High end, boutique broadheads?

[Radar]

Not sure what brand broadheads you consider boutique ? I shoot the best broadhead that I can afford to use in the field that can be reused by sharpening or replacement blades . All of mine are made in the USA !

 

[TNDeerGuy]

Lancaster Archery is carrying the broadhead I believe you're talking about�Silver Flames or something like that....I saw them in the catalog, and no way would I ever pay $30 per head German steel or not. A similar head to that, and is made in the USA I believe, is the new VAP head. My BIL pulled one out the other day and they look nasty and are a solid, one-piece head.

 

[MattZ9]

Rage titanium is tough enough and cuts like crazy

 

[catman529]

Ain't got a desire to spend that kind of money on something that will eventually get lost or broken off in the woods. I will stick with my 100gr Thunderheads, and if I do switch, I will probably go with Magnus Stinger 2 blades.

 

[catman529]

Ain't got a desire to spend that kind of money on something that will eventually get lost or broken off in the woods. I will stick with my 100gr Thunderheads, and if I do switch, I will probably go with Magnus Stinger 2 blades.

I've been using the Magnus Stinger 2 blades for the last year and a half. I switched to them mid season from using Rage.

How do you like em?

 

[Ironsmith-Jared]

Slick Tricks use German Mercedes Steel. Owner lives in the Jonesboro, AR area. Somewhat local, American company, with German Steel. But you can find them in the terrible, wicked Bass Pro Shops so I don't think you would want them! HAHAHA

 

[Ironsmith-Jared]

I don't think BPS is evil.

I was just messing with you. I agree with everything you said. I work in the archery department of the Memphis store and see first hand what you are talking about every night that I work. I am shooting Grim Reapers (100% USA made)even though I get a discount on the Redhead Broadheads which are supposedly pretty dang good heads.

the obvious place to reduce costs is to go with a cheaper source of steel.

I also somewhat agree with this statement. I am in the construction industry full-time. General rule of thumb is the more steel you buy, the less it costs per lb. So the companies that use results from their products: Grim Reaper, Slick Trick, etc. (not flooding the hunting channel with advertisements) will normally keep the quality of their heads the same because they don't have to pay for the tons of advertising. I feel like the companies that are overwhelming you with advertising to show you how good the heads are: Rage, G5, Trophy Ridge, etc. will be the one's to use the cheaper steel. Just my measley 2 cents. Let us know what you come up with. I am always interested in learning about new heads!

 

[sneakybow]

Anyone use "boutique" broadheads? A buddy of nine who is a knife snob has some broadheads he bought from Germany running about $30 each. German steel. The company was sold and is now Chinese steel (like most commercial broadheads).

Personally, I wouldn't mind dropping some coin on high quality steel, but the boutique, single forged broadheads on the market are very $$. So much so, that they are too pricey to experiment with. Mainly curious if anyone uses them.

There are the "true" German Kinetics, and then there are the knock-off Alaska Bowhunting Supply Silver Flames. There is a distinct difference in the two. I've used the GK's myself on a Missouri 10pt and they are lethal. By far the sharpest heads I've ever seen straight out of the package. The Alaska Bowhunting Supply company bought the rights to the heads, shipped manufacturing to China and lost a lot of the GK faithful with that move. Another person restarted manufacturing in Germany and can no longer call the heads Silver Flames because ABS trademarked that name. Are they for everybody?No. But they are amazing heads, fly good and scary sharp. I use the 1 1/2 inch cut 125gr XL's from Germany, not China.

 

[sneakybow]

Slick Tricks use German Mercedes Steel. Owner lives in the Jonesboro, AR area. Somewhat local, American company, with German Steel. But you can find them in the terrible, wicked Bass Pro Shops so I don't think you would want them! HAHAHA

I don't think BPS is evil. Its just that when you broker deals with large outdoor retailers, they force your hand on pricing. As a result, many manufacturers are forced to cut corners to meet the price point. If you are making a product out of steel, for example, the obvious place to reduce costs is to go with a cheaper source of steel.

