Rage broadheads
Contributors to this thread:Equipment
From: Boris
15-Jun-19
Ok guys, I am planning on using the Rage Hypodermic Broadheads for deer this year. My arrow weight is 450 gr. and traveling about 280 fps. I would like some pros and cons.
From: trophyhill
15-Jun-19
Pro's......... Con's, it's a mechanical ;)
From: Russell
15-Jun-19
My setup in nearly the same. Not sure how fast the arrow goes, but I've killed a few dozen whitetails with it. Seven deer fell to my "lucky" arrow before a yot broke it.
From: jstephens61
15-Jun-19
Grabbing my popcorn!
From: deerslayer
15-Jun-19
You will enjoy the blood trails.
From: Genesis
15-Jun-19
I think planeing on using is a less accurate statement
From: spike78
15-Jun-19
Cons made in China.
From: 1boonr
18-Jun-19
Pro’s- you will always be able to see 95% of your arrow sticking out of the deer
From: WapitiBob
18-Jun-19
Put it where it's supposed to go and you'll be just fine.
From: BowSniper
18-Jun-19
Pros - the wicked entrance wound will often a look recovery of an otherwise 'lost' deer.
Cons - bad things happen if one opens in flight. Would not shoot one through ground blind netting.
Overall pros beat cons for me, and I very much like them.
From: njbuck
18-Jun-19
If put in the vitals you will not need to follow the blood trail as you will see the deer fall.
From: midwest
18-Jun-19
I prefer the Trypans which are similar. GREAT mech for me so far. If you make a less than ideal shot, meaning liver or guts, I would much rather have a large cutting mech on the end of my arrow.
From: huntinelk
18-Jun-19
Be careful if you consider buying them on Ebay, there are alot of counterfeit Rages on there.
From: kscowboy
18-Jun-19
^^^
So, so true. Chinadermics are a real thing and there are plenty of horror stories. Support your local archery shop and do not buy online from eBay or Amazon.
From: KY EyeBow
18-Jun-19
Started using Rage Hypodermic +P around 3 years ago combined with FMJ shaft for whitetails(killed 10 deer). Very good combination in my experience although I did have a broadhead failure last year that lead to lost deer. That said, I will be shooting the same BH and arrow combo this Fall. You will get spoiled on the blood trails (when needed). Also killed 2 Spring gobblers with no problems as well.
From: Pgribb
18-Jun-19
Saw what a the Rage Hypodermic NC will do to a bear first hand...I am sold on them.
From: Scar Finga
18-Jun-19
I shot them for quite a while, never again! When (NOT IF) they open in flight or because you bumped them and didn't realize it... Really bad hits happen! Just my opinion, but I will never use one again!
Best of luck, but I think there are way better options out there!
From: Bou'bound
18-Jun-19
There is no better mechamical than the current Rages, be it hypo +p or Trypan.
From: Tonybear61
18-Jun-19
Open on impact with anything , between you and the desired target. Small sticks, grass, the air....
No I will never use an expandable of any type again.
From: APauls
18-Jun-19
Fixed heads will deflect just as badly. Not to mention if your mech head made contact with something, it is a surefire guarantee your fletching and/or arrow would have also deflected off the same object. So if you're hitting something hard enough to open a head, you were already screwed to begin with.
From: deerslayer
19-Jun-19
I do a lot of spot and stalk here in the west including treestand hunting, groundblinds, etc. Whether I'm in the tree or chasing antelope, when I nock up or pull back, I always give them a quick check to verify the blades are tight and closed. With the plastic collars it is a pretty good system. I've used them a bunch and can't say I've ever had one open in flight. I also agree with what Adam just said. I can tell you this with a higher poundage setup and fairly heavy arrow you will have tremendous in/out holes. I strongly believe the guys who are having poor penetration with them are shooting lower poundage setups with bad KE and possible poor tuning.
From: carcus
19-Jun-19
Wish they would go back to a rubber band for blade retention like the original snypers, never open in flight, great mechanical otherwise
From: ELKMAN
19-Jun-19
Like Bob said, it's about where you put it, not what you put there. Anybody who's says any different is just one of those people that need something to blame because they either can't shoot, or don't have any discipline when it comes to shot selection. I will say that I strongly recommend you go with the Trypan over the Hypodermic. Any questions on anything Rage PM me and I will tell you anything you need to know. Good hunting.
From: Timbrhuntr
19-Jun-19
So to be clear what is a " mental head case " ?
From: hdaman
19-Jun-19
I shoot slick tricks and trypans and find that they are both accurate and reliable. If you decide to go with the rage and like them, I would recommend that you also buy the additional collars and blades. Good luck and happy blood trails!
