In this review, I tested the QAD Exodus broadheads, (the Swept Blade Model).

At the time of this review, I’ve taken more 60 animals in the U.S., Africa and Canada, all over the United States with this head. It has always been a great performer.

One day, Giles here at N1 Outdoors asked me if I’d ever done a standalone test on the Exodus. I thought about it and realized I never had!

So, since I updated my testing procedure, I thought it would be a great time to put the Exodus to the test.

Let’s see how it holds up in my testing.

The QAD Exodus Broadhead Specifics

Now first, we are going to zoom on in here, go through some of the design features and specifications and then put it to the test.

Here, you can see the Exodus head up close. Of course, it spins very well, with super tight tolerances.

There are some really unique features about this head…

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Super-Short Ferrule!

First of all, notice the blade-over-shaft technology where the blades extend over the shaft. The reason for this is two-fold; First of all, it makes the ferrule super short.

So, your FOC is going to be the same. Therefore, the spine is going to be the same and the overall length is going to be the same. Some broadheads extend really far, and that is going to affect the flight accordingly.

The ferrule extends 13/16 of and inch beyond the end of the arrow, making it one of the shortest on the market. (It’s actually shorter than some field points!) And, the idea behind this feature is that it’s going to keep the overall length of your arrow about the same as when you shoot field points.

Having having such a short ferrule is that makes the ferrule itself extremely durable because it’s just so short. It’s going to be hard to bend or break that ferrule.

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Additionally, the head is 100% stainless steel. The blades are 0.040 inches thick, with some of the thickest replaceable blades on the market, and these are stainless steel as well.

Tip and Blade Angle

The Exodus has a hardened, chiseled tip that is cut-on-contact. The tip is actually very sharp and can be sharpened even more on the end.

Now, another thing that’s unique about the Exodus is the angle that the tip creates in the beginning continues the whole length of the broadhead. What that means is it’s going to protect the strength of the blade.

Here is the QAD Exodus compared to a Wasp broadhead. Notice how blades just suddenly jut out after the chisel tip. That’s not a flaw, as the Wasp is a great broadhead, but that’s going to put a lot of pressure on that initial flared angle of the blade. And indeed, when I’ve tested Wasp broadheads and others like it, that’s often the place that the blade breaks or gets really damaged.

With the Exodus, the tip and the angle of the blade continue the whole length of the broadhead, making it more durable. And, notice how the chisel tip is really wide. That is going to create a really big wound channel.

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Cutting Diameter

The cutting diameter of the Exodus is a full 1-1/4 inches. That’s pretty rare with a fixed, 3-blade broadhead. Usually, they are 1-1/8 inches. Sometimes they go 1-3/16, but there aren’t many that go a full 1-1/4. They can get away with that and still have good flight because of the overall short profile, due to the blade-over-shaft technology.

So, you can see why I was eager to put this head to the test with all my new tests that I recently implemented. Let’s see how it performed!

QAD Exodus Flight Test

Here’s the grouping. The field point was the first shot (in the middle), which hit a little bit low. (I dropped my arm on the shot.) The broadheads shot on either side of the bullseye there. They grouped together very well.

Out Of The Box Sharpness Test

Exodus out-of-the-box sharpness: 200.

Ballistic Gel Penetration Test

I shot the QAD Exodus into ballistic gel that was fronted with 1/2-inch MDF board and foam matting.

The QAD Exodus penetrated the ballistic gel 8 inches.

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Edge retention

After the ballistic gel penetration test, I again tested the sharpness of the Exodus to see how much it had dulled.

After the ballistic gel penetration test the sharpness test showed 250.

Layered Cardboard Penetration Test

The Exodus penetrated through 66 layers of cardboard. Wow!

