We hope you enjoy our “Angry Arrow” nock tuning commercial!
Will your arrows fly “angry?”
Angry Arrow Video (transcript)
You’ve tuned your bow, your form is good, but you still seem to seem to suffer from inconsistent arrow flight.
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In this broadhead review, I tested a tried and true mechanical that has been around for a while… the NAP Killzone.
I’ve used this head on hogs, turkey, and deer, and it has always performed pretty well for me in the field.
But I wanted to see how it performed in my testing regimen.
So, let’s zoom in and go through some of the design features and specifications of the Killzone 125 grain and then we will put it to the test.
NAP Killzone Broadhead Up Close
Here’s a good look at the Killzone. This is a classic, classic rear-deploying head. When the blades are fully opened, it has got a cutting diameter of 2″ in the open position and it doesn’t utilize any O-ring or retention clips or anything like that.
It uses a mechanism where the blades slide back due to pressure right here on these little wing bats on the little hinge. They slide back into their open position. They don’t lock open, but they’re held open just by the force that’s being pushed against them.
The Killzone in the open position. The body of the NAP Killzone is a 7075 aluminum, which as I always say, if you’re going to use aluminum, that’s the way to go, because it’s stronger than some steels. But, it’s very vented, so I definitely wanted to see how it would hold up.
It also has a nice kind of chiseled type tip that’s a hardened steel and the blades are steel as well. By my measurement, they are 0.035″ thick. So, really nice rear-deploying, good size cut, classic, simple mechanical head.
Let’s see how the NAP Killzone performed in the below tests…
For these tests on the Killzone, I used my Bowtech CP28 set at 72 pounds. I used Bishop FOC King Arrows for most of the shots, and Bishop FAD Eliminators for the really hard impact ones.
Flight Forgiveness Test (I field pt then I broadhead @30 yds)
The NAP Killzone broadhead flew almost exactly like the field point.
Initial Sharpness Test
The pre-testing sharpness was 325 (the lower the number, the sharper the blade).
Penetration Test 1
I shot the Killzone into FBI ballistic gel that was fronted with a 2/3″ rubber mat and 1/2″ MDF. It penetrated 5-1/4″.
After the three shots in the MDF, one of the blades started to get pretty bent there. And then the base of the ferrule, the blades cut into that base on both sides pretty much. But overall, it held together pretty well.
Durability Test (22 gauge steel plate max 2 shots)
Here it is after the two shots through the steel plate, and you can see, it held together, but not that great. Both of the blades got significantly bent and they are locked in that position. They would not open or close anymore. The ferrule got a bit narrowed and one of the blades is broken halfway through. And then, you can see the holes on the steel plate… they are a lot smaller than the actual cutting diameter. The blades kind of crunched down on the steel plate.
Here it is after impacting the concrete. And as you can see, that one blade that was pretty bent broke off and then the other blade that was pretty bent got even more bent. But, the ferrule held up pretty well. It also had a bit of a wobble. But, it did fairly well for an aluminum, really long-vented, ferrule like that.
Like I said in the beginning, I’ve used this head in the field and it has performed fairly well for me.
One of the drawbacks has always been its penetration. It’s just never been a very good penetrating head, not just because it has got a big 2-inch wide cut, but it even penetrates less than most mechanicals that are rear-deploying with a 2-inch cut.
And, these tests just exposed a lot of the weaknesses that it does have in penetration as well as in sharpness and in durability.
There are better heads that are on the market, but it doesn’t mean this can’t get the job done. It has killed a lot of animals. It has worked well for me. And if it’s your favorite, then great, more power to you. But, I do think that there are better options available.
The NAP Killzone Scored 77.51 out of 100 possible points.
Also, I have to say, I was really surprised that it fell apart and lost its blades in the cardboard. That happened on a Rage that I tested a while back and I thought that was just kind of freaky. I guess cardboard is a tougher test than I realized! But, it held up through steel plate. That was really interesting.
Anyway, it did relatively well, just not the best. But, check out the score sheet below, and good luck out there hunting!
That’s how long I had been watching this buck on my trail camera.
In 2019, he was an 11pt.
Years and points…
Then, in 2020, from what I could tell, he appeared to be a big 14 point. However, a couple of weeks before bow season began, he made an appearance. And then, just like that, he vanished.
Getting to see this buck in the wild was a dream… Getting to harvest him was a dream come true!
He showed up again the final two days of our rifle season that year, but then disappeared once again.
As each year passed, he continued to have the same distinguishing characteristics; tall brows and tines that nearly touched. He also had split main beams.
Each year, he seemed to add a little more to what was already an impressive rack.
When considering what he had done the prior two years, I just figured I would never see him again.
The Video That Changed Everything
But, then, in 2021, on the 6th of September, I got one brief trail cam video of this buck in velvet.
This is the brief trailcam video clip that renewed my hope that I might actually get a chance to harvest this impressive New York buck!
One thing was for sure… this buck was an absolute stud, especially for Essex County, New York! You just don’t see bucks of this caliber around these parts.
I had hunted the same area the night before with no luck.
On September 30th, I really didn’t plant on hunting the same area again. However, I decided at the last minute that I would because two nice 8-pointers (both on my hit list) showed up on the trail cam.
I had nicknamed this buck Houdini, because he always seemed to disappear. But he showed up for one final act.
It wasn’t very long that I’d been in the woods when a mature doe approached, but I couldn’t get a clear shot on her.
So, I continued to check more of my trail cameras and still hunt.
It was 6 PM and I was roughly 1.5 miles deep on my hunting lease when I decided I was going to head back to the house for dinner.
I was looking for deer the whole walk back, but when I was about 250 yards from reaching my truck, I noticed the big body of a deer in the wood line about 60 yards away.
What if I hadn’t stopped to check the trail camera? What if I had shot that doe? What if I hadn’t been so hungry that I decided to go home? I’m glad those all happened!
I instantly nocked an arrow onto my Mathews Solocam bow and continued moving down the trail. When I got about 10 yards into the woods, I drew my bow back.
I could tell that this deer was a buck, but the light was dimmer under the canopy of trees and it made it difficult to see the rack. I thought this deer was probably one of my two 8-point hit-listers that I was after.
I really didn’t have time to get nervous, because from the time I drew back until I released the arrow was only about 8 seconds. It all happened so fast!
“Houdini” grossed 205 4/8 inches Boone and Crockett and netted 196 inches (non-typical). It was the highest scoring buck ever in Essex County and was the largest buck harvested in the state of New York and all the Northeast in 2021.
I was in disbelief. The giant buck I had been seeing for 3 years was finally down!
His rack was covered in grass as if he had just racked the ground to shreds.
I picked up his head and just took a minute to soak it all in.
I counted 20 points on his rack. All I could think was, “who is even going to believe me when I tell them that I just shot a 20-point buck with my bow?”
I started making phone calls. And, just like I thought, it took some convincing for my close friends and family members to believe me and understand that I needed help getting this buck to the truck!
I figured that this monster of a buck had to have watched me 80 to 100 yards down that trail before I had even noticed he was there. I truly believe that deer was going to just let me walk right past him.
All The “What Ifs”
When my friends and family came, they were as in shock as I was because, again, you just don’t see deer like this one in these parts!
There are so many things that could have been different that would have kept me from tagging this buck.
I was shocked how fast the word spread across the country about this buck. In just a matter of hours, the state knew about it and friends of mine across the county were contacting me, offering congratulations.
I count myself truly blessed to have gotten the chance to harvest a true Adirondack giant!
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