Should Mechanicals be legal here?

[Todd_ID]

Simple Yes or No poll.  Should Washington change their rules to allow mechanical broadheads for all species.  This question has no gray area or differing scenarios; if the rule changed next year: would you be happy?  YES OR NO?

[Button Nubbs]

There's never a simple yes or no to this question I bet it could rival the bigfoot thread! Don't really care either way. I'd like to see what they do to deer but I won't be using them.

[alwinearcher]

Yes

[Hunterman]

Yes.. The primitive status went out the door years ago.. This state needs to catch up to the times..

Hunterman(Tony)

[DoubleJ]

Yes.. The primitive status went out the door years ago.. This state needs to catch up to the times..

Hunterman(Tony)

If you want to stay primitive, go right ahead but I don't see why you should infringe on my right to choose my broadhead of choice. 

[BOWHUNTER45]

Double J I know what your saying but it has to be No for me ......

[colockumelk]

I voted yes.  If the issue is about reliability, or effectiveness? Well  most western states (MT, WY, CO, AZ, NM, UT, NV, and ALASKA) allow them to be used on elk, moose, deer and bear. And people are successful with them. And modern mechanicals are just as effective and reliable as a fixed blade head.  So then why can't we use them in WA?  If its about being primitive, well the primitive train left along time ago. If its about keeping things primitive then why can we use range finders, releases, carbon arrows, compound bows etc.

[winshooter88]

Maybe you would like them to take all those things away.

[RadSav]

As long as the blades will swing forward and not stay in a barbed configuration after deployment I could care less if guys use them or not.  Most don't fly any better or any worse than most fixed blade heads.  A sharp modern mechanical is more reliable than a dull fixed blade head so that is no longer the issue.  Modern bows are plenty capable of producing the amount of energy needed for swivel blade designs to reach adequate penetration.  Today's super short ferrules, steep blade angles and short point combination fixed blade heads have the same if not worse glancing failure rate so that no longer holds any water either.  Won't make one iota of a difference on success ratios.  Same type of guy that will shoot a dull fixed blade is bound to shoot a dull expandable.  Same kind of guy that shoots well beyond his capabilities will continue to do so fixed or expandable.  So I just don't see what the big deal is.  Only real difference I can see is that most bowhunters would then lose $250 worth of broadheads a year instead of $150 worth of broadheads.  That's probably a good thing for your local archery shop.

Then again, I can not for the life of me figure out why 209 primers are not allowed for muzzy hunting either.  So, perhaps I'm just an idiot

[bwhntr350]

 Mechanicals, illuminocks....blah blah blah.

 Do people forget how political the issue of hunting is and especially Archery? For everything we get we lose days off of our season as the other user groups will and can use it against us in their lobbying.

 I am a definite "NO" and I will never change.

 Soon we will be down to one week seasons.

 

[Russ McDonald]

Yes.. The primitive status went out the door years ago.. This state needs to catch up to the times..

Hunterman(Tony)

If you want to stay primitive, go right ahead but I don't see why you should infringe on my right to choose my broadhead of choice.

Totally agree.  It should be our choice.

Then again, I can not for the life of me figure out why 209 primers are not allowed for muzzy hunting either.  So, perhaps I'm just an idiot  Radsav I agree with you there too.  I know that California laws and regulations suck for hunting but the can use illuminocks, mechanical broadheads and 209 primer. 

[pianoman9701]

They're not legal, so work with what is until that changes. I have a feeling the wait won't be all that long.

[arrowflinger]

Yes.. The primitive status went out the door years ago.. This state needs to catch up to the times..

Hunterman(Tony)

If you want to stay primitive, go right ahead but I don't see why you should infringe on my right to choose my broadhead of choice.

Totally agree.  It should be our choice.

Then again, I can not for the life of me figure out why 209 primers are not allowed for muzzy hunting either.  So, perhaps I'm just an idiot  Radsav I agree with you there too.  I know that California laws and regulations suck for hunting but the can use illuminocks, mechanical broadheads and 209 primer. 

 

[Band]

Provisionally, I'm a "yes" on the issue.  My only hesitation is the question of whether blades on mechanicals open before or after they pierce the hide.  If they open after piercing the hide the entry wound would be completely covered by the arrow shaft on a shot that doesn't pass through, which could make blood trailing more difficult and lead to more unrecovered animals.

On a side note, I also wonder whether mechanical blades are more prone than fixed blades to coming apart upon hitting bone or even a target?

[Russ McDonald]

Provisionally, I'm a "yes" on the issue.  My only hesitation is the question of whether blades on mechanicals open before or after they pierce the hide.  If they open after piercing the hide the entry wound would be completely covered by the arrow shaft on a shot that doesn't pass through, which could make blood trailing more difficult and lead to more unrecovered animals.

On a side note, I also wonder whether mechanical blades are more prone than fixed blades to coming apart upon hitting bone or even a target?

I know Grim Reapers and Rage all open on impact with the skin.  I have seen some mechanicals that shoot through plywood on the advertisements.  My family in Minnesota use pretty much all mechanicals and never have had any problems.  I have talked with my uncle and he recommended mechanical broadheads to me when I asked him what kind of broadhead I should use.  This was when I lived in California.