Bruce Barrie General Manager of Barrie Archery, manufacturers of Rocky Mountain Broadheads

I started bowhunting at an early age and took my first big game animal at the age of twelve. I have been involved in manufacturing archery equipment virtually my entire life. My father, Robert Barrie, would bring home piece-work from Herter's Inc., Archery Division, for assembly. I began working full time manufacturing the popular Rocky Mt. Broadhead line in 1987 after receiving a four-year business degree. With 20 years of bowhunting experience, I have been fortunate enough to harvest numerous North American big game animals including many trophy-class animals. In 1993 I earned an MBA degree from the University of St. Thomas. I'm currently employed as the General Manager of Barrie Archery - Rocky Mountain Broadheads

One of the most common problems all bowhunters have is getting their broadheads to fly properly. To be honest with you, in most cases it is not the fault of the broadhead but rather improper fletching. The most important factor in achieving good broadhead flight is having the correct fletching on the back end of your arrow. One must remember that good arrow flight is the single most important factor for good penetration.

I have used both feathers and vanes with success. In most situations, I would favor feathers. If you are using larger diameter broadheads like our Rocky Mountain Razor or Ultra with a 1 ¼" to 1 ½" cut, three or four feathers at five inches in length offers you the best stabilization. If you are using smaller diameter broadheads like our Premier 75 or Ironhead 125 with a 1 1/8" cut, you can use just about any vane or feather combination and achieve good arrow stabilization. As you will recall from my last column, this holds true with expandable broadheads as well.

Feathers are much more forgiving than vanes if contact is made on the rest or riser, but feathers make more noise than vanes. Feathers are lighter than vanes, so out of the bow they are faster. However, at greater distances vanes maintain their speed better than feathers due to the air drag from the increased surface area on a feather. In wet conditions, vanes are much more desirable than feathers. I know of several hunters that carry four arrows with feathers and two with vanes in their quiver. If it rains, they cover their feathers with a fletching bonnet and use vanes. I must caution whoever uses this method to be sure their vanes and feathers fly the same. An easy way to check for good arrow flight is to have your hunting partner video tape your arrow in flight. By watching the tape in slow motion, you can determine if you're getting good arrow flight.

I recommend using right wing helical fletch. The helical fletch gets your arrow spinning faster which leads to quicker stabilization of the arrow. If you use screw-in replaceable blade broadheads, the right wing helical will spin the arrow to the right which tightens your broadhead every time it hits your practice target.

If you are using a shoot through style rest with vanes and are having clearance problems, a Rocky Mountain. Hunting Staff member, Ted Poper of Pennsylvania, came up with a unique idea that works well for me. Put your cock vane on straight which allows for maximum vane clearance. Then put your remaining two vanes on with a slight helical. This may require a little extra work, but I get excellent arrow flight using this method.

Regardless of which fletching style you choose, be sure to shoot a lot practice arrows with your broadheads. Nothing beats practice to find out what your equipment is or isn't doing. Plus, practice gives you the confidence you need to shoot your best when it really counts.

If you have any question, comments, concerns, or suggestions for future "Cutting Edge" columns, E-mail me at barrie@clear.lakes.com.

The expandable or mechanical broadhead is by no means a new concept. All one has to do is look at any broadhead collection to realize this design has been around for years. However maybe now, more than any other time in history, has their presence been somewhat accepted. Because we manufacture both styles, I feel I can offer a subjective viewpoint regarding this style of broadhead.

With the advancement in bow technology, bows are reaching record breaking speed. Unfortunately, these high tech bows are becoming more critical to shoot, especially with wide diameter broadheads. Therefore, the most obvious advantage of expandable broadheads is their good flight characteristics. The smaller you can get the in-flight diameter of a broadhead, the easier it is to tune. Most expandable heads come with an in-flight diameter of 5/8 to 7/8 inch as compared to conventional broadheads which have larger 1 1/8 to 1 ½ inches of in-flight diameter. In addition, most expandables have extremely large cutting diameters as compared to conventional broadheads. The majority of the expandable heads have a 2 inch cutting diameter creating some awesome wound channels. Lastly, most expandable broadheads come pre-assembled which allows you to just screw them onto your arrow shaft.

