MThunter

I have know a couple of people who have attempted this with minimal success. One even buried the arrow all the way up to the fletching with out a very good kill. He did find it after the wating period with good blood but the elk got up and ran and was not found until several weeks later. I was just wondering why this is not a good shot. Or has anyone used it successfully. It seems like burying an arrow all the way to the fletch would have to hit some vitals.

beretta390

mthunter, what are you talking about?
broadside chest shot or thru the throat and into the chest shot. if it's the throat shot, then it is risky. i have done it on deer about 3 or 4 times, but they were close 10 to 15 yard shots. i can't tell you about elk though. oh yea, i found all 4 of these deer. i was hunting out of a tree stand and the angle of the shoot sent the arrows thru the throat and thru the the stomach and into the ground each time. all four deer did'nt run over 15 yards a piece. got the heart on a couple and took out one or clipped both lungs on all 4 deer. but, i would'nt recommend just anyone taking this shot. i have the confidence to make this shot.

Edited by - beretta390 on 01/23/2002 22:28:38

halcon

I don't doubt that it would kill them just not right away unless you hit the heart .The angle is wrong to get both lungs so they could travel quite a distance before expiring. Even if you hit them in the heart they can go quite a distance . Thats like shooting and hope you get lucky ,not my way of hunting .

TFOX

My 1st deer was taken in this manner but really isn't a good shot.I was using a low poundage bow and an arrow that had no chance of passing thru.The arrow went in and stopped in the heart,the deer ran about 50 yards and was dead,every step the deer took,the broadhead did a little more damage to the vitals.

Matt / PA

OK.....time for an anatomy/physiology lesson. (I'm not a doctor but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express lat night!)

WHen you have a straight one shot at an animal such as a deer or elk for a clean kill you pretty much have to do one thing.....HIT THE HEART.(or a major vessel above)
That is a tough shot as you are shooting into a pocket of muscle as well as the angled curve of the sternum.
Most people who wrongly even try this shot shoot too high.....
What happens when you shoot at a deer on avery steep angle and only get one lung??.....The deer runs away, blood trail slows or stops.....and if hunter pushes deer he usually goes home crying.

Now translate that single lung hit into a full frontal shot.......
1. You now have many layers of muscle,fat and bone to penetrate

2. A single lung hit is pretty much assured because of the lack of angle to get thru both.....your either hitting one or the other, or a tiny bit of both.(unless you have a super secret 6" cut broadhead)

3. You only have one hole

Combine 1,2, & 3 and what do you have? Tell him Johnny what he's won!.......Well you've won a long track job and probably a lost animal because you didn't get a pass thru whcih means only one hole to bleed out of....(normally, at best you have an exit in a crappy spot as well....usually the butt or guts)), the arrow is buried clogging the only hole ,and finally The only hole itself is now in a thick area where blood will not flow freely out of because it's not the same make-up as the thin broadside of the chest. This hole will close up much more easily than the thin layer of muscle and hide located on the side of the chest.

Even a heart shot deer or elk or whatever probably won't bleed much simply due to the location of the entrance wound.

Is the animal going to die if you get an arrow in there?......probably.
Are you going to recover the animal.....MAYBE. MAybe aint good enough for me to take that shot.
I know every shot we take at an animal is a maybe......but I know that if I put a good shot on a broadside or quartering animal I'm recovering that animal.
The maybe I don't like is with the frontal shot.....even if I'm perfect, recovery is still a MAYBE.





Edited by - Matt / PA on 01/23/2002 22:38:24

Lilhunter

great post Matt....very similar to ArcticBowmans standing bears shot. One lung, it may die but it sure is gonna take a helluva amount of time.

55#recurve

The only big game animal I shot so far is a bear , As it gave me a broadside shot with the front leg out of the way and every thing I drew my bow, He caught my movement and basically "L'd" with his rump still heading for the bait pile but his chest was aimed directly at me as was his eye's, I put my pin directly in front of his leg bone and shoulder with out even thinking and let my fingers loose. I hit him square where I aimed, then with out thinking or hardly watching the bear once he left my periferal vision I sat back down to gather my thoughts and collect another arrow from my quiver. The bear had not gone 20 yard from where I had shot him, and maybe 20 from my stand, and dropped and started to death moan which most bears do. He expired in about 10second 20 at the most I would say. When I gutted him, I found the 15" or so of the front of my arrow with thunderhead, pinning the heart lungs and liver together, the shot was directly through ribs and almost through the brisket area. I would say that kind of a shot is pretty lethal, but I don't have that much experience to tell you from multiple shots.
Good shooting.
Dylan

>>>>--------o-->

Two Beards

Well said Matt...this is not a shot to take. I have passed on 2 absolute monster whitetails that were facing me at less than 20 yards (both caught me coming to fulldraw...this was in my younger years<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>). I know I did the right thing...shooting a deer thru the brisket is not a 'quick-clean kill shot'. The person I hunted with at the time thought I was an idiot for passing on those bucks....needless to say, we don't hunt together anymore.

TB

davidmil

Another reason that it's a tough shot is all the rips lined up in a row and tapering toward the front. If viewed without any meat on them it would be like a big wedge looking right at you. If you're just a little off on the angle and/or the deer turns the least little bit, it's awfully easy for the arrow to just slip along the outside of the rib cage, behind the shouder and out behind it. People will swear they ran it right through the deer when in fact all they did is slip it under the shoulder. It'll bleed like crazy for a while but will quickly clot up.

THE DEER SLAYER

Its not the best shot...i shoot at broadsides