It seems this year is a bumper crop year for blue grouse in some of my high country haunts. I've never shot at one, and am wondering from experienced Blue hunters what works best from an arrowhead standpoint.
I shoot a fairly heavy bow (73# @ my 30" draw), and use 745gr arrows with 21% efoc. Do i really need a broadhead for these birds, or will my usual t-nut backed/steel blunt combo work?
Thanks in advance.
You should do fine with what you have. Blues are fairly large bird however, so it might not hurt to have a "beater" broadhead sharpened and waiting in the quiver.
This is a Sage Grouse. For these big bruisers I prefer a broadhead... any broadhead.
I shot one once with an Ace Blunt to see what would happen. That bird took off and didn't go to ground for almost 200 yards.
Without a dog this one would have fed the skunks.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/kneelingchickenR393.jpg)
Your blunt will probably work just fine, but I have had a few birds fly off with my arrow when using Judos.
We have been shy of grouse for the past couple of years, but I love shooting them when they are abundant. This is the last one I got, using a Hill head.
(http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac67/peastes/IMG_0183_zps9c2a1341.jpg) (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/peastes/media/IMG_0183_zps9c2a1341.jpg.html)
They are great eating, much better than that B52 that Charlie is holding.
I would use a broadhead, cheap one. One of my buddies drilled one last year and it flew off with a the arrow and out of sight on the other side of the mountain. He shooting a muzzy small game head and a 55# bow. I bet a blunt head would work though as others have mentioned. I've shot several with broadheads and had good luck with 60-65# set up
Wow Pat! How insensitive. I much prefer the gentler term... "Bomber". (but of course you are right about the taste) ;)
I have shot a ton of grouse with an arrow. If you use a broadhead put some kind of game stopper behind it as a broadhead will just blow through and the bird will fly. best way to recover is for the arrow to stay in bird. I would use your point over a broadhead. Just my 2 cents. I was 5 for 6 on hit birds this year with just a judo.
When shooting those Blues or and bird I try and hit them in the back or right above the legs. I used a SGT head out of my 64# bow on a big Blue grouse it only went 10 yards hit it right above the legs.
Dave
(http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l502/MrDwood/DSCN1107.jpg) (http://s1121.photobucket.com/user/MrDwood/media/DSCN1107.jpg.html)
35 yard lucky head shot with a rubber blunt, while scouting for mulies. Probably go with steel blunts or old broadheads for next time. Only planned on shooting stumps, but it looked so tasty.
I've thumped a few with the tried and true .38 blunts. Started using Ace hex heads a couple years ago, those are well designed, awesome heads. Shot a few ptarmigan with them last year. Great heads.
I have shot quite a few blues while hunting deer and elk. My first couple of experiences way back were not so good. Two flew with field points with one never recovered.
I ended up drilling a hole through the field points and putting a finishing nail through then cutting it so about a 1/4" of the nail protrudes on each side. Bend each side so the nail can't fall out. They stop a grouse very quickly. Also good on bunnies and similar small game.
If you have a leatherman and extra pieces of nail you can go back and forth between small game and stumpers very easily.
Last year I put a 908 grain arrow with broadhead right through a ruffed grouse...the bird got up and flew right out of sight...the arrow was gut slimed from end to end...you have to hit any critter in the vitals for a clean kill...on the other hand a blunt would have likely kept the arrow from passing through so the bird would not have been able to fly away
DDave
I am usually searchig for elk, and always have a couple of stump/grouse arrows with me. I am a fan of the hexheads and i like to pair it with an adder collar. Point weight is very close to my broadhead point wt. This works great for roving shots, grouse and the occasional noisy squirrel.
(http://i1274.photobucket.com/albums/y434/danamhay/Mobile%20Uploads/1435345923_zps60ef7b4e.jpg) (http://s1274.photobucket.com/user/danamhay/media/Mobile%20Uploads/1435345923_zps60ef7b4e.jpg.html)
Not a Pass through set up.
"on the other hand a blunt would have likely kept the arrow from passing through so the bird would not have been able to fly away"
Probably not with the broadhead, but the one I lost with the field point was on a high ridge. Arrow went half way through and hit the ground. The grouse launched off the ridge and glided over the tree tops till out of sight. It was a clear crisp quiet morning and I heard the arrow clattering through the quakies when it went down.
I nearly always have an old broadhead on one arrow in my quiver--a Wensel Woodsman or Snuffer seems to be the best medicine.
(http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l65/rwr8/blue_grouse.jpg) (http://s93.photobucket.com/user/rwr8/media/blue_grouse.jpg.html)