Different Types Of Archery Broadheads

Archery broadheads are arrowheads that were originally made of stone and bone many thousands of years ago. They were used for bow hunting and later on evolved and used by archers in medieval times for war with deadly effect. Today’s modern broadhead is made from steel and is designed to cause maximum damage to its target by its razor sharp blades.

The broadhead is equipped with two, three or four blades that can inflict a fatal wound on the target. With razor sharp archery broadheads, bow hunters can and have taken all game species on earth, ranging from the fox to the buffalo in Australia, to moose and bear  in North America, to antelope and rhinoceros in Africa, just to name just a few.


Types of Broadheads.

The type of broadhead you choose depends on your bow hunting preference and game hunted. Some designs and styles are the; fixed blade head, replaceable and mechanical blade broadheads. Each design has their own positives and negatives; here we will go through some characteristics of each broadhead.

One popular type of broadhead is the fixed blade broadhead. It is the oldest form of archery broadheads. Its blades are always in the open position and fixed. This broadhead can be designed in two, three, or more blades and come in weights from around 100 grains, 125, up to 250 grains.

Quality fixed archery broadheads are very effective, as they cut on impact and are more resilient than mechanical blades. They are fixed and therefore minimal loss of energy on impact. Unfortunately, some fixed broadheads have a tendency to plane and move off course. This also depends on the arrow fletching and broadhead used. However, this weakness can be surmounted by experimenting and tuning your archery gear.

A variation of the fixed two blade broadhead is one that you can attach small bleeder blades to it. This may give you more cutting area, with minimal drag and width.

The second type of broadhead is the mechanical blade broadhead. This type of broadhead flies a little faster than the fixed blade type as the blades are partially or fully concealed. It also experiences less wind resistance because its blades are not open and only deploy on contact with the target.

Most mechanical blade archery broadheads cause wider wounds, which leads to more bleeding. This creates a better blood trail that allows easy tracking of the animal. It also facilitates a more humane kill.

The disadvantage of mechanical archery broadheads are that they sometimes malfunction and don’t open properly depending on the structure hit and also angle. They can also be unreliable sometimes and can fail due to wear and tear precipitated by moving parts. The mechanical broadheads sometimes can lose a bit of energy when opening up.

The mechanical expandable broadhead is effective due to its ability to inflict a large diameter wound on the animal.

Other types and designs of archery broadheads include the replaceable blade, which are popular with North American archers. Most replaceable blade heads are razor sharp and don’t need initial sharpening. The most well-liked brands have a cut-on-contact tip. The blades slide under the tip and can be sharpened and replaced if need be. Most have around a 1-inch cutting diameter. The replaceable blades are sharp and compact and most are ideal for an instant razor edge.

Some replaceable blade broadheads (and fixed blade) have vented blades that help minimise wind planning. Some brands can make a whistling sound when the arrow is fired, thus scare game. Like most equipment in archery it is give and take, and archery broadheads are no exception.

What type of style broadhead do I use?

The type of broadhead to use depends on the type of game you want to hunt. For tough game like wild boars and buffalo, the fixed two blade broadhead is popular with bow hunters in Australia.
For lighter skinned game, like goats and deer, the three blade and replaceable blades are gaining popularity.

This obviously depends on you bow set up, preference, bow poundage and arrow weight/spine stiffness, etc.

As a lot of bow hunting and archery techniques and gear come from America, Australia soon follows the trend. By no means is the mechanical broadhead new in Australia, however, it is starting to get a following.

What weight broadhead do I use?

For big game like buffalo, which have tough hides and strong bones, the broadhead weight might be 180 grains to 220 grains.

For lighter game, like foxes and wild goats, a broadhead of 100 grains to 125 grains, up to 150 grains will do. This again depends on you bow set up, preference, bow poundage and arrow weight/spine stiffness, etc.


For more information on how to get the best accuracy and penetration out of your archery broadheads check out the article on broadhead accuracy.