Rage Hypodermic for Elk?

AZMZHunter

Active Member
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I have a late archery Bull Elk tag in AZ (unit 9) coming up the second week of Novemeber. I have used the Rage mechanicals for deer and am very satisfied with the performance. Does anybody have experience using the Rage Hypodermic broadhead for elk? I have the G5 Montecs that I have been practicing with but they dont shoot as tight as the Rage. Thoughts?
 
I would avoid the Rage broadheads all the way around on elk. I know lots of people have used them for elk with no issues, but I saw a video a while back that showed a Rage bouncing off of the shoulder blade of an elk at about 35 yards, and it isn't worth the risk to me on an animal that large.

I'm a big fan of the VPA broadheads (of course, everyone likes to think whatever gear they've chosen is the best, so that definitely plays into the equation here):). I shoot them in my setup out to 100 yards, and they shoot very well, especially for a fixed-blade head. They are tough as nails and easy to sharpen as well. They are a similar concept as the Montec, but they are tougher as they are machined out of tool-grade steel rather than cast like the the Montecs are. In the heat of the moment, I don't want to have any worries that my broadhead might fail, and that's the reason I shoot the VPAs. They are as tough as they come, and they shoot very well for me (VPA isn't paying me anything to say this either; I just really like their product).

I think you could probably get away with the Hypodermics, but I'd be very selective with your shot and make sure you're back a good distance from the shoulder blade, and you should be fine. I don't personally like to gamble on my making an absolutely perfect shot all the time. I always try to do my part on a shot, but stuff happens, and I want to have as few possibilities for failure as possible, and that's why I stick with fixed blade broadheads for elk. That's my two cents. Good luck with the hunt either way.
 
Rage just don't cut it IMO. A buddy of mine had a complete failure on elk and didn't even get a pass through at 7 yards on a stink pig. Go with the Montecs. I use them and you won't be disappointed.
 
If you watch any Primos stuff they attempt to promote rage, and I think it's on 17 one of them hits an elk 4-6 inches behind the shoulder line and gets terrible penetration. It gots the job done that time, but I would never shoot a head that an elk rib can stop. It was pretty eye opening. I'll see if I can track down the clip somewhere.
 
Here's the clip, shots at 8 minute mark. Seriously from what I've seen from my own and buddies elk taken all with slower bows moderate speed and two blade stingers, we get that much penetration if we hit a scapula. We get two holes...even if the far scapula is hit most times we'll get two holes.
https://youtu.be/i0t6HodUM8I
 
If you watch the second hunt the arrow does not penetrate very well either. You can't see the shot on film but when they walk up on the animal the arrow is sticking out quite a ways. I can say that on both of those shots had they been using a fixed blade it more than likely would have passed all the way through.
 
Was very disappointed in the Rage and myself. 1st I shot a Lil far forward and hit high shoulder on my biggest mule deer to date. Darn Rage bounced off like I was using a darn blunt tip. Shot him at 45 yards with PSE XFORCE bow. I know it was mostly my fault but I would have expected the broadhead to at least penatrate and possibly get a lung. Chalk that up as a lesson learned though.
 
I had an Az elk tag last fall and did a lot of experimenting with different heads. I ended up with Injexion arrows and Muzzy Trocar heads. They flew identical to a field point and were awesome. I took a 60 yrd shot, angling away and had a complete pass thru on a big bull. I know for certain a mechanical head wouldnt have done that !
 
Smart move.....those mechanicals it's only a matter of time before one fails at the wrong time...on big animals...the mechanical companies want you to believe their hype....it's all about $$$$$... Plenty of stories out there about mechanical failures if you search around....

))))-------->
 
I used rage for the first time last year on my cow elk and it was the most incredible blood trail I've ever seen. I did notice that if you're not careful the blades can slip off the o-ring which might be why they bounce off sometimes? Personally I was impressed with the rage last year but sounds like a lot of people have issues with them
 
Well, I never got to shoot at an elk last season so I wont know whether a fixed or expandable would have made a difference. Unit 9 is a tough hunt during the late season. I have shot three deer with the rage and am very pleased with the performance. Ill be looking forward to 2016.
 
