HEy ya'll,
I just wanted to post my own experience of using stone points here because I was afraid it would get lost in the other post.
I'm no expert on hunting with stone points (who is?), but I wanted to relate some of my experiences with stone points and how effective they can be.
I've killed numerous small game animals with stone points and this spring I killed a 23 pound gobbler with a stone-tipped rivercane arrow. That gobbler only ran 40 feet, then collapsed. That's right, 40 feet. Now, 2 weeks after I shot my turkey, my brother shot 2 gobblers with his $800 Mathews bow and carbon fiber arrows. Both turkeys ran into the woods about 100 yards away. One turkey was found the next morning, half-eaten by coyotes. The other turkey was never found. My brother then abandoned his bow and used his shotgun. He shot at another gobbler, but it started running off so he started blasting at it in an attempt to stop him. That turkey ran into the woods and, after searching for 2 hours, was never found.
This past November I was sitting in my stand and had a coyote stop 20 yards in front of me. I shot at him, but missed. My arrow hit a small tree and glanced off. When I went to retrieve my arrow, I was shocked at what that stone point did to the bark of the tree. Although it was a glancing blow, the serrated edge of the stone point sliced down through the bark and into the very top layer of the wood. The bark and wood fibers were splintered outward, resembling the effect of a small caliber bullet. Only the very tip of the stone point was dinged off. I repaired the tip, resharpened the edge, and five months later that same stone point was used to kill my turkey.
I've shot rabbits, squirrels, and other small stuff with stone points, and, just like anything else, shot placement is key. Hit them in the right place with a stone point and you'll be amazed at how fast the victim dies.
I've spoken with other people across the country who have used stone points and almost all of them have expressed that, for some reason, animals hit with stone points seem to die quicker than those hit with steel points. Perhaps it's the serrated edge that does more tearing than a razor-sharp steel point. Regardless, stone points are amazingly effective if used within their limitations. Steel points are also incredibly effective as well. I've seen what 3-blade Muzzy broadheads do to a deer, and hopefully this fall I'll get to see what my stone points do to a deer (I've never gotten a deer with stone points).
Stone points work amazingly well, then again, so do steel points. I really don't think there is that much of a difference. What bugs me is that people seem to have the misconception that stone points are dull, or they don't work well, or that they only wound animals. The problem is that they have no experience with them.
So if you want to use stone points, do it! Just make sure they are sharp.
