Crossbow help. Broadheads....augh!!!

[treadwell]

I usually shoot a compound bow so I'm competly out of my eliment with a crossbow. I almost severed my wrist last year and now can't shoot my bow. I was grouping 3-4" at 50 yds with a rest with field points. Switched to 100 gr 4 blade Muzzy's and now can't even get a 6" group at 30 rds. Help....! Please

 

[Mr Bya Lungshot]

Fletching is probably the reason or spine.
A good quality crossbow will robinhood bolts with fieldpoints. Your bolts are the problem first to deal with before tuning broadheads. Same for any bow.
Arrows first then broadheads.
You know all that spine tuning or what ever it’s called these days but a crossbow usually hits bulls with fieldpoints at 40yards

 

[treadwell]

I have the PSE Piledriver and shoot what they recomend, Piledriver bolts due to the 390 FPS energy. The manual said don't shoot lighter/smaller bolts. Can the trigger pull be safely lowered. With my hand injury I I have almost no feeling and not full strength with my trigger finger. As a matter of fact, I only use my right ring finger to type with.

 

[Buckman18]

With a higher velocity like yours, I think I would rather shoot mechanical broadheads. Mine shoots 370 and i use rage. So far so good.

 

[Mr Bya Lungshot]

I hope you heal soon. GoodLuck.
As for crossbows I don’t shoot many.
I’m also not a fan of trigger jobs.
I just tune myself to the weapon.
Again your crossbow should still be more accurate with field points first.
Literally those shoot bulleyes.
Do your bolts have 4 fletchings?
Can you shoot opposite handed?
Last but not least try same brand bolts but different. Deep down you probably know which problem it really is.
Hopefully it’s not you injury but may just be. I cut my finger to the bone two weeks before bow season one year and had to sit it out a couple weeks and it took years to get 99% of the feeling back. Cold weather still affects it faster than other fingers.

 

[shdw633]

What Muzzy four blade are you shooting. I shoot the Muzzy Trocar HBX and don't have that issue with the majority of my bolts. Now that being said you will get a flyer every once in a while and that basically becomes my discharge bolt but I am thinking it's your four blade that is causing your issue. The HBX is a cross between a fixed blade and mechanical, not a fan of Rage because with the speed of the crossbows they don't always open up, that's why I went the hybrid route. My bow shoots 400 fps btw and I shoot 20' Bloodsport Hunters and my 375 fps and 345 fps xbow shoot Headhunters....all with Trocar HBX broadheads. One last thing, make sure your string is sitting correctly on your bolt...that's an issue I have seen come up with my Barnett.

 

[treadwell]

Thanks to all for your input of which gives me a great starting point. (I love this forum!)

 

[treadwell]

Just the "regular" 4 blade 100 grn, I'll Google the HBX. # fletchings, tried left hand...I stink at it.

 

[treadwell]

Also, do you have to order practice blades for the HBX? How to sight them in? Thanks

 

[formula1]

I'm a new user with an Xbow. I have been using Slick Trick 4 blade 100 gr. Already shot one deer. They fly just like my field tips out to 40 yds. But like someone said you my play around with the arrows first and see if u find the right combination. Good shooting.

 

[Blackston]

I use the rage x bow broadhead . I sight in with the practice point provided. Then sacrifice a real broadhead just to be sure. Then I take a sharpie and mark the fletching of the one I sacrificed put it in quiver go kill deer (I don’t use the used one unless I have too)

 

[treadwell]

Thanks for the help. Taking advice, I checked all the bolts in the xbow, (5) five where loose, one being the bottom trigger bolt!! I tightened all the "assembly required" when I put it together but never gave any others a second thought. Second, I measured everything suggested and everything looked exactly the same on both sides. Lubricated the rail all the way to the trigger area. Then I made sure my cocking device was as close to the same on each side as I cocked it. Checked to see that the string was centered in the half moon nock. Paid attention to the cant of the arms, i.e. straight. Shot two bolts and almost cussed. Retrieved, tried to "dial" it in, shot two more and they where about 6-8" apart. Hmmmm. Then I spun the shaft on the broadhead point and noticed a VERY slight wobble on one. Put that one aside and reshot the other bolt. Readjusted my sight and shot again. Dead center at 30 yds. Repeated that 4 times. I was using "used" broadheads and guess that with a short bolt with almost no spin, compared to a long arrow with lots of spin, the wobble is magnified. Anyway, I'm thinking now my xbow is a lot more stable and I can work with it now. It got dark on me so I had to quit. Guess I'll find out for sure this afternoon. And Blackston, I haven't seen any xbow Rage packs that have a practice broadhead in them, exactly what style do you use? Thanks for all the pointers folks, I was starting to panic, I leave for Iowa next Thursday for 9 days.