From: JL
19-Jun-19
FWIW.....I've shot and killed with the Chi-Rages and the "US" Rages. The deer never knew the difference. On another site a year or so back, we did some research and emails to understand the Rage process. What we were told is the body is made in China and the blades are stamped, sharpened and installed at the WI factory. So....the "US" Rage is only partially made in the US. The Chi-Rages we got looked the same as the US Rage for the most part. One thing I noticed was the Chi-Rage's blades have a different cut angle on the blades and the US Rage blades were a little sharper. One EBay seller said the bodies he has are from the same Chinese factory the US Rage company uses. I seem to recall you could get a dozen for something like $15 to $21 bucks. The US Rage folks got a "cease and desist" type ruling from the FTC I think it was trying to help stop the import of the Chi-Rages. It was posted on the site.
From: Spiral Horn
19-Jun-19
As far a mechanicals go, Rage Hypodermics are about as good as it gets. Pretty much a committed fixed blade guy with my compound (QAD Exodus) - they always work and the Exodus has incredible penetration - numerous species have been impressed. Had a few bad experiences with mechanicals many years ago and pretty much abandoned them.
That said, I bought a Scorpyd Crossbow a few years back and it is just plain too fast for fixed blades. So, I tried some Rage Hypodermics. To my surprise they consistently flew well and were absolutely deadly on game. Momentum is the key with mechanicals and this thing flings a 460gr bolt at over 400fps. So, I’m currently considering trying them in my compound shooting a 450gr arrow at 295-300fps.
From: Shuteye
20-Jun-19
I killed 72 deer with Jak Hammers and can no longer shoot my recurve or mechanical bow. Being old as the hills I had to go with a Ravin crossbow. I use Grim Reaper mechanical heads. The blades snap into place so no rubber bands. The entry hole is very large and with the Ravin I get pass through shots every time. These heads are made for bows that exceed 400 FPS and will open when they hit a deer but not when shot from a fast bow. A buck I shot last January was angling towards me and I hit it in the front shoulder and the bolt came out the hind leg on the opposite side. The back leg bone was cut in half. The bolt was about 10 yards past the deer. It was a 34 yard shot. One blade was broken on the broadhead. I have spare blades.
From: 3under
20-Jun-19
2x what APauls said.
From: 3under
20-Jun-19
2x what APauls said.
From: ELKMAN
20-Jun-19
Pros: It's a mechanical-- Cons: Your gonna get a lot of blood on your boots when tracking... :More clean up for photos :More sewing for the taxidermist :You won't get nearly as many of those awesome sleepless nights hoping everything is "okay" because you will pretty much watch everything drop... ;-)
From: midwest
20-Jun-19
My, how times have changed. A few years ago, this thread would have been at 100 posts by now, full of the mech haters.
From: Will
20-Jun-19
I've had all good experiences with Rages for over a decade. I like the xtremes better than the hypo's, personally, but the hypo's will workout fine.
As with any mech, penetration will not be quite as good as with a COC fixed blade, but on deer sized critters you will have good enough penetration. I normally get two holes (in and out) with rages but I'm shooting more KE than you (OP), at 320fps and 405-410grns, though that may workout to less M, so point blank, six of one, half doz of another. You are fine.
From: Zim
20-Jun-19
RaGe iN tHe cAgE!!
From: Zim
20-Jun-19
I’m a fan of mechanicals assuming you get good shot placement (I.e. don’t hit the shoulder), but I lost a nice buck 2 years ago after putting a 2.75” expandable in him with terrible penetration. As long as you are accurate and shooting enough weight (poundage and arrow weight) they seem to be a great option. Hard to argue with success if that’s what you’ve experienced.
From: Tonybear61
20-Jun-19
"fan of mechanicals assuming you get good shot placement (I.e. don’t hit the shoulder), but I lost a nice buck 2 years ago after putting a 2.75” expandable in him with terrible penetration".-that's the problem some people think they are the answer for poor shot selection and placement.
I helped coordinate metro area hunts and had to track down a number of deer shot by a bowhunter who thought all they had to do was get an arrow in em (yeah the old expandable ads). really didn't care all that much for deer running around with their guts hanging out in a hunt area already under the microsope by the locals. Deflections not only happen in flight but once inside the animal body cavity. Blades rip off and issues like that. The folks that took those bad shots made the rest of us using solid COC heads taking multiple animals look like mental head case??
From: rattling_junkie
21-Jun-19
Great broadhead. I use them for bear and deer. I have lots of confidence using them.
From: Zim
21-Jun-19
Tony, that’s why I shoot an iron will exclusively now. After that failure I moved to fixed blades and haven’t looked back. I’ve taken 2 whitetail with that head since then, no issues.
