small cut bh's? ie: sonic/ultimate steel
Whitetail Deer
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Anybody using the 7/8" broadheads in 2017? I'm interested in getting back to a fixed head and really want to try the small heads. Any user info/experience would be greatly appreciated! Thanks Rob
What are you switching back from and why? And why a small diameter head in particular?
I still shoot Rocket Ultimate Steels (125grn, old stock). I like the steel ferrule, small cutting diameter, and blades are pretty sharp. Since they're getting very hard to find, I've started looking at Slick Trick Standard, Wasp Drones, Wac'Ems, and a few others. I have thrown these heads through some tough bones (A pass thru on a spine comes to mind), and the ferrule still spins true. Blades always seem to dull quick and roll easy. I will say that my average recovery distance is about 50 yards (out of 9 animals).
Give the Wac ems a look. They are 1 1/16" diameter I believe? Not big but damn are they sharp and fly right.
I have been shooting the Shuttle T Loks.....have had zero issues and shoot exactly as my fieldpoints.
3 reasons for the small cut 1. I shoot mech mainly for the reduced wind deflection. 2. I generally shoot my animals pretty well and feel bigger heads don't necessarily let out more blood. 3. I just want to.
I shot a couple deer 1 bear with Sonics on carbons with 55 lb longbow. Quick kills great penetration. Were given to me to try by a friend. Don’t think they make them anymore?
Because I’m Down to shooting a 41 pound recurve I wanted a small diameter head as well. I bought some 150 grain VPA non vented three blade heads 1 1/4 wise and turned them down to 7/8 wide. I did this on a water cooled chisel sharpening grinder. After resharpening they are tiny in comparison to the 1 1/4 heads. I killed a buck this season with a double lung shot. Ran 50 yards leaving a fine blood trail.
I've used the standard wac 'em on many animals. Mainly because they flew the best out of all the ones I've tested and are a good price. They do penetrate better than larger cuts which I like on elk.
My opinion is that it is only small to the human eye. When it is slicing through an animal's lungs or heart, it is huge and deadly. Think if you would want a three or four blade 1" hole going through your vitals. LOL. I don't think many animals will live very long.
I've had a number of friends do well with Sonics. I shot an elk with a 1" head that died very quickly. I thought there was an Innerloc fixed head that was small, but I'm not sure. You could also look into 75gr heads as some of those are smaller profile. Then just use a weighted insert to get your weight back up.
As others have said, I don't think that extra 1/8" makes a large difference on what you hit/don't hit, but it sure makes a difference in the air for tunability and forgiveness.
Have you considered Magnus heads like the Stinger/Buzzcut? They fly great and they’re sharp as hell.
I wouldn’t go 7/8” unless I were at a bare minimum power level and having serious concerns about penetration in the first place.
And if I did go down to about an inch, I’d be shooting something long and lean, like a 3:1...
But a 400 grain arrow moving at 150-160 probably doesn’t need that much help.
Now, you guys who are talking about blades that get dull.... you ARE resharpening them properly between hunts, aren’t you??
Check out Bone Broadheads. Ixve done pretty extensive testing on them and they have been very impressive. I've not yet shot an animal with them, but they're in my quiver this year.
I don’t shoot Sonics anymore but I did for while. Everything died fast. Make sure the blades are all lined up real nice. I’d have no hesitation out of a compound
The only thing I don't like is the steep blade angles of a lot of these heads. A Magnus Stinger has a better profile for penetration.
As far as width, I find the narrow ones to kill just as quick as wide ones and if all else is equal, so are the blood trails. I'm sure you will do fine with these heads but I would lean more towards a head with less blade angle myself.
Ive noticed that the animals ive shot with fixed blades seem to be less spooked at the shot. I typically run mechs for 5 years then use fixed for a year or two. I'm over due for the change over to fixed heads. Want to try a small fixed blade, I've killed a few with boss bullets. Great nlood and accuracy but think those are discontinued. ST standards are an option too. Thanks for the replies guys!
Iron Will are 1 1/16", I think, and fly great and stay sharp
1" sonics are scary scary sharp, and always seem to fly right with my field points...
If you need to go to a broadhead that small to get good flight I would say that the broadhead is the least of your problems.
I like 1 3/8’s inch cut on three blade, fixed heads. There are some broadheads of this width with field point accuracy.
After 36 years and many 100’s of blood trails I opt for a quick drain. The deer pumps up on vitamin K in the fall (green leaves) which is an anti-coagulant. Almost immediately a deer will begin healing. I don’t want to give the deer that chance.
Thanks guys. It's likely between sonics and s.t. standards. Those 2 have always been intriguing to me.
Viper Tricks, although you can't go wrong with Standard or Magnum either. I really like the tip of the Vipers. Technically they may not be COC, but they are so sharp with a great approach angle, they may as well be.
Ironwill makes the nicest head i ever used. If your looking for something more economical i would echo the viper trick recommendations, the best angle of all ST in my opinion