Patriot
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2019
- Messages
- 842
Three years ago at 8 yards I shot a small eight pointer with my light arrow, 100 gr. three blade NAP spitfire mechanicals that I had been using since the early to mid 2000's. I shot my biggest ever buck this same bow, arrow and bh and that buck dressed 194. I shot him at 16 yards he went 35 but over a steep ravine and piled up. Ever since that buck I got cocky and the mechanicals were easy to tune so I stayed with them. On this buck three years ago, the blades deployed fine, the deer was recovered in 40 yards but what horrified me was the dismal penetration. Back in the day, before mechs I used aluminum 2213's, 2117's, and 2413's typically with muzzy 100 grain heads or something similar (NAP Thunderhead, Wasp, Savora Swept Wing) I always had either pass throughs or very decent penetration. Arrow flight was never as perfect as I thought it should be and once I started shooting mechanicals I was lazy, put 100 grain field points on and "never had problems." Nonetheless, this little 8 had just finished freshening a scrape and I could have spit on him. Upon release the arrow flew perfectly, the buck made a sound I never heard before when the arrow hit, like a person gasping when a kid is going to fall or something like that.... that arrow only penetrated like 10 inches was sticking out of its side and pulled out not even 10 yards from the hit sight. Like I said blood was good and I recovered that buck almost in his bed. But I just felt like, why wasn't I getting better penetration? The next year I went back to muzzy 100's and started using my old heavier aluminum arrows again. I shot a spiker at 25 yards and again this heavier arrow fully penetrated. I started hunting with my old aluminums and muzzy's again. So it was a natural progression when I started watching and seeing others like the RF and the THP folks and then doing some research for going trad and seeing that many trad bow hunters use heavy arrows and beefy COC heads because most of us can't draw and hold 55-75 recurves or longbows so they rely on heavier arrows and tough broadheads to do the "wet work."
Last year I shot a decent 8 at 15 yards. If I would have been using a mechanical I wouldn't have harvested that buck. This buck had just finished freshening a scrape too. It was a perfect text book hunt. I watched him freshen the scrape and then he continued on one of the trails I was looking heading into bedding. At fifteen yards broadside I "Mehed" him and man that deer went from super calm to like a set trap in nano seconds. I was at full draw and the wind was perfect and more importantly so was the shot angle so I decided to release anyway. Man that buck immediately whurled toward me and I ended up hitting him in the neck on the opposite side and at went down his right side and came out by his right shoulder. He ran like he was spanked, squatty and tail straight out and I recovered him at 150 yards. That arrow severed his jugular on the opposite side. If it was a mechanical with a light arrow I'm convinced that based on the angle my heavy arrow hit him, a light arrow with a mech would have wounded him and glanced off because of the strange angle. Needless to say, I definitely recommend a heavy arrow and a super beefy COC BH.
great reply, thanks for the details. Now here’s a weird angle… I do 75 gr inserts with a heavy grain arrow lol. So I’m not a light arrow mechanical guy like you assumed. Im a weird hybrid guy that does heavy arrows, Easton 5mm Axis 260s with 75 grain inserts which thump hard but I do rage no collars and usually COC if I can get them but sometimes chisel tips.
with COC rage I get pass through, with chisel tips I get the BH into the center of the body cavity and they drop dead in plain site.
nobody is really talking about mixing up the two strategies of heavy arrows and mechanicals but I’m that guy.
i feel like my mechanicals and my set ups are more lethal but I feel like fixed blades are safer if I hit shoulder but I also believe the blood trails with fixed will suck and be much longer.
see my challenge? I’m weird.