From: ELKMAN
21-Jun-19
Tonybear61: So your take away from that whole situation was that the broad head was the problem? If so, then there is nothing more to say...
From: Tonybear61
21-Jun-19
I have a few converts I hunt with that now use fixed blades out of their compounds. No problems with Zwickey, Grizzly products once they are balanced properly. Used up my last Muzzy 4 blade in 2018. Trying Slick tricks this year that appear and fly nearly the same. Also will be using the Zwickey Eskimo which I shot a buck 3X times with back in the 90s.Those first 2 shots went through him so fast he hardly moved. I second guessed myself thinking I missed. Ran about 25-30 yd after the last shot.
From: Russell
21-Jun-19
To help prevent blades from accidentally opening while hunting or during a shot, I add a couple wraps of sewing thread.
No issues with penetration.
From: Slate
22-Jun-19
This pic shows crossbow but is same for bow. It’s important that the collar is installed properly
This pic shows crossbow but is same for bow. It’s important that the collar is installed properly
From: ELKMAN
22-Jun-19
No need for any of that-^^^__ In fact I would STRONGLY discourage it.
From: JL
22-Jun-19
I never had a problem with any of the oring Rages opening in flight. If any of the blade retention felt weak, I would slightly rotate the oring and reset the blades for a new "bite" on the oring. IMO...it isn't that big of a mystery to resolve any suspected blade retention weakness.
From: rattling_junkie
22-Jun-19
I'm with Charlie on this one too. I use mechanicals for deer and bear, and fixed for elk and moose.
From: JL
22-Jun-19
FWIW....I used G5's prior to switching to Rages. Only issues I had with those were two broken blades and they seemed to wonder very slightly in flight. That could be due to a flaw I had with the arrow build-up and the fixed blades brought it out?? Other than that...no complaints with them...after I sharpened them.
From: ELKMAN
23-Jun-19
Agreed with JL on the post with regards to the O-rings.
From: LostNwoods
23-Jun-19
U will love them. I have similar weight arrow and harvest plenty of deer!
From: Griz34
23-Jun-19
I agree with Charlie on this one.
From: badguybuster
24-Jun-19
ill stick with grizzlystiks. Ive seen too many failure to deploys
From: ELKMAN
24-Jun-19
Really? Please elaborate. Pictures as well please...
From: HuntingAdict
24-Jun-19
They always open, the design is a good one, they've killed truck loads of game. Obviously nothing is impossible but consider the source when you here stories of them "not opening." It would be great to see some evidence of them not opening on game but most of the time you hear that line the game was never recovered so there is no way to prove it one way or the other. Also I feel like the times I hear about them not opening is when people had to "improve them" on their own one way or the other. I think it is more likely that they made a bad shot? Missed all together? Hit shoulder? Didn't have the collars/orings installed correctly? etc. etc. I've killed a pile of deer and bear with them and if you set them up the way the manufacturer intends and put them in ribs most deer and bear don't make it out of sight.
From: APauls
24-Jun-19
I go over my equipment too much to have a failure. I second the love for elastic bands though. Like the Rockets they are awesome. An elastic band is essentially never going to fail. They simply don't, they just do what they do. yet there is this perception that they are a problem. I don't understand it.
I was going to say I fondle my equipment far too often the night before a hunt to have a failure the next day, but then I thought for sure that thought would get construed...
From: DL
24-Jun-19
Ever drawn your bow only to see a blade hanging down?
From: JL
24-Jun-19
^...you can mitigate that by matching BH to insert so the blades are horizontal vs vertical.
From: Huntiam
24-Jun-19
I’ve shot he original 2 blade rages since day 1 not sure how many yrs ago it’s been..and not sure how many deer have died from it but I will tell you I’ve never lost a deer or had the broadhead fail me that wasn’t my fault... I’m positive I’ve killed 30 or more white tails with a rage and lord willing will kill many more..IMHO they are a fantastic broadhead if you do your part and put it where it’s supposed to go.
From: LBshooter
24-Jun-19
No crying when you loose your deer(s) know to many guys who lost game due the failure of those heads. Good luck with though.
From: ELKMAN
25-Jun-19
Sounds like you know a lot of "excuse guys" to me. I have no idea how many animals I've killed with the 2 blade, but my profile page is full of the results, and I haven't even had time to up load the last few years. I've yet to have one failure of any kind, not even a broken blade. I have several that look like you dropped them in a blender that are bent in 4 different directions, but none broken. Never had one "not open" on impact (not physically possible), never had one open in flight. I will say I'm very diligent about keeping my equipment in good order, just like ALL responsible hunters should be.