Broadheads is like picking between truck brands..


my choice is crimson talon broadheads. I shoot the spin-tite. I have tried several brands. Muzzys I had blades break. Other brands did the same or they didnt shoot straight. Shooting crimson talon leaves some nasty holes . Im up 10 kills and all have been deer dropping or a 30 yard track or less. The blades have a cure for a nice spin. I liked them so much I bought 20 boxes but come in a box of 3. I get them on ebay and amazon. I bought so many cause I finally found something I like.

just my 2 cents . Its what I like and its what im staying with.

all trial and error. I found mechical broadheads suck
 
I've used Rage on pigs, deer, elk, and African plains game. Never had any of the issues relating penetration/deployment failure that I've occasionally read about on the holy internets.

Despite all the flak they seem to get, I continue to shoot them because they fly tight and have killed a lot of game for me and I hate tuning fixed blades. Good luck on your hunt.
 
Pete, does this include Broad head weight? The reason I ask is that most folks that are unsuccessful in terms of penetration with wide cutting mechanical BH's is it is due to a light arrow set up with little FOC.

Even 400 grains total weight with BH is on the light side for mechnicals from what I have experience with.

GBA
 
LAST EDITED ON Apr-12-16 AT 02:23PM (MST)[p]Yes, that includes broad head weight. My shaft is an Axis 400 (9 GPI).

I would agree it is on the light side. But I like a flat shooting bow. If I hunted elk every weekend I would consider pushing something over 415, but for my Northern California pursuits and the occasional out of state adventure it works well enough.

I shot a Gemsbok at 46 yds with one of those little 395's last August and he went about 40 yards.
 

a lot of myths busted here. of course, some will disagree, and i hafta respect that, but still...this guy's one of the best there is.
 
Damn Bojangles, you make me watch an hour of that just to hear some nimrod say elk have no stamina? Lol. There were some very interesting points made. He has quite the ego being one of them, but still good points.
 
Reminds me of when I played tennis....the damn racquet caused the bad shot!

Rage will do fine if you do your part. The penetration debate is less a shortcoming of the broadhead and more a factor of the archers choices (equipment, arrow weight, speed, distance of shot and kinetic energy at point of impact). If you want to use a wide cutting radius head, mechanical or otherwise, you need more kinetic energy to get penetration. I have used them on deer for many years and all but one was a pass through.
 
I've shot elk with Hypodermics each of the last two seasons. One was 43 yards (pass through) and the other 53 yards (not a pass through). One went 30 yards, the other 100. The pass through was with less than 400 grain arrows (easton aftermath) and the non-pass through was with a 455 grain arrow (BE Rampage 300 with 75 grain HIT insert), both shot w/ 70 lb draw weight. Next year I will try the increased penetration Hypos. The shoot well for me and seem to get the job done, and I like they are a little more forgiving than fixed blades.
 
I've killed 5 elk with rage broadheads with nothing but devastating results, from 16 yards to 104 yards. Over the years I've come to find out that with expandable broadheads, the majority of the "failures" are a direct result of user error. Too many special people out there not knowing how to use them correctly with the correct setup and shot placement are more times than not, the actual problem. Make sure your bow and arrows are tuned, sighted in, correct draw weight. Know how to calm yourself enlough to make a good shot. And last but not least, follow the very simple instructions for proper use of the broadheads and a failure of the head will be extremely rare
 
I've tried rage one time ?? I can't imagine anyone saying or THINKING penetration isn't everything ESPECIALLY on big animals like elk. People can have any opinions they want of course ,but a cold hard fact is a good fixed blade head for elk is unbeatable. Exodus ,Magnus, g5, just to name a few.
 
I disagree that mechanicals won't make pass throughs. I killed my bull at 52 yards with vap tko arrows with a 95 grain ss outsert and a 100 grain grim reaper carni four. Its all about the set up. Arrow went completely through and stuck into a Quakey and I can still use that head today. I do however agree with rages not being a good choice on elk or any animal for that matter. Two times I have seen them fail. One opened during flight and the arrow took off like a kite and the other penetrated maybe 4 inches into an elk and fell out. Found the elk a week later still alive like nothing ever happened. Was happy to see him unphased.
 
>I've used Rage on pigs, deer,
>elk, and African plains game.
>Never had any of the
>issues relating penetration/deployment failure that
>I've occasionally read about on
>the holy internets.
>
>Despite all the flak they seem
>to get, I continue to
>shoot them because they fly
>tight and have killed a
>lot of game for me
>and I hate tuning fixed
>blades. Good luck on your
>hunt.

