Swhacker Broadheads

What Swhacker makes for bowhunters

Swhacker makes one product type on this site: broadheads, the sharp hunting heads that screw onto the front of an arrow or bolt. Inside that one type, the lineup splits into two families you'll see in the grid above:

• Two-blade mechanicals: closed in flight, opened by contact, in 100-grain and 125-grain weights
• Fixed-blade heads: four-blade RAZORSeries heads, a three-blade Levi Morgan fixed head, and a three-blade single-bevel head

The mechanicals carry the brand's name around camp, and most of the grid is mechanical. The fixed heads are a smaller group, all at 100 grain in the listings.

A few housekeeping notes. Most specs in the grid came from Amazon listings, and the grid marks those values. Where I quote numbers from the maker's own product pages, I say so. And where a listing leaves a field blank, the grid shows a dash. A dash is a missing cell, not a zero.

The grid also changes as listings come and go. So I'll write about the families and what separates them, not about how many of each are listed this week.

How the Swhacker mechanical broadhead works

Here's what actually changes compared to most mechanical heads. A typical mechanical has one set of blades that opens on contact. Swhacker's two-blade heads have two sets of edges, and the maker calls the idea "slice-twice."

On the maker's page for the #261 Levi Morgan Series, the order goes like this:

1. Wing blades go in first. They're much smaller than the main blades and cut the hide and the first ribs.
2. Main blades swing open after that. The maker says they aren't dulled by hide or bone on the way in, because the wing blades took that wear.

So the blades that do the main cutting reach the inside sharp. That's the whole design, in two steps.

The maker lists the same build across its mechanical pages: 0.031-inch stainless blades, an anodized aircraft aluminum ferrule (the body the blades hang on), and a hardened steel tip. In flight, the heads it describes are 1 inch wide closed. They open to the cut listed on the package.

Bands, plugs and Blade-Lock

Something has to keep a mechanical shut until it hits. Swhacker uses two systems.

• Bands: small retention bands that hold the blades closed. The maker's band guidance splits at 420 FPS (FPS = arrow speed in feet per second). Standard bands go on compound bows and crossbows below that; high-speed bands go on crossbows above it.
• Blade-Lock: a set screw that locks the blades closed for target practice. For hunting, you swap the screw for a hunt-ready plug or a standard band, per the maker's #282 page.

The packs the maker describes for the Levi Morgan and Hank Parker heads include bands, Blade-Lock screws and hunt-ready plugs. Read the insert in your pack before the first shot. The swap from practice to hunt mode is a Saturday-at-the-range job, not a tailgate job at 5:30 a.m.

Lineup notes: Swhacker mechanical broadheads

100-grain mechanicals

The 100-grain group covers the original Two-Slice heads, the #219 crossbow head, the #261 Levi Morgan and the #307. The listings put their open cuts a little under or right at 2 inches.

• #207 Two-Slice and #219 Crossbow: the long-running two-blade designs. The maker's #219 page lists a 1-inch closed width and a 1.75-inch cut.
• #261 Levi Morgan Series: a 2-inch cut, curved blades and what the maker calls a reinforced ribbed ferrule.
• #307: the Blade-Lock head built for both sides of the fence. The maker lists a 2-inch cut, 0.031-inch blades, compound and crossbow rating, and Made in USA.

The series name belongs to Levi Morgan, whom FL Outdoors describes as a 13-time World Archery Champion. The name tells you whose signature is on it. The cut and grain tell you what it does.

125-grain mechanicals

The 125-grain group is for heavier setups, and its cuts run wider: from the same cut as the narrower 100-grain heads up to the widest head in the lineup, the #269.

• #202 Two-Slice: a 2.25-inch cut, listed as crossbow rated
• #263, #264 and #269 Levi Morgan: from the 1.75-inch cuts up to the 2.5-inch #269
• #282 Hank Parker Series: a 2.25-inch cut; the maker lists a 1-inch closed width and Blade-Lock
• Crossbow Steel: a 2-inch cut, listed as crossbow rated

Quick math on grain: 125 grain is 25 grain more than 100, about 1/17 of an ounce (437.5 grain to the ounce). Tiny on a kitchen scale. Not tiny at the front of an arrow, where it moves your front-of-center balance and your sight marks.

Crossbow-rated heads

Crossbow bolts come off the string faster than most compound arrows, so the band question matters more there. Several heads in the grid are listed as crossbow rated, in both weights. The maker's split is simple: over 420 FPS, use its high-speed bands. If your crossbow's speed sits near that line, the crossbow broadheads page covers what else to check, and the crossbow bolts page covers the shafts.

