Stinger 4 blade and 40# recurve?

[david janssen]

I have a 1964 Kodiak that is 42#.I only have a 26" draw.Do you think I have enough weight out of the Kodiak to shoot the 4-blade stingers or should I leave the bleeder blades out? I will be hunting whitetails with 15yd shots or less.
Thanks for all the help.

David Janssen

[SlowBowinMO]

I'm a big fan of the 4 blade Stingers as the bleeders are small enough to have little effect on penetration while delivering a bit extra cutting.  That said, at your weight and draw I think you'd be much better off with a pure 2 blade head.

Just an FYI, the Stinger 4 blade is not intended to be used without the bleeders and may not perform properly if you simply take them out.  A lot of heads you could do that but the Stinger 4 blade isn't one of them.

[deermaster1]

maybe the 2 blade stinger is different, but it flys great.  like he said, the stingers have very small bleeders, and wont harm penetration.  i have used em and love em.  accurate, sharp, and tough.

[Big_Al]

I shot a buck this year with a 43#@28" r/d longbow using a 448 grain arrow tipped with a 150gr Stinger 4-blade.  Got a complete pass-through.  I also draw around 27-27.5", so that made my bow somewhere in the 40-41# range at my draw.

[George D. Stout]

I think you may find that the bleeders actually may enhance penetration as they make the X-cut in the hide and meat.

[Guru]

Do you mean the bow is 42@28 and you're only drawing 26"??

That would put you somewhere around 35-36#'s. Is there a reason you are using such a light set up?

How heavy are the arrows you'll use?

That's a very "minimal" set-up if it is in fact only 35#'s.....

Either way I think you'll be better off with the two blade....JMO

[George D. Stout]

David, that 64' Kodiak is a shooting machine and will shoot with most of today's custom bows. It is arguably the best Kodiak ever made, performance wise.

There are a few things you can also do to enhance performance.  Make, or get someone to make you, a ten strand dacron string...more than heavy enough for your bow.  Go to an elevated, stick-on rest like a Bear Weather Rest or a Hoyt Pro Rest, etc.  Those two things will add a few feet per second to your current set-up.  

Work on attaining (if not already) a dynamic release versus a static one; that will also give you a bit longer draw and crisper release from the string.  Use a tab rather than a glove, and work on a good follow-through on every shot (keeping the bow arm in position until the arrow strikes).  

If you do a few things like I mentioned, you can virtually add about 5 pounds performance to what the bow is actually marked.  Give it a try....and use the bleeders.  Old Fred Bear said they would enhance penetration and he knew a thing or two about such matters.

[Slasher]

skinny well tuned arras (epic 600 st, or estradas?), with 175-200 grn heads I'd say 15 yds is good with a real sharp head... I like the eclipse and magnus II for my 42# bow... 3 pass thru's, but all 3 were 5-11 yds on deer under 80 lbs..

[Boom Stick]

I was all but sold on getting a set of Silver Flames but I might get the Stingers now.  Thanks to this thread.  What's not to like?  I'm only shooting 43# myself.

Sitkas (full length) with 74 gr inserts and 145 gr field tips are working out great so far.

[NDTerminator]

Probably not a completely apt comparison, but once again this year my wife got a complete pass through on a big bodied ND 4 point buck with a 45# Matthews and 100 grain Magnus 2 blade. That old bruiser made it maybe 30 yards. The shot was  17 yards broadside and that Magnus chopped an off side rib in two when it exited. Arrow eight is around 350 grains.

Granted it's a compound but at 25.5" draw she's not getting a ton of buck out of it.  Don't recall her setup's chrono numbers but I believe she shades my #50-#55 recurves,(mid 180s- mid 190's FPS) a touch, but not much.  With her lighter arrows there's no way she's generating near as much KE.  For sure it's enough, though...

On the Trad side, the deer I've taken  in the last couple years since I went back to recurves all have been pass throughs shooting 2 blade Magnus 125s from #50-#55 at 15-20 yards. My arrow weight is around 580 grains shooting 4560 CX Terminator Hunters with 3 4"vanes (I use 50 grain brass inserts to bump the weight/FOC up a touch).  

Every one of those broadheads required only to be cleaned & re-sharpened before going back in the quiver.  I swear Magnus 2 blades have got to be the most cost effective broadhead I've ever used.  The only way I could love em' more is if they came in a 150 grain with a chisel or tanto tip.

In my experience, I would say if you keep your shots to 20 yards or under your 40# teamed up with Stingers will do the job & then some...

[david janssen]

Thanks for all the advice everyone.
David