What he said. Most of the fail to opens stories were just bad shot placement by the shooter. I have used rocket steelheads for everything with great success. Will continue to shoot a Mech BH.
 
My Dad and I both abandoned mechanical broadheads. I shot a 140 class whitetail @ 15 yards with a Spitfire, quartering away. Went through one lung but buried into the opposite shoulder. He went around 300 yards but there was literally no blood trail. He bedded down and bled out.

My Dad had a similar situation happen with an Elk, also Spitfires except he went close to half a mile from a double lung shot but did not pass through the other side. Very little blood.

I switched to the Magnus Classic (which is discontinued now) 3 years ago. Double lunged a buck at 20 yards and he went about 50 yards. Blood trail was devistating. They are a little finnacky to get to fly but when you get your bow tuned, look out. I switched to the 135 Grain Zwickey Eskilite and they fly like darts. Haven't shot anything with them yet but I will post the results when I do.
 
Big fan of the rage hypodermics! I'll be honest I made a horrible shot on my buck this year but the rage blew straight through the femur and severed an artery. I credit Luck and a good broadhead for me not loosing that deer. I'll definitely be practicing more this year.
 
LAST EDITED ON Mar-20-19 AT 08:07AM (MST)[p]Use a heavy enough arrow to carry the energy needed for expanding heads and you won't look back. I've shot a pile of animals with rage heads and get giant holes every time and massive, short blood trails. This elk went 20 yards before falling over. I'll save you the time to ask about the dog. I killed this elk 10 minuets from home. I called my wife to come up and help me and she brought the dog with her. She doesn't go anywhere without him


http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/105224429b2de6462436399f1cbc84b5f89d6.jpeg

Last years cow, shot with the same head, at a very steep angle. Pass through, great holes on both sides, and a blood trail a toddler could follow. She went 30 yards and fell over. If you understand your equipment and what is needed for it to work properly, they are as deadly and reliable as any other head on the market. I won't use anything besides rage. I've killed moose, deer, pronghorn, elk, turkeys, pigs and sheep/goats with them and never had one fail on me


http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/8113733f074261cd545b8b3f4c64bf857266c.jpeg
 
>LAST EDITED ON Mar-20-19
>AT 08:07?AM (MST)

>
>Use a heavy enough arrow to
>carry the energy needed for
>expanding heads and you won't
>look back. I've shot a
>pile of animals with rage
>heads and get giant holes
>every time and massive, short
>blood trails. This elk went
>20 yards before falling over.
>I'll save you the time
>to ask about the dog.
>I killed this elk 10
>minuets from home. I called
>my wife to come up
>and help me and she
>brought the dog with her.
>She doesn't go anywhere without
>him
>
>
>http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/105224429b2de6462436399f1cbc84b5f89d6.jpeg
>
>Last years cow, shot with the
>same head, at a very
>steep angle. Pass through, great
>holes on both sides, and
>a blood trail a toddler
>could follow. She went 30
>yards and fell over. If
>you understand your equipment and
>what is needed for it
>to work properly, they are
>as deadly and reliable as
>any other head on the
>market. I won't use anything
>besides rage. I've killed moose,
>deer, pronghorn, elk, turkeys, pigs
>and sheep/goats with them and
>never had one fail on
>me
>
>
>http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/8113733f074261cd545b8b3f4c64bf857266c.jpeg

Dang Shawn, did you have a 300 Ultra mag behind that shot on the spike? Talk about a massive hole. Any meat left on that shoulder? That is awesome. Nice shooting!
 
