Fixed vs Mechanical

Bonecollector · Jul 8, 2016

Rage Hyperedermic is great as I've had good results and I'm a Grim Reaper users.
Son used G5 Havoc and was unimpressed.

bowrunner · Jul 8, 2016

I am interested in this as well. I bought some rage hypodermics for turkeys, but have always used shuttle T broadheads for everything else and had good results. I am thinking bout starting with deer this fall with the hypodermics and going from there.

Slugs, what is your bow setup? What weight of an arrow and do you know your speed, or what bow and bow weight do you shoot?

Fink · Jul 8, 2016

I shot the Monteks for a while, and never felt like they were very sharp, out of the box, or after I sharpened them, so I quit using them. Lots of guys have had lots of success with Rage heads, but I'm not one of them. I've shot a whitetail doe, and 2 or 3 coyotes with Rage heads, none of the animals left blood trails, and I was only able to recover the whitetail. They did okay on turkeys..

I'm currently shooting Ulmer Edge's, and cannot say enough good things about them. They are the most accurate head I've shot, they are razor sharp, have a good enough cutting diameter, and are strong enough to not break when they go through an animal.
If you decide to shoot a fixed blade, might give Shuttle T's a look, I like them as well, but would rather shoot mechanicals.

Fink · Jul 8, 2016

Update.... Looks like Ulmer Edges aren't even being made anymore? I got 5 left, hope I get some good use out of them.

bowrunner · Jul 8, 2016

That's a good setup. I am not shooting nearly that fast. If you do end up using some rage hypodermics this year for elk and get a chance to test them out, let me know your results. I am very curious to see how they work on larger game. I think I will stick to my shuttle Ts until I test them on deer. I am not shooting quite as powerful of a setup as you are though.

laxwyo · Jul 8, 2016

No troubles with spitfires

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WapitiBob · Jul 8, 2016

I believe the Montecs are powdered metal.

I like 3 blades and at least 1 3/16 cut dia. but a max dia of 1 1/2. I have used Spitfire 125's on several bulls and they have performed better than any fixed head I have used on bulls. Call em in close, put it in the center of the lungs and watch them fall.

tdcour · Jul 8, 2016

Fink said:
Update.... Looks like Ulmer Edges aren't even being made anymore? I got 5 left, hope I get some good use out of them.

I bought a pack last year and wish I had bought more now. Really like the design and flight.

Work2hunt · Jul 8, 2016

I've been using Rage broadheads for the past 5 or 6 years. Even the poorly placed shot into the front shoulder I did on a buck 2 years ago fell to the broadheads. I have been very happy with these Broadheads

Finsandtines · Jul 8, 2016

laxwyo said:
No troubles with spitfires

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Spitfire edge and Xp pro have been my choice for several years with good accuracy and lots of blood! Even on hogs.

Bughalli · Jul 9, 2016

I've used Rage for close to 10 years. Taken many whitetails, a mule deer, couple coyotes and couple turkeys. I have't shot an elk yet, but will try again this fall. All of them were pass throughs. The deer and coyotes left insane blood trails. Most dropped within 10 to 70 yards, usually in sight. When people say they had bad blood trails, I'm inclined to think it was more a factor of pretty bad placement. Never had a blade fail or break. The first deer I shot was hit close to where the rib met the spine. I shot straight down below my tree stand, so the bone was thick and not much space between ribs. One blade bent a little as the tip broke the rib and the blade hit the rib next to it. It did what it needed to get through.

I always use 2 blade. They leave massive wounds. Not a fan of 3 blade expandable because it has too much cutting diameter. Penetration is a natural trade off with the number of blades and blade length. More blades and longer/wider blades with large cutting diameters equals more resistance as it tries to cut. So make sure you have enough kinetic energy to break or cut through what's needed and get good penetration. I shoot 29.5 DL @ 70lbs., 420gr arrow at 296fps. I wouldn't mind adding weight and a little more speed in my next setup.

I shoot fixed blades on occasion (Slick Tricks) when I hunt a State that requires it. No matter how much I tune my bow the expandables shoot a little better at longer ranges. Until I have a failure with the expandable head, I have no reason to change. They've always been devastating on anything I hit with them.

laxwyo · Jul 9, 2016

Why are people concerned with pass through? For gutting? Don't want that broad head in there? An arrow that stays in the cavity does more damage. Not saying one is better than other. Just curious

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WapitiBob · Jul 9, 2016

I don't care about pass thru's.

ando_31 · Jul 9, 2016

I think people like the pass through because it means they got full penetration and everything in the arrow flight path has been affected. I prefer a pass through with a rage because the exit hole usually dispenses more blood which obviously makes for easier tracking. Yes I know an animal shot in the heart or lungs won't go very far, but we all make mistakes.

As for mechanical vs fixed, there are to many variables to say one is better than the other for all people. I like mechanicals becuase they fly exactly like field points, are less affected by the wind, and some of them do seem to do more damage than fixed. I like fixed because all the energy of the arrow is put into the animal and there aren't any moving parts to fail.

There isn't one right broad head for every person and every situation. I have both fixed and mechanical in my quiver. If I'm in close quarters and protected by from the wind I will nock a fixed. If I am in open prairie and getting blown away I will nock a mechanical.

tdcour · Jul 9, 2016

ando_31 said:
I think people like the pass through because it means they got full penetration and everything in the arrow flight path has been affected. I prefer a pass through with a rage because the exit hole usually dispenses more blood which obviously makes for easier tracking. Yes I know an animal shot in the heart or lungs won't go very far, but we all make mistakes.

As for mechanical vs fixed, there are to many variables to say one is better than the other for all people. I like mechanicals becuase they fly exactly like field points, are less affected by the wind, and some of them do seem to do more damage than fixed. I like fixed because all the energy of the arrow is put into the animal and there aren't any moving parts to fail.

There isn't one right broad head for every person and every situation. I have both fixed and mechanical in my quiver. If I'm in close quarters and protected by from the wind I will nock a fixed. If I am in open prairie and getting blown away I will nock a mechanical.

My thoughts exactly. Exit holes make tracking easier and I also have been carrying both in my quiver. My slick tricks fly with my field points out to about 60 then the slowly drop from the increased drag. Expandable a are in there in case it's windy or a follow up shot is needed at long distances.

Fink · Jul 9, 2016

laxwyo said:
Why are people concerned with pass through? For gutting? Don't want that broad head in there? An arrow that stays in the cavity does more damage. Not saying one is better than other. Just curious

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For me, I'm generally shooting down on an animal, and a pass through means there's a good hole in the bottom half of an animal, and that generally equates to lots of blood on the ground.

Ikeepitcold · Jul 9, 2016

Question for you guys.

Does the mechanical BH fly more like field tips vs the fixed type?

I'm shooting killer groups with field points but the BH's I'm shooting and not as good. I'm shooting Slick Tricks. My thought would be since the mechanical are more compact during flight they would shoot more like the field points.

ScottR · Jul 9, 2016

Ikeepitcold said:
Question for you guys.

Does the mechanical BH fly more like field tips vs the fixed type?

I'm shooting killer groups with field points but the BH's I'm shooting and not as good. I'm shooting Slick Tricks. My thought would be since the mechanical are more compact during flight they would shoot more like the field points.

You probably need to broadhead tune your bow. Dan and I did a video on this last summer.

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