes don't get dirty if only half of the arrow goes in the animal.... Sorry Elkman... Congrats on some beautiful trophies... I'm glad the Rages worked for you... Just not a fan specifically because of that reason.
What fletching looks like when attached to an arrow that sports a steel ferrule fixed blade
That arrow isn't the one I shot. Trying to be tasteful for the sponsor photo. Thanks for the congrats. I am blessed for sure.
Interesting to read Rage is a sponsor, perhaps the first I have heard of that. Funny how it doesn't occur to people to prominently mention such things...
He didn't say that Rage was a sponsor. It could have been a sponsor photo for any of 20 different things he used on the hunt.
Here is the real funny thing and I am not saying this is the case here, but how many times do you think something is shot with a stout fixed blade head and then they place the arrow like above for the "sponsor" photo. Sorry not a fan of mechanicals at all. "Look at the huge hole!!" Yeah but it is usually only in one side of the animal!! Scooby
Not all arrows blow through. That is just a fact of life. If your arrow does not blow through... When it comes time to track that animal, you will be damn glad your entry hole was made with a 2 blade Rage. (Although with my Rage heads 3 out 4 of my animals hit the ground in sight)
What's really sad is the overwhelming influence of advertising these days. Was just discussing this thread with a local Pro-shop owner last night. He mentioned that they see great, innovative, well-constructed products at the ATA show every year that work precisely as intended. But, after years of struggling to sell fantastic but unknown gear, his first question to vendors is "what is your advertising budget?" He added that in his experience most sportsmen are strikingly skeptical of any product they haven't seen on the hunting shows.
Sorry... Saw this and I had to laugh...Not intended as a bash... You gotta admit its funny and usually true.
Chuck's cameo was a clip from a Rage commercial that featured virtually all of the "in-vogue" hunting TV stars of the time, which I'm certain cost Rage a fortune -- there was a lot of pushback over the "axe" claim, and it ended up hurting Chuck's credibility in many circles. Most thought that commercial was "over-the-top."
Don't get me wrong -- when the Rage works as intended the results are impressive. I spend the time to get well-constructed, full-sized broadheads tuned to my bow and have never regretted it - they work as intended 100% of the time. Personally had several bad experiences in my limited experiments with expandables, including Rage, even on thin-skinned stuff. Also, witnessed many Rage-users crying about not recovering that buck of a lifetime who was right under their stand; and expensive stuff, Leopard, Lion, Buffalo, Moose, Elk, etc.
If you are happy with and confident in Rage - by all means, go with what you like. I've just experienced and witnessed too many failures for folks to find them in my quiver.
Just my 2 cents
Why is it a lost animal shot with an expandable is always the fault of the broadhead but a lost animal shot with a fixed blade is just bad luck?
Exactly ^^^ ___ Just shoot what works 100% of the time FOR YOU. Like Rage has worked 100% of the time FOR ME. Never once had a failure in hundreds of animals. My profile page is FULL of results. Nuff said...
There are a number of folks who haunt this and other hunting sites with vast African bowhunting experience -- most sparingly post, and objectively share their actual experience with various game and equipment.
Is a Rage Hypodermic or other expandable suitable for plainsgame? Maybe. But they aren't a silver-bullet, and there are likely better options for stout game such as Wildebeest, Waterbuck, and tougher critters. Folks should do their research on suitable tackle for any game and then discuss with their PH.
Advertising slogans "its like throwing an axe into an animal" and "Rage! - Put e'm down" have inspired ridiculous (and likely illegal) attempts to take Cape Buffalo, Giraffe, and other thick skinned game with a Rage. Currently, frangilbe ammo (such as Berger) is all the rage in rifle hunting with numerous advertised claims of "dropped at the shot" -- but I still wouldn't recommend it for a Moose, Brown Bear, or Cape Buffalo.
I've hunted Namibia twice, shot all my animals with a 63# recurve, single blade BHs and arrow weight at 720g. The standout was a Steenbok I shot clean through the lungs, taking out the top of the heart... He ran and died mid stride, piled up in a small bush... 200 odd yards from where my arrow blew through him. Overkill, yes. But African animals just die hard, period.
I'd rather be a warrior in a garden the be a gardener finding himself in a war. Or, 'use enough gun' as the saying goes.
"(Although with my Rage heads 3 out 4 of my animals hit the ground in sight)"
3 out of 4 would have me second guessing. I'm at 14/16 hitting the ground in sight as of the most recent with fixed blades. But honestly, I believe shot distance and shot placement have so much more to do with it than broadhead choice. You need 6-9 inches of penetration in the right spot to kill most big game. Cut the aorta and they pass out in under 3 seconds from rapid loss of blood pressure.
