Mainly because I am 14 and just spent money on a bow so... I don't have all that much extra cash for new broad heads. Haha I wish I did though.
With the relatively small vitals, I prefer 2" cutting radius minimum. Provides a little additional cushion for a marginal shot and will reduce the likelihood of a pass through.
I killed what would be the VT state archery record (if they kept track of bow kills) with a 100g thunderhead. They will do the trick, you have to be able to hit them. If you don't center punch vitals you might as well miss them clean. A dull broadhead disperses more energy to the bird at Impact creating more shock and damage. I usually use a head that ive practiced with or killed a deer with. You're not likely to create a great blood trail so a sharp broadhead and a pass through is not the priority. Most birds are dead in 20 yards of flapping if hit in the vitals. Study anatomy charts of strutting and standing birds. And definitely get the biggest blind you can afford and practice drawing from it. This cost me a bird this year when my top limb pocket brushed against the front of my blind drawing on a bird at 15 yards, on film.
Whichever broad head you choose make sure they are sharp! Turkey feathers are tuff and a dull broad head may not penetrate enough for a clean kill. The purpose of a broad head is to slice the organs and kill by hemorrhage. A dull blade will just push things to the side.
Alright thanks guys, so I gather Its all about shot placement. Now one said dull broad heads are better because they deliver more shock and stay in the bird and someone else said the sharper the better. I don't have to worry about penetration as my bow is somewhere in the 65-70 # range, but is duller for more shock better or sharper for more cutting? My worry is that my arrow would zip through if sharper or push vitals away if duller. What do y'all think?
Good gracious. A dull broad head at 300fps is going to "push things to the side"?? I promise you a dull broadhead is going to pound a turkey, however let me elaborate, I was not referring to a dull broadhead that had been shot into a pile of stone 10 times for the fun of it!
With perfect placement, you could kill one with a field point...that doesn't make it right. A sharp head with a wide cutting diameter is the best approach imo.
You guys are acting like I just pulled this out of thin air. This is a highly practiced method on turkeys. 60-70lbs of KE that sheds a lot of momentum at impact destroys vitals via shock as well as laceration on a 20lb bird. I'm not saying a sharp head isn't great and won't do it, I was just outlining the importance of shot placement and putting the broadhead as secondary. But big sharp blades are important so everybody should body shoot guillotines at peak draw weight for optimal laceration...
Where to Shoot and What to Shoot? Where to Shoot and What to Shoot? Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2
Consider the NAP Gobbler Getters. The are three blade mechanicals that have a rounded tip like a bullet. This delivers the shock that you want plus sharp blades to cut things up really well. Very good turkey heads.
Alright thanks for all the help, I've shot my share of birds with a gun and have even raised farm turkeys so I know the anatomy and know I can make a perfect shot on a tom as long as he is in range. My property is loaded with birds and I am confident I can get one in my range for a humane shot. I may get the gobbler getters or I may just shoot the thunderheads at a closer range but I will make sure I am accurate enough before I hunt.
Accuracy is the key but if you've killed birds with a shotgun before you know just how much they can take. I really think that they just don't realize that they are running/flying dead.
