What kills faster??

[Old York]

Well in retrospect I gotta mention something from Roy Marlow's book "Timeless Bowhunting" - he suggests to 'aim low' because when we miss, we tend to miss high.

So I'll stick with a heart shot and catch the bugger in both lungs when it jumps string/arrow. Seems a commonality through this thread is it depends on the critter and circumstances at that moment. And - NOT taking out the diaphram like Whump says might help broadcast fine blood droplets from exhalation.

[TradPaul]

Great info and advice from all of you, there does seem to be a trend in the DLB lung catagory for efficiency with good successes in the heart department as well. i've been looking at alot of Deer anatomy Pic's to really get a feel for where things are, and it does seem to be that the lungs are higher than i would have thought( more up in the rib cage) i feel very confident about my shot placement thanks to alittle bit of study. Again thank you all.

Guru, thanks for the pic's with your story very informative..and maybe those deer have alittle bit of NY in 'em, makes them too tough  :D  

Batman, Thanks for the advice, i probably wouldnt have thought of waiting that long, i have bright pink fletch (before i had seen eichler) so that should do the trick, ( got sick of losing them in the ivy    ) if i can shoot half as good as you, i'll be in business.


Thanks again everyone, you have no idea what a help you have all been.


P.

[Holm-Made]

I'd never intentionally shoot for the heart itself but instead the center of the lungs.  More room for error.  If you shoot for the heart and your arrow flies 2-3 inches low, you got brisket.  Aim for the center of the lungs and you can miss your target by 3 inches in any direction and still get lung.  

A little off subject but you did ask what was the best target.  Chad

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

One time several years ago a friend of mine and I each shot a deer, his in the heart and there was blood EVERYWHERE but the deer ran about 40 yards and died on the run, mine through the lungs went 20 yards and layed down looked like it was still alive when we found it, you decide....

[Bonebuster]

I can`t say I recall a deer that was double-lunged
making it past about 80 yards, but I have heart shot them and followed well beyond 100 yards.

[Biggie Hoffman]

STKNSTRNG....looked like it was still alive? What does that mean?
If you double lunged it, it didn't live more than two minutes.

As far as blood, most of the deer I've heart shot didn't bleed at all or very little. It could be cause they run so fast, it's a mist in the air, or as some have said, it depends on what part of the heart you hit.

[Steertalker]

I know the original question was about a double lung or heart shot.  Not real sure how you can hit the heart without hitting the lungs, but that would be the shot I would go for.

But....there is another shot that will drop a deer much faster than either a double lung or heart shot........not that I am recommending it.  I just know from experience how lethal it is.

As mentioned by Swampbuck, and from personal experience a shot through the tenderloins will drop a deer in less than 10 yds.  The tenderloins are flush with blood as well as the fact that the main arteries that feed the hind quarters run through them.

You would never take a shot like that on purpose but if you hunt long enough with a bow it's bound to happen on a deer that bolts.  And when it does....I guarantee you WILL be impressed!

Brett

[Biggie Hoffman]

Uh.......scuse me but, I've taken alot of deer tenderloin out and have yet to see any evidence of any "main arteries" running thru them.
We talking about the same thing?

[vermonster13]

There are major arteries and veins running along the spine above the tenderloins. My guess is you clipped one of those.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Are you calling backstrapes, tenderloins? That is a butchers cut, The True tenderloins are the small one in between the hind legs, just under the spine. Inside the cavity of any game.

Yes, the really fast killer would be a spine shot or taking out the main artery that runs down the back legs.

[reddogge]

Originally posted by AdamH:
Either for me, but you oughta see em go down when hit in the Femoral Artery, happened to me once by accident, watched the deer go down in 40 yards !! No I don't recommend tryin it on purpose...

My first deer was an accident like this.  It jumped the sting, turned 90 degrees to the arrow and got hit in the femoral artery.  40 yards was about right.

[Steertalker]

Gentlemen....I'm talking about the 2 muscles that run just under the spine forward of the pelvis area.  Running just above those muscles and along the underside of the spine are 2 arteries that eventually branch out and become the femoral arteries that run down the hind legs.

A broadhead through the tenderloin will more than likely clip those arteries.  I know....because I've done it on not one....but several occassions.  Except for a spinal shot nothing will put a deer down faster than that shot.  It is no different than cutting ones throat with a knife.    

So pardon me if I was a little careless in my first description  :rolleyes:

If you are going to get specific....I've never had a spine shot that killed.  Yep...it sure does immobilize them....but they are still alive and require a follow up shot or having their throat cut.  Not so for the tenderloin shot.  Ten yards or less....and they're dead!

Brett

[swampbuck]

Not the back straps a deer will survive that hit easily the tenderlions are inside and yup both femoral's will most likely be hit

My very first bow kill was a doe thru the liver talk about a blood trail solid foot long squirts out both sides...she didn,t go far

[ChristopherO]

I've broadside double lunged a number of deer and haven't noticed them dropping within 40 yards.  Usually an 80 to 100 yard sprint.  One large buck didn't leave a blood trail.  I knew where he was by the "HUFF,HUFF" sound he made just before he fell over.  But everything in a 4' high radius around him was covered in foamy blood at that spot.

[Biggie Hoffman]

Steertalker, just a suggestion...aim at the other end  :"-)

[bm22]

Originally posted by Biggie Hoffman:
Steertalker, just a suggestion...aim at the other end  :"-)

lol thats funny.

i will defend steerstalker thou. the texas deer are really jumpy, once you let the arrow go god only know where you will hit.

i will agree that a double lung seems to put them down really quick and with a pass threw the deer just jump then walk off and die close buy. that is if the arrow goes out the other side.

[cch]

One observation that I have with the double lung shots that run 2-300 yds on TV is that the shots seem too far back. I see a lot of people who think that the lungs go further back than they actually do. I try to not shoot much further back than the back edge of the front leg and since doing so I have been having most of the animals shot go down in sight. Don't think that the the 3-D targets are marked correctly. I do aim for the heart because I have a tendancy to shoot high when I get excited and this gives me some room for error. I shot a doe last year that I only hit her in the very lower tip of the heart and she dropped in about 50yds but she left a good blood trail.

[Shawn Leonard]

Shot lots of deer and I agree with Biggie that double lung shots have always produed very short blood trails. Heartshots it depends but they can be from 2 to 200 yards depending on the deers alertness and such. I have to totally disagree that you will more than likely hit one of the main arteries that run just under the spine on a shot through the back loins, actually you are lucky to hit them on that shot. Shawn

[Shawn Leonard]

I should add that all my deer that were indeed double lunged none went over 60 yards even if they were very alert when shot. As my Dad says "can't breath, can't run far!!" Shawn

[bawana bowman]

Never noticed a big difference between the double lung or heart shot as far as distance they travel. In each case the deer I've shot will still travel 3 to 60 yds. And I would say that of all the deer I've shot, these to hits average out to be about even in killing efficiency.

However, I've dropped many deer with spine shots and all but one were dead when I got to them. None of them moved from the spot they were standing when hit. If you sever the spinal cord they drop! Period! The only one that wasn't dead the BH tip punctured the cord but did not sever it. Had to dispatch with throat cutting, but it did drop in its tracks!