How sharp is sharp enough?

[Ryan Rothhaar]

I've went back and forth over the years between a wire burr edge and an extremely honed shaving edge.  Probably killed 25 or 30 big game animals with either/or each.  I've decided I'm firmly in the wire burr edge camp.  Consistently I've seen that a wire burr edge kills as cleanly, generally gives as good or better blood trails for me, and holds up much better than a finely honed edge.  I've never picked up a broadhead that had a finely honed edge from a shot big game animal that retained the edge significantly, burr edges typically aren't damaged nearly as quickly in my experience.  I like the  old Razor Rake pull through sharpener for my wire edge heads.

R

[stagetek]

When I can shave hair off my arm, I'm satisfied.

[dragonheart]

Mr. Rothhaar,

Do you still use the hollowgrind technique on the bench grinder on the Snuffers to establish the edge?

[Ryan Rothhaar]

Yes, sir, I do.  Hollowgrind on 6 inch bench grinder to establish the new bevels, then pull through the Rake, which gives it actually a steeper hollow angle and the wire edge.

The tutorial I posted on here years ago that gets pulled up once in a while shows the honed, razor sharp edge establishment.  I don't show the Rake method, cause you cant get them anymore and I don't want 500 PM's asking where to get that nifty sharpener.  

R

[Todd Cook]

This is a never ending debate, and I think I know why. A lot of folks equate a file sharp edge as dull, and a honed edge as sharp. When in truth, it all depends on how its done.

The edge, whether it be a broadhead, a knofe, or a lawnmower blade has to be sharp and straight to a point. Now that sounds obvious, but I've seen so many people struggle with sharpening simply because they roll over the edge, never creating two intersecting planes. Imagine the top edge of a car window: Its thin on the sides, and its polished, but it wont cut you. Blades are the same way.They must come to a point.

Break a piece of flint or obsidian and pick up a flake. CAREFULLY. It breaks to an edge. It will cut you horribly.

I use an 8 inch file, and have killed far to many animals like that to believe you need a honed edge. Sharp yes, but not honed. A straight edge is a sharp edge. And like Ryan said, they stay sharp in the quiver much longer too. Sorry to be so long winded, but this comes up a lot.

[Red Beastmaster]

Originally posted by Scott E:
If it snaps a rubber band easy it's sharp enough for me.

I stretch a rubber band between my thumb and index finger. Then rest the point of the broadhead on the band. Hold the arrow back at the nock. Now, with just the weight of the arrow pressing down, push the arrow forward to slice the band. It should cut through in less than the length of the blade.

I'm not interested in shaving animals. I want to cut their arteries and veins. Rubber bands best simulate this.

I sharpen with a TruAngle file block. It's how I've done it forever and never let me down.

[Ryman Cat]

If you take a rubber band stretch her out then take the head and touch everso light if the band push's down the heads not sharp enough. If it cuts on contact with no pressure its plenty sharp.

When we keep working on the heads that don't cut hair we are just lightening the BH at times. Grain them and you will see. If the burr drags your fingernail shes good also most of the time.

[Cyclic-Rivers]

What good is a razor sharp broadhead if you are as bad a hunter as I am?

The only cutting my broadheads to are to the practice target.

[ChuckC]

Charlie. get closer to the critters !  You can do it !

This is a never ending discussion.  Lots of critters have succumbed to arrows of all sorts, from stone points, to bone points to steel points and some I haven't thought of.  Pretty certain that some of the carved wooden points used in the jungle are nowhere near as sharp as we are discussing.  Those folks eat OK I am guessing.

Get them as sharp as you can and put them in a good spot, and you will be happy with the results.  If you don't do that, well, your results may vary.
ChuckC

[pdk25]

Agreed, Chuck.  But it is the off-season for a lot of folks, lol.  I am all about less time sharpening and more time hunting, plus a method of sharpening that I can easily take with me into the field.

[Sixby]

I sharpen them with stones. Then I  strop with leather impregnated with jewlers rouge , then with a clean leather strop. The strops are glued to boards and made out of heavy carving leather. I've never got a head too sharp. As far as I am concerned scarey sharp is not too sharp.

