New Archery Products (NAP) Broadheads, Rests and Nocks

What New Archery Products makes for bowhunters

New Archery Products, usually just NAP, is mainly a broadhead maker. Its own site sorts the catalog into broadheads (mechanical, fixed blade and crossbow), fletching, and accessories: nocks, arrow rests, stabilizers and bowfishing parts. The grid above follows the same shape:

• Broadheads: most of the grid, in mechanical, fixed and hybrid designs
• Fletching: Quikfletch sleeves with QuikSpin, Twister and Hellfire vanes
• Lighted nocks: Thunderglo, for arrows and for half-moon crossbow bolts
• Arrow rests: the Centerest and Flipper, the Nighthawk drop-away, and a bowfishing rest
• Stabilizer: the Apache Stealth dampening model

This site doesn't cover bowfishing gear, so the Anchor Glow bowfishing rest in the grid gets only this line.

The grid filters by type and changes as packs come and go. I'll write about the families and what separates them, not the count. Most of the specs in the grid come from Amazon listings and are marked that way. Where the maker's own page says more, I've used it.

Lineup notes: NAP mechanical broadheads

A mechanical broadhead keeps its blades folded in flight and opens them on impact. goHUNT's explainer puts the trade simply: mechanicals usually fly like field points out of the box, but they spend some of the arrow's energy opening, so light setups are advised against them.

Spitfire: the three-blade family

The Spitfire is the line most people search for by name. The maker lists the original at 1-1/2 inches of cut with three blades, in 100 and 125 grains, and a practice head sold separately. The blades stay closed with what the maker calls patented spring clip technology, with no rubber bands or o-rings. (My hair ties are safe.)

The family grows sideways from there, per the listings:

• Spitfire Maxx: 1-3/4 inch cut, three blades
• Spitfire Edge: 1-3/4 inch, three blades (its listing doesn't give the head type)
• Spitfire XXX: 2 inches, three blades
• Spitfire Double Cross: 2 inches, crossbow-rated
• DK4 Spitfire Hybrid: 1-3/4 inch, listed as a hybrid

A hybrid mixes fixed and moving blades on one ferrule. The listing doesn't break down which blades do what, so the grid only shows the type.

Killzone: the wide two-blades

The Killzone is NAP's two-blade rear-deploying mechanical, per the maker. The original lists a 2-inch cut, 100 and 125 grains, and a choice of a Cut On Contact tip (a sharpened point) or what the maker calls the Trophy Tip. It uses the same spring-clip retention as the Spitfire, and replacement blades and a practice head are sold separately.

The Killzone Maxx goes wider: 2-3/8 inches in its listing. That's the widest cut in NAP's part of the grid.

Slingblade and Shockwave

The Slingblade Crossbow lists two blades and a 1-7/8 inch cut. The Slingblade 4 Ti Crossbow is a four-blade version with .031-inch blades. The Shockwave is the narrow mechanical here, at 1-1/4 inches and .03-inch blades per its listing.

Lineup notes: NAP fixed-blade broadheads

A fixed blade has nothing to open. goHUNT notes the flip side: fixed heads show up any tuning problem in your setup, so tune first and change heads second.

Thunderhead

The Thunderhead is NAP's original fixed head, and Archery Business wrote in 2019 that it was still a go-to after 40 years. The maker lists three blades, 85, 100 and 125-grain weights, replaceable blades, and a micro-grooved Slimline ferrule (the ferrule is the body the blades mount to). The maker's own page gives two different cutting diameters. The crossbow listing in the grid shows 1-3/16 inches, which matches the maker's spec table.

For a feel of the size: 1-3/16 inches is close to the width of a half dollar. The Killzone Maxx is about two half dollars side by side.

Thunderhead Nitro

The Nitro is the compact one. The maker lists 100 grains, three blades, a 1-1/16 inch cut and all-steel construction, and calls it "100% American made." It's the narrowest cut in the grid and crossbow-rated in its listing.

Hellrazor

The Hellrazor is a one-piece solid steel fixed head, per the maker: no loose blades, a 1-1/8 inch cut, three blades, and cut-on-contact. The maker sells 100 and 125-grain versions and a dedicated practice head. Two Hellrazor listings in the grid are crossbow-rated.