Steel Plate Test

Next I shot the Exodus broadhead through a .22 gauge steel plate 5 times. Check out the results…

Here’s the hole that the Exodus makes in the steel plate. You can see that it’s more than just a little circle with three slits coming off of it like some broadheads are. It opens up more of a triangle. Now, it’s not a pure triangle as like the Tooth of the Arrow, which makes a pure square. But, it’s one of the best triangular cuts that there is. Maybe the best of any 3-blade that I’ve tested.

Here’s the Exodus after going through the steel plate five times. It’s in pristine condition. The blades look pretty much brand new, with just a slight amount of cosmetic markup. The tip is in excellent condition, with a little bit of cosmetic discoloration and scrapes, but no damage to the edge itself.

Here, you can see what the Exodus did on an impala. This was really typical of my hunts with the Exodus. Not on every animal, but on a lot of them. It would make a really clean triangular hole just like this.

Concrete Block Test: WOW!

Finally, I shot the Exodus into a concrete block. Check this out!

The Exodus embedded really deeply into this concrete. It took me 15 minutes, with a hammer and a chisel, to get it out!

Here is the Exodus after sticking in the concrete. I mean it did embed in it. And if you look closely, you see that it’s in extremely good condition. Some of the blade portion that actually embedded in the concrete still kept its edge. You can’t even notice that it hit anything, let alone that it went through the steel plate five times and it then went into the concrete as well! The tip is also in excellent condition, except for a bunch of concrete that fused to it. But, even the very tip is still really pointy. That didn’t get bent or knocked off in any way. Excellent durability!

Final thoughts on the QAD Exodus Broahdead

So what do you think of the Exodus? I’ve tested a ton of different broadheads and man, every time I test this head in any way, I’m blown away by how well it performs. It just doesn’t have many weaknesses.

I consider it probably the best all-around fixed blade head in its price category on the market today. And then you have the option of replaceable blades at that. Man, it really is a performer!

So, check out the scores and see how it did in the area that matters to you the most. I only tested the Swept Model, but the Full model does really well also. There are some states where you can’t shoot the Swept because it’s banned.

So, the Full model can use as an option in those states. But, I’ve found that the Swept Model is slightly more forgiving in flight and they’re equally strong as well.

Props to QAD, you guys are doing a fantastic job with the Exodus!

I hope you have tons of success with this head while bowhunting!

Who doesn’t love a good broadhead battle?

In this broadhead review, I tested the VPA 2-Blade double bevel broadhead, which is a classic and has been popular for awhile. I also tested the newer VPA 2-Blade single bevel broadhead.

Let’s go through some of the design features and specifications and then test them head-to-head!

VPA Double Bevel Broadhead

Here’s a look at the 150-grain, 2-Blade Double Bevel Penetrator as they call it, designed for maximum penetration. It’s machined out of a solid chunk of high-carbon steel one-piece design.

The blades of the VPA 2-Blade Double Bevel Penetrator are 0.065 inches thick and they are brought to a Rockwell hardness of 55.

The cutting diameter of the Double Bevel head is 1-1/8 inches.

You can see here the overall short profile of the VPA Double Bevel head, which aids in flight, and then the blades come back up. They are not back sharpened here but they flare up, again, just to lower the surface area and aid in flight.

Here you can also see the ferrule of the VPA Double Bevel extends all the way up to the tip, providing extra lateral support and rollover prevention.

VPA Single Bevel Broadhead

The VPA Single Bevel is also 1-1/8 inches. It’s the same high-carbon steel, but this one is brought to a Rockwell hardness of 57. It’s also a bit thicker than the Double-Bevel, at 0.070 inches thick.

It has the same ferrule that extends all the way up to the tip to prevent rollover. It’s really a simple bevel design, with just two edges that extend all the way up to the front.

Now, here’s the 150-grain, 2-blade Single Bevel broadhead. It’s a very similar design to the Double-Bevel, although it’s single bevel. That’s a big difference I suppose. But, the cutting diameter is the same.

Again, the backs of the blades on the Single Bevel flare up just like they did with the Double Bevel Penetrator, to make it have an even shorter profile and aid in flight with less surface area. The bevel is 35 degrees.

