One of the most common questions crossbow hunters ask is, “Which broadhead is best to use with my crossbow?” With so many broadheads on the market these days, finding the best broadhead for your specific crossbow setup can be difficult to figure out and can take lots of time and money. To help make this process easier and to best help you answer this question, we must consider the different types of broadheads available on the market, how the differences in the shapes can affect aerodynamics, and the maximum shooting speed of your crossbow. 

Crossbow broadheads are built using one of three designs: fixed blade, front-deploying mechanical and rear-deploying mechanical. Fixed-blade broadheads have blades that are fixed in position and never move during flight or during wound channel creation. Front-deploying mechanical broadheads have blades that remain closed during flight but open upon impact when the front tip of the broadhead strikes the animal. Rear-deploying mechanical broadheads also have blades that remain closed during flight but open upon impact when the rear portion of the blade strikes the animal. 

Fixed-blade broadheads typically have three or four blades which are part of or attached to the ferrule in a way that they never move. Since there are no moving parts on the broadhead itself, many hunters like fixed-blade broadheads because they feel that there is less that can go wrong while the broadhead is in flight that would cause it to veer off course and miss the intended target. But, while choosing a simpler, fixed design over a more complex, mechanical design seems to be a sound theory for achieving the best accuracy, this theory does not often hold up in practice when shooting a crossbow. 

Fixed-blade broadheads, like this EVO-X Montec Fixed Blade Broadhead by TenPoint, have blades that are designed to remain stationary while in flight and during wound channel creation.

As compared to a mechanical broadhead, the blades on a fixed-blade broadhead are often higher profile and display a greater amount of surface area over which air must travel when the arrow is in flight. The surface area on a four-blade fixed broadhead is even greater than a three-blade because of the addition of the extra blade. As a result of this increased surface area and, hence, a reduction in aerodynamic efficiency, fixed-blade broadheads tend to plane, or veer off-course, when shot from a crossbow. On high-performance crossbows, you will see the planing worsen, as shooting at faster speeds magnifies the effect. Your only remedy is to tune the broadhead to the arrow to achieve a higher level of accuracy. Paper tuning a fixed-blade broadhead shot from a crossbow is not an option, since most crossbows use a flight rail from which to launch arrows. 

To tune fixed-blade broadheads, some crossbow hunters will use a small rubber O-ring just above the ferrule threads that allows the broadhead to be screwed down into the insert to align the blades with the arrow’s vanes. If you are building your own arrows, another option is to orient the insert when mounting it so that the blades and vanes always line up with each other when the broadhead is screwed into the arrow. Performing this alignment on your crossbow hunting arrows with fixed-blade broadheads will, most times, help to improve their accuracy and precision, making them a deadly option when crossbow hunting. 

If you decide that you want to shoot a fixed-blade broadhead, I recommend that you avoid the ones with four blades and instead look for a design with just three. I also recommend choosing fixed blades that have a cutting diameter between 7/8 inch and 1-1/4 inch, as they tend to be more aerodynamic with the planing effect much less pronounced in blades this size. The EVO-X Montec Fixed Blade Broadhead by TenPoint boasts a 1-1/8-inch cutting diameter along with a one-piece steel blade/ferrule design and is an excellent all-around fixed-blade broadhead choice for hunting most animals with a crossbow. 

Front-deploying mechanical broadheads, on the other hand, are designed with blades that remain closed during flight but open upon impact. The blades are mounted to the ferrule using hinges, and, when the broadhead hits the animal, the blades swing open, adding an extra dynamic to the cutting motion and greatly increasing the cutting diameter. Most front-deploying broadheads are offered with three blades. When the front tips of the blades contact the animal, this causes the blades to swing open, from the front of the blades to the back. Front-deploying broadheads also have a blade retention system that utilizes springs, collars or O-rings to hold the blades in place at launch and while the broadhead is in flight. Blade retention is critical to the accuracy of this style because any premature opening of the blades will cause the arrow to plane and veer off course.

Front-deploying broadheads have the advantage of offering a greater cutting diameter than fixed blades, which translates into greater wound channel damage as the broadhead passes through the animal. Most mechanical broadheads have cutting diameters that range between 1-1/8 inch to 1-7/8 inch. They also have the advantage of being more aerodynamic with a lower blade profile, since most are designed to have the blades seated tightly against the ferrule until they are deployed. Front-deploying broadheads will typically fly without the planing problem associated with fixed blades – if the blades stay retained. If your crossbow shoots up to 350 feet-per-second, blade retention will likely not be a problem.  However, if you are shooting a high-performance crossbow that launches arrows at speeds of more than 350 feet-per-second, you may start to encounter some accuracy issues.

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Rear-deploying mechanical broadheads for crossbows also utilize a hinged-blade design; however, the blades fold backward in the ferrule such that the rear portion of the blade sits closest to the front tip. When the broadhead strikes the animal, the rear portion of the blades make contact, and this causes the blades to swing open in a dynamic, scissor-like fashion. Because of this type of motion, most rear-deploying broadheads only have two blades. This is an advantage over the fixed and front-deploying styles because eliminating a blade further reduces the exposed blade surface area, thereby making this type of broadhead the most aerodynamic and accurate for the greatest number of hunting crossbows. Perhaps most importantly, the design of a rear-deploying broadhead does not require springs or collars to ensure that the blades stay in place at launch and during flight. Regardless of the speed that your crossbow shoots, especially if you are shooting a high-performance crossbow, the rear-deploying, two-blade style is your best bet.

If you shoot a high-performance crossbow, the EVO-X CenterPunch Broadhead by TenPoint is an excellent choice.

If you decide that you want to try a rear-deploying mechanical broadhead, I recommend that you give the EVO-X CenterPunch Broadhead by TenPoint a chance. It has a 1-7/8-inch cutting diameter built with a rugged 7075 T6 aluminum ferrule, an ultra-strong precision machined point, and scalpel-sharp 440A stainless steel blades. You will be impressed by the massive entrance and exit wounds it creates while leaving large blood trails, greatly helping you to recover your animal quickly.