Anyone have experience using mechanicals on elk?

[Pekan]

I think the most important aspect of bowhunting is putting the arrow where it needs to go. So I'm thinking about using mechanicals this season. Never tried them, but just got some Wasp Jackhammers and will start shooting them and see how they fly.
I normally use slik tricks and haven't had any accuracy issues, just want give these new ones a try.

Anyone on here have experience with this setup?

[mtnhunter]

Yep, have killed elk with the Wasp Jackhammer. Like you said, it’s about the location of the shot and mechanicals can do as much, or more damage than a fixed. Never had one fail on me so far.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Lefty-Canuck]

Yes I have killed quite a few elk with mechanicals, all about placement as per usual. Don’t think about shooting near shoulder blades. I have since switched to fixed blade heads. I used the Grim Reaper OG Razortip heads, if I went back to mechanicals I would use those personally.

LC

[CBintheNorth]

I used the Jackhammers for years on deer and loved them. Very tough head and flew perfectly.
Then I shot a moose and, as is common on bigger game, didn't get a pass-thru. Luckily I could see it's antlers or I would have lost it. Not one speck of blood.
Now I shoot rear deploy heads and won't go back.
Nothing like a full sized entrance when there's no exit.

[Blockcaver]

I've killed a moose, elk, Mt caribou, Central Canada Barren Ground caribou, big polar bear, Dall ram, several deer and lots of black bears with the old original 1.5" 3-blade NAP Spitfire. It is a similar over-the-top head to the Wasp Jackhammer.

I typically have used 475 gr (complete with broadhead) 4mm (Micro) arrows shot out of a 65# compound drawing 29-1/4". Never have lacked penetration although on the moose (centered near side rib) and polar bear (centered rib, and hit shoulder on far side) and one black bear (spined) the arrow did not penetrate out the far side. None made it very far though.

[Iceberg]

I killed an elk last year with a rage nc. Frontal shot at 11 yards and the arrow went in to the fletchings and stayed. Blood trail was massive and overall I was impressed. The blades bent fairly severely though, and I have seen them fail, so I decided to switch back to fixed this year. Going with the QAD Exodus, never tried them but they fly great and the reviews seem good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bezzola]

My son has taken elk and moose with killzones they have always left good blood trails

[C&C Outdoors]

I have taken both bull elk and moose with a couple different types of mechanical broadheads. Never had a failure and have always been quick kills.
I ended up switching back to fixed blades about 10 years ago.
The only reason for the switch was it seemed every time I had an arrow knocked, there was always knee to waist high grass, underbrush or willows grabbing and getting snagged between the broadhead tip and blades, sometimes deploying them. They were the slide back on impact type mechanicals (G5 Tekan, T3) and when deployed, they were noisy. Atleast the one's I was using.

The fixed blades I have used are just as accurate and give me the same end result as the mechanicals.

I'm sure they will work just fine for you and good luck on your elk hunt!

[Pekan]

Originally Posted by Blockcaver

I've killed a moose, elk, Mt caribou, Central Canada Barren Ground caribou, big polar bear, Dall ram, several deer and lots of black bears with the old original 1.5" 3-blade NAP Spitfire. It is a similar over-the-top head to the Wasp Jackhammer.

I typically have used 475 gr (complete with broadhead) 4mm (Micro) arrows shot out of a 65# compound drawing 29-1/4". Never have lacked penetration although on the moose (centered near side rib) and polar bear (centered rib, and hit shoulder on far side) and one black bear (spined) the arrow did not penetrate out the far side. None made it very far though.

How do you like those 4mm arrows?
Do you find they hold up to practice shooting?

[Pekan]

I'd rather not switch broadheads between elk and deer, so thanks for everyone's feedback on their experience.

[Prairiekid]

Last year I used something from Rage. I don’t remember which model as I had purchased them a couple years before. I actually used the same broadhead on my wt buck as I did my cow elk, 10 and 25 yards respectively. Full pass through on the buck and buried up to the fletching on the cow elk, with the elk I hit a rib on the off side and it backed out 50 yards later. The cow was piled up 50 yards after that. I tried fixed and found them frustrating, even with a properly tuned bow that was tuned experts much better than me I would struggle from time to time. I don’t have to go over the pros and cons of each, there’s hundred of YouTube videos on that. I can say I will be using Sevr 100gr 1.75” this year.

[CBintheNorth]

Those Sevr hybrids look interesting.