I was really eager to compare these two heads, especially since they are the same weight, the same cutting diameter, and very similar thicknesses, and made by the same company.

Let the battle begin!

VPA Broadheads testing | Head-To-Head Battle

Flight Test

In the flight test, I shot the Double Bevel and Single Bevel heads and then a field point for comparison from 40 yards.

40-yard flight test… (I was aiming at the lower dot)… A really good group and definitely within my margin of error.

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Out-Of-The-Box Sharpness

I tested the out-of-the-box sharpness of both the VPA Double Bevel and the Single Bevel head.

Double Bevel out-of-the-box sharpness: 775. This head needs to be sharpened before hunting.

Single Bevel out-of-the-box sharpness: 400.

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Penetration (Ballistic Gel)

I shot both heads into the ballistic gel that was fronted with 1/2-inch MDF and foam matting.

The Double Bevel penetrated 8 inches and the Single Bevel penetrated 8 and a half inches.

Post-Penetration Sharpness Test

After the MDF and ballistic gel penetration test, I tested both VPA heads again to see how sharp they were.

Double Bevel after penetration test: 825.

Single Bevel after penetration test: 400.

Layered Cardboard Penetration Test

In the layered cardboard test, I shot both the VPA Double Bevel and the Single Bevel into layered cardboard to record how many layers each could penetrate.

The Double Bevel penetrated through 55 layers of cardboard.

The Single Bevel penetrated through 62 layers of cardboard.

Durability: Steel Plate Test

I shot each head into a steel plate five times. Check out the results…

Here’s a good look at the difference in the wound channels. The Double Bevel on the right has just a straight 2-blade hole, whereas the Single Bevel on the left has that classic “S-cut” hole. And that’s going to be a little bit more difficult to close up as a wound channel.

Here’s the Double Bevel after going through the steel five times. It spins very well. There’s really no signs of wear at all. I mean this thing is in pristine condition except for the tip, which had a slight rollover that would be very easily sharpened out. But overall, it did very well.

Here’s the Single Bevel. You can see it held up very well through five shots into the steel. There’s a little bit of edge chatter along the back edge of the blade, and a little on the top, which will be very easily sharpened out. Aside from that, it held up very well.

VPA Single-Bevel Rotation Test

I shot the VPA Single Bevel broadheads into the ballistic gel to measure how much it rotatied.

The VPA Single Bevel rotated 45 degrees. If you look closely, you can see the wound channel and how it rotated in gel here.

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Concrete Block Test

I shot both of the VPA heads into a concrete block to see how they would hold up.

Here’s the Double Bevel, it also did fairly well. It got a little bit of tip curl. But, the edges held up well, but not quite as sharp as that Single Bevel for whatever reason. And that tip curl is very slight, easily re-sharpened, and reusable.

This is the Single Bevel after shootingit into the concrete block. It’s also the same Single Bevel head that went through the steel plate. It’s still in excellent condition. The edges are still sharp actually (that’s kind of weird). And the tip is just perfect as well. This could be easily re-sharpened and reused.

Final Thoughts On This VPA Broadheads Review

So what do you think of this broadhead battle? Which one do you think came out on top?

I have to say, both of them are really good.

But for me, there was no question, it’s Single Bevel.

This is a really good single bevel head with a super-simple design. But man, it’s got everything that I look for in a single bevel. And, I was really impressed how it compared to the Double Bevel in each of the different areas.

So, the winner of this broadhead battle is the VPA Single Bevel. Great job, VPA!

In this broadhead review, I put the Tuffhead 3-blade broadhead to the test.

The Evolution is Tuffhead’s series of broadheads that crosses over into the compound bow market. They already have a great reputation for what they’ve done in the trad archery market.

Tuffhead Evolution 3 up close and personal

Below is a really good look at the broadhead close-up. The Tuffhead Evolution 3-blade has a double bevel to it. It’s constructed and machined out of a single piece of S7 tool steel, which is an excellent steel to use in a broadhead application because of its incredible resistance to impact. As a result, it is super durable and its resistance to impact is many times greater than that of typical stainless steel.

