I want to hunt rabits with my bow and was wondering if a juddo would be fine? plus do you have to hit them in the head,if not and i shoot it in the ribbs will it run off and just be hurt. If theres a chance in a lot getting wounded i will just stick to a gun. any advise will help. thanks.
Jeeps
You can pretty much hit them anywhere and they will expire quickly a judo will work but I like to use old B/H's .
I like an old BH or a second for rabbits. They can be hard too kill sometimes.
I bought a 100 MA3 seconds a few years ago and bob them back 3/8 of an inch with a dremal. Then sharpen the blades. Between trama and cut, they do the job on all small game.
I mount them on cheap shafts and flu flus. Usually take about 50 to elk camp every year for everyones use.
Mike
from first hand experience, i agree with james and mike. imo, forget the judo or blunt and go with a sharp broadhead. wabbits is tough li'l buggers.
htm rubber blunts to the head..rocks their worlds! If you dont think that is enough...try a 357 case, with the large htm rubber blunt slid over the top...shoot for their heads and you wont regret it!
as for wounding...everytime you hunt there is a chance...head shots are kill or miss...but dont look at the ears you'll miss every time you can take that to the bank LOL!
I like hex heads for all small game.I shot one back in Dec with a hex head and it did the job.I wouldn't hesitate to use some old BH's though.
I've killed em with just about everything from feild points to the cut end of a wood arrow, from rubber blunt to broadhead. I like the judo or blunt head best. Just hit em anywhere in the eye.
I'm leaning more towards old broadheads after seeing how tough rabbits and squirrels can be over the last few years.
In the same breath I killed many squirrels and a few bunnies with a washer/nut combo on the end of a cedar shaft.
I'm really going to up the weight of my arrows for small game. I'm starting to think the light weight of a bunny or squirrel somehow lessens the impact of an average weight arrow.
Sounds funny but I think it has to do with small critters getting pushed out of the way vs. impact of a more solid objects like raccoon sized animals and up. I could be full of BS but it seems like a good theory.
Blunts, hex heads and similar heads work good. Killing is by shock to head, spine, front quarters. Broadheads should be reasonably sharp, otherwise they may push rather than cut. Same reason field points are bad choice, they have minimal shock value and are non-cutting. Pick a small spot to aim at, not the whole rabbit.
I like to use an old broadhead as well. Jackrabbits are particularly tough little fellers, I have had them run off with a judo-tipped arra through the boiler room. Just cut a hole in them.
Ive been hunting them w/a bow and beagles for 15-20yrs- a 50-100 days a year. Broadheads are the best, but not always practical. Mostly I use Blunts with flanges. I make them by hacksawing an to a depth of 3/8" and bending metal back so that it is at, or close to right angles from the shaft. This causes the arrow to hang up in the rabbit, rather than falling out-- thus it helps to get the rabbit caught up in the brush before it can make it to a hole , woodpile,etc. Truth is you are rarely going stop them dead in their tracks, unless you make a head or spine hit--most times this is not what happens--and the rabbit has enough life left in him to make it to hole. If you can't or perfer not to use a Broadhead, fashion something like I described to help hang him up, slow him up, so you can chase him down.--Which often provides a certain amount of halarity to the hunt. i.e - old man diving and running thru the brush, is deemed halarious by some people--I don't know why- it just is.
whats tons of fun is whatching your buds laugh there tails of while you turn around and try and find the dozen or so arrows that managed to get yanked out of your back quiver on that run...been there ;)
I still say shootm in the head but I'm also hunting snowshoe hares now not cotton tails or jackrabbits.
Is everyone still hunting rabbits? I have been trying to jump shoot them on the run like I am using a scattrergun. Hitting a running rabbit is hard enough for me let alone trying to hit them in the head. Lots of fun though.
Dan,
Dang with snowshoes, I go with my deer or elk arrows. They are big and tough to bring down.
I do love a good snowshoe hare stew though. Goes great in the dutch oven in camp.
Mike
Mike, well get up here and I'll show ya how easy they are to head shoot LOL!....I'll miss every one of them high in the ears so if you see a bunch of earless bunnies you know I was there haha.....another good reason for rubber blunts!
Hare stew...do talk man! I dont have a good recipe so I stopped hunting them. This thread has the blood pumping I'm getting some shafts tomorrow, hopefully next weekend I can get out. I need to call you guys, got a bow build ?.....
Corn,
atleast for us, the hares will hold tight to some degree or with enough pursuit you can seem to get up on them close enough for a head shot..which is about all you can see anyways in the alders.
A good bunny hunt will prove you dont need a short bow!!!
i was told by somebody once that if you shoot a rabbit behind the shoulder "you just gut shot it "..
so i try to aim for the shoulder/head area. i miss ALOT!!
gaff
A rabbit has a rib cage and lungs, liver like any other animal. A shot behind the front leg will catch lungs.
