Sharp broadheads

pyscodog

Active member
Just for conversation only. Years ago, setting around the fire at deer camp, the subject of sharpening broadheads came up. Most of the guys said they like theirs razor sharp....all except one guy. He said he didn't like his that sharp and here's his explanation why. He claimed a sharp razor cut has the tendency to close up like a cut on your finger but if the head was sharp but kinda ragged, it will tear more than cut and not close up as fast. Kinda like a cut from a saw blade. I understood his point just not sure I totally agreed.
 
It's just the opposite, a ragged cut has lots of rough edges to allow clotting agents to stick to. A cut made by a razor sharp blade doesn't have those rough edges. I read an article a long time ago that compared cutting a piece of hose with a razor vs a saw blade and then glueing them back together. I learned it first hand as a kid when I tried to tighten a 4 blade Wasp and my fingers slipped.
Not only that but the sharper blades will cut better and penetrate deeper
 
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I pretty much agree with that guy.I feel the ragged edge tends to grab and cut small arteries etc causing more damage-bleeding.I get my blades very sharp.Sharp enough to shave hair off the back of my hand.But leave the tiny serations the file creates.
 
Originally Posted By: reloader326It's just the opposite, a ragged cut has lots of rough edges to allow clotting agents to stick to. A cut made by a razor sharp blade doesn't have those rough edges. I read an article a long time ago that compared cutting a piece of hose with a razor vs a saw blade and then glueing them back together. I learned it first hand as a kid when I tried to tighten a 4 blade Wasp and my fingers slipped.
Not only that but the sharper blades will cut better and penetrate deeper

I subscribe to this line of thought.
 
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I have to cast my vote for the sharp broadheads. I have personally felt the pain and carnage of a sharp head between the fingers. Three fingers cut almost to the bone.
 
So long as the blades are good'n sharp I doubt there's really much difference either way.As important is penatration.A pass through is ideal.Particularly so when hunting from a tree stand where the entrance hole will most often be higher vs a ground level shot.Without an exit hole and the arrow acting as a plug most of the blood will be internal making tracking and recovering the deer far more difficult.
 
Pysco, go get a couple pieces of surgical tubing about 6" long put them together and stretch them just a little bit. Turn an arrow upside down with a broadhead on it and slide the center of the broadhead between the two pieces with the 2 different heads and draw your own conclusion. This is how I was taught. They say arteries are similar to the tubing.
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Years ago I read an article by a doctor that explained what the OP is suggesting. It was comparing an artery ripped versus one sliced. The sliced one was easier to repair or fit back together.
 
Originally Posted By: ZYears ago I read an article by a doctor that explained what the OP is suggesting. It was comparing an artery ripped versus one sliced. The sliced one was easier to repair or fit back together.

Which one could you glue together easiest? And the bond hold best?
 
I have heard this theory before and it's ridiculous. Broadheads should be SCARY sharp. Ask a samurai if he prefers his sword to be a little jagged.
 
Originally Posted By: ZYears ago I read an article by a doctor that explained what the OP is suggesting. It was comparing an artery ripped versus one sliced. The sliced one was easier to repair or fit back together.

This, by and of itself is absolutely true...a "sliced" artery is easier to "repair" {translated: stitched back together} because it is all there and you can see just what to sew to what...on the other hand and obviously, if you run an artery thru a meat grinder it would be very hard to "repair".....but we are not talking about just putting them back together. No one is trying to do that after an animal is hit with an arrow and running away. In fact, I am not so sure it would matter. Cut an artery cleanly enough so there is hemorrhage and it wont matter because you cannot last long enough to get somewhere and have it "fixed".
Make no mistake, the artery that is cut very cleanly with a very razor sharp honed broadhead will hemorrhage. This is what kills...it's not just how the artery is cut, it's that the bleeding cannot stop.
There was an old video I saw once about bowhunting for black bear in Alaska. The guy that did the video brought up two very good points about bowhunting. One was to learn to shoot out of a tree stand sitting down {so you don't have to spook the animal by standing up} the other was this test he had with a certain number rubber band. He explained that arteries have evolved to be the consistency of a rubber band and "move out of the way" to avoid injury. He showed how to stretch the rubberband not too tight between your finger and thumb and move the edge of the broadhead into it. If the broadhead moved 1/4" or more it was not sharp enough.
Many years ago Fred bear used to recommend sharpening a broadhead with a file. In his later years he backed up and admitted this recommendation was probably a mistake and that they should be honed and stropped for a better chance of more severe hemorrhage.
An artery cut with a rough or jagged edge will clot faster and stop or at least slow way down bleeding and often be "survivable".
 
Sharp for me. I shoot zwickey Eskimos and sharpen with a diamond hone. I carry a small diamond hone in my quiver and always touch up the broadhead I put on the bow after I get in my stand or blind.
 
Wire edge that shaves for me,a good wood arrow and shaving broadhead in the spot has worked pretty good for me on a bull moose ,2 bears and enough whitetails that I lost count of over 20 years ago.
 
SCARY SHARP, anything less means less penetration and more opportunity for blood clotting components to adhere to edges. Also less pain from sharp blades. You want animals walking away from archery shots,quiet arrows, shooting animals unaware of your presence.
 
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