Contributors to this thread:
I've noticed that too Razor. I've rarely ever seen any NAP arrowhead mentioned at all. I've been shooting Spitfires and Spitfire Maxx the last 5 years. I've shot 8 deer anywhere from 12-44 yards with them and had complete pass throughs on all but 1. The farthest I've had one run is about 60 yards but all with blood trails a blind man could follow. I love them and a couple friends have started shooting them after seeing the blood trail when they've come to help me drag deer out.
Afters years of experience with Spitfires, my own and hunting partners, I can confidently endorse them. From coyotes to moose and everything in between. Even African plains game. Have never had or seen a failure and have always observed fantastic results.
IMO, best mechanical and contender for best broadhead for any NA game animal when used with a reasonable arrow weight, draw weight and draw length. Basically, most adult hunters. Because of cutting diameter, it would not be suitable for low energy set ups, the same as a fixed head of the same diameter wouldn't be.
Now we can sit back let all the hunters that have never used them, tell you why you shouldn't use them either. And I have a huge amount of skepticism for any of the "..absolutely perfect shot.." and no recovery stories. And they usually end with "..and that was once and never again.." Yet they do it again and again with a fixed head.
I don't shoot mechanical's but, if I were to start, it'd be a spitfire. I have wandered the same thing about threads on here. Two of my buddies shoot them and they shoot through everything they shoot. Good heads to me. NAP makes good stuff. God Bless
NAP Spitfire user since 2003. Two trips to South Africa (Zebra, Wildebeest, Oryx, Waterbuck et al) black bear in Canada, white tail, coyote, and bobcat. I've never had a problem with them they go right were my field points go and they do make a sizable hole. Other than Gobble Guillotine for turkey I have not used any other broadhead in 14 years.
I've mentioned in many mechanical broadhead threads; the Spitfire 125 is the most efficient Elk killer I've used.
I don't shoot mechanicals... currently... I have used spitfires, the only mechanical I have ever used. I have killed elk, hogs and deer with them. I currently use Magnus Buzz Cuts, a fixed blade broad head. No particular reason except that I like the look of a traditional broadhead. Spitfires worked well for me when I was shooting them. I too can endorse them.
I've killed a ton of stuff over the years with Spitfires. As long as you watch your angles they are one of the best mechanicals I've used. Not a fan of them in the Deep 6 version as the ferrule is too thin for that long head, but in the regular version they are fantastic. As of late I've been a "hybrid" fan with the Blood Sport Grave Digger being my Broadhead of choice.
Plenty of endorsements for Spitfires on here.
NAP makes awesome heads...flip a coin between the spitfire, the Jak Hammer, the rocket steelheads, or the Grim reaper, all good quality mechanicals!
NAP makes awesome heads...flip a coin between the spitfire, the Jak Hammer, the rocket steelheads, or the Grim reaper, all good quality mechanicals!
Don't fix what isn't broken. God Bless
I have killed a lot of animals with a NAP Spitfire. It is a great broadhead. I still carry one in my quiver and will shoot an animal or two with them a season but I love to experiment with different heads to gain first hand knowledge of how they perform.
If the broad head is sharp I will use it whether it's fixed or mechanical. The nap spitfire is one of my favorite. It has served me well on deer and bear.
I used to use NAP Spitfires and killed a lot of deer with them. I was in Ohio and had the biggest buck I have ever shot at come in and he was broadside at 22 yards. I shot him in the shoulder. I was about 2-3 inches too far forward and hit the bone. I think I broke the shoulder and only got about 3 inches of penetration. The broadhead snapped off at the point where the blades were screwed in.
I thought that my shot was good, but when I got down to look at the site where I hit the deer and found my arrow, It made me sick to my stomach. I waited a couple hours to look for the deer and I bumped him. Later on several guys from camp came out to help me find it, and he started running, and didn't stop until he was off our property about a mile and a half away... I saw that buck the next year, limping, but still out chasing..
Long story short, I feel that if I would have been shooting a fixed blade broadhead, that buck would have been on my wall instead of on my mind as a regret..
Anyhow, Spitfires are good, but I switched to Slick Trick 100gr Magnums and have had good luck with them..........
By the way, if you get a chance, look in to Bowhunting TV, Bowhunt or die... It is a show that is pretty good, but this past year, they have been pimping some new NAP Broadhead.. It is a cross between a Spitfire and a Rage.. On all the shots that they have taken his past year, I don't think they got a pass through on any animal they shot at. In fact, the main guy on the show shot and lost a bull elk because of lack of penetration.
Just remember, the wider the cutting diameter, the more KE needed to penetrate deeply. Then throw in a bone, thin blades, and maybe a weak point where the blades join the ferrule. That could lead to a disaster...
I have heard it here on this site, and I heard Kelly Harris say it, (While we were tracking the buck I lost), but he stole it from someone here, "When your hunt hinges on one shot, your one shot shouldn't rely on a hinge".
Good luck with whatever you decide to use.... And stay away from those shoulder bones!
Jay
I have also had good luck with the Spitfire Maxx. Took a 30" wide 29" tall 5x5 deer in Arizona at 87 yards and a complete pass through quartering away shot. No lectures please.
I found an arrow with a Spitfire on it. This arrow obviously fell out of someone's quiver recently. It was not shot. I've always heard good things about Spitfires but my question for you folks with experience with them is how easy do they open? The one I found took some effort to flip open. The Steelheads I use open very easily and the Spitfire seemed stiff. Comments?
"When your hunt hinges on one shot, learn where to shoot".
Fixed it for you.
"I have also had good luck with the Spitfire Maxx. Took a 30" wide 29" tall 5x5 deer in Arizona at 87 yards and a complete pass through quartering away shot. No lectures please."
Impossible
I knew people who loved them,,, when I was giving mech's a try I thought the blades opened way too hard BUT honestly I never shot them it was just a decision I made when checking them out in my hand,,,, I went with the Nap Shockwave instead and was blown away at those,,, spitfires I never heard anything bad about them and followed many blood trails made by them..
S
People are always talking about Spitfires on here. They're prob the most talked about over-the-top mechanical. Maybe that and the Rocket Steelheads.
razorhead,
With light poundage like your setup I would only shoot the smallest of mechanicals. Steelhead, 1 3/8" grim reaper, etc. for example.
steelheads are nice for light weight bows my buddy's girl shoots them out of a 50lb PSE
I always had good luck with them but it's tough to argue with what JayG wrote in his post, and, of course, the inevitable "learn to shoot" post quickly follows but no one here goes through life without a missed mark regardless of what caused it.
When you miss into the shoulder blade, you'll wish you had a small fixed blade. When you miss "a little far back" you'll be wishing you had a big mech.
We can all miss, but when the trend is "I'm good out to 60," those misses become more likely. I know of 11 Elk shot and lost the last three years, shot distance being the common denominator. Capable archers making the proverbial "perfect shot". I'm starting to get a bit jaded when I see a thread where the guy is shooting fp with bh out to 80, noting he's "good out to 60," then posting about the Elk and Deer he lost.
I've loved a few Nap heads. The Nitron's were great, and most of the other heads they make seem to get great reviews as well. Spitfires for sure are an awesome head.
If only everyone and life were perfect.
I've shot Spitfire Maxx heads on deer and other critters (not elk or moose though) and had GREAT results. I shot Rocket Steelheads before that, but I was pushing plenty of KE and it seemed like I could be using something that cut a wider swath. I've shot the Maxx's for over a decade and they've been great for me. When I hunt elk or other really big boned, thick skinned critters I use fixed heads (G5 Strikers, VPAs).
