Looking for any thoughts you may have. Both shoot well, arrows are wood about 590 grains from a 68 inch D-shaped longbow traveling on average 160 FPS. Stos is narrower, Ace is wider, both great heads in my opinion. Average shot is 15 to 25 yards, deer average 100 to 250 pounds. Does it matter? Any thoughts about which head may work best for me?
Bob.
HONESTLY...
25yds stos
15yds ace.
IF...you can get em both really sharp.
If you can only get one of them super sharp go with that one.
Both will do their job if you do yours.
If it was me I'd use the stos until I had learned through experience I could go to a wider head.
Both are Great heads...IMO. Go to the wood with confidence. :archer2:
For your 40# bow, I think the narrower STOS would be a better choice. Based on that, I'd pick the STOS for all four of your bows.
Never have used the STOS, but the Ace is one of my favorites. It's like chunking a hatchet through a deers chest. :bigsmyl:
A nearly 600 grain arrow moving along 160 fps would have absolutely no problem with either head on any deer that walks...I like Ace, and use the 200 gr Super Express
The Ace 160 STD is my "go to" Bh for most game... I have a 1/2 doz of the STOS 160's that I'm going to try this year.. either head will take any animal native to North America.
Have both but switched to Ace 160's. Both great heads but Ace sharpen to shaving easy & are bulletproof IMO. Never sharpened Stos. They're likely the same.
Carry some of each. They're equally good.
maybe you can put them both on the same arrow. I bet that will do it. :bigsmyl:
They are both great heads.
Ace have been around for a long, long time! There's a reason for that!! They work!
I have shot whitetail with both. Personally, I would go with ACE. Like others have said though, either will work if you do your part.
I love Ace broadheads...they have killed elk, whitetails, and NOW a black bear for me. If I can I will use nothing but those heads because they flat put a hole in 'em. I killed a whitetail at 22 yards. I usually try to find a way to put an insert in them and shoot them either a 200 grains or 250 grains depending on my arrow. Also, those 160 glue-on work great with my internally footed wood arrows.
I would say STOS
I shot a doe at 28 yards complete pass through stuck in the ground deer went 30 yards and was down.
In the end its your choice, that you have to make, and by your experience is what you should base the choice on.
God Bless.
They are both good. Shoot the one you get to fly the best and can get the sharpest.
Whichever one you can get the sharpest.I think we all overthink this broadhead issue from time to time.As long as it is scary sharp and well placed,bloodtrails will generally be profuse and short.Blade count, cutting width etc all can factor in, but they are in distant second compared to placement and sharpness IMO.
ACE is the oldest broadhead still being built in existance today. I believe second would be Zwickey.
15 yd max for Ace????????????
Dead is Dead one's not going to kill an animal any deader than the other.
Either one razor sharp and in the right place will do the job.
Both heads sharpen well and are easy to touch up in the field.
Either one is an excellent choice.!
QuoteOriginally posted by Hot Hap:
15 yd max for Ace????????????
I wasn't saying 15yds MAX.
Just that past that distance my hat tips to the stos more and more.
I like to have as close to full confidence that I'm going to have a complete pass through.
I would feel very confident in a 15yd pass through with the ace shooting his setup.
Any farther out I would be more confident in getting a complete pass through with the stos.
The ace might get a complete pass through farther than 15yds...I'd even say it most likely would depending on the shot placement.
The stos having less resistance by cutting a smaller hole ( which is more than big enough )
has a greater chance of getting a complete pass through.
A complete pass through leaves better blood trails generally and just adds up to more cutting/bleeding being done.
He's talking about shooting a med-heavy arrow at medium speeds over possible med/long trad distances at good sized deer.
I wouldn't want to push my luck with the big head.
Test until you have a shaft and broahead that fly well, and use it. There are a lot of great broadheads out there.
Im well known for starting broadhead threads that really just ask the same question over and over, so ill add my 2cents! I have shot deer with virtually all major broadhead companies offering(zwickey, magnus, howard hill, bear, hunter heads, ace, maybe a few more), and when it comes to deer i dont believe that they have the internal capacity to really shut down an arrows penetration factor, unless shoulder bone is hit of course! In the case of deer hunting, with acceptable bow/arrow weight combinations, id say that they all work but...ive found that the bigger heads or multi blade heads like the big snuffer or eclipse 4blade, really leave alot of sign on the ground to follow to an albeit short tracking job! Im not trying to start anything here, just saying that on deer adequate penetration will be achieved with virtually any head, so goin a tad bigger wont have any cons but maybe some positives! Now, for the upcoming elk season, ive heard horror stories of guys using the same cedar shafts they use for deer, but think they need to use a muli bladed spear point on the end of it instead of lets say their usual 2blade MagnusII that never, ever steered them wrong! I know a hunter who did this, he was shooting a #50 longbow with a big snuffer or a simmons shark i believe, at any rate the way the story was told was that the elk(a nice bull), was shot slightly quartering away, and the arrow seemed to just stop after about 6-8" or penetration! Well to make a long story short, youve heard of how far an elk can go with one lung, well these guys never did recover that animal! In that instance, with the fellows bow weight in mind i would have suggested that he either stick with his go to head, or maybe try a slightly narrower head, ie stos in an effort to increase penetration! Elk, and other big critters can be a little more taxing on penetration than a thin skinned deer or antelope, in that instance with the quartering away shot, im sure that the arrow had to pass through a stomach full of browse and forbes that probably took the snuff out of that arrow before it got to the boiler room! Hope my long windedness helped shed a little light!
:clapper:
I know this broadhead debate goes on everywhere archers have an opinion. For years I have seen the same thing happening in deer camps in maine usually around a wood stove and about certain caliber rifles or bullet types.
The big ace ( I am using 175 grain vented this year) reminds me of the old deadhead. A bit smaller I am sure but look at all the game taken with it especially by Ben Pearson himself. I would have to agree with others here. Get it razor sharp make sure they are on straight, use shafts and feather combination to facilitate fast recovery to increase penetration on close shots.
Good Hunting
I enjoy a good broadhead discussion, and I think they are good for the sport. If we are questioning design, performance, and sharpening technique, we are probably "improving" our efficiency.
They are both quality broadheads, use the one that flies best from your setup.
i got 20 ace at a yard sale old ones i dont understand all this single bevel this one is better than that one because stuff if its sharp it will go thru the critter
The ACE Standard is one of the best 2 blade broadheads made! (IMHO) You may pay more but you won't get any better! I like'em a lot.
Fwiw ... I usually shoot Ribteks , Tuskers but still sometimes use American made heads . Both the STOS and Ace are fantastic heads . I find the STOS flies beautifully and sharpens easily . But the ACE 160gn is perhaps my favourite head outside of our local made ones . I have taken a bunch of critters with them and the just keep on keeping on ... take an edge easily and are tough to boot ... also they make a nice big hole ...
One won't kill a deer any deader than the other. 6 of one and half-dozen of another IMO, I prefer cheap and sharp.