 Cut yourself with a razor blade and it will make you bleed like a stuck hog. Sharp knife not so much. Also once it does clot and stops major bleeding the healing takes place pretty fast comparatively and I believe allows a wounded animal to have more possibility of ultimately surviving.
I shot a deer once and lost it. CAme back a couple days later to look for it again and the deer was feeding on some bushes in the same place I had shot it. I shot it again and killed it. There was the place where I hit the first shot , low and catching one lung too far back with a pass through. both sides sealed up . That deer would have probably survived.
All that said I have a smooth cut machinist file that I carry in my pack and can get a razor sharp edge with it if I shoot an arrow and mess the edge up. I have no problem using that edge to hunt with.

Someone said they like to sharpen heads. I agree. Its like part of the ritual. I love the pic of Ron sitting in camp sharpening. I think it says a lot about priorities and about what this is all about.

God bless, Steve

[hunterjrg]

I find this topic very interesting. I've been a compound bowhunter since I was 13 and I'm 40 now. I had a very short stint with a trad bow a few years ago but I'm jumping back in with both feet.

I've always hunted with replaceable blade type heads. Shoot them trough a deer and replace the blades which were always beyond shaving sharp. I would never consider hunting with anything less sharp.

So I just ordered 6 VPA 2 blade heads which I will have to at some point sharpen. Again I'm thinking razor sharp.????

The deer I dress out and bone is done with a scary sharp edge on my knife. The sharper the knife the easier it is to slice. I would think the same to be true with a broadhead. It's hard to argue with some of your guys success though.

[pdk25]

Well, one thing is for sure.  You will never suffer from having sharper broadheads, unless it means less time in the woods.  Welcome back to trad.

[Whitetail Addict]

Originally posted by Bisch:
They have to shave before I'll take them to the woods!

Bisch

That's the way I look at it too. That doesn't necessarily mean my heads are as sharp as they could possibly be, but shaving sharp has always seemed to work well for me.

Having said that, I'll tell you about a friend of mine. He shoots a compound set at 70#. He buys the newest state of the art camo, boots, what have you, each year, looking for that extra edge. He can afford it, It gives him confidence, and he just plain likes to buy new things.

When it comes to that most important piece of equipment, broadheads, he couldn't care less. He uses heads that make me cringe when I see them. Old, dull, rusty, and sometimes even bent a little. The thing that really gets me, is that he kills deer with them. Pretty much every year, with very few problems. Long shots, short  shots, steeply angled treestand shots, from stands that are so high, I'd get dizzy sitting in them.

He uses the replaceable blade muzzy's by the way, good heads IMO. I shot them with great results when I went through my compound phase.The blades aren't all that expensive, and they're simple to change. But for whatever reason, he keeps using those old beat up heads. For the life of me, I don't understand how he's as successful as he is with them.

Bob

[Ron LaClair]

A good edge on a broadhead is important. However you do it, shaving sharp or burr edge it's part of the ritual to "touch up" your heads. I killed my first deer with an M-A 3 broadhead 55 years ago. Back then most broadheads didn't have the good steel that heads have today so I started filing serrations on the back 3rd of the blades. Some heads made today have serrations on them and personally I think it improves the cutting ability of the blade. I think it's harder for a tough artery to slid past a serrated edge then a straight edge even it's it's "shaving sharp"

Here's an example of what I call my "LaClair Lacerator" on an Ace Express head used last fall

   

[Spookinelk]

Anyone else use an Accusharp carbide sharpener? I have no problem getting a shaving sharp edge in a few swipes across my Zwickey and Magnus 2 blades. To answer the original question I like them shaving sharp and at one time I spent a lot of time sharpening but now I get comparable results in a lot less time.

[Ron LaClair]

It'll sharpen serrated edges too      

   

[pdk25]

I feel similar to spookinelk. I don't know of a 2 blade that I can't get hunting ready with a RADA sharpener if it already has a bevel set.  If not, some quick file work will get it there.  To each there own.

[pdk25]

I don't care how it works, that is a cool looking broadhead, Ron.

[Sixby]

Like Ron I have serrated my blades with a small chain saw file for years. It works and you only need three or four serrations. I guarantee the no artery or blood vessel is going to slip by one of those blades.

God bless, steve