How to sight in a crossbow with broadheads

Almost every crossbow is zeroed with field points, which is correct: field points are cheap, they are kind to targets, and they let you shoot the volume a zero needs. The mistake is stopping there. A broadhead is a different shape with blades that catch air, and on some setups it will not land in the same place as a field point of identical weight. Finding that out in October from a tree is a bad way to find out.

This page assumes the bow is already mounted, leveled and zeroed with field points. If it is not, start with crossbow scope mounting and then how to sight in a crossbow, which covers the speed ring and the twelve-bolt zero sequence. Come back here afterwards.

Before you shoot: three checks that prevent the problem

• Match the weight exactly. A 100 gr field point and a 125 gr broadhead are two different trajectories. Zero with the same grain weight you will hunt - this is the single most common cause of a broadhead group that does not match. The trade between the two weights is on 100 vs 125 grain broadheads.
• Spin-test every head. Fit the head, rest the shaft on a spin tester or roll it point-down on a smooth surface, and watch the tip. If it wobbles, the head is not seated square - re-seat it or use a different insert. G5 spin-tests the Montec at the factory, which is a figure worth having, but your assembly is what matters.
• Check the target. A bag target will be destroyed by broadheads and will also pull blades out of alignment on removal. You need a broadhead-rated target - see best broadhead targets - rated above your bow's published speed.

The procedure

In detail

Three heads that make this easier

01One-piece steel, nothing to come loose

$54.95/Amazon

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G5 Montec M3 100 gr

G5 Outdoors

8.9/ 10

One solid piece of 420 stainless steel with a 1-1/16 inch cut, no vents, cut-on-contact geometry and every head spin-tested before it ships. There are no blades to replace, no screws to loosen and no collar to fail. For a fast bow, a fixed one-piece head is the most reliable thing you can put on the front of a bolt.

Published spec	Value
Weight	100 gr (125 also offered)
Cutting diameter	1-1/16 in
Blades	3, fixed
Construction	One-piece MIM, 420 stainless steel, no vents
Sharpening	Diamond cut, cut-on-contact
Quality control	100% spin-tested
Per pack	3

What it does well

• One piece: no blades, screws or collars to fail
• Every head spin-tested before it ships
• Resharpenable, so a head survives more than one animal
• Cut-on-contact geometry starts cutting immediately

Where it falls short

• A 1-1/16 inch cut is narrow next to a 2.25-inch mechanical
• Fixed blades plane more in wind than a closed mechanical
• Needs careful tuning to fly with field points

Our rubric

Flight

8.2

Penetration

9.4

Consistency

9.0

Durability

9.6

Value

8.4

02A Montec built for crossbow speed

$44.99/Amazon

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TenPoint EVO-X Montec

TenPoint

8.8/ 10

Built for TenPoint by G5, which is to say it is a Montec specified for high-speed crossbows: 100 grains, three fixed blades, a 1-1/8 inch cut, one-piece MIM construction and a 100 percent steel ferrule. If you shoot a fast bow and want a fixed head, this is the one that was designed for the application.

Published spec	Value
Weight	100 gr
Cutting diameter	1-1/8 in
Blades	3, fixed
Construction	One-piece MIM, 100% steel ferrule
Designed for	High-speed crossbows
Sharpening	Diamond cut
Per pack	3

What it does well

• Specified for high-speed crossbows, not adapted from a compound head
• One-piece construction with nothing to come loose
• Made by G5, whose Montec is the reference fixed head

Where it falls short

• A 1-1/8 inch cut is narrow by mechanical standards
• Listed in 100 grain only, where G5's own Montec M3 also offers 125

Our rubric

Flight

8.4

Penetration

9.4

Consistency

9.0

Durability

9.4

Value

8.0

03The mechanical most crossbow hunters land on

$57.49/Amazon

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Rage Hypodermic Trypan NC

Rage

8.6/ 10

A one-piece titanium ferrule, .039-inch stainless blades, a hybrid tip and No Collar retention — meaning the blades are held closed by the ferrule geometry rather than a rubber band you have to replace every shot. For a fast bow, the collar is the part that fails, so removing it matters.

Published spec	Value
Weight	100 gr
Blade thickness	0.039 in
Type	Mechanical, expandable
Ferrule	One-piece titanium
Retention	No Collar
Tip	Hybrid
Per pack	3

What it does well

• No Collar retention removes the consumable rubber band
• A titanium ferrule is lighter and stronger than aluminum
• .039-inch blades are thick for a mechanical
• Ferrule alignment adapter helps it spin true

Where it falls short

• Most expensive broadhead here
• No cutting diameter published on this listing
• Mechanicals lose energy opening, which matters on a slow bow

Our rubric

Flight

8.6

Penetration

8.4

Consistency

8.8

Durability

8.8

Value

7.2

Why fixed and mechanical heads behave differently

A fixed blade head has permanent surfaces that can steer the arrow in flight. The effect is called planing, and it is most pronounced with long blades, with a long ferrule, and at distance. It is also the reason a fixed head is more likely than a mechanical to shoot away from a field-point zero, and why a short-bodied head plants fewer surprises - the QAD Exodus and the one-piece Montecs are both short for this reason.

A mechanical head flies closed, so in flight it is close to a field point in shape, and it will usually land where the field points do. That is one of its genuine advantages and part of why so many crossbow hunters use them. The trade is on the other side of impact, where it spends energy opening - mechanical vs fixed blade sets out the full comparison, and best mechanical broadheads covers the retention systems that crossbow speed defeats.

The three picks, and why each is on this page

G5 Montec M3 100 gr

One-piece metal-injection-molded 420 stainless, 1-1/16 in of cut, no vents, and 100 percent factory spin-tested. One-piece construction is the single best insurance against the thing this page exists to diagnose: there are no blades to sit proud, no screws to loosen and nothing to re-align after a removal from a target. Available in 125 gr too, if you are zeroing at that weight.

TenPoint EVO-X Montec

The same one-piece idea, built specifically for high-speed crossbows by the company that makes the bows, with 1-1/8 in of cut and a 100 percent steel ferrule. If your bow is at the fast end of the range and you want a fixed head that is unlikely to need any scope adjustment at all, start here.

Rage Hypodermic Trypan NC

The mechanical reference point. A 0.039 in blade on a one-piece titanium ferrule with a hybrid tip and no collar to replace. It flies closed and therefore usually lands on a field-point zero, which is exactly why it is the head to try if your fixed heads will not group and you do not want to re-zero for the season.

What to do if the groups will not come together

1. Re-check the weight match. Grain weight, insert weight and nock type all have to be identical between your practice and hunting arrows.
2. Re-spin every arrow. A single poorly seated head produces one flier that looks like a zero problem.
3. Try a shorter-bodied head. Less ferrule and shorter blades mean less surface for air to push on.
4. Try a mechanical. It flies closed and will usually land on the field-point zero.
5. Check the arrows themselves. A quiver of arrows that are not weight-matched is a quiver of different trajectories - see best crossbow bolts for the published tolerances.

How many arrows this should take

Nine, if the first comparison overlaps: three field points, three broadheads at 20, three at 40. Fifteen if you have to adjust. If you are into your third pack of heads and still chasing it, the problem is not the zero - it is one of the five things in the list above, and it is usually the weight match. Crossbow barrels do not wear out in an afternoon, but broadheads and target foam both do.

Finally, re-confirm the zero whenever anything in the chain changes: a different broadhead, a heavier insert, a new arrow model, a scope that has been off the rail, or a bow that has had a new string. Any one of those invalidates the work above, and all of them are cheap to re-check. Crossbow maintenance covers what else changes over a season.