Just a quartering away shot, they always make bigger holes than broadside shots do. I cut what meat I could off that shoulder, but quite a bit of it was pretty hammered
 
>LAST EDITED ON Mar-20-19
>AT 08:07?AM (MST)

>
>Use a heavy enough arrow to
>carry the energy needed for
>expanding heads and you won't
>look back. I've shot a
>pile of animals with rage
>heads and get giant holes
>every time and massive, short
>blood trails. This elk went
>20 yards before falling over.
>I'll save you the time
>to ask about the dog.
>I killed this elk 10
>minuets from home. I called
>my wife to come up
>and help me and she
>brought the dog with her.
>She doesn't go anywhere without
>him
>
>
>http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/105224429b2de6462436399f1cbc84b5f89d6.jpeg
>
>Last years cow, shot with the
>same head, at a very
>steep angle. Pass through, great
>holes on both sides, and
>a blood trail a toddler
>could follow. She went 30
>yards and fell over. If
>you understand your equipment and
>what is needed for it
>to work properly, they are
>as deadly and reliable as
>any other head on the
>market. I won't use anything
>besides rage. I've killed moose,
>deer, pronghorn, elk, turkeys, pigs
>and sheep/goats with them and
>never had one fail on
>me
>
>
>http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2019/8113733f074261cd545b8b3f4c64bf857266c.jpeg

Dang Shawn, did you have a 300 Ultra mag behind that shot on the spike? Talk about a massive hole. Any meat left on that shoulder? That is awesome. Nice shooting!
Finally, someone who knows what he is talking about! Folks you need to match your arrow and broad head. The rage works very well on elk if match with an FMJ and 60-70 lb draw weight. If you are shooting carbon arrows a fixed blade is a better choice, but I’ve killed large bulls with rage and carbon with a high draw weight. By the way, no broad head will penetrate and elk shoulder so make a good shot.
 
Any mechanical might fail…. Anyone that says otherwise is simply ignoring that a “mechanical device” has extra points of failure.
A really well made fixed blade, will almost certainly not fail. Shoot Elk with an Iron Will, or a Magnus, or a 300 Magnum.

For gods sake, leave the Rage, and the 6.5 CM for whitetail hunters.
 
Rages work awesome for elk. Shoot them in the right spot and they’ll die quicker then a fixed head. Shoot them in the wrong spot and they’ll get away and suffer just like they do with a fixed head. 100% of broadhead failure is directly tied to the guy holding the bow. I’ve killed a dump truck load of stuff with rages and never have they failed to deploy. I don’t think they possible to could based on the design. On the off chance that they didn’t, they would still kill the hell out of anything you put it through the lungs of. For every lack of penetration shoulder story I hear (again 100% the fault of the shooter) there’s an animal that gets hit too far back and in that case I’d want the biggest hole I can get and pray for something good. Shoot whatever shoots well for you. Except the 6.5 creedmoor of course.
 
Any mechanical might fail…. Anyone that says otherwise is simply ignoring that a “mechanical device” has extra points of failure.
A really well made fixed blade, will almost certainly not fail. Shoot Elk with an Iron Will, or a Magnus, or a 300 Magnum.

For gods sake, leave the Rage, and the 6.5 CM for whitetail hunters.
LOL, in experienced hunter! 7 bulls down and counting go rage!
 
Anything intelligent you want to add bigwiffy or more speculation? Real hunters know the truth and your ignorant antics won’t change any of that! Yes, I’m a DIY from the east and very successful killing elk with a bow. If you want to test your skills against mine, meet me in Wyoming and we will see if you can put your money where your mouth is?
Here is some intelligence for you....use a good fixed head on elk. Leave your ego at home
 
You mistake ego for intelligence and experience! That’s what I thought nothing intelligent from you just “my way or the highway mentality.” Good luck with that get off the site and stop wasting serious hunters time.
Haha serious bowhunter using a Rage??? Bend that Flatbrim
 
You mistake ego for intelligence and experience! That’s what I thought nothing intelligent from you just “my way or the highway mentality.” Good luck with that get off the site and stop wasting serious hunters time.
@ Founder,

Can we start getting rid of these guys that come on here and attack others’ that don’t participate in their personal “Echo Chamber”? The rock throwing is getting old
 
I shot a spike bull elk with a Rage broad head one year. I can't remember if it was the hypodermic or not. It killed it (eventually) but it ran about 600 yards first. It was a close 30 yard broadside shot in the top lungs. I never found the arrow to see how it deployed. Elk are tough animals! The mechanicals have always felt more forgiving in flight for me too but I am trying out a couple fixed blades this year. Good Luck @AZMZHunter on your elk hunt!
 
There is a REASON Idaho does not allow mechanicals for elk.
a sharp cut on contact on a heavy arrow we shoot 566gr FMJ340
G5 strikers, good luck.
 

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