This is the Tuffhead Evolution Series 3 Blade Head, which has some really unique features…

I want to note here that when I previously tested the 2-blade version of this broadhead, the tip of that head rolled over when it impacted the concrete block.

The Tuffhead owner saw that and he asked me to send the heads back, because he feared there might have been an error in the hardening process.

And, after testing them, he found that was indeed the case. The Rockwell hardness was supposed to be 55 on those heads, but in that particular batch, it was only 48.

So, when I get some more of the 2 blades, I will retest them in that hard impact test. But the 3-blade heads in this test DO have the correct hardness of 55 on the Rockwell scale.

Now, the head I tested in this test is the 200-grain model (there’s also a 300-grain model).

The cutting diameter is 1-inch. So that’s relatively small. A 1-inch cut is not going to be a very big hole but the overall goal is to maximize penetration. This head will do that by just having a 1-inch cut. But, remember, this head has 3 blades, so you’re actually getting an inch-and-a-half of tissue being cut.

The blades of the Evolution 3-blade are 0.042 inches thick. The head is 2.1 inches long.

Notice here that the ferrule has a “scoop” design to the ferrule. This aids in flight as well as penetration. It also helps create a nice wound channel as it goes through an animal.

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Tuffhead Evolution 3-Blade Testing

So I was really eager to put this head to the test and see how it performed!

40-Yard Flight Test

I shot one field point and two of the Tuffheads at 40 yards (you can see that I shot high on the field point!)

Initial Sharpness Test

The sharpness tester evaluates how much pressure it takes to cut through a wire. The initial test result was 400.

Initial sharpness test: 400.

Ballistic Gel Penetration Test

I shot the Tuffhead Evolution 3 into ballistic gel that was fronted with 1/2″ MDF and foam matting.

The Tuffhead Evolution 3 penetrated the MDF and ballistic gel 5-3/4 inches.

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Edge Retention Test

Sharpness test result after the ballistic gel penetration test was 475.

Cardboard Penetration Test

I shot the Tuffhead Evolution 3-blade penetrated through 53 layers of cardboard.

Steel Plate Test

Below you can see the holes in the steel plate and you can see that they’re nice triangular holes that often come with a one-piece steel head like this. So even though they’re only 1-inch in cutting diameter, they are nice holes and not just three slits.

I shot the Tuffhead through a steel plate 5 times to test durability. It made nice triangular holes.

Here’s the head after going through the steel plate five times. Spins perfectly through. Blades are pristine. Just no signs of wear, maybe some slight cosmetic things. But man, incredible durability.

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Cinder Block Test

I shot the Tuffhead into a cinder block to see just how tough it really is!

Here’s the Tuffhead 3 Blade after the concrete as well as after the steel plate and it’s just in pristine condition. Excellent, excellent durability! Penetrated very well into the concrete and the tip is still very sharp. There was no rollover and the edges are still sharp as well.

Final Thoughts On The Tuffhead Evolution 3-Blade Heads

So what do you of the Tuffhead Evolution Series 3 Blade? Man, it performed very well.

Check out the score sheet and see how it did in the areas that matter to you the most for your hunting purposes.

But, if you are looking for a deep-penetrating super durable head, this one is definitely worth a look. I would say those are its greatest strengths.

On the weakness side, if you call it a weakness… I’m not a huge fan of really long broadheads like that because it does adversely affect flight a bit. However, they’ve designed this really well to help make up for some of that.

Also, the cut size is not very big for what I really like in a broadhead but that allows it to penetrate more deeply. And for a lot of people, that’s what they’re really looking for.

So again, check out the score sheets below and see what matters to you the most. But this head is definitely worth a look. Tuffhead has definitely made huge strides from the trad archery market to the compound bow sector. Great job, Tuffhead.