testing broadhead sharpness

[blacktailchaser]

so how do you guys test the sharpness of your broadheads....i have allways been up in the air if i really have them sharp....and does any one use a accusharpener....thanks john

[Dave Lay]

I personally want it to shave hair without much pressure, I’ve heard several ways and will be intreasted in this as well. I normally file sharp then move to a fine diamond stone. I recently found a guide that really helps keep the correct angles called staysharp, it’s $15.00 compared to $$ of other sharpening systems , so I may try that just to see if it’s better than what I’m doing

[RGKulas]

Actually the Stay sharp guides are $19.95 but still far less expensive than pretty much any broadhead sharpening system on the market. Im inquiring now about becoming a sponsor here and will be able to post content and videos about how to get broadheads sharper than ever for very little money and very little effort.

[J. Holden]

I make sure mine can shave hair as well.  I use files also and the car window.  Check out the youtube video Clay Hayes put out.  I loosely follow what he does.

-Jeremy

[SuperK]

I use to use a postal size rubber band and/or the hair on my arm to test the sharpness of my broadheads.  I tried all kinds of different sharpeners from Accusharps to diamond hones to Lanskys to you name it.  I guess it depends on what kind of edge you want.  Some like smooth honed edges, some like a "Fred Bear" smooth filed edge, others a "Howard Hill" type serrated edge.  Pros and cons of each style.
Now days I just use a good 6 inch file and "steel" the edge after with the shank of a screwdriver.  I then check the edge with my thumb nail to make sure the edge is straight.  This edge will cut hair but don't try to "shave" with it.  It is too "grabby" and will dig in quick!  To me, it seems this edge holds up better than a honed edge plus it is easily to carry a file in my pack when hunting. I know lots of folks will take issue with this and that's OK with me but go to a slaughter house (where they kill and process hogs, cattle, etc.) and see what kind of edge they use.  They don't hone their knives, they use a butchers  steel on them.  I asked the owner why and he quickly stated that the honed edge was too thin and wouldn't hold up especially on muddy hides, bone etc.  Lots of discussion on this over the years on filed vs honed edge.  Use the search function and you will have lots of material to read.

[Dave Lay]

Super K I am by no means questioning that edge that butchers use but is that not meant to hold up while processing multiple animals rather than one pass through? Edge sharpness is something I’ve always been interested in, ive heard every thing from file sharp and leaving the wire edge to getting em to a honed scalpel sharpness which I have a hard time getting

[Orion]

I like to stretch a small rubber band very lightly between my thumb and forefinger and ever so lightly run the blade edge across it.  If it cuts it immediately, it's sharp.  Will also shave hair, but that's messy.

Whether the edge turns over or not is determined by the angle of the bevel and the hardness of the steel.  A honed edge won't necessarily turn over if it's not an acute angle and soft steel.  Likewise, a filed edge won't necessarily hold up if the edge angle is very acute and/or the steel is soft.   

[newhouse114]

By the looks of most of the stone heads I've seen and found, folks have been killing deer with less than shaving sharp broadheads for a heap of years.

[Dave Lay]

You can kill a deer with a field tip through the lungs but it might take a bit and the blood trail would suck, I want as big as a cut as I can get with the sharpest blade possible

[SuperK]

I have heard it said that the best way to predict how something will work in the future is to examine how it has worked in the past (or something like that).  File sharpened broad heads have got it done for Fred Bear, Howard Hill and scores of other bowhunters for years and years.  Me included.  I am in no way saying that a honed edge won't work, but in my experience the filed edge is more durable and easier to achieve.  It may be the angle of my bevel or the hardness of the steel but the broad heads I have recovered from my deer kills have proven (at least to my satisfaction) which edge I want.  Like I said earlier, lots of different opinions and thoughts on this subject.....

[two4hooking]

I'm with superk on this one. File for me. Use my thumbnail to test. I want it to grab.  Sticky.

[slowbowjoe]

I usually check with a light pass on the edge of a piece of paper, and thumbnail. I like the rubber band also.

I use an Accusharp; I start with a file if the factory edge is rough, and finish with a ceramic rod or a steel. I don't get them finely honed, but they're plenty sharp.

[txcookie]

I use a lansky and getem shaving sharp.

[txcookie]

So I have been playing tonight . Used a file and my lansky. Both give me sharp edges especially when I run them across my arm guard. I can say this with certainty. A sharp head can have different edges be it burred, rough or scalpel like, they will all cut your leg when you have drank 8 beers and are goofing around with them. I look like a 15 year old depressed goth kid . AT 150 fps plus they should all easily and humanely kill anything you shoot at.

[T Lail]

for many years I shaved my arems with broadheads....than one year, a slip and I cut my fore arm.....not too bad, but enough to scare the crap out of me....now I test useing a slightly tight rubber band.......if it cuts on contact, they are sharp.....

[Tajue17]

I think the easiest one is the fingernail test,,  you can really tell the sharpness but I would suppose you would need someone to demonstrate it first with a dull, medium then scalpel edge.......

shaving hair is great too and even for me just checking the edge with my thumb,,,,, rubber bands is okay and maybe its me but I had blades that I personally thought could be sharper cut thru those bands so maybe they are sharp enough,,,,,,,,,, keep in mind that a lot of old schoolers say if the blades are too too sharp and the steel isn't perfect the edges will roll over when they come in contact with bone,,,,, hence magnus buzzcuts they don't feel that sharp but produce a lot of blood.. 

fingernail test for the beginners...

[GCook]

I use the shaving hair and thumb nail checks.  I sharpen with a diamond stone the a fine Arkansas stone to finish.
That said I've been known to "touch up" the edge of a shot once head with the Lansky style pull across sharpeners.  Used properly they will straighten an edge much like a steel and work fine as long as the edge has a good hone to it.  I've killed three pigs in one weekend with the same head and arrow that way.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[Cmane07]

I like them to shave hair too.  I normally test them on my leg so people don't look at my arms and wonder what in the world is wrong with me 

[Red Beastmaster]

I don't plan on shaving a deer or trimming its nails. I do want to cut its blood vessels. A rubber band best simulates this.

[Rollie]

I've always tested my Deltas with a slight touch of a rubberband.