[Gun]

I bet Michael used to say he never had one fail

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2oiQtMZJ94&t=160s

[Pekan]

OK, thanks for the feedback.

I took the mechanicals out yesterday and they were shooting almost exactly the same as field points @40 yards.
I'm going to use them starting Sept 01.

[rmatei]

Hope you noticed that most of us that used mechanicals have switched back to fixed blades. Just less to go wrong. I have used them but never liked them in 45 years of bow hunting. Still use NAP Thunderheads 125gr and see absolutely no reason to change now.

[Blockcaver]

Originally Posted by Pekan

How do you like those 4mm arrows?
Do you find they hold up to practice shooting?

I still use the discontinued Easton 4mm carbon Injexion 330s. They are tough! Don’t like D-6 broadheads so use a Firenock outsert so I can use standard threaded broadheads. Also install the 22 grain Easton stainless steel D-6 inserts into the shaft the standard length and glue them in with the Easton supplied epoxy. They are put in simply to reinforce the front of the shaft, triple walling it at the end with the outsert and carbon shaft. I have not had shaft breakage with the Injexions except when a shoulder blade shears off a shaft that has the broadhead imbedded in the offside shoulder.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by rmatei

Hope you noticed that most of us that used mechanicals have switched back to fixed blades. Just less to go wrong. I have used them but never liked them in 45 years of bow hunting. Still use NAP Thunderheads 125gr and see absolutely no reason to change now.

People need to find things out for themselves sometimes even with great advice.

I don't and haven’t used them after listening to failures afield which from my perspective bow hunting is hard enough with the odds against you but more importantly the animal being taken cleanly when opportunity arises.

[Lunch_box]

I have minimal experience compared to most people on here, but I did a bunch of research before choosing a broadhead. When you can get a fixed blade that passes through with a 1.25" hole it seems like a good option. I have heard a lot of people that have a mechanical for a secondary shot if needed.

[X-Treme]

Originally Posted by Lunch_box

I have minimal experience compared to most people on here, but I did a bunch of research before choosing a broadhead. When you can get a fixed blade that passes through with a 1.25" hole it seems like a good option. I have heard a lot of people that have a mechanical for a secondary shot if needed.

What did you end up choosing?

[bearb8er]

I've only shot 3 elk...2 bulls and 1 cow with my bow but all have been shot with Wasp Jackhammers 100 gr. The cow was shot so close that I leaned back to draw my bow so I wouldn't touch her. 1 of the bulls was at 50 yrs. Both performed flawlessly. I'm getting old so I dropped my bow weight this yr to about 60 lbs. The bull this yr was at 25 and I shot him hot. Clipped the back edge of the blade and centered a rib which shattered. Only had the entrance hole which was high so blood was the poorest of all of them but the chest cavity was literally a big blood clot when I opened him up. That's my experience.

[hookset]

I used the rage mechanicals for deer for years, they worked great.

Minimal shot oppurtunities on elk, though once I hit one in the shoulder blade area that made a hard smack and got about 2 inch penetration; bent the broad head pretty good and fell out. Elk was fine.

Switched to fixed after that and have had complete pass throughs on deer and moose with same bow set up.

My elk experience had lots to do with shot placement but I often wonder how a different broadhead would have worked.

[Lefty-Canuck]

Originally Posted by hookset

I used the rage mechanicals for deer for years, they worked great.

Minimal shot oppurtunities on elk, though once I hit one in the shoulder blade area that made a hard smack and got about 2 inch penetration; bent the broad head pretty good and fell out. Elk was fine.

Switched to fixed after that and have had complete pass throughs on deer and moose with same bow set up.

My elk experience had lots to do with shot placement but I often wonder how a different broadhead would have worked.

Speaking from experience an elk shoulder blade in the way of any broadhead doesn’t yield favorable results.

LC

[Lunch_box]

Originally Posted by X-Treme

What did you end up choosing?

QAD Exodus

[3blade]

I helped track two elk hit with a forward deploy mechanical (exact model escapes me). One broadside, one lunged, recovered several miles into the bush in the steepest slickest hell hole you could dream up. The other frontal, not recovered, many miles later, probably survived. Hunter was experienced and shot well, broadhead didn’t do enough. If the projectile doesn’t destroy vitals, shot placement doesn’t make the elk dead.

I have the same rule for mechanical broadheads as I do sub 270 cartridges, when it comes to elk. If you insist on doing something that stupid, I wont help track it or pack it.