(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g38/trapperDave/archery/115_0170.jpg)
I see most of the rabbits hunkered down at about 15 or less yards. so would think i would have a chance at getting one. I think i will try some old razor heads it seams to make sence. With a bear Kodiak 50#. Thank you for all the input. keep it coming. I will let you know if i have any luck.
TY Jeeps
I rabbit hunt a few times each year.I use the same set up as deer hunting.But don't take to many running shots.I stalk from down wind and find them setting.I use'ly hunt open feilds beside thickets[feeding areas].ZWICKYS BUT I've shot them with judo's a few times.But you get alot of wounds that they get away with.Broad heads work on rabbits just like deer.
DEAD IS DEAD NOMATTER HOW FAST YOUR GETS THERE
Mr. AkDan,
Interesting. In our area, Hare don't seem to "hold" worth a darn. Of course my lack of ability might have something to do with it.
Best Wishes
A lot depends on what kind of rabbit you are after. They all aren't made equal.
For midwestern and rocky mountain cottontails I've always had great success with regular steel blunts, rubber blunts and Magnus blunts sans bleeder.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/06sunsetbunny.jpg)
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/065bunnies.jpg)
The little desert cottontails of south Texas are tougher than nails. I have killed a pile of them with blunts also, though a small bladed head can be more dependable.
I head shoot all rabbits when possible.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/TXS06bunny2.jpg)
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/montbunny1.jpg)
Snowshoe rabbits give it up pretty easilly to a steel blunt or bladed head.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/Snowbunny2A.jpg)
Jackrabbits always require a broadhead and sometimes several.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/05rockjack386.jpg)
I think I've got a great head for you to try. Check them out at our website.
Stan
Judos, Hexheads, and blunts have done us well.
Some friends hunt with broadheads though. (http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc83/Firstarrow/January%202%20%202010/RabbithuntingChristmasEveNewyear-5.jpg)
Old broadheads are a good idea, but there's no way I'd use them while hunting with a dog...or a large group of other rabbit hunters shooting at flushed rabbits. That's why I prefer Hex Heads for bunnies.
In my younger days, we used .38 special cases on 11/32 shafts, and also made some with nails. Drill two small holes and punch finishing nails thru in an "+" pattern about 1/2" from the back. File off the point or cut the nails with a hacksaw leaving 1/4 - 1/2" on each side of the casing. Drilling a hole prevents splitting the shaft when the nail is punched thru. A tight fit is important. Cut the feathers HIGH or leave full. You can buy casings if you do not have any.
A rubber blunt works fine on head shots as said above, but I have noticed no real adavantage to shooting them with broadheads. The few times I have done it I have had pass throughs (go figure eh!) and the Rabbit ran even further than when I blunted him with a Judo. At least with a Judo there is more damage to muscle tissue and the arrows stay in the critter. I have also had rubber blunts penetrate the chest of a Rabbit when shot inside 10 yards with a 50# bow. A steel 125gr blunt inside a rubber blunt on a good carbon or aluminum arrow is my favorite.
If you will be able to shoot and hit the head, blunts are ok I quess, but my experience is, that broadhead is the best, sometimes the hit will be marginal and the cutting edge will be handy...just my nickel here ;)
Anywhere in the head with a steel blunt works :bigsmyl:
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/420W/HeadShots.jpg)
Love the pics hope to have some for you guys soon.
Jeeps
QuoteOriginally posted by Charlie Lamb:
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/065bunnies.jpg)
Ever notice when an archer gets really serious about his small game hunting he picks up an American style longbow....even recurve shooters? :)
Very nice Charlie. Anybody can hit a moose but ya just gotta admire a guy who can fill a game bag with the small stuff. Charlie, we need to play with some bushytails this fall.
I have been using a product called Adder Point by Neet Archery Products, it's similar to a washer except it has 8 prongs that stand out and you just place it behind a field point or old BH, works great for both cottontails and bushytails :thumbsup:
I dont think you even have to hit them...I once shot NEAR one with a .243 and he died straight away. NO hole NO wound...musta had a heart attack. I use a 5/16th nut twisted on to a wood shaft mostly but also crimp a .38 or .357 casing over a field point to make a good heavy "steel" blunt for carbon or alluminum arrows.
judo head with a washer keeps from messin em up to much
(http://i557.photobucket.com/albums/ss13/dvshunter/CIMG0120.jpg)
Don't underestimate how tough they can be. I couldn't believe my eyes when I hit one with a blunt, and the arrow stopped dead, as he ran off.
I have had great success with the Ace Hex, but have many other small game points that work just as effectively.
(http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg295/j2adams/HPIM0747.jpg)
(http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg295/j2adams/HPIM0740.jpg)
Dang! I wanna go hunt bunnies with you Charlie!..lol Here's what a dull.... well not sharpened 4 blade can do.
