Frankly, when I received the 100 grain Magnus Stingers I thought -  "Oh no, I'm supposed to evaluate broadheads that look like the ones I shot my first archery buck with in 1975!  With all the high-tech broadheads available today, these must just be an effort to market the nostalgia of the original Bear broadhead." 

Well? ... please don't let my wife know I admitted this ... but as you'll read below - I was Wrong.

Backing up nearly 30 years, I remember how befuddled I was as a teenager when I attached my two blade broadheads to the end of my well-grouping field-tipped arrows then proceeded to miss the entire hay bale at about 25 yards!  This memory made me skeptical that a current broadhead, designed similarly to those I used as a teenager, could shoot a tight group

Since my teenage years, I have regularly used about half a dozen different broadhead designs, but none of them were two blade versions.  I have always understood the ruggedness and simplicity of the two-blade design, and how the cut-on-contact tip could do a great job of dispatching a heavy- bodied animal, but I couldn?t bring myself to try them.  I guess it?s like someone who gets deathly sick eating a particular food.  Even though others assure them that the food is wonderful, and that they just had a bad experience?they can?t bring themselves to ever try it again. 

Flight Performance:  4.5 of 5
Well, this evaluation made me try a two-blade again. I went directly to the flight performance tests, thinking that I better get the ugly part over with quickly.  To establish a "control" for the experiments, I first warmed up with field tips and confirmed that all was well, since I was shooting 3" groups or less at 20 and 30 yards. 

Next, I screwed on the 3 blade fixed broadheads that I shot last fall and confirmed that they held equally tight groups.   Finally, I screwed on the Magnus Stingers, moved to 20 yards, drew back, cringed (imagining that I would miss the whole target again) and squeezed off a shot. 

Yep, you guessed it!  The arrow hit the center target dot!   In disbelief, I fired a few more, then moved back to 30 yards.  To my amazement, my group sizes and impact points were the same as with field tips (and with my 3 blade broadheads).

Suddenly, I forgot about my bias and started to scrutinize the construction of the Stingers more closely. 

Ruggedness/Durability:  5 of 5
There is nothing delicate about any of the parts on the Stingers.  They are made of a .042" thick 420 stainless steel blade that is secured to an anodized-aluminum threaded shaft using two screws. The blade is one piece of stainless that has a 1" cutting width.  It has a taper of about 15 degrees on each side up to about .20" from the tip.  At that distance, the taper steepens to about 30 degrees per side to create a durable cut-on-contact tip.  The screws that secure it to the shaft are a substantial .095 Dia  with .175"  of thread length.  The threads are fine pitched, so that it takes about 4 ½ turns until they come free. (i.e. you are not relying on eyeglass screws to hold these broadheads together!)

To dynamically assess the ruggedness of the Stinger, I shot it through a ¾" thick pine board that was propped up against my foam broadhead target.  The arrow completely penetrated the board, and sunk the broadhead about 5" into the target.  The Stinger was totally unaffected by the shot.  In fact, none of the cutting edge was bent or nicked, and I could still shave hair with 80% of the edge. 

To date, I have not used the Stingers to harvest game.  Therefore, I can't attest to their field performance.  However, I did browse the "Testimonials" section of their website MagnusBroadheads.com, and found that they have been successful in taking most species of game including large and extra large examples. 

Assembly:  5 of 5
Even after shooting through the board, the screws removed easily and the broadhead came apart with very little force.  It assembled just as easily.  One beauty of the two-blade design is that you can pinch the flat sides of the blade between your fingers during assembly without any fear of cutting yourself.  No wrenches, blade holders etc. are required, leaving a screwdriver as the only tool that is needed

Design/Quality: 5 of 5
The Stinger is well made, with good fit and finish on all the parts.  The threads were clean, and threaded into my inserts smoothly.

Sharpness:
The Stinger comes pre-sharpened and ready to hunt right out of the package.  The ones I tested were razor sharp.   The blades can be completely replaced or can be re-sharpened.  Magnus recommends an Accusharp knife sharpener to perform the task.

Axial Alignment:
I performed the traditional "Spin Test" to assess how well the blade is aligned with the threaded shaft (and with the axis of the arrow shaft).  The stinger spun true and on line -- no doubt that this is one reason why they flew well.

Other models:
The Stinger series is also available in a model that adds two smaller "bleeder blades" to the same frame as the 2 blade model.  If these fly as well, it might make sense to add the extra cutting edges, although they are probably more fragile than the main blades.  The series includes 125-grain models as well.

Value:  5 of 5
At about $20 per pack of three, the Stinger represents a good value.  Since Magnus stands behind the Stinger with a Lifetime Guarantee, you can hardly go wrong by investing in them.  I checked out their guarantee policy, and it states "Our lifetime guarantee means that we will replace any of our broadheads regardless of how they were used or what they have been shot into.  If they are damaged in any way, just let us know". 

The fact that they are durable and can be re-sharpened also makes them an even better value.

Overall Assessment:
I am still amazed at how well the Stingers flew.   I will note that I tested them with an upper end 2002 model bow with drop away rest that seems very forgiving.   I have shot three different broadheads out of it (two fixed blades and one mechanical/expandable), all yielding field-tip performance.  Unlike this bow, I admit that several bows in my past were quite finicky about broadhead selection (including the one that I owned as a teenager). 

Until this evaluation, I would not have considered trying a two-blade broadhead when I was searching for good broadhead flight in a finicky setup.   However, that has changed!   Chalk up a "lesson learned" for the Stinger! 

The heavy- duty construction of the Stinger is bound to make it a great choice when "fail proof" penetration is needed for any species, including heavy-bodied animals.   Since it flies so well, it could be also be considered an excellent choice as a multi purpose broadhead. 

It can take abuse and be re-sharpened, making it an excellent value.   Combine that with a Lifetime Guarantee, and you can't go wrong.

For information on these or any other Magnus product contact:

Magnus Archery Company
P.O. Box 1877
Great Bend Ks. 67530
620-793-9222 - PHONE
620-793-9141 - FAX
Web Site: www.magnusbroadheads.com
 Email: info@magnusbroadheads.com