A great perspective on this process is to read blog posts of Jason Hairston: http://kuiu.com/thehunt/jason-hairston?page=1

He founded Sitka Gear, built the company up fast, but got completely turned off by the large retail model and the shortcuts they had to take to meat the pricing demands. Unable to go backwards, he promptly sold Sitka to Gore and started a new company called Kuiu, where he totally eschews the retailer model in favore of factory direct purchases only. The stuff is expensive, but not anymore expensive than Sitka gear or other high end hunting gear. I think some of the blogs post have ben removed, but there was, at one time at least, a detailed explanation about where your money is going when you buy from a retailer, shortcuts in quality they were forced to take at Sitka because the retailers would wear them down on bulk purchases. Basically, Sitka gear was his learning curve on how not to build a business and KUIU is attempt at addressing those mistakes from the past and building an entirely new model of consumer/manufacturer relationship in the hunting industry.

Jason also removed blog posts with unfavorable reviews of his KUIU gear and got called out on it. He makes good gear, but his sense of transparency is equivalent to our present government lol.

 

[Radar]

I pick a broadhead based on performance out of my equipment , and blade sharpness . I currently use NAP Killzones , and find the sharpness to be much better than Rage and ther mechanicals .
The sharpest fixed blade heads I have used are the G5 Stinger . I don't give a crap where they sell them , If I want replacement blades , I want them readily available locally , not through mail order !

 

[UTGrad]

I pick a broadhead based on performance out of my equipment , and blade sharpness . I currently use NAP Killzones , and find the sharpness to be much better than Rage and ther mechanicals .
The sharpest fixed blade heads I have used are the G5 Stinger . I don't give a crap where they sell them , If I want replacement blades , I want them readily available locally , not through mail order !

Do you like the COC or trocar tip Killzone? I am getting 73 lbs KE and curious if this is enough for Killzones. I currently shoot Grim Reapers. They are great as well.

 

[Radar]

I pick a broadhead based on performance out of my equipment , and blade sharpness . I currently use NAP Killzones , and find the sharpness to be much better than Rage and ther mechanicals .
The sharpest fixed blade heads I have used are the G5 Stinger . I don't give a crap where they sell them , If I want replacement blades , I want them readily available locally , not through mail order !

Do you like the COC or trocar tip Killzone? I am getting 73 lbs KE and curious if this is enough for Killzones. I currently shoot Grim Reapers. They are great as well.

I like the trocar tip better , because they retain their edge/point better than cut on contact , especially when striking rib bones . I had the cut on contact rage heads and I hated them for that reason . The NAP heads are much sharper and have a better closed blade retention than the Rage heads too .

 

[sneakybow]

[/quote]

I saw that, but, from what I recall, most of the "unfavorable" reviews had to do with sizing -primarily people complaining about the gaps in sizing of the pants, which, for many customers, require hemming. And, if you are taller than a 34 inseam, he has nothing available for you. That sucks and all, but that's part of dealing factory direct with a small company. He probably doesn't have the capital to order 10,000 pairs of 38 inseams. [/quote]

True, I doubt he has that kind of capital, but you never know...he's been selling a ton of gear it seems like. I'm more of a First Lite kind of guy myself.

 

[TNDeerGuy]

I pick a broadhead based on performance out of my equipment , and blade sharpness . I currently use NAP Killzones , and find the sharpness to be much better than Rage and ther mechanicals .
The sharpest fixed blade heads I have used are the [color:#FF0000]G5 Stinger[/color] . I don't give a crap where they sell them , If I want replacement blades , I want them readily available locally , not through mail order !

???? Did Magnus and G5 have a baby? Sorry Radar....I couldn't help myself!

 

[Radar]

I pick a broadhead based on performance out of my equipment , and blade sharpness . I currently use NAP Killzones , and find the sharpness to be much better than Rage and ther mechanicals .
The sharpest fixed blade heads I have used are the [color:#FF0000]G5 Stinger[/color] . I don't give a crap where they sell them , If I want replacement blades , I want them readily available locally , not through mail order !

???? Did Magnus and G5 have a baby? Sorry Radar....I couldn't help myself!

http://www.g5outdoors.com/product_detail/22


Oops , I ment Striker . My bad .