I am shooting 41# at 28”. Shooting Axis 500 cut at 28 3/4 with 3 4” feathers and brass inserts. My question is I shoot magnus stingers with bleeders. I like the head but have had friends not get good blood trails with them. I shoot 150 grain Ozcut Ultra 4 out of my compound and get awesome blood trails. Do I shoot enough bow to switch to this head or should I stay with the Magnus.

What are you hunting?

As long as you put the arrow in a place that will leave a good bllod trail you will get a good bllod trail.

Are you hunting on the ground or from an elevated stand?

How much do your inserts weigh? NO WAY could I shoot .500s out of #41 at that length, but I use standard inserts and relatively light/standard weight points. And this IS a highly individual endeavor....

I think the Stingers will work as well as you can shoot them. I have no idea what the width is on the Ozcuts, but those are not a design intended to optimize penetration. So it really depends on what you're hunting, but I think I’d stick with the Stingers..

Tree stand mostly and would be deer and bear. And some spring turkey

I've never heard anything bad about the Magnus head. Bish has killed a bus load of animals with them.

The op didn't ask what would kill or where to place it--- question i believe was 41# compatible w 4 blade--- i like a cut on contact w 3 blades--- not familiar w ozcut, but of coc id use them. Ive had les than spectacular bload yrails w 2 blade heads when placed where they need to go. Rick Barbee has an excellent youtube video showing on a piece of cowhide, how 3 blades allow hole to open when moved from any angle vs 2 blade slits that only open when pressure is put ay right angles to the slit. Again im not debating what will kill, i use what gives me the most blood on the ground. You shouldn't have any trouble getting two holes w your set up and 3 or 4 blade sharp coc.

You really didn't expand on why you think you're not getting good blood trails. Are you not getting two holes from your downward angle shot? Where are you hitting the deer? Rather than change heads from an already top notch model, maybe look to see if there is something you can do to enhance the chance of more blood. I shoot Bear Razorheads and even with just two blades, a double lung shot will spray blood plenty easy to see. I'm thinking maybe it's your shot angle and not getting a second hole. Tell us more.

I'd shoot whichever one flew the best. If they both fly good...personally....I'd stick with the stingers

I'd stay with Magnus.

For those unfamiliar with the OzCut in question, it looks a lot like every other chisel-tip 4-blade with a 45 degree blade angle.

I had to look them up myself..

I would not shoot that head, or any 4 blade out of a 40 pound trad bow. Average compound will easily do 4 times the energy you have to play with in a 40 pound trad bow. 8 times the energy is not out of the question. You can basically ignore spine out of most compounds as they are shot with a release and with rests that do not require paradox to shoot clean. People obviously talk about the speed of compounds, and the peak weight advantages. But the arrow flight advantage is also massive.

My take on 2 blade traditional COC head is that the head that people use/prefer, even with compounds, on elephant and cape buffalo, is probably also enough on deer. Folks who buy that Ozcut head (and I am sure it works) probably aren't master sharpeners. Just how sharp where these failure to perform heads, and what were the hits like? Normally if you did not get good results with a 2 blade coc it tells us something about the shooter: Head was dull; hit, or arrow flight was bad.

40 pound gear is marginal by any definition. It surely works fine on deer, but it is at the light end, even where legal. How much lighter can you actually go. Even with arthritis, are people seriosly suggesting 10 pounds for deer? 20? Because in the opposite direction, there are plenty of 60 and 70 pound bows out there. When you are shooting light, resolving bad hits is a priority, not just getting the maximum result in perfect situations. The people who say everything works great with perfect hits, may not have internalized the fact that top shooters at the Lancaster's shoot a few years back missed chip shots at pie plates. It happens.

It is just what people are comfortable with. Moving from plugs to fly fishing, and it is hard to imagine that feathery thing catching hundreds of pounds of shark. But for me, I loose confidence when I pick up a lure. Those 2 blades will get it done anywhere any time. There are going to be stories about every head you might pick, but trad style, brazed, 2 blade COC is the gold standard. But they have to be sharp.

Sharpening broadheads is difficult. I did have some magnus, and they were not easy to sharpen, conventionally. That was a long time ago. They may have changed. They nearly skated a file. They were on the hard side. I prefer Zwickey, which I always thought Magnus was just a copy of. For the most part, the edge that comes on trad archery heads was just for show, they needed to be formed first, then sharpened. The hardness of heads between the different bands varies a lot. I had to develop sharpening skills for countless trades, so I am tooled up to get to sharp from many different starting points, but it should not be underestimated. Sharpening trad heads is something you need to approach (if all this is new to you) like a major hurdle. Like learning to shoot. Get some youtube videos that seem understandable, buy those heads in reasonable quantity. Practice till you get them sharp. Consider you may need to tool up to get it done. Even quality files, these days, and when you can find them, are not free.

