Broadheads for turkey

[harvey lee]

What have you all used for turkey hunting broadheads? I need to get something other than my Muzzies.

[tealitup]

I watched a show by the boys from double bull who used something called a guillitine (spelling). Two fixed blades but were huge. Took the heads clean off

[Borch]

That would be the Gobbler Guillitine. I used to talk with the gentleman who got them started a few years ago. They do seem to be gaining in popularity.

[xedge2002]

I didn't get drawn for shotgun this year and am thinking of bow hunting. What do you guys aim for when you shoot? Sounds like the head/neck? Thanks for any info.

[Borch]

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I didn't get drawn for shotgun this year and am thinking of bow hunting. What do you guys aim for when you shoot? Sounds like the head/neck? Thanks for any info.

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That's with the gobbler Guillitine. The usual aiming point is the Wing butt or at the base of the tail if the tom is strutting away from you.

[Jeremiah Johnson]

I think using the guillatine would be really fun to try; nice clean kill and a nice clean shot. I might buy them for this spring if I get out. Otherwise thunderheads are always dependable

[Hooliganz]

Why dont you want to be using the Muzzy's Harvey? just curious.

[harvey lee]

I just thought there was a broad head out there people have used for Gobblers that worked very well. My Muzzy worked fine but sometimes there is another option out there that is more suitable for turkey hunting.

[sparcebag]

I've got different brands of broad heads, I'd use any that I use for deer. Only got 1 gobbler in many years trying,no head shot just took body I'm not that good! can only hit 9 inch target @ 30-35 yds. and a turkeys head and neck no way for me!

[stretch]

actually the guillitine has 4 fixed blades and if you can hit a 4" circle with a field tip then you can hit a turkey's neck with a guillitine. i was watching the new movie that double bull just made at their shop just a few weeks ago. their is some awsome turkey hunts with bow and arrow.

[harvey lee]

Sounds to me like the broadhead to turkey hunt with is the guillitine. Looks to me like I need to make a trip to Cabin Fever Sporting Goods.

[Gus]

Downsides of the guillitine:

You may need new arrows. (head must stick out past the riser and clear all accessories such as sights, quivers, etc, remeber this head has a 4" diameter) Most people I have talked to at the pro shop have used longer arrows than they shot for deer etc. This means more cost, resighting in, etc etc.

These heads do not fit in any quiver. You will be assembling them in the field or finding some other way to transport them.

The blades are not incredibly strong and getting multiple practice shots with one head can be tough. (you need to do this to sight in for these heads)

Flight past 20 yards can get hairy. (I've heard some complain and others not)

[bigyooper]

The biggest downside I see to the guillotine, is that you have to have the head attached to register your bird. what if it decapitates the bird?

[Hotspotter]

Gus and Nick provide accurate downsides to the guillotine approach.

You will likely need to purchase new arrows, and after field-testing them last year, I'd recommend theirs. You need a heavy spine, and the taper from thin on the fletching end, to thicker on the broadhead end supports the extra weight of the head, and shock on impact.

Matthews has a quiver for them, as does another company I believe, but this is added expense. I had guys turn them around with the blades out, and had them carry their bows with the broadheads away from them. Basically, the nock went into the protected part of the quiver for transport.

As for practice, you might want to shoot a few to see how they fly, but for most practice, put 125 gr. field points on. As long as you have the plastic straws on the blade themselves, you won't experience much if any drift within 20 yards.

As for shooting a turkey past 20 yards, I have my own reservations about that with a bow. I'm not comfortable taking a 30 yard shot certainly, unless going after the head with a guillotine. Their kill zone is too small, and a bird moves too much. I don't care if you can shoot out the lights at 80 yards, you're risking them moving at/during the shot when you shoot too far past 20 yards.

Also, you can't shoot through mesh hunting blinds with them. At the same time, I use a Double Bull Matrix where you don't need to have mesh up. The black background keeps you hidden as long as you're wearing dark clothing, you keep the window open!

As for the legality issue, here is the response I received from the MN DNR:

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The Gobbler Guillotine is legal, you just need to take the head with you when you register the bird.

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These are the advantages....

-I think the kill zone is bigger. With two inches of error on each side of the center of the 4"X4" head, you can be two inches North, East, South, or West of the roughly 6 inches of vitals the head provides. This equates to an oval about 6 inches wide (assumed a turkey head is only 2 inches wide), and almost 10 inches high!!! Make a two fists and put them together. This is the generous effective vitals of a body-shot turkey.

-You kill it, or it bounces off the bird. That simple. No serious wounding or coyote food.

-Recovery is usually quite easy when you shoot one with the guillotine. It's either there dead, or you missed. Recovery with a standard broadhead can be difficult, even with good shots to the vitals. The bird can fold up and die at the spot as well. Difficult to say why.

I tell the story of a buddy from a few seasons back at least a few times each year. He used to use conventional broadheads, and was on this hunt. He was hunting a bird that he got a great shot on. Put the arrow right through the center of the thing almost head on facing him. Turkey scurries away....he finds part of his arrow but not the turkey. Later the same afternoon his brother shoots the bird with a gun, after it strutted to his calls! The bird had most of one of the breasts severed, and the breastbone was cracked!

These birds will take some serious heat....gun or bow. Killing one with a bow is never an easy task, and I'm of the opinion that the guillotine increases your odds by making the kill zone bigger, and makes for less wounded birds. For me, it's that simple, and the investment is one-time, save replacement blades you might need.

Sorry for the long post, just thought I'd share my experiences with the product.

Joel

[Gus]

Joel,

I knew you would post some good info on the positive side for this head. I just felt the need to throw out some negatives that I knew of as the debate was going on. But you did forget one really nice positive.... No meat damage!!!

I'm hunting 347A this year. I hope to leave the shotgun home and focus on a bow bird this year and I am still undecided as to my BH choice. grrr

[Hotspotter]

Gus:

I use the neck for soup-bone Kidding.

Cool. No problem at all. The last thing I want to sound like is a danged commercial, but turkey hunting is something pretty near and dear to me. When I like a product like this (similar to hevi-type shot on the gun side which i'm a huge fan of), I get behind it.

The guillotine has been beat up pretty bad by folks spewing untrue things about it on different sites (not like your post), and I like seeing valid cons like you posted as well. I don't have a ton of money to spend on turkey hunting either, and if something is too much for what it's worth, I'm not likely to support it. Cost is perhaps my biggest concern with the head.

One thing that I didn't mention that I also like about the head is that the body parts are warranteed for life. Just about everything except the bushings are made of titanium. My thought was that I'd only be buying replacement blades if I continued to use the thing, which I figured into the cost equation.

Some people shoot the things for a "cool"-factor, but I wanted to steer clear of choosing a broadhead based on popularity or how neat the kill was.

As for the positives and negatives, I hope I did a decent job of outlining both of them, and my reasons for using the guillotine over some of the other I've tried.

Congrats by the way on your A-season tag. Those early season birds are fat and hopefully stupid! Whichever head you decide to go with, you're probably most likely to do best with the one you have confidence in and can shoot the straightest.

Good luck, and let us know what you're going with and why!

Joel