One disadvantage of expandable broadheads is a lack of penetration as compared to conventional broadheads. Therefore, it is recommended that you shoot more kinetic energy if you are using an expandable broadhead. This lack of penetration is largely due to the energy that is required to open the blades on impact. Also, the extremely large cutting diameter, common with expandable heads, requires more energy. For whitetail size animals, I recommend 50 to 60 foot pounds of kinetic energy. For larger animals such as Elk, I recommend 65 foot pounds of kinetic energy or more. Structurally, the blades are not as strong as conventional replaceable broadheads because the blades are not supported on the base. (When we designed our expandable Gator, we were concerned about this and implemented free floating blades.) Just because expandable broadheads come pre-assembled, don't forget to check blade sharpness. As with any product, there are good quality blades and poor quality blades. In addition, just because they are supposed to fly like a field point, don't forget to practice with them before you go hunting. Lastly, in many states expandable broadheads are illegal to shoot so be sure to consult your local game laws.

If you have any question, comments, concerns, or suggestions for future "Cutting Edge" columns, E-mail me at barrie@clear.lakes.comt.

In today's high tech environment many things are taken for granted, including the blade sharpness of broadheads. Most bowhunters believe that just because a broadhead has replaceable blades, those blades are hunting sharp right out of the box. As with any product category, there are some excellent broadheads and there are some marginal broadheads. Blade sharpness is no exception. As a responsible bowhunter you need to check blade sharpness yourself before you ever take it into the field for game.

One good check is to see if you can shave the hair off your arm without much pressure. If you can't, notify the manufacturer and send the blades back for replacement. If you frequently have to send blades back or if you are not satisfied with the quality of sharpness I would urge you to switch brands.

Through the years I have been on several hunts where bowhunters would practice with their broadheads shooting into foam and dirt. Then, some of these hunters would put the same arrows back in their quivers with the belief they were okay to hunt with. A broadhead that has been previously shot should never be used on an animal without replacing the blades or re-sharpening them. We owe it to th animal.

There are several blade sharpening devices on the market designed to re-sharpen dull blades. Most come with pre-set angles so the edges are properly set for you. I have personally used the FINE LINE HONING GUIDE from FINE-LINE and highly recommend it. It works great for bringing a honed edge back on broadhead blades as well as other flat blades. There is a caution however, do not try to re-sharpen blades that are too damaged.

Due to the high Rockwell hardness of blades, it takes a while to get the hang of re-sharpening and it takes time to get the edge shaving sharp. I recommend buying replacement blades because it's easier and because of the difficulty of getting blades as sharp as those that come from the factory. Re-sharpening is good for a short term touch up but not for long term. Know when to buy replacement blades.

At BARRIE ARCHERY, we specialize in manufacturing the ROCKY MOUNTAIN Broadhead line so we put all our effort into producing quality broadheads with extremely sharp blades. Crescent Manufacturing has been our only blade supplier since 1978. They have been making blades since 1898 and specialize in micro-tome blades for medical biopsies. Obviously we can depend on this company to provide us with the sharpest blades available.

Blade sharpness is very subjective in nature with shaving being the one sure way a consumer can check for sharpness. In addition to this old fashioned way of checking blade sharpness, we also check blade sharpness with two other methods.

The first method requires the use of high magnification to check the fine honed edge. Under a microscope we can visually detect even the slightest variation in blade edge sharpness. The other method uses a ‘Sharpness Tester’ which equates blade sharpness to a statistical variable which measures, graphs and monitors each edge. As part of my MBA requirement, I, along with the engineering department at Crescent Manufacturing, developed the ‘Sharpness Tester’ to implement an SPC System for Rocky Mountain blades. By utilizing both old and new technology Rocky Mountain Broadheads have always been know for having the sharpest blades available, we intend to keep it that way. In the field, you should too.

