Best steel for arrowheads?

M

Minibear464

Joined
Jul 14, 2011
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Not really sure what to use. I was thinking of going with 1084, but should I harden it? I'm afraid that a hardened arrowhead would just shatter if it hits something like a rock. Also, what would be the best shaped arrowheads for shooting?
 
I suspect that the end result will have almost as much to do with heat treatment as it will with steel choice. Just a thought.
 
If I were making arrow heads I would probably use L6 though I agree with geek HT is more important than the choice of steel.
 
Just a thought, but how about a spring temper resulting in about 45 to 50 RC? Fairly rigid, but not so brittle as to shatter.
 
I have made my own broadheads for 40 years. I have tryed all kinds of steel, from recycled to new HC Stainless. What I have found works the best for me is a steel with .50 to .84 carbon tempered to a spring temper. 5160 works very well. Make them thin. The thiner the better.
 
The stuff they sell in hardware stores to make your own scraper blades is my first choice. When
I was into traditional I used it often. Not sure of the alloy but I'm pretty sure its a spring temper
and about .050 thick. Have a friend that still shoots whitetails with arrowheads I made 20 years
ago.
Ken.
 
At the thickness of an arrow head, I am thinking of the broadheads I have, wouldnt they all fail if you shot them into a rock?
 
Interesting question... I don't have an answer, just more questions :D

JMJones said:
At the thickness of an arrow head, I am thinking of the broadheads I have, wouldnt they all fail if you shot them into a rock?
Click to expand...

I'm not a bowhunter but that seems like a good point (ho ho!). 1084 has good toughness; I would try making 2 or 3 and tempering one hard like a knife (58Rc) and the next two progressively softer... perhaps down to 55, and 50Rc would be good points to test at?

There are other forums out there devoted to both modern and "primitive" archery/hunting; I bet they would have ideas about your concept as well.
 
I would go for around 50-55 and try that out if I was making them. If your using broadheads and hit something like a rock its donefore. Thats why you try not to miss when using broadheads. Using target heads is different as they have more meat behind the single tip and just like say a chopper can take more abuse.

Now granted if the arrow is going thru the target say a deer then I would take the risk of it hitting a rock and being ruined on the other side as long as I got the deer. Even the $10 broadheads you can buy are basically a writeoff for a freezer full of meat. Not to mention if you impact something like a rock head on with a decent poundage bow your arrow is more then likely trashed as well.
 
I think I would take the time spent trying to make damage resistant arrow heads and use it to make some extra ones to replace the ones that hit rocks ;)
 
What about S7 if you can find it thin enough ?
Its a shock steel so it shouldnt break when it
Hits a hard surface like bone or rock but like
Other have said the HT is more important
Then the steel choice !

Frank
 
PM Burton Harruff on this forum. He has made these. He is a lifelong arrowhead hunter and collector and has approached making them from steel from this perspective.

Fred
 
I can't say I know for sure they are balanced but put in a drill press and turned
slowly with the point touching plastic it will tell you if they are true to center.
Would be a little trickier doing them with ferrules. Never had any accuracy problems
out to 30 yds. Ken.
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A friend of mine, Allan Wood of Outback Broadheads uses 1055 hardened to 51, 52 rc . they are known as one of the toughest heads around. They have been used on all Australian game from Buff , Cammel, Sambar and big pigs ,as well as a lot of the African species . If you wanted to look up his website and chat to the man himself , you won't find a nicer more knowledgeable bloke than woody when it comes to making broadheads.
Cheers Adam Parker.
 
I don't know about many of them, but Grizzly uses 1075. Ashby's research showed these to be among the most dependable broad heads available. I've shot the Grizzly's for several years and never had a failure.

Allen
 
Thanks for all the replies. Thinking of going with 1055 or 1075, but would heat treat be the same as 1084?
 
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