Rethinking Arrow and Broadhead Performance
A NEW Series of Bowhunting Articles by the Ashby Bowhunting Foundation
Article 1: Introduction
Would you like to hunt with arrows and broadheads that give you pass-throughs on big game shot after shot? Would you like to have complete confidence in your arrows and broadheads to give you lethal penetration and reliable kills even if you hit bone? Of course, you would! Every serious bowhunter wants that kind of performance from their setup.
Imagine achieving a complete pass-through on nearly every shot. Imagine arrow and broadhead builds that can enter an animal on a frontal shot and end up on the ground behind them. Imagine busting through shoulder blades and leg bones if you accidentally hit them while still achieving lethal penetration. All of these things are possible with the right equipment.
Experienced big game bowhunters have always realized that not all hits on big game will be perfect. They recognize that anticipating arrow penetration under as many shot and hit conditions as possible is paramount in arrow lethality.
In 1943, Fred Bear wrote in Ye Sylvan Archer, “A deer can be killed with almost any combination if no heavy bones are struck but what is needed is something that will crash through where the going is tough.” In Hunting the Hard Way, Howard Hill wrote of arrow lethality on big game, “All else being equal, penetration is the name of the game.”
If you have ever wanted to know the “why” behind poor arrow penetration and “how” you can ensure dependable arrow performance, then you will find the upcoming articles from the Ashby Bowhunting Foundation fascinating. Over the next several issues, the folks from the Ashby Bowhunting Foundation are going to write a series of articles that will describe all the factors and strategies you need to incorporate into your arrow and broadhead builds to get this kind of powerful, lethal arrow penetration.
These articles will change the way you think about arrow and broadhead performance. All of the recommended strategies for building your perfect arrow setups will be covered. The science and testing that goes into these recommendations will be revealed, including specific arrow and broadhead build recommendations so that you will understand why these strategies work so well and how you can build your own deadly arrow and broadhead setups.
[box] These deadly arrow building strategies are based on the intensive testing that Dr. Ed Ashby did over the course of his 27-year arrow lethality research, as well as the amazing results thousands of bowhunters have experienced in the field when they decided to hunt with these kinds of setups to ensure their own bowhunting success. [/box]
Get to know the authors!
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://www.biggame.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/dr-ed-ashby-bio-pic-002.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Dr. Ed Ashby
Dr. Ed Ashby, a legend in the archery hunting community, dedicated more than 27 years to the study of arrow performance and broadhead lethality. His involvement in the historic Natal Study helped validate just how lethal archery equipment could be on all sized big game animals and was the main reason that bowhunting was ever legalized in South Africa. [/author_info] [/author]
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://www.biggame.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/rob-hummel-bio-pic-002.jpg[/author_image] [author_info] Rob Hummel
With a background in fabrication and engineering, the current standard being pushed by the industry didn’t feel right when Rob first entered the world of archery. Fortunately, after being directed to some of the reports from Dr. Ed Ashby’s field research it all began to align with the mechanics he already understood. Over the last decade, Rob has continued pushing to bring consistent lethality to the forefront of the archery industry. [/author_info] [/author]
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://www.biggame.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/todd-michael-smith-bio-pic-002.jpg[/author_image] [author_info] Todd Smith
For over 40-years, his passion for bowhunting and thirst for knowledge and understanding have driven Todd to learn everything he could about arrows, broadheads, and arrow lethality. Todd is an author, public speaker, and has helped to educate tens of thousands of bowhunters on how to set themselves up for bowhunting successes by using proven – lethal – arrow and broadhead set-ups.[/author_info] [/author]
[box] What’s the Ashby Bowhunting Foundation all about?
The Ashby Bowhunting Foundation is dedicated to continuing Dr. Ed Ashby’s research and to ensuring that bowhunters everywhere will have free access to information that will help them build extremely lethal and reliable arrow and broadhead setups for all species of big game. The foundation was started in 2017 to continue the work of Dr. Ed Ashby that has benefited bowhunters worldwide for decades. The Foundation’s goal is to provide information to achieve the highest possible success rate and reduce the wound/non-recovery rate of big game to the lowest level possible. Through a program of continuing research, the Foundation seeks to find the most lethal arrow setups, taking into account all possible hits under real hunting conditions, controlled testing and using freshly culled animals. The results of this testing is always made available to the global bowhunting community free of cost, utilizing multi-media outlets for information and test results. The Ashby Bowhunting Foundation is excited for this opportunity to partner with DSC and to share these articles with all DSC members so they can make informed decisions of whether to change to arrow and broadhead combinations that will increase their odds of bowhunting success under all situations and conditions. For more information please visit: https://www.biggame.org/ashby-bowhunting-foundation [/box]
