Your pick for the finest traditional broadhead?

[red]

So, smj has me extremely interested in pursuing traditional archery. I am starting the research/hunt phase. First up, the broadhead. My criteria are screw in and presharpened. I was looking closely at the Simmons Razor Shark, but open to all opinions. I think I am going to use tradional-look alumimums, possibly Easton Legacy. The arrows are the next step, then fletchings, stings, glove/tabs, forearm guard, quiver, etc, etc. No one tip off my significant other that a new obsession has come to town.

[BT]

First of all....CONGRATULATIONS!

This is a very smart move IMO
The stick will increase your ability with the compound and will add much more enjoyment comparatively

There are actually a good number of heads out there that would fit the bill but I will have to say that the Magnus stinger 100gr. is your best choice for the 100 class head.
Why? ... least amount of down range drag and life time warranty.
Thats a warranty that replaces the blade and ferrule regardless of what damage or how that damage came about
Therefore.....you can do alot of small game hunting to sharpen up those skills without hurting the wallet

BUT.....

The Magnus is a very poor bleeder and you will suffer if you have to track anything off its bloodtrail

Therefore the Simmons Razorshark gets the second nod as a big game head once your skill level is to the point with which you are ready to pursue your quarry

[red]

Thanks, and good tips BT. Stinger is a good suggestion...only reason it was not at the top of my list is that I think of it as an "in-betweener"...not quite traditional, not quite modern. No doubt it would be a good choice, however, especially since until I get proficient I shouldn't be throwing money away. I'll have lots of questions once I get moving along. It is nice to have experts at the ready.

[smj]

Certainly nothing wrong with traditional gear! Broadheads - there are a lot of them out there, certainly the shark and magnus are good choices. I have 6 magnus and 6 silver flame broadheads that are going to Canada with me in September, for the longbow of course. I will be shooting trubos out of the compound - I shoot both and hope to take a caribou with each... We'll see how it goes!

I would suggest, others may not agree with me, that picking the broadhead before the arrow is a bit out of sequence. Get the bow, select a shaft, get the arrow built and know that it flys right for you out of your bow given your style. This might require shooting for a while to get the bugs out of your form and gear. Then pick the broadhead to use. You might determine that you want a heavy arrow or a mid-weight arrow, little FOC or lots of FOC, and so on. If you end up shooting 145 grain target tips, you probably won't want a 100 broadhead. A lot of companies offer broadheads in a range of weights to accommodate just about any traditional configuration you can come up with. So far as arrows go, aluminum or carbon or wood - there are great broadheads for each. Some of the glue-on tips used with wood are really great broadheads, well proven over time - like the wensel woodsman and those made by zwickey. Besides, once you have the system zeroed a bit, you know you can come here and get a broadhead all dialed in for your rig!

[BT]

Good council SMJ
I did say 100 class not as a suggestion for weight but a head within weight class.
I assume that at first you may be within the class where 100gr. heads also offer same style in heavier weights but I am not so quick to simply buy bigger since many larger heads have issues with strength when sized up from flagship heads.
(Magnus is one that jumps to mind)
I would consider 100gr. heads in replacement style since they seem to fair better than their larger brothers in many cases.
To increase weight you can use the same 100gr. head with brass inserts or other interior weight system attachments.
This would have you with a 135gr. and up to 155gr. comfortable without too much effort in most aluminum shaft accessory offerings.

Just a thought

[red]

Thanks for the info. guys...not the first time I've been accused of jumping the gun. Broadheads fascinate me, so that is why they come to mind first. Question smj...you mentioned shooting a 145 grain field point and going with a 100 grain broadhead. When you shoot traditional, do the two not match in grain weight? Also, the Flames are flying well for you out of traditional gear? They'd probably be my first choice out of any rig.

[smj]

Let's see - I have found that wind is a problem when it comes to good arrow flight. As I think about Canada, one of the things that donk said from his hunt up there last year, was that the wind could be really bad! So, I have been adding a bit more FOC on some of the arrows I am taking with for caribou. Now, my traditional arrows, I am shooting the 150 grain Silver Flames - to be honest I have yet to shoot one, I have been getting arrows squared away first. In the past, I have shot 125 grain heads and they flew reasonably well, but didn't fly well in wind. I will be shooting with 145 grain target tips tonight to see how it looks. (If they don't shoot well, I have 125 grain magnus stingers lined up, and those do fly well.) This last past week has been all about dealing with the compound. I have been making 6 arrows that will be my "big wind" arrows. These will have 100 grain turbo tips on them, but have another 50 grains of weight added in to the back of the insert. I am putting together a thread on arrows for use in big winds and will be posting it in the next week or so. I will then follow with results and findings. As to this mornings test flights - results looked very good! I shot at 60 yards, the arrows flew very well and didn't hit all that much below the standard arrow I usually shoot. My interest this morning was that the arrows with extra weight left the bow well, and behaved well in flight. So far, so good. Now I have to find a windy day and go shooting! (Sorry if this is a bit confused, I'll present a more comprehensive detail in a week or so in a separate thread.)

Yes - in general I do shoot the same broadhead/target tip weight. I play with adding weight elsewhere... However, I also have shot a heavier tip in big wind for a better FOC. The arrow is a bit slower, not as flat shooting - you have to weigh the benifits of speed against shooting an arrow that gets where you want it to go in big wind. More on that later!