Because heads have different geometries and hardnesses, and alloys, getting to sharp with one head is not going to work out for every head. Just search on all the threads on sharpening Grizzlies when those became popular. If you have fundamental sharpening skills from say knifemaking, or machine work, it is all old hat. But with casual skills, you can easily get buffaloed, moving from head to head.

What kind of bow? What is your draw length? 500 spine cut to 28 3/4" is a fairly stiff arrow for most 41# bows. Have you shot through paper at say 36" from front of bow. I want my arrows leaving my bow as straight as possible, so I tune for as small a tear theough paper as posible. Well tuned arrows penatrate the way they should.

Sick to Magnus stingers, do check your set-up by shooting through paper.

“do check your set-up by shooting through paper.”

At how many distances??

I triedpaper-tuning about 25 years ago and I wouldn’t waste my time again.

If I can hit a bamboo garden stake with a bare shaft or a fletched arrow with either a FP OR a broadhead at 20, I figure I’m tuned.

Ment to say Stick to Magnus.

and make sure they're SHARP.

Stingers have never let me down. Bloodtrails depends on shot placement.

I have a bunch of Magnus (Classic) II glue on broadheads and they have always been reliable. Good steel, good design and reliable. Stingers are a different design but Magnus knows what they are doing.

I would say stick with yours until you have a reason not to. Get 'em sharp. Keep 'em sharp. Place them where they need to be.

GF, if the arrow leaves the bow straight, I said shoot through paper at 36" from the bow. Then that arrow will stay straight no matter the distance.

Shooting from an elevated position regardless of where you palce the arrow in the vitals you have to shoot through more of the animal inorder to get 2 holes.

Simply because of the typical entrance location on elevated shots, the entrance is going to be higher. The higher the wound, the longer it takes for blood to get on the ground, the further it is to the beginning of the blood trail.

Shooting that draw weight, from an elevated position, that 4 blade would in my opinion be a very poor choice. If you were hunting on the ground, it may be fine.

In your situation I would stick with the Magnus.

I don’t know, man.... They say (quite correctly!) that a broken clock is still correct twice a day, and the same can be true of any arrow that has yet to come out of oscillation upon leaving the bow.

Besides - I’ve had arrows that bare-shaft to perfection at 50 feet take a hard right- hand turn straight to Hell at about 25 yards. Don’t know how you could predict that based on what’s happening a yard down-range....

Ok I have just started shooting trad this year. I have not shot animal with my set up only going on what friends have said about blood trails with the Magnus.

My bow is a White feather Lark riser with long limbs making the bow 64”. I shoot three under and like some have said I did not paper tune the bow I shot a bare shaft at 15 yards and for my ability it shot the same as a fletched arrow.

I think I will stick with the Magnus just for the fact it is cut on contact and with the lighter poundage maybe when I move up # and different arrows I will try the Ozcut.

And sorry my arrows are 29 3/4 my draw is 28 and he brass inserts are 75 gr I do believe.

Still learning this trad stuff and have fun learning it. A lot more to it then I ever thought. Thank for the help.

Don't matter on ground or elevated if in battery box the shot is placed and the head is sharp you should be ok with a fixed blade and that weight.

Mech. heads generally speaking not enough energy to have mechanical heads open well enough to benefit like being shot from mechanical upright bows.

Variables are distance and placement always. Only way to find the truth is to experience it for yourself then you find out for yourself and won't have any fake news!

As far as blood trals go. I have had great blood trails that ended 150 yards from the hit with no deer recovered, and I have had almost no blood and found my deer. All I can say is, a properly shot deer falls with in site and or with in ear shot.

Our magnus stinger and stinger buzzcut and black hornet and black hornet ser razors are made in America with American labor and American materials. Lifetime replacment guarantee- you damage one email us a picture with your name and address and we replace. I personally prefer the stinger buzzcut chisel serration penetrates like a stinger but opens up a bigger hole.

Bowling to clerify-our magnus glue on heads which I started in 1984 were similar to zwicky but with differences- our bleeder blade was removable-Zwicky was fixed- we copper brazed our heads before Zwicky- our magnus 1 was 1 1/2 inch wide-Delta was 1 3/8 wide- our magnus 2 was 1 1/4 wide Zwicky Eskimo was 1 1/8th wide. Also I talked to jack Zwicky before ever starting magnus and asked him if he would have removable bleeder blades and he said he would not- Jack is a great guy by the way and it’s amazing he is still making broadheads at his age.

