In this review, I test a classic mechanical broadhead… the NAP Spitfire 125 grain.

I’ve used the Spitfire in the field a number of times and have taken a lot of animals with it.

The NAP Spitfire | A Closer Look

So let’s zoom on in here and go through some of the design features and specifications…

Here’s a good look at the NAP Spitfire mechanical broadhead. This is just a classic front-deploying mechanical broadhead.

It has an aluminum ferrule and it has these micro grooves in it, which are designed to give it greater stability in flight. Like a golf ball, as it rotates, it carries the air around with it and NAP claims that this keeps it from planing as much.

It has a hardened steel tip and the blades open up to a cutting diameter 1-½”.

So, you have three blades, and a 1-1/2″ cut, which is a nice size cut overall.

You can see that the blades are quite swept back too, which aids in penetration. By my measurements, the blades are 0.030″ thick, and they stay closed by a spring clip system. So, they’re quite secure in flight. It takes a bit of force to open them, but they’re kind of angled back to help them open on impact a little bit better. But, they are very secure in flight.

Now, there are also offset blades in a closed position. That’s going to aid a bit in flight, because it creates a bit more rotation and it’s going to help them be a little bit more forgiving.

And then, as the blades open and penetrate, they will also create a nice wound channel and it may even cause some rotation within the medium due to those offset blades.

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12/25/2024 12:13 am GMT

NAP Spitfire Testing

I was really eager to put these heads to the test and see how they perform. 

For these tests, I used my Bowtech CP28 set at 72 pounds. I’m using Bishop FOC King Arrows for most of the shots. For the really hard impact shots, I’ll be using the Bishop FAD Eliminator.

Flight Forgiveness (1 Field Point And 1 Broadhead At 30 Yards)

As you can tell, the field point and the broadhead were right on top of each other. Great flight!

Initial Sharpness (Out-Of-The-Box)

The blade sharpness out-of-the-box was 200 (the lower number, the better).

Penetration Test 1 (2/3″ Rubber Mat, 1/2″ MDF, FBI Ballistic Gel)  

The Spitfire penetrated 5 ¾”. And here’s the entrance hole. I want to show.

The blades didn’t open on impact into the MDF. The entrance cut was the size of the blades in the closed position.

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Edge Retention Test (Sharpness After Penetration Test 1)

After the first penetration test, the blades registered at 300 in the sharpness test.

Penetration Test 2 (Layered Cardboard):

The Spitfire penetrated through 48 layers of cardboard.

Angled Shot Test (1/4″ MDF/Carpet):

I shot the Spitfire into angled MDF fronted by carpet.

Durability Test (1/2″ MDF Max 3 shots):

Here’s the head after 3 shots through the MDF and it held together really well. The only damage is that one of the blades bent a bit. You can see that it kind of curved to the side, but it was just that one blade that bent.

Here’s the head after 3 shots through the MDF, and it did fairly well.

Durability (22ga steel plate max 2 shots):

But, then on the first shot into the steel plate, it broke 2 of the blades. They just got sheared and twisted off. One remained in place. There was one piece that I could find. It bounced off a few walls and I could hear it. It kind of bounced around the room. I’m glad it didn’t hit me!

The Spitfire will not be going to go on to the concrete block round (where I shoot the head into a concrete block), because it only made it through one shot in the steel plate instead of two. And, with that kind of breakage, I just don’t want to risk anymore damage to myself in shooting it into the concrete.

Additionally, broadheads have to earn the right to make it into the concrete by staying intact through the steel plate as well as the MDF. But overall, again, it did well through the MDF.

Here’s the steel plate and you can see that one of the blades is stuck in the steel plate. The other one you can see just broke off and flew throughout the room somewhere. And then the other one did cut through the steel plate.

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12/25/2024 12:24 am GMT

Final Thoughts On NAP Spitfire Broadheads

So what do you think of the Spitfire? Hey, you know, this head has been around for a long time and it certainly has some really good strengths to it.

I love the offset blades and I love the way they are pretty sharp out of the package. And, I love the way it flies.

But, there are also some weaknesses to it.

I’m not a big fan of front-deploying broadheads because I want to get at least one big hole. If I don’t get a pass through, I at least want that first hole to be a good one. And, rear-deploying head typically tip the odds in my favor of getting that big hole, if I’m just going to get one.

Check out the scorecard below and see if the Spitfire might be a good fit for you.

In this broadheads review, I tested the Excalibur Bolt Cutter. It’s a broadhead that’s marketed for Excalibur crossbows, (originally made by Innerloc) but can also be used for vertical bows.

Bolt Cutter Broadheads Up Close

So, let’s check out some of the design features and specifications of the Bolt Cutter broadheads.

Here’s a good look at the Bolt Cutter close up. Now, the Bolt Cutter heads are designed for maximum flight and penetration and specifically marketed for crossbows, but can also be be used for vertical bows.

The Bolt Cutters are originally made by Innerloc and have a stainless steel tip.

The blades are stainless steel. The ferrule is aluminum and the blades have a cutting diameter of one and one-sixteenth inches. So a little bit smaller than most three-blade heads on the market.

The blades are also pretty thin. By my measurements, they’re 0.024 inches thick. So, these are some of the thinnest blades that I’ve ever tested, honestly. I’m interested to see how they perform.

They have a really good locking system for the blades.

The head unscrews and then you slide the blades out. So, it’s a really secure way of retaining the blades.

They have a cool flare to the back like that as well. So, I was eager to put these heads to the test and see how they perform.

For the following tests, I used my Bowtech SR6, set at 72 pounds, 27-inch draw. I used Bishop FOC King arrows for most of the shots and then for the really hard impact ones, I used the Bishop Fad Eliminators.

Flight Forgiveness Test

I shot a field point, and then two broadheads (at 40 yards) to compare the flight of the Bolt Cutter heads.

Pre-Testing Sharpness

I tested the out-of-the box sharpness (the lower the number, the sharper the broadhead.)

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Ballistic Gel And MDF Test

I shot the Bolt Cutter head into ballistic get that was fronted by foam padding and 1/2″ MDF.

It penetrated eight and three-quarter inches.

Post-Penetration Test Sharpness

After the first penetration test, I checked the sharpness again… 350.

Layered Cardboard Penetration Test

The Bolt Cutter penetrated through 67 layers of layered cardboard.

MDF Test

The head was in perfect condition after shooting it 3 times into 1/2″ MDF.

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Steel Plate Test

I shot the Bolt Cutters through a .22 gauge steel plate to see how they would hold up, and you can see it’s basically the round hole with three slits coming out of that style rather than a triangular punch, like some heads have.

And here it is after the three shots through the MDF and the two, three of the steel plate and you can see with the steel plate the tip got a little bit blunted and the blades got pretty nicked up there but otherwise held together fine and here are the holes in the steel plate.

Cinder Block Test

Here’s the Bolt Cutter after going through the MDF and the steel plate and then embedding into the concrete block that I shot it into. It stuck really deeply into the concrete. I think that’s the deepest that any broadhead has ever stuck into it.

It remained very much intact and the tip was still really pointy. The blades got a bit banged up with the steel but not that bad. But man, it did extremely well through the concrete.

Final Thoughts On The Excalibur Bolt Cutter Broadheads

So what do you think of the Bolt Cutter broadheads?

Hey, you know what, it has some real strengths! I mean the flight and the penetration alone, those are two really great strengths of this broadhead.

So check out the scoresheet below!