(http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/mudd57/RabbitKill.jpg)
God bless,Mudd
PS: I spewed all over my keyboard when I read the post that had the sentence with "hare in my stew" in it. I can hear it now... "Mom! there's hare in my stew!"...lol
I'm with Jason on this one. If lots of folks or dogs around I would steer clear of the broadhead. I've used the Ace Hex Heads, Blunts, and Wing Nuts, but the one I like most now are the ones I've tried this year. The Martin 2pt Skipper Stopper works awesome. I suppose the 4 pt Skipper Stopper would be excellent as well.
Don't let anyone tell ya they expire quickly wiyj any hit. They are as tough as nails. I have seen rabbits take 3 even 4 hits to stop them. If you are not with other people or dogs wingnut has it, an old BH works very well. Judos are tough to use because bunnies are usually in cover and they hang up on brush. Blunts are my favorite or a .38 case over a field point work well too! Just yesterday Guru drilled one thru the front part of the head and than again thru the ribs a bit back and I put another one in the head to finally kill it. He also hit another in the ribs and it dragged the arrow 60 yards and than was shot by another bunny hunter. I myself say use all the weight ya can shoot and hit them as far forward near the head or in it, if possible! Shawn
The heart and lungs are located way forward on bunnies almost up near the throat behind the shoulder in the body cavity. A shot behind the shoulders, is a gut shot all day! Shawn
Yep, head shot or a miss is my preference. I hate hearing them scream.
I think it is best to shoot a sitting rabbit with a blunt, hexhead or game nabber. A running rabbit is a little different. You may not get the same penetration. At the same time a field point may not do enough damage and may fall out and let the rabbit escape to cover or a hole. Saw that happen just yesterday to a buddy of mine.
I have always used some type of blunt for rabbits,38 shells,rubber blunts, now hex heads. All worked well. I never found a cottontail particularly hard to kill, at least not like a squirrel. The only ones I ever shot with a broadhead were in Texas and the arrow zipped through and rabbit got away. All the Jackrabbits I have killed were with a blunt and were one shot kills, dead on the spot.
I have never seen a rubber blunt kill one of our northeastern rabbits, not saying it won't but I have seen them hit with themand they run off. We kill a lot of them and they die hard just ask the 100 people at my bunny hunt last year. I have seen where guys in Texas and places shoot 50 or more in a day, that is just that shooting, not hunting. Here we we hunt ya work hard for 99% of the one we get chances at. Most anything will kill a bunny when hit right but what is the most effective here is something that won't get hung up on brush and grass and whatever else there may be on the way to the bunny. Shawn
Our little Southeastern cottontails kill easily. My favorite medicine is a judo point. It will blow right through them, and the spring wires do a lot of damage, killing quickly.
I don't live far from Don and have had just the opposite experience--I refuse to hunt rabbits with a Judo anymore. My preferance is a broadhead--sharp or dull, cottontails or swampers.
Any shot tight behind the shoulder and up (shoulder, neck, head) has always been DRT (Dead Right There) for me, with a broadhead at least.
Quickest kill I ever saw on a rabbit was a tight behind the shoulder shot--took out the lungs and heart, rabbit literally fell in it's tracks (it was sitting still at the shot).
They can be tough buggers, but lots of fun to hunt. Using a shotgun or a .22 doesn't mean you won't loose one here and there.
i was wondering if flu flu arrows with judo points from a 46lb. bow or would i be better off using an arrow with normal feathers and a judo to get the job done any thoughts?
I had too many rabbits duck a flu-flu. If I used a judo, I'd only attempt head shots.
Chad
Judo points hang up on the brush too much, steel blunts or hex heads are the way to go.
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/420W/2009Bunny.jpg)
My favorite homemade small game arrows.
Beman MFX Classic 500, brass Insert, footed with 2018, 4 point Skipper Stopper and a drive - in nut.
I do not shoot them on the run, I go for head shots with this arrows - kill or miss!
(http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/ad132/yononindo/Smallgamearrow2.jpg)
(http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/ad132/yononindo/Smallgamearrow1.jpg)
(http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/ad132/yononindo/Smallgamearrow3.jpg)
(http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/ad132/yononindo/Winter.jpg)
Enjoy your bunny hunts!
Daniel
Steel blunts work on possums also, if you hit them right
(http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y275/420W/possum-2.jpg)
Chad, you must be getting Alabama imports over there! Of course, I only shoot the tender young ones. :) One of the longest shots I've made on an animal was a garden-raiding cottontail at about 55 yards. My judo clipped him across the throat and he only made one jump. My brother was with me, and he said he was impressed with the shot until he saw the astonished look on my face.
Those big ol' canecutter swamp rabbits can be mighty tough, though.
Stone Knife, I prefer head shots on opossum as well :)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/missstanna/Small%20Game%20Broadhead/possum.jpg)