# Any reviews on the Rage Hypodermic bh's



## harpo1 (Dec 6, 2007)

I'm in need of more broadheads this season and have been looking real close at the new Rage Hypodermic heads. I've been shooting the traditional Rage 3-blade heads with good results but I like the design of the new one's better. I realize they haven't been available for deer hunting, but has anybody tried them out yet... maybe on a turkey or even at the range? I'd like to hear good and bad comments.

_*Also, I'm not interested in a mechanical vs. fixed debate here._


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## bigal06 (Jul 11, 2010)

I shot nap kill zones last year and was looking to switch to the rage hypodermic. I like the looks of the head, but the blade angle looks quite steep, and that has me concerned about penetration. Other than the blade angle, I really like the looks of them.

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## harpo1 (Dec 6, 2007)

I share your same concern bigal! I would love to see a 3-blade / 1.25" cutting diameter in that Hypodermic design.


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## Nitro225Optimax (Feb 13, 2011)

Well, one big improvement right off the bat is a chisel tip and solid one-piece steel ferel. I'd like to see a 125gr 2 or 3 blade for crossbow use.


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## HunterHads (Jun 28, 2005)

Rage is saying that it is their best penetrating head ever. I can believe it. I'm going to shoot the deep six hypodermics on my Easton Injections this fall. my concern is more with blade deployment using the shock collars then penetration.


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## baber (Jun 16, 2004)

HunterHads said:


> Rage is saying that it is their best penetrating head ever. I can believe it. I'm going to shoot the deep six hypodermics on my Easton Injections this fall. my concern is more with blade deployment using the shock collars then penetration.


When setting these up with the shock collars do the blades have to line up with the cuts in the collars or not?


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## HunterHads (Jun 28, 2005)

No they are ment to be centered between the cuts. The collars are only good for one shot and break upon impact. That is why they give you 3 extra. 


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## outdoor_m_i_k_e (Feb 3, 2005)

I know of 2 people that have used them this summer on both deer and other game, and said they were very happy with the results. I plan to try them this year as well. 

(not in MI)


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## stndpenguin (May 19, 2010)

Theyre pretty slick looking though I think im gonna try the ones with the new chisel tip. The hypos have one but id like to know how well they hold up. Glad they steared away from the stupid flimsy "cut on contact" thing. Which is now on a jew nap head I saw? Looked liked a bad rage knockoff

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## stndpenguin (May 19, 2010)

Haha "new"* not jew.. horrible place for a typo... silly galaxy s4 

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## wallygator32 (Mar 2, 2013)

RAGE = junk period


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## bassburner (Jan 6, 2011)

I'm shooting them this year. Can't wait and I hope to report back with a dead deer.


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## Northwood lures (Jan 23, 2013)

Pictured above is the new Hypodermic expandable broadhead from Rage. First impression is that Rage did a good job of creating a better locking system than the one found on the standard Rage heads. A small plastic collar that fits over the ferrules shank and against the base of the ferrule holds the blades securely in place.
I found the locking system to be solid and I found no issues that would concern me as to actuation. The blades are released on impact by means of a cutting area on the back of the blades which cuts through the top edge of the plastic collar.
I did not care for the way the blades are constructed but I was impressed with how well the were sharpened. My first impression was that the break built into the blade was too far back but considering the quality of the metal, my concern (in testing) was unfounded.
Very happy with the low drag ferrule which is finished perfectly IMO but holds the blades at too extreme of an angle for my tastes. When deployed, the blades do not provide a significant
angle in relation to the ferrule. While they do come back past 90 degree's, the angle is extreme, in my opinion.
The ferrule is very small and should give an advantage for penetration when compaired to most other expandables out there. I really liked the ferrule construction in every way. Great job IMO.

















Rage includes a practice head in each package of Hypodermics and it is of the same in physical dimensions and weight when compared to the hunting heads. I do not feel that any good mechanical design needs to be practiced with when shooting a tuned bow but it is good to see that RAGE included such a head for the sake of those who feel the need to do so.
*Sharpness Test*
First up was the test for blade sharpness out of the package. Top picture is the rubber band grid that is used for this test. This is the same design that Fred Bear showed me back in the late seventies and the same design that he himself used to check blade sharpness when he was not in the field. Fred's belief was that arteries reacted just like rubber bands (which they do) and if a head could pass through this grid then it was satisfactory for hunting.
The bottom picture shows the head ran through and the remaining bands that were uncut.
















The Hypodermic cut all rubber bands that it came in contact with and left one out of four standing. Due to the fact that a two blade head cannot hit all four points, this is something to consider for those who are concerned with missing arteries on marginal shots which can occur by no fault of the archer themselves.
*Next up was the flight test*
30 yard grouping with one arrow carrying a field point and the next carrying the practice head. A 3" group maximum is considered to be a passing grade for any broadhead that is tested here due to the fact that these shots are made without the use of a hooter shooter and people are imperfect.

