If you have any question, comments, concerns, or suggestions for future "Cutting Edge" columns, E-mail me at barrie@clear.lakes.com.

The debate over which broadhead style is the best has been a topic of heated discussion ever since the replaceable blade broadhead hit the market in the mid-seventies. There are basically three styles of points on the market today. The Traditional cut-on-impact style such as the Zwicky, the Chisel Point such as our Premier Series Broadheads and the Cone Point style such as our original Rocky Mt. Razor.

Many companies have developed penetration tests which demonstrate one style performs better than another. One such test involves pushing the various broadheads through dry, stretched leather. The object is to compare the amount of energy it takes to push each different tip style through the leather. Another similar test involves pushing a Chisel Tip through a thin layer of plastic and then comparing that to how much energy it takes to push a Cone Point style through the same piece of plastic. One must be cautioned to put too much faith in tests of this nature. These tests were created for one simple reason, to skew the test results in favor of the style broadhead being promoted.

At a consumer show many years ago I tried each of these tests. I pushed a Traditional head through leather followed by a Chisel Tipped head , followed by a Conical Tipped head. I did the same test through plastic. The Traditional head pushed through the leather easiest followed by the Chisel Tip followed by the Cone Tip. There wasn't a huge difference but I could tell the Traditional Head was pushed through easiest.

Not convinced this was the case in the real world, I came up with a test of my own. (One must remember that broadheads are not pushed through an animal but are shot through the animal with a tremendous amount of energy.) My thinking was that dry plastic or leather will adhere to anything that was round. I did the same test using a large Idaho Potato. I wanted to find out what would happen if I added moisture or lubrication (blood) to the equation. Just as I had suspected, the test showed the Cone Tip took the least amount of pressure, followed by the Chisel Tip with the Traditional Tip taking the most energy.

The point is that test can be deceiving. If you are going to put your trust in test results you need to look at independent studies. The best source for unbiased tests are those conducted by magazines. Their tests are not funded by any one company. In fact, they can't show favoritism so the results should be fairly accurate. However, their tests can be limited in scope due to money constraints. In addition, one must look at the validity of the test. As an example, if they are shooting into foam to simulate penetration on animals, one must view this with a little skepticism because foam and animal tissue are worlds apart.

The truth of the matter is, there is no test (yet) that duplicates contact with living flesh, blood (lubrication), bone or hide. There are just too many variables involved. I have read that Traditional heads out penetrate other broadhead styles anywhere from two to five percent. I also read the penetration tests conducted by Norb Mullaney for Bowhunting World Magazine showed the Chisel Tip, four blade broadhead penetrated best of all the rest. What this means is, either of these heads, upon passing through a whitetail, might stick into the dirt 8" whereas other broadhead tip styles, after passing through the whitetail, might only stick into the dirt 7 ½". This may sound fictitious at first but is the truth. I have talked with literally thousands of bowhunters and with today's high tech/high speed bows, penetration is just not a problem. As I have mentioned many times before, the most important aspect of penetration is good arrow flight.

In my opinion, the debate over which broadhead style is best is a waste of time. Personal preference and feeling 100% confidence in your equipment is the most important issue. If you enjoy the mystique of sharpening your own broadheads and they fly and group well for you, then Traditional , leading edge broadheads are for you. If you don't want to take the time to sharpen your blades and like the convenience of replaceable broadheads, then conventional, replaceable broadheads are for you.

I received a lot of e-mail regarding my last article on penetration. In that article I mentioned the most important aspect of penetration was good arrow flight. This has caused some confusion with some people and I want to clarify my position.

When it comes to arrow penetration, regardless if you are shooting into a 3-D target, a broadhead target or an animal, the straightest or truest flying arrow (assuming all other variables remain constant), will always penetrate the deepest. If you have ever taken an animal, shooting with fingers, you may have witnessed this without even knowing. The archer's paradox, defined in it's simplest form, states it takes an arrow a short distance to straighten out and fly true. I have taken several deer at point blank range with my recurve, 2020 shafts and our Rocky Mt. ULTRA, In each case, I did not get a complete pass through. At 15 yards,  with the same bow, arrow and broadhead combination I have taken many deer obtaining a complete pass through.

