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Mechanical broadheads are junk

Trophy Taker Outdoors

Junior Member
4
0
Decided to give mechanical broadhead one more try and sure enough it happen again, arrow ricochet off the shoulder of a doe quartered away at 30 yards, this is the 2nd time this has happen. 100gr Spitfire mechanical broadhead , 340 Easton Flatline Surgical arrow, Mathews Monster XLR8 shooting 328 fps = wounded deer. In my opinion mechanical broadheads work better with a slower and or heavier arrow (kinetic energy) Sticking with fixed blades.
 

dante322

*Supporting Member*
5,506
157
Crawford county
Where's the popcorn?

I've never tried mechanicals. Haven't had any problem with fixed blade, no need to switch.

Sorry to hear about the doe.
 

JD Boyd

*Supporting Member*
3,173
0
Urbana
Tell that story to the guy who shot Tiny Saturday at our place. He used a G5 on him and we never did find it. My opinion is if he was using a mechanical we would of had some good pics to share...
 

brock ratcliff

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
24,834
247
You hit a deer in the shoulder quartered away with anything, including 12 gauge, and you run the risk of deflection. Shoot WAY behind the shoulder on quartered away deer, and you won't have that issue with anything.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
You hit a deer in the shoulder quartered away with anything, including 12 gauge, and you run the risk of deflection. Shoot WAY behind the shoulder on quartered away deer, and you won't have that issue with anything.
Agreed.

That said, anything mechanical can and will fail. I killed a lot of deer with mechanical heads and really have no complaints with any of the ones I used. Exception to that being Grim Reapers which sound like a missile flying through the air. However I've seen enough instances of failure to convince me to make the change to a touch fixed blade. IMHO, you can't go wrong with a quality fixed blade attached to a tough arrow coming from a well tuned bow.
 

Strother23

Member
1,405
0
Columbus, OH
Everyone can argue about fixed vs mechanical. Truth is it comes down to shot placement. I personally use mechanical but I have also killed deer with fixed. Sorry to hear a doe was lost
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,735
274
North Carolina
Everyone can argue about fixed vs mechanical. Truth is it comes down to shot placement. I personally use mechanical but I have also killed deer with fixed. Sorry to hear a doe was lost

Pretty much that in a nutshell.... A perfectly broadsided deer can be dropped by a field tip.... The more the angle the better that shot too be regardless of head used.... IMO fixed are more forgiving then mechanicals just the nature of the heads....
 

epe

Senior Member
6,113
93
Lancaster
I don't chance failure with mechanicals, but some guys swear by them. Sorry to hear about the head failure.
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,720
248
Ohio
I have seen a picture of a mechanical which glanced off the shoulder and followed the outside of the ribcage. It NEVER entered the deer but opened it up all the way down the side like a zipper. If I hadn't seen the picture I would not have believed it. Never seen a deer killed this way before or since. Not an ounce of meat ruined. That said, I would not take a quartering to shot with mechanical or fixed. We can argue this all day. Comes down to personal preference. There certainly are times when mechanical are better. I will personally not find out. The holes my Slick Tricks provide are good enough for me. Just wish all our shots were perfect 20yd broadside shots we have all day to make. Doesn't always work this way.
 

Hoytmania

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
11,518
167
Gods Country
Sorry to hear about losing the doe TTO, nature of the beast I guess.

Hey JD, what G5 head was used out of curiosity. Was it a Montec? I shot those for damn near 10 years with no issues, but then I never shot one in the shoulder. That is what made me change to Slick Tricks. Was I wasn't convinced that they could keep on penetrating well enough after going through a shoulder blade.
 

Maxxis31

Junior Member
738
53
Deer wood's
Again shot placement is the key factor, i have been shooting the spit 100s for years and have knocked down probably 15 deer with these mechanical's, furthest track job 70 yards and the blood trails i must say are not a problem to find, sorry to hear your frustration and loss TTO.
 

Fluteman

Senior Member
Supporting Member
7,094
146
Southeast Ohio
Aside from shot placement three blades are better than two and four blades are better than three.
So, six would be even better?
 

Blan37

Member
1,800
64
SW Ohio
Agreed.

That said, anything mechanical can and will fail. I killed a lot of deer with mechanical heads and really have no complaints with any of the ones I used. Exception to that being Grim Reapers which sound like a missile flying through the air. However I've seen enough instances of failure to convince me to make the change to a touch fixed blade. IMHO, you can't go wrong with a quality fixed blade attached to a tough arrow coming from a well tuned bow.

I'm surprised to hear that about the grim reapers, Jesse. I've been shooting them since I bought my xbow and love them. Can't say I've really paid much attention to the sound, but I've killed 2 deer & my nephew killed 1 with no issues, but then again the xbow is shooting at 350 fps. Maybe a loud broadhead isn't as much as an issue at that speed?
 

Beentown

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
15,740
154
Sunbury, OH
I'm surprised to hear that about the grim reapers, Jesse. I've been shooting them since I bought my xbow and love them. Can't say I've really paid much attention to the sound, but I've killed 2 deer & my nephew killed 1 with no issues, but then again the xbow is shooting at 350 fps. Maybe a loud broadhead isn't as much as an issue at that speed?
Can't hear it over the twang of the crossbow. I kid, I kid.
 

Blan37

Member
1,800
64
SW Ohio
That's not six. That's one continuous ring of Toxic. Cutting. POWER!!! HAHAHA!

Seriously, I like the concept but I've read they don't fly worth a crap.