montana_hunter_16

I currently shoot a 100 grain thunderhead off 5575 goldtip arrows from a 62 pound Hoyt Ultratec. I shoot a whisker biscuit, which I understand affects my tuning, and I am not too happy with my broadhead. It took me 4 hours to track down an antelope I hit with it at 20 yards, it was a good shot but it didn't pass through. The elk I shot at 27 yards had about 8 inches of penetration. What is wrong? Do I need to go to heavier arrows, or a new broadhead?

I was looking at the Rocket expandable steelhead broadheads and I've heard good things about them. What do you guys think? Best broadhead?

Ate-Up

Depending on your arrow speed your probably a little week on KE. A good cut on contact head like a Magnus Stinger would be a good choice for a fixed blade,and steelheads or snypers would be a good mecanical. If your arrows are not shooting straight you might want to shoot it through paper and check to see if the bow is in tune. Good luck and happy hunting.

bigbulls

If you're not getting good penetration with a head like the thunderhead on antelope I would strongly advise against going to any mechanical of any style.

Assuming that your bow is perfectly tuned you might want to try the Magnus stinger line or steel force.

Having said that you should be getting good penetration on elk and pass throughs on antelope with the thunderhead so I would start over like it's a new bow and make absolutely sure that everything is well tuned and shooting as good as it can. This would include having someone observe you while you are shooting to make sure that you are not doing anything that could cause bad arrow flight.

If your arrow is flying down range badly this uses up gobs of energy trying to correct its flight and if it is still flying badly when it hits the animal this uses up even more energy trying to go through that little hole in the animal.

elknut1

I agree 100% with Bigbulls, if you have an untuned bow leading to bad arrow flight it can affect penetration, but man it'd really have to be bad!!

I would put the cause more to where you're hitting the animal, is it possible you think it's a good enough shot that you feel it should get more penetration? Where did you honestly hit these two animals, and what was the shot angle, and how far away were they? The reason I ask is I've seen both elk and deer hit with 40# to 60# bows many times, more often than not the ones near the 60# mark have pass throughs. Even the 40# bow buried it to the flethings. Most of the heads used were either Thunderheads or Muzzys both in the 100grn to 125grn 3 blade. So I honestly doubt a different head will make a difference in this case.

I too would stay away from mechanicals on elk! Help us out here!! elknut1

Straightarrow

What's your drawlength? Unless it's extremely short, your set-up should be more then adequate to take elk, and to achieve a passthrough on most shots in the vitals.

In additon to what the others mentioned, check your blade sharpness. A razor sharp blade that is traveling straight forward, will penetrate the furthest. If your broadhead aren't razor sharp (can shave hair easily), then learn how to get them that way. They can dull, just pulling them in and out of a quiver. I find that very few bowhunters pay proper attention to broadhead sharpness. It matters not what they are like when you open the package. It is up to each hunter to touch them up, until sharp enough to shave with. You need to do this whenever they are shot or after being removed from the quiver several times.

cherokee_outfitters

Thunderhead and Muzzy's are the ones I've seen stay together great and have wonderful penetration. Your bow has enough poundage and should of not done that. That sounds either bad angles or something seriously mechanically wrong. Have you tested the draw weight on your bow and seen it was actually pulling 62lbs? A 40lb recurve will do better than 8 inches of penetration with the right arrow setup. I personally shoot 125gr thunderheads on the end of a 2317 arrow and I've yet to not have a pass through. Sounds wrong a 62lb bow won't do better than that.

idahoelkinstructor

I used thunderheads 100 gr for the last 5 years and they have preformed well on elk, and other big game. I agree with the others. I believe your arrow is not tuned, and therefore not flying strait and penetrating.

Bulldog1

Montana Hunter, Have you ever heard of the Montec's from G-5? They fly awesome, but they also give you a cut and punch on impact. Easy to sharpen I highly recommend them. Good Luck Bulldog1

montana_hunter_16

I think you guys are right about both the tuning and the sharpness. My bow was tuned great for field points, but I don't recall tuning it with Broadheads. Now that I think of it, I can remember the arrow fishtailing a bit on the way to the elk. I DID hit him high, like I said, and I believe that contributed a lot. Also, I think my blades were a bit dulled up from contacting brush/quiver/etc...

The main thing I'm wondering right now is whether I should go for a lightweight, fast setup...like the goldtips and a mechanical.

or

Aluminums with a cut on contact like a Magnus Snyper. For elk, i think this would be more appropriate. What do you guys think? Will the goldtips with a magnus on them at 60 pounds and a 30 inch draw be good?

Rob/PA Bowyer

I recommend against going to a lighter setup, especially for elk. Gaining a few extra fps at your current draw weight will not gain you any KE and the lighter arrow will not push through an animal as well as a heavier one unless extremes are taken. You would however gain stiffness with a carbon so if you could go to a heavier carbon arrow and a good cut on contact broadhead, you might gain penetration. You shouldn't have a problem with your current Thunderhead. I killed a bull elk with a Muzzy tipped Beman Carbon arrow however, it was traveling will into the 290 fps and well into 75 plus ftlbs of KE. The arrow did pass completely through the bull and 10 yards beyond.