At 15 yards, my arrow had time to straighten out and was flying perfectly, achieving maximum penetration. This illustrates the importance of having a properly tuned bow with the correct arrow shaft/grain weight combination for your bow set-up. You can reference the Easton Hunting Shaft Selection Chart or check with your local dealer to find out if your set-up is correct.

There are many other variables that can affect penetration when shooting into animals such as the distance of the shot, shooting at extreme angles, shot placement (bone impact) and size of the animal you are hunting. Another variable which adversely affects penetration is animal movement. If the animal is moving at impact, the arrow can be deflected slightly causing the arrow to lose energy as it enters the animal. If you have ever shot at a trotting or running deer, you may have noticed a loss of penetration.

I feel the best shot to take is a perfect broadside shot. I recommend placing an arrow at least three inches behind the front shoulder. There is no need to flirt with danger by hitting the front shoulder bone. The shot, with most set-ups, should produce a double lung pass through producing a quick clean kill and creating a good blood trail for an easy tracking job.

My first big game animal was an example of how important good arrow flight is for maximum penetration. I was 12 years old and hunting black bear in Canada. Using a 27 # Herder's compound and prototype of our 3-Blade Rocky Mr. 'Razor', I hit the bear two inches behind the front shoulder and buried the broadhead into the opposite leg bone. The bear went less than 40 yards and piled up. Looking back, I'm convinced that if I had not hit the opposite leg bone, I would have had a complete pass through.. This demonstrates how a low poundage bow with very little kinetic energy can still penetrate well with a true flying arrow. At the time, my father was shooting professional archery at PAA events so I know my arrows were flying perfectly.

Through the years many articles have been written on the subject of broadhead tuning.  There are some basic guidelines to follow that have worked well for me and other bowhunters that should make tuning your broadheads easier.

Unlike field points, broadhead tipped arrows want to fight with your fletching to steer the arrow from the front end. If your bow is not properly tuned, the arrow will leave the bow with a fish tailing effect. If your arrow does not have adequate fletching to correct this, the broadhead will take over and begin to windplane. Not only is this important for accuracy, but also for maximum penetration. Good arrow flight is the single most important factor which effects penetration.

Before we get into paper tuning your arrows, a few minor changes can be made with your set-up to help make your broadheads fly truer. To begin with, larger diameter broadheads are more critical for flight than smaller diameter broadheads. Also, vanes can be more critical to tune with broadheads compared to feathers. In addition, the faster the bow the more difficult it becomes to obtain good arrow flight. I have found that 260 feet per second appears to be the threshold. Set-ups over 260 feet per second are much more touchy. I also have found that a front of center balance between 10 and 12 percent gives me the best arrow flight. Target shooters may be able to get by with less than 10% FOC balance but for us average shooters, anything less than 10% can be touchy.

I like to begin paper tuning my arrows with field points. The arrow shaft company, Easton, makes an excellent chart to help with our paper tuning effort. I have found that if I get my field points to tune well through paper, I almost always get my broadheads to fly well.  If you want to take it to the next level, you can repeat your paper tuning process with your broadheads.

Randy Ulmer, one of Rocky Mountains famous staff shooters believes that , "By  tuning the bow to shoot a bullet hole through paper, you are minimizing the job the fletching must do allowing the arrow to get off to a good start. The first 20 feet the arrow travels is critical in determining final arrow performance."

Jackie Caudle, another staff shooter for Barrie Archery believes that a slight high left tear for a right hand shooter is optimal.

As you can see, even the top shooters have their own special system to setting up what they feel is the best for them.  The point is, you want to eliminate any erratic tears when you tune through paper. By doing so, you will have a much better chance of getting your set-up tuned for broadheads.

If you have any question, comments, concerns, or suggestions for future "Cutting Edge" columns, E-mail me at barrie@clear.lakes.com.