Swhackers for bull elk? Updated testing..

[Justin Stahl]

Last year i shot a cow with the 100gr at 90yd. She went like 70yd and died! I would shoot the at anything. Before everyone starts say stuff about shooting an elk at 90yd just hold up. I shoot all the time at these ranges and am very confident at this range.

[firstcoueswas80]

Imho, AFixed Blade Is Best For Elk. I Like Rage For PiGs, Deer, Antelope, But If I Ever Draw A Elk Tag, I'll Be Using Fixed Blade.

[resolute]

IMHO your bow is not fully tuned until you can shoot fixed blade broad heads with your field points. This may not actually be the case but it is in my head and that was always on my mind when I was drawing on an animal with a mechanical. It is very easy to tune fixed blades if your bow is shooting correctly. I just can't see shooting a bow that is not perfectly tuned when I know it will usually be a medium to long range shot. Nothing against mechanical shooters...as I said, it is in MY head! The Slick Trick Magnum 125 grain heads fly great and can usually have them tuned with my field points in about 5 shots out to 80 yards.

[Elkhunter1]

no please use a good fixed head to much energy loss on the big cut heads.Yes it will work sometimes but why risk it when they make some great fixed heads that shoot with fieldpoints.

 

 

have you ever used a mechanical broadhead? I don't think one should speak on items that they don't understand, there have been several videos displaying the amount of penetration you get with the Swhacker broadhead without energy loss, you're totally wrong on this particular head. Good hunting to all.

[singleshot]

If your shooting a fixed blade and are confident in them then don't change anything. Confidence equates to success, it's hard enough to maintain good shooting composure when the shot arises. If your shooting Swhackers and are confident in them, I wouldn't change. Fixed blade or expandable, a shot to the shoulder on a bull elk is a wash. The following pictures show entrance and exit holes from the 125 grain Swhacker.

Entrance hole on a big mule deer buck, slightly quartering forward at 65 yards, 70 pound Mathews Z7, 27 inch Beman arrow. Average set-up. Cut through three ribs on the entrance and two ribs on the exit.

 

 

20 yard shot on a broadside Javelina. This is the exit hole after severing the spine. The spine was cut completely through at an angle from top to bottom, and also cut one of the ribs off at the point where it attaches to the spine.

 

[Elkhunter1]

thanks for the pics that's hard to describe what they actually do. in 2010 I killed a white tail, it took me 20 minutes to dig the broadhead out of his spine, it was a 45 yard shot with an old Pearson spoiler plus at 70 pounds.

[pronghorn]

I have only shot Swhackers for two years, but in those two years I have shot two mule deer bucks. They went 70 and 30 yards. I will be shooting Swhackers for deer and elk again this year in Colorado.

[desertbowhunter]

The schwackers will be fine. I have never shot them but they look solid. I'm shooting the ulmer edge for my elk hunt this year. Fixed blades are awesome but if you want the best accuracy and forgiveness go mechanical. I have shuttle Ts flying great up to 70 yards but I have the ulmer edge shooting good as far as I can shoot. Why not have the most confidence possible in your set up. There is no right or wrong just go with what gives you the most confidence possible.

[wildwoody]

never used. i switched this year from muzzy m3 to the nap thunderhead that pig didn't move. can't wait to use them this year on my early archery bull hunt

[Memac63]

I plan to go with a 125gr Swhacker based on the advice of a long time hunting friend who has taken a bull elk with one (he says they used to be called Sonorans and that's what he used). I was leaning towards a G5 Montec but got talked into going mechanical. Now I just have to figure out what I'll put behind it, shaft, nock, and vanes, lots of charts and guides reviewed without making much headway on any of those decisions.

[TOBY]

Update.....They work pretty good. 1inch plus going in and 2 inch plus going out. 70 yards dead elk. Recommend heavy arrow.470 grains and 32 yards produced 4 inches of arrow sticking out opposite side middle body with no shoulder contact.

[cvw789]

Awesome to hear. Congrats !!!

 

Cole

[ready2hunt]

nice bull!

 

The only swhacker testing I was able to do this year was on the wall of my blind. I have to admit...they did their job though

[Coach]

It's nice to see the broad head debate going on here. I've never shot the Swhacker, but I've seen how well they work for other hunters. I've seen great results with Rage, and not-so-great.

If I have anything to add, it is 2 parts:

 

First, find the head you are comfortable with and use it with confidence. Most of the top-tier heads will do their job if properly used.

Secondly, if you choose to use mechanicals because you can't get fixed blades to fly with your target points, you have a tuning issue. If this is the case, even with mechanicals, you won't get the penetration you would with a properly tuned bow/arrow combination.

 

A properly tuned bow will shoot field heads and broad heads together. With an improperly tuned bow, it's up to the arrow's fletchings to try to correct the improper flight of the arrow. This is why so many people choose mech's, IMO.

A fixed blade on the front of the arrow reacts to the wind the same way that your fletchings work on the back side of the arrow. The force of air pressing against a solid body is at work at both the front and back of the arrow. If the flight is off in any way, the stronger force of resistant air will prevail.

 

In an improperly tuned bow, the fletchings can still correct the flawed path of the arrow - exactly the same reason we have movable fins on torpedoes and smart bombs.

With a well tuned bow, the broad head works with the fletchings to stabilize a wobbly arrow. We've all seen video of an arrow fired from a bow, it's fully flexed and oscillates in all directions until it finds its center of gravity. If that center is off, or it’s being pushed by air resistance up-front, it fights to regain its forward momentum.

 

Moral of the story is: If your bow is well tuned, either fixed or mechanical broadheads will likely perform equally well. If you are using mechs to hide a poorly tuned bow, they probably won't bail your butt out. A bad hit is a bad hit.

[AZHUNTER05]

I shot my bull this year with schwacker! I got a complete pass through at 50 yards, the bull ran 30 yards and died.