I personally have never hit a bone
, ribs aside,(I’ve only been hunting for 3 years and haven’t had as many opportunities to ‘hit bones’ as I’d like
You will!!
Trust me my friend, if you stick around in this game long enough, it is goona happen!! I have hardcore bowhunting about 25 years now and it has happened to me a few times with different results.
I will tell you a few of the stories.
#1. Years ago, the first year that I shot expandables, I shot Wasp Jak Hammers. Had a decent buck come in on a friday mid morning. Slightly quartered away from me. I put my pin right behind the shoulder. Unfortunately my big old XX78 Easton alum. didn't follow the pin. I hit him a little forward. I heard the crack, and watched him run about 300 yards across an open field, and into a standing cornfield with the arrow dangling off his side, flopping back and forth. I finally found my arrow, and spent about three hours chasing him around that cornfield. Seriously. He literally just kept running circles around me in the cornfield. Sometimes we were looking at each other eye to eye 15 yards from each other. Luckily, the very next friday, from the very same stand about the same time, I drilled a buck perfectly and watched him fall within sight. When I walked up on him, he looked real familiar. I looked at his shoulder, there was a big old scab on him. It was the same buck. When I butchered him, the shoulder bone had a great big groove dug out of it about 3-4" long. I ended up doing a half mount of him and my taxidermist somehow left the scab on him. We call him the second chance buck!
#2. About 5 years ago, ( actually whenever the first year that the Rocky Mtn Snyper 2 blades were out , my first year of using them), I called a buck in with my voice from a long way across a field. He was walking paraleel from my stand about 28 yards away. I stopped him, but just as I was releasing my arrow ( a Gold Tip 5575), it was like he started to turn to walk towards me. Unfortunately I hit him dead square in the middle of the right shoulder. Man he went down like a ton of bricks. Hit the ground and let out a big long growl ( of course we all know that deer growl now!!
) and then tried to get up but ended up dying right there. My arrow busted through both shoulders! When I butchered him both shoulders were broken.
#3. A few seasons later, on a sat. morning, I watched a beautiful buck coming through the woods parallel to my stand. He hit an open lane and stopped. I knew it was a 35-36 yd. shot, someting I shoot allthe time and have shot deer at seceral times. Well, this morning is one of those times when you realize how much an inch can mean in bowhunting! I let that Snyper tipped Gold tip fly, heard a CRACK!! and wached him take off, with the shaft flopping. I was sick. We started finding some blood, and my buddies were trying to get me pumped, but I knew in my heart what the outcome would be. I was right. About 4 hours later, we jumped him. As he was trying to mount a doe!! But we all saluted him as he ran away though! A fresh shoulder wound, and he was still trying to get him a little.
One of my hunting buddies actually lives right beside the woods I shot him in. Later that week, on the way in to my stand, I jumped him out of his bed, and he was running across the road. I know this sounds like a story, but buddies don't lie- My friend was just coming up to his driveway and saw the buck coming across the field. Ke also know it was the same one. He glassed it, and it ended up crossing about 20 yards in front of him. He was waiting for me at my truck when I came out all excited. He said buddy, I ain't kidding you, if you would hit him just an inch or 2 back, he would be in your freezer right now and his head at the taxi. He said that he had a scab about the size of a fist right on the back point of his shoulder blade. Just my luck!!
Sorry to be so long winded. I guess I got a little excited reliving the hunts. I think that there are several factors when talking about bone hits. That is why I told the stories. You have to take into consideration angles, shot distance, what broadhead, bow set ups etc. Just like for me. One year I hit one dead center shoulder, and I bust both shoulders. A few years later, I hit one on the back tip of the shoulder, bit about 10 yds. farther away, and he lived to see another day!
I guess the moral of the story is: Be sure the only bone you hit is rib bone!!!