 

[bfriendly]

Man I feel ya treadwell. Have been burning up some bolts, broadheads, fletchings etc.. I waxed my rail and learned a lot the hard way. Field points were dead on at 40+, but broadheads went 6” to the right or south at 20!! I ended up putting on new 60x string and cables. My first lube was wax AND rail lube. Then I bought synthetic string wax but thought is was the same and it was not......don’t wax your Rail!!
After a lot of mess, the knock off shwackers were pretty good on several different original bolts with no mods(I spine indexed and weighted the fronts etc..of several). I just got some knockoff rage with the cam system and they are dead on! I don’t mind wasting a few to shoot when a 12 pk costs $15. It has been an expensive endeavor, but I finally have no doubt if I cock it straight, she’ll Fly true and we gonna kill a deer this year!!

Hope the pain goes away and the strength comes back!

 

[treadwell]

Thanks... I really appreciate the help.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

First let me say I LOVE A MUZZY BROADHEAD. but they require alot of TLC to get them flying right, and sometimes there will be one in the pack that will not tune. The easiest thing for you to try is another pack of broad heads, I like fixed heads so I would suggest Slick Tricks. They are tried and true. Now what Ive said is in reference to shooting a compound bow, but I bet its the same on a xbow. Proper fletching and a tuned bow and a tuned arrow are required to fly a Muzzy. A cross bow has a shorter fletching with almost no helical, so that kinda puts you behind the 8 ball with a Muzzy. Slick tricks fly great out of my Xbow.

 

[longbowdave1]

After a slew of old guy injuries, my brother and myself switched to crossbows. Both of us have the same rig. Mission Dagger xbow with a Hawke Scope. These bow and scope combos are unreal. We switched to rage hyperdermic knock offs, 20$/ 12. I wont ever shoot 2 bolts at the same target in fear of robin hooding the first shot with field point or broadhead. With more than a dozen deer down the knock offs have never failed or faulted and do some unbelievable damage. Never seems such grusome carnage and bloodtrails. My brother just took a big old doe this Saturday, through the brisket and sliced the heart. Dropped in 10 yards. Most grusome entry wound I have ever seen in almost 40 years of bowhunting. Ill try and resize the picture so I can post it.

 

[longbowdave1]

Forgot to mention we were shooting mostly Bloodsport 20" bolts.


Warning: Graphic photo! Lol.

loodsport 20" bolts.

 

[longbowdave1]

Here's a test video of the knock offs that I made a few years back when I first found them.


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[longbowdave1]

Thanks for the help. Taking advice, I checked all the bolts in the xbow, (5) five where loose, one being the bottom trigger bolt!! I tightened all the "assembly required" when I put it together but never gave any others a second thought. Second, I measured everything suggested and everything looked exactly the same on both sides. Lubricated the rail all the way to the trigger area. Then I made sure my cocking device was as close to the same on each side as I cocked it. Checked to see that the string was centered in the half moon nock. Paid attention to the cant of the arms, i.e. straight. Shot two bolts and almost cussed. Retrieved, tried to "dial" it in, shot two more and they where about 6-8" apart. Hmmmm. Then I spun the shaft on the broadhead point and noticed a VERY slight wobble on one. Put that one aside and reshot the other bolt. Readjusted my sight and shot again. Dead center at 30 yds. Repeated that 4 times. I was using "used" broadheads and guess that with a short bolt with almost no spin, compared to a long arrow with lots of spin, the wobble is magnified. Anyway, I'm thinking now my xbow is a lot more stable and I can work with it now. It got dark on me so I had to quit. Guess I'll find out for sure this afternoon. And Blackston, I haven't seen any xbow Rage packs that have a practice broadhead in them, exactly what style do you use? Thanks for all the pointers folks, I was starting to panic, I leave for Iowa next Thursday for 9 days.

Good luck in Iowa

 

[Mr Bya Lungshot]

I’m a fan of straight vanes, muzzy 3 blade fixed aligned and finding the one two and three arrows that kill bullseyes. If not I switch heads around to fly best. After that I attempt to duplicate as many arrows as possible that shoot bulls. I resharpen all my heads and use them until they bend or break. I haven’t bought a new broadhead pack in 10 plus years. And my arrows are all refletched and just as old. Your best arrows wont miss the target.