quiksilver

Has a piece of equipment ever failed in the field, and actually cost you a deer?

Do tell.
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Personally, I've been cost three bucks by complete equipment failure in 14 years:

First, I had an HHAsight bracket slide about 1" out of position afterthe set screw came loose. I missed a 4x4 buck two times at 13and 17 yards before he finally spooked. I think I missed him by 3 feet each time. Only after inspection afterwarddid I find that the sight had moved. I bought a new sight the following day.

Second, I had a first-generation Beman carbon-wrap arrow blow up in the bow on a shot on a 3x3 buck (ICS I think). Maybe the arrow was damaged before I shot, who knows? Immediately switched back to aluminum shafts. (I have since regained faith in carbon arrows).

Third, I put a perfect spine shot on a 4x4 buck at 5 yards at 76# with a Triska SK 125 broadhead. At impact, the broadhead completely failed, bending the ferrule into a curly-Q, breaking the blades. The broadhead failed to penetrate the spinal column, and looked like it had been fired into a concreteblock wall. I immediately switched to a stouter, chisel-tip broadhead, and for all I know, that buck is still running. That was a pretty bad feeling. I had that buck tagged and at the taxidermist before the arrow ever hit him. So much for that idea.

HuntingBry

Wow, that is some bad luck with equipment failures. I guess I've been lucky. The only failures I've had can be attributed to me on deer. The closest thing I've had was early in my archery career I had trouble keeping the arrow on the rest while drawing and that cost me a couple of shots. That was probably from me being too excited and drawing too fast though.[:@]

I said string before and I meant rest. My arrow would fall off my rest as I was drawing. DOH!

GMMAT

Not exactly a "failure....but I'll tell it again.

I had a buck I was attempting to take go on full alert at the sound of MY arrow being drug across a whisker biscuit rest bristles.

Rob/PA was down this past weekend turkey hunting with me.....and while we were in my ocal bow shop....I conducted a make-shift test.....drawing several different arrows back through a biscuit on a guardian. Some arrows had NO sound, whatsoever. The radial x-weaves I use, however, could be heard from 30 feet or more by HUMAN ears. There's no telling what that sounds like to a whitetail deer.

"Arrow" failure? maybe. "Rest" "failure"? Call it what you will. it's not a combination conducive to stealth hunting.....I can tell you that.

quiksilver

Jeff, I can tell you for sure that there are thousands of deer out there right now who owe their lives to the sound of woven carbon scraping against bare steel. Like fingernails on a chalkboard.

GMMAT

I agree, I guess, Fran. I use a plastic pronged rest, now, though.....and again....with the aid of moleskin.....Rob can also attest to my bow being 100% silent on the draw. I just couldn't find a way to quieten the WB....or I'd still be using it.

MichaelHunsucker

Not exactly a failure, but the bar on my climing stand got in the way once and i missed a P&Y at 5 yards!!!

Since then ive been using my LoneWolf climber. It doesnt have a bar or anything. Feels just like a hangon once you get up in the tree

Trembow

I had almost forgot about the mature buck that turned inside out on me when I drew on him shooting PSE Dominators, the older style ones before the X weaves came out. And THAT was using teflon fork tamers.

I've since been told that you can quiet those down using hard paste auto wax, but I'd be leery of it leaving an odor.

I also had a treestand seat completely rip out from under me. It was really passed it's prime and I wouldn't call it a manufacturing flaw really. The biggest problem with that seat, was the weight of mine!

shed33

I believe so, my sight. I had a hossbuck broadside at less than 20 yards off the ground; pefect shot. Backed into a thick canopy of dense pines, the dark man-made blind was perfect for hiding in, but due to the low light of the blind I couldn't make out my pins. I had to let him walk.

BigJ71

I've never had an equipment failure while in the field in all my years of hunting. I have had some string breaks while practicing (just last year my Browning Oasis let go) but nothing in the field.

I voted other because I have had some "operator failures" over the years that have cost me deer.

Greg / MO

Do I count as "equipment"? [8D]