Not me! Those trailing edges and a Catquiver go together like a metric nuts on the standard lug bolts of a Baja 1000 race truck. Just an accident waiting to happen!!

I shot a spike buck this year with the same arrows and broadhead as your shooting, with #45 bow. Had a pass through and a dead deer 40 yds.later. I don't think you need those brass inserts, but that's your call.

I use Magnus Sting w/bleeder for all my 125gr and 150gr set ups. They fly great and shave hair right out of the package.

Put it in the right place as Frank states and you're good. That said, you're Ozcut is a lousy design for penetration. The best design is 3 to 1 ratio (a mechanical advantage) and that's close to 1 to 1.

Bowmania

Has anyone used the slick trick broadheads? Not COC and a little smaller cutting diameter but I’ve heard good things pertaining to their performance.

Slicks are really popular with Compound guys, but the design is not very efficient due to the ramp angle aka L:W ratio.

If you want replaceable blade convenience, I like Stingers (depending on the quiver) and the comparable models from Magnus, and I have no complaints with the old Thunderheads, for that matter. I’m more favorably inclined towards a 2- blade these days, but I think I’ll hold onto the T-heads (and a fresh pack of blades) I definitely as my JIC reserves.

I like Simmons and Magnus, Simmons little different to sharpen.

Love the Tricks, the Viper Trick COC , awesome head !!

Slick Tricks are great compound arrow heads. They were never meant for the lower velocity of stick bows.

My stickbow broadheads are 175 to 250 grains.

Blood trails come from having two hole pass throughs in the heart/lung area.

DDave

Put a brass insert in front of that Trick, than you’ll have 200 plus ,,, it works

Now understand, they ain’t the big 2 blade or 3to 1 ratio 3 blade, but if ya like a smaller 2 blade with inserts makin it 4 blade COC they are super sharp and strong , but most shy away cause they ain’t the BIG Trad head , but I’ve killed plenty , that bein said , I just got some VPA 3 blade 250’s for another set up, ain’t havin choices fun ... (Lol) ....

Now understand, they ain’t the big 2 blade or 3to 1 ratio 3 blade, but if ya like a smaller 2 blade with inserts makin it 4 blade COC they are super sharp and strong , but most shy away cause they ain’t the BIG Trad head , but I’ve killed plenty , that bein said , I just got some VPA 3 blade 250’s for another set up, ain’t havin choices fun ... (Lol) ....

And of course, thru the lungs with a sharp head equals DEAD ,, placement and sharp is everything, everytime ,,, but we all know this ,,, I hope

There are, by the way, almost no 3-1 heads on the market. There are heads that are not 3-1 like the Bear Razor head look, and Zwickey, the typical profile. And then there are heads that look a good deal longer (more acute angle) like the Grizzly. Some claim to be 3-1. Bust out a calculator, I haven't seen one yet.

The Howard Hill broadhead, is 3-5/16" x 1-1/8 according to 3 Rivers. Obviously, to be 3-1 it would have to be 3 3/8" long. Close. Maybe the edge is 3 3/8", but that isn't the ratio we are after.

Like everything else in archery there are people with strong views who are not going to be buffaloed into, in this case, that 3-1 nonsense. Good news! Two things you won't see in the woods most days: Unicorns and 3-1 heads. But you can get great heads that nearly get there, like the Grizz.

3to1 is a figure of speech, but most here know what I mean .....

Yep, 1" wide is plenty.

One inch is fine

Those Stinger Killer Bees look Sleek & Deadly....

But I kind of think it’s a mistake to attribute a great blood trail to the Brodhead when it has so much more to do with what you had and how high your exit wound is. Of course, it’s very difficult to get a good blood trail if the exit goes through a shoulder. There is just an awful lot of meat in the way…

First; Welcome to traditional archery, Hunterj! It's a grand adventure you are embarking upon.

Second; I often wonder why there aren't more threads here and elsewhere on the various methods of getting a broadhead really sharp. Seems to me that extreme sharpness is one of the most important aspects of quickly and effectively taking an animal, yet we read little from the real experts at getting this vital job of sharpening done correctly,

Where I live (Interior Alaska) we have long, dark, and cold winters. It is then I'll while away hours in my garage trying different methods of sharpening the collection of broadheads I have using several different methods. I think I'm doing okay at all this, but I've always thought I could be better.

Hoping for the real sharpening experts to surface and show the rest of us the trail home.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

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