Lineup notes: Swhacker fixed-blade broadheads

RAZORSeries four-blade heads

The RAZORSeries heads in the grid are four-blade fixed heads at 100 grain with a 1-inch cut, per the listings. "Four-blade" here means two main blades plus two smaller bleeder blades. On its page for the RAZORSeries #252, the maker describes blades of solid 420 stainless steel up to 0.065 inch thick, which is about twice the 0.031 of its mechanical blades. It also calls the series American-made.

A thicker blade on a narrower cut is the classic fixed-head trade. You get a smaller hole and no moving parts.

Levi Morgan fixed head

The #262 is the fixed member of the Levi Morgan family: three blades, 100 grain, a 1.25-inch cut, and listed as crossbow rated. It's the fixed head for someone who likes the series but wants nothing that opens.

#311 single-bevel head

The #311 is the newest-looking head in the grid. The maker lists 100 grain, a 1.2-inch cut, 0.031-inch stainless blades with a single bevel, a hardened stainless tip, and compound and crossbow compatibility. Single bevel means each blade is sharpened on one side only. The maker says the design splinters bone. It also says the head works with right and left helical fletching.

How to choose within the Swhacker lineup

Mechanical or fixed first

That's the big fork. A mechanical flies closed and opens wider after it enters. A fixed head has no moving parts and a smaller cut. The mechanical broadheads and fixed blade broadheads pages lay out that trade across brands.

Mechanical broadheads are legal for hunting in every state now, per the Archery Trade Association, which reported Idaho as the last state to allow them. Rules on cut width and crossbow use still vary, so check your state wildlife agency before you buy.

Then grain weight

Here's my one opinion on this page: there's no best grain weight, only the one that matches your setup. Your arrow or bolt maker lists a point weight range, and your sight marks are tuned to whatever you shoot now. Swhacker's split is easy to read: 100 grain or 125 grain. Pick the one that matches your field points, so your practice and your hunting heads weigh the same. The hunting arrows page covers the arrow side.

Then cut diameter

Wider cuts are the reason people buy mechanicals. They also take more energy to open and push through. The mechanicals run from just under 2 inches to the widest cut in the lineup on the #269, and the fixed heads stay near an inch. Match the cut to your bow's energy and your state's rules.

Then the practice plan

This is where Swhacker models differ in a way people miss. Blade-Lock models (the #307, the #261 and the #282 among them) let you practice with the hunting head itself. Other models need a separate practice head, and several product pages say one isn't included. Swhacker's #316 practice points are 100 grain, and the maker says they match the flight of its 100-grain mechanicals.

Getting Swhacker broadheads ready for opening day

Bowhunter's opening-day prep article gives a sequence that works for any head:

• Shoot broadheads early: the last two weeks before season, shoot the heads you'll hunt with
• Test at your longest yardage: field-point groups don't promise broadhead groups
• Spin each arrow: a wobble means a bad head, a bent insert, or a bent shaft
• Weigh each head: a grain scale checks it against the maker's stated weight
• Check sharpness: on paper or a thumbnail; a dull head stays home

The same article warns against shooting groups with fixed heads, since they can damage arrows and other heads. One arrow per spot. (I learned that from a spreadsheet column labeled "replacement shafts." It's a sad column.)

For mechanicals, check the bands. A band that's stretched, cracked or missing changes when the blades open, and the maker sells replacements in both standard and high-speed versions.

Safety with broadheads

Broadheads are sharp out of the package, and the wing blades on a mechanical are sharp too. Wisconsin's DNR recommends a covered quiver to protect you and the points. Thread heads on with the blades closed or locked, and use a broadhead wrench, not your fingers. On a crossbow, keep your fingers out of the string path while it's cocked.

Swhacker facts

What I could verify on the maker's own site:

• Maker: FL Outdoors, which says it's the manufacturer of Swhacker, TAC Vanes and C'Mere Deer
• Location: FL Outdoors lists its address in Covington, Georgia
• Where made: FL Outdoors' about page says Swhacker heads are built in the USA, and product pages like the #307 and #311 list Made in USA
• Signature series: the Levi Morgan and Hank Parker series carry the names of the brand's pro partners, per the maker

Write the grain weight on the broadhead case lid with a marker. Next November, the lid will remember.