I am currently shooting a 51# Kanati RD longbow, with a 30" MFX arrow with 50 grain insert and a 200 grain VPA Terminator. I have shot two pigs and a deer and have not got a pass through. I like the VPA broadhead, but am contemplating switching to a 2 blade.
My questions are, will I get better penetration with a Two blade such as a VPA Penatrator or a Aboyer Wapiti? Also is there any benifit to shooting a single bevel such as the Wapiti Vs. the double bevel VPA??
Did you take a broadside lung shot?
Either your arrows are not tuned properly or you are shooting severely angled shots. There is no reason you should not be getting a pass through with that set-up.
This shoots thru pigs.
I'm surprised as well.
Are you getting two holes?...just not having the arrow completely exit? Or is the arrow stopping inside the animal and you're only getting one hole?
Possible that you hit the offside shoulder?
Possible that the heads were dull?
I agree with what Boomerang said. If your arrows are not going in exactly straight it has an effect on penetration.
Many factors to consider....was it a broadside shot? Did a rib or other bone git hit? How far was the shot? All these things and the fact that if your arrow was not tuned well could have a factor.I know a couple of guys that have shot thru deer with a 40# bow with a 125 gr. Muzzy 3 blade. Your set up should be plenty!
I'm always curious, when people say pass through do they mean the arrow creates an exit hole or that the entire arrow passes through and is no longer in the animal?
I shoot a similar set up and it blows through deer but hogs are another story. One will depend on the size of the hog, another the angle of the shot, and the shot placement. A smaller pig from the ground broad side behind the shoulder would seem like the best best for an exit hole. A larger pig, from an elevated stand, quatering, and a more forward shot is going to be much harder to punch through the other side.
Hope this helps.
I shoot 495-520gr arrows off my 54# bow at 27in draw and typically get pass thrus on just about everything I shoot with Phantom 4bl and Muzzy standard 4bl heads so I would suspect an arrow flight issue as well. Your setup should do fine.
QuoteOriginally posted by Boomerang:
Either your arrows are not tuned properly or you are shooting severely angled shots. There is no reason you should not be getting a pass through with that set-up.
I agree 100%.....rib or no rib.
Something else, the animals you shot with no pass thru....did you find and get them? If so, even with no pass thru and a possible better blood trail it shows that maybe you need to do nothing different. A dead found animal is a good thing, if you can improve that it's OK....just say'n!!
I had a friend that had a 30" draw at targets and a 27" draw when shooting at animals. His stance went from high and straight to a fluid Fred Bear and he had no control over the change. He never got a pass through until he went to a lighter spined shorter arrow and practiced shooting with that more natural looking form with his Bear Super K. He shoots Bears with the bleeder blades mounted on aluminum arrows. The number of pass throughs he has gotten without a miss with that 47 pound super K is almost disturbing. I would check your arrow fight and your form when actually trying to kill something.
What size MFX are you shooting? If its a 400 you should be well tuned. I shoot the same arrow from a 50lb HoytDorado and always get a pass through on deer. Never shot a hog but sounds like you may have hit bone on deer.
Your setup is more than enough to obtain complete penetration, meaning two holes. It's hard to say what the problem is without knowing specifics. Were your shots ending up in a shoulder or the spine? Were the animals quartering to or away from you? Do you have good arrow flight, i.e. no wobbling? Plucking the string or short drawing can have some serious negative effects on penetration.
Are you coming to full draw?
Lots of great advise!! I did recover all three animals, the deer by pure luck it was raining which washed away any blood that was there. The pigs were both about 20 yard shots from the ground broad side. The most recent was about a 375lb pig and I got good penetration just not a second hole and I shot it twice the second shot was about 10 feet and it just poked out the other side.
My 500 MFX arrows probably need to be tuned a bit more, my award winning release probably doesn't help things out either, but I am still new to the game, so I need to work on that factor also. Thanks for the help fellas
How sharp are your blades?
Just from what I've read over the years...
If you have a 27" or longer draw and...
If you get your setup tuned to shoot a straight arrow and have darn sharp blades you'll be slippin right through.
That 10 foot "poked out" statement really kinda shows you might have some fairly serious tuning issues to sort out.
If I were you, since your arrows are already fletched, I'd shoot thru some paper and see what the heck is going on....I'll bet you have some big tears.
Good luck and don't be afraid to ask for help.
I second paper tuning to see what is really happening. Still, it's hard make an assessment on just a couple of shots, especially if one is on a 375# hog. A broadside shot on a hog that big, if it's placed correctly, has a lot of thick hide, muscle and probably shield, to go through.
Get closer! It helps with penetration and your stalking at the same time
Assuming you draw 28" you may be under spined with 500's and 250 gr on a 30" arrow. I too suggest tuning is the issue.
I think you have some tuning issues as well. I once shot a small hog at around 15 yards with a 49# bow and 500 grain wood arrow tipped with a 125 grain Woodsman. I almost got a complete passthrough but the feathers got hung up in the hair on the opposite side. In the past 3 or 4 years I have never failed to get a complete passthrough with a 55# bow and 550-620 grain arrows tipped with a VPA Terminator.
I don't disagree with other's comments, but a razor sharp 2 blade gets good blood and usually 2 holes.
I'm simply guessing that you probably hit the off shoulder. your set is more than fine...
Personally, i think your tuning is about right. I shoot a 30.5" mfx in 500. Point weight is 225. Bow is 52@29. My bow is cut to center...is yours?
That being said....a 375# pig is extremely rare in the wild. If it really was that big (i dont mean to belittle) then i wouldnt expect full penetration. Deer are another story, but they twist and turn and a number of thngs can happen.
Have somebody watch you shoot and pay attention to arrow flight. Also, work on your release. If you clean it up, it may just be that you need a larger sample size of killed critters.
I feel your pain. I have shot a decent number of deer with compounds and rarely ever got a pass thru. Heck I even shot a buck this year with a tusker concord and hit it right in the shoulder bone(accidently of course)and to my surprise, it didnt penetrate much at all. The arrow stuck, and he ran/walked off with it. I saw the deer 2 days later no arrow in him, but with a limp. Yes I tune my equipement. I have only shot 1 deer with a trad bow and I only got 1 entrance hole on a quartering away shot. I read storys all the time about arrows going thru and sticking in the ground 10" on the other side. Not calling anybody a liar, but either they hunt some soft ground, or they dont know 10". I can shoot at the ground and not hit an animal and not get more then a few inches of penetration. My latest setup is similar to yours, same arrows with 250grs up front out of a 45lb hoyt buffalo using the concords. I sure hope I start getting some of those amazing pass thrus I read about.
Shooting through paper will tell you if your arrows are flying good, but that means squat if you are falling apart at the moment of truth.
If you are getting good flight and not flubbing the release when shooting at game, then so far it`s just been bad luck.
Shooting at game is a HUGE responsibility...falling apart at the moment of truth is EASILY understood by all of us. Through practice, a hunter can gain confidence. Confidence in your ability is an ethical hunters weapon against flubbing the shots at game.
My advice, since it`s NOT deer season, is go find more pigs to shoot. Experience is ANOTHER great confidence builder! :D
If I had hogs around, Id be shooting them till I was blue in the face, because of what bonebuster said, experience.
Anyway, since you recovered them, due a back flip. Then...paper tune those things, then go hog hunting.
Last 2 deer, 43# @26" Pass thoughs at 25 yrds. one with a 3 blade one 2 blade both 300Gr both altra Lite shafts total 520 Grain arrows.... Going back to Kodiak 200 gr with a 100 BH adaptors and a 6.4Gr/in. shaft. But what do I know???