The area of this target (Black) where the arrows impacted measures 2.50" and the group was less than 1/2 that area. 
*3" is passing for any test done on this site with fixed broadheads.* 
While expandable heads are not graded on grouping due to the fact that this is the purpose of their design, grouping of expandables is included for the sake of consistent procedure.
*Next up is the ferrule test*
























On impact the head bent one blade and caused the arrow to kick back and bounce away from the backstop where the board had been placed. You can see the left side of the board did not get any meaningful penetration from that blade while the right side did get into the board a bit better. This test does not take into regard the condition of the blade after impact and only seeks to see that the blade remains within the ferrule. 
The ferrule itself was in prefect condition after the shot and the blades did remain locked in position within the ferrule. It is impossible to say whether or not the blades themselves could take the abuse from this test since they were not embedded nor did the head pass through the board, due to the blade bending, however the ferrule passed this test. A good performance by the Hypodermic, standing up to over eighty pounds of kinetic energy on impact.
*If the ferrule cannot hold the blades or if the ferrule bends at all in this test it is a fail.*​


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## Northwood lures (Jan 23, 2013)

*Next up is the quartering shot*
Quartering shots are taken with a bow that produces 280fps and generates 52# kinetic energy.








This picture is to show that indeed the ribs were crossed. This test is done to show deflection potential on a hard quartering shot and shot angle is 20 degrees to replicate an extreme hard quartering shot.
The shot showed no outward deflection but the head did not penetrated behind the ribs until the outcropping of the foam target was met. The head skidded down the ribs until the outward angle was found and then the head came to a stop there. 
The cut area is shown below.








*Any head that deflects will fail this test*. 
Blades and ferrule were in perfect condition after this shot. 
*The Scapula Test*
The scapula test is used to determine the quality of the blades and their ability to maintain a cutting edge after passing through bone. A loss of 33% of the cutting edge or less will receive a passing grade in these tests. Maintaining an edge means no roll over or erosion of the edge.








The shot is supposed to be against the high ridge of the scapula but with such a head, there is the chance that the orientation on impact will impact that ridge as was the case here. A second shot was taken to give a fair grade to both bone only as well as the harder ridge area. 








Note that the blade that hit the ridge, retracted back into the ferrule. This blade rode the edge of the ridge within the ferrule while the blade that was in flesh only maintained it's full cutting area.
The blade that impacted the ridge received a twist near the center of that blade. The twist was small enough that the head was able to be re-closed despite this bend.


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## Northwood lures (Jan 23, 2013)

The second shot showed again that the blades retract on hard bone impact, as can be seen in the picture below.








The hole has been highlighted in this picture.








Lines leaving the area of impact are stress fractures.
Below are the blades after the bone test and the results of the sharpness test after the bone test.
















The blades were 100% dulled on all points of contact.
To highlight this fact the head was run through the rubber band grid again, with the results shown below.








No bands were cut after 3 passes through the grid.
*Overview*
I am not impressed with this head as it did not perform within a reasonable expectation when considering the price . The blades ended up baseball dull after the bone test, which is not what I want to see in any broadhead. The ferrule is top notch IMO but needs to be fitted with better blades, considering what I saw.
While penetration is not part of testing, this head gave the results I would normally expect to see, given a head that is of this size.
The downside of this head is that it covers less area than a smaller three blade expandable and also has a greater resistance to penetration than a smaller multi-blade head but then again, that may not be an issue with a bow that has plenty of kinetic energy. 
What is of further concern is the fact that the blades are driven back into the ferrule when hard bone is contacted, as was seen in the scapula test.
The reason for my concern is that the next thing the blades are contacting is the lungs. The lungs are not the most substantial items to deploy a head. With the fact that the blades are already bowling ball smooth after exiting the bone, this suggests that without their cutting edge, the same result will happen as the head enters the lungs. The dull blades will act to resist as they did in the bone and will continue to stay closed or only partially open.
I am not saying this is a 100% guarantee but it is a 100% possibility considering how the head reacted in testing. I personally saw this same thing happen with a Rage low K.E. head not one year ago where the head retracted and stayed retracted throughout the process of entering and passing through a hog. While the entrance and exits were good on the flesh side, the bone and internals held a small hole as tests on this head showed here. The animal which this happened to was very much alive and in it's bed when it was killed over 8 hours later.

I love the ferrule but beyond that I am not inclined to use this head due to cost and function. This head passed 2 of 4 standards and therefore received a 2 star rating.


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## MillDoo (May 28, 2004)

Could you provide more details next time:lol: Great report North!! Have you done other tests and what broadhead does the best overall?


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## smoob2010 (Jan 19, 2011)

Awesome test and great info makes me think twice about these!!
They just look so awesome!!


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## kisherfisher (Apr 6, 2008)

MillDoo said:


> Could you provide more details next time:lol: Great report North!! Have you done other tests and what broadhead does the best overall?


Great report North. Love your passionfor a true answer! I guess a similer question would be , what broadhead do you trust after your extensive testing?. I kind of feel like I am cheating on a test, but it appears you have done this before. Thanks.


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## bassburner (Jan 6, 2011)

Awesome testing. Thanks for doing our homework for us. Much appreciated


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## smoob2010 (Jan 19, 2011)

I was wondering from the guy who did the test if he has any reviews for the other rages just curious on what you have?


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