I know broadheads get beat to death, but I am looking to shoot what I consider to be the best for my set up. I recently shot a buck last Fall and a turkey this Spring with a NAP double-cross. On the buck, the arrow penetrated through both sides but got hung up in the fletching. On the Turkey it grabbed a bunch of feathers and packed them in the wound and stayed inside no passthrough. Both times the blades performed well and opened as they are supposed too. Both Animals died and were recovered. I really like how the double-cross fly and I assume the other NAP mechs are as accurate. Hmmm penetration though has me wondering...the Doublecross has the sling blade style main blades with two over the top bleeder blades. Do these limit penetration vs the other designs? For those with the most experience with the NAP mechanicals...which are you seeing the best penetration with, the Doublecross(Slingblade), Spitfire(over-the-top), or Killzone(Slipcam)?
I am really interested in trying the double cross as for your question the more surface area a broad head has the more contact to the animal it is going to have I know the blades are sharp but contact still slows the arrow going through the animal. I shoot the Kill zone and the only thing I have had a problem with is shoulder penetration I have gotten zero in two separate cases but other than that I love them. I also had the chance to harvest an animal with the spitfire max I got a pass through with it but barely as the deer ran away the arrow fell out. Bottom line the more surface area the head has the more friction can act on it and slow it down. I hope this helps!
I used the NAP Bloodrunner broadheads for quite a few years and was happy with them. It surprises me they aren't more popular. They have a big cut and there is no hoping that they open.
Personally speaking I've always had the best penetration with the traditional Spitfire "over the top" style of broadhead. I've always felt that having a slightly smaller entrance hole didn't use up as much of the arrow's energy which allowed it to penetrate better. Since the main blades aren't fully deployed until they're inside the animal they don't have to worry about cutting through fur, hide and possibly ribs on their way in. They open up once they're in the soft tissue inside the animal and after that it's game over. I've killed animals with all three NAP mechanicals and have never had a performance issue with any of them. All shots with all types have created both entry and exit holes, even if the arrow was still in the animal. I consider this a pass through so from that perspective they all seem to perform about the same.
JDUB without knowing your setup, draw weight, draw length, and arrow weight it is impossible to venture anything but a guess. Too often people just simply blame the mechanical for not getting a pass thru without contemplating the energy available when the arrow comes off the string.
I only have had experience with the Killzone COC in 100 grains. I've killed two deer with them (100% success rate). Both pass thrus.
I used the Spitfire Maxx's last year. 2 shots, 2 pass thrus. I felt like it was the best compromise between cut diameter and penetration. I hope to try Killzones this year. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I've shot the Kill Zone in the past on both turkey and deer. Had good results with those on both animals. Shot a turkey with the Double Cross this year. Pass thru and blood on the fletchings but the second set of blades didn't deploy. Only the front (larger) blades opened and did not recover the bird. Although I've noticed the only times I've gotten pass thru's on turkey was with a front to back throat shot. There's a lot of bone on turkey and never gotten a pass thru with a broadside shot. I'm not writing off the Double Cross by any means but was surprised the rear blades didn't deploy. Tried to pull them out by hand and it seems like they need more force than expected to open. I'll play with them a bit more and see. Need to try shooting at my Rinehart target to see if they deploy then.
What made you think the rear blades didn't deploy? They will typically close when you pull them out of something..........and might appear as if they never opened when in reality they actually did. I've killed a few deer now with the Doublecrosses. I'm pretty happy with them. I've also killed a small mountain of deer with the Killzones. I do prefer a mechanical that has more than two blades as I feel the single pivot pin on these models could potentially be a single point of failure. While I'm quite happy with the Doublecrosses, I may try the Spitfire XXX's this year. Hard to say this early.........
I got a pass thru on the bird with blood on the fletchings. Blades were still forward when I found my arrow on the ground. I was kind of surprised and when I pulled on the blades, they seemed harder to open than I expected, almost like they were kinda stuck. I was amazed the bird still didn't die and never found him on the property at all. I looked for that bird for over 2 hours on 50 acres of pretty open property. Never found a carcass or buzzards circling either.
I am a longtime fixed blade BH user that finally gave the NAP Spitfire a try last fall, as I wanted to see how they performed prior to turkey season this spring. I must confess that my longtime bias against mechanicals was quite unfounded, at least with the Spitfire heads. I shot 4 deer with them.....all pass through results and down within about 100 yards or less. Since then I stocked up on some I found on sale on AT and have 4 in my turkey hunting quiver at present to take to the woods this coming Saturday.
I have used the NAP Killzones and the DoubleCross and both worked really well for me. I too prefer mechanicals. I have never had issues with them opening. I have a 29 inch DL. My Halon 6 and my Z7 Magnum are both set at 73 lbs and I shoot a 462 grain arrow. I can't remember the last time I didn't get a pass thru.
I've used the Spit Fire Maxx for the past 10 years or so and swear by them. Fly great... destroy what they hit.. pass through unless I hit opposite shoulder. I won't shoot anything else.
I have yet to lose an animal with Spitfires. Every one I've ever shot has been a clean pass through with full blade deployment. I've even cut and/or broken ribs in the few instances where I've shot a little far back or on quartering away shots. Can't say how they do on shoulder shots because I've been lucky enough (to this point anyway) to have not hit a shoulder. Now, granted, I've never shot any other mechanicals but I've never had any reason to, either- they have treated me very well! The only time I've ever used anything but Spitfires is when I hunted hogs in Tennessee and the lodge owner required me to use a fixed blade broadhead but if you're wanting to try something different and stick with NAP, my advice is to give Spitfires a shot! Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