Endgame

The Endgame 2-Blade lists a fixed head, 1-3/16 inches, two blades at .031 inch. Two blades or three is the main difference from the Thunderhead at nearly the same width. goHUNT's rule of thumb: fewer blades tend to penetrate better, more blades tend to cut more tissue.

NAP crossbow broadheads

Most NAP families come in a crossbow version. The maker's crossbow category lists Thunderhead, Thunderhead Nitro, Hellrazor, Endgame, Spitfire, Spitfire Maxx, Spitfire XXX, Spitfire Double Cross, Killzone and Slingblade versions, among others. In the grid, crossbow-rated heads are marked, and most are 100 grains. The Thunderhead Crossbow and the Hellrazor Crossbow also come in 125.

Your crossbow maker sets the bolt and point weight it allows, so read that page of the manual before choosing between 100 and 125. The crossbow broadheads page covers the type across brands. Crossbow seasons and broadhead rules vary by state, so check your state wildlife agency.

NAP fletching, nocks, rests and the stabilizer

Quikfletch

Quikfletch is a sleeve with vanes already on it. The maker's instruction sheet is three steps: slide it onto the arrow, dip it in boiling water for 8 to 10 seconds, and wait 15 minutes. It's the only archery part I know of that comes with cooking instructions. (Danny asked if the coffee maker counts. The sheet says boiling.) The maker says you replace one by slicing and peeling, and the shaft stays clean.

The grid has 2-inch versions in QuikSpin, Twister and Hellfire vane styles, in 3-vane and 4-vane setups, and 3-inch crossbow versions. More on vanes is on the fletching page.

Thunderglo lighted nocks

Thunderglo nocks turn on by themselves when the arrow is shot, per the maker, and stay lit until you click them off. The maker says the arrow nocks use universal collars that fit shafts marked G, X, H or S. The grid has a compound arrow version and half-moon crossbow versions in red and green. See the lighted nocks page and best lighted nocks for other makers.

Arrow rests

The rests run from simple to fancy:

• Flipper: a stick-on rest, listed for compound and recurve
• Centerest and Centerest Flipper: the maker sells both in right and left-hand versions
• Nighthawk: a full-containment drop-away with a magnesium housing, Santoprene sound dampening and laser-etched tuning marks, right-hand only per the maker

A drop-away rest holds the arrow at full draw and falls out of the way when you shoot. The drop-away arrow rest page explains the type.

Apache Stealth stabilizer

The Apache Stealth is a dampening stabilizer per its listing. The bow stabilizer page covers lengths and weights across brands.

How to choose within the NAP lineup

Fixed or mechanical

That's the first fork. Mechanicals give a wider cut and usually field-point flight. Fixed heads give simplicity and nothing to open. The mechanical and fixed-blade pages go deeper.

Match the cut to your setup's energy

My one opinion for this page: pick the cutting diameter by how much energy your setup carries, not by the widest number in the grid. goHUNT's reasoning: mechanicals spend energy opening, many bows above 55 lb of draw weight handle them well on most big game, and lighter setups lose energy quickly. On a light bow, the narrower heads (Shockwave, Thunderhead, Hellrazor, Nitro) ask less of the arrow than a 2-3/8 inch Killzone Maxx.

Then decide how you'll keep it sharp

The lineup splits here too. The maker lists replacement blades for the Killzone, the Thunderhead and the Thunderhead Nitro, so a dull or bent blade gets swapped, not the whole head. The Hellrazor is one piece of steel, per the maker, with no blades to swap. A Hellrazor gets sharpened or retired. Neither is wrong. It's whether you'd rather own a sharpener or a small bag of spare blades. (I own both. The bag of blades is easier to find.)

Then weight and blade count

Most NAP heads here are 100 grains, and a few are 125. Your arrow's total weight and spine decide which you need, not the broadhead box. The broadheads page explains how the head weight fits the arrow.

Getting NAP broadheads ready

Bowhunter's opening-day checklist covers what a head needs before the season:

• Spin test: spin each broadhead-tipped arrow and watch the tip for wobble
• Weigh: check each head on a grain scale against the maker's listed weight
• Line up: on fixed heads, align the blades with the vanes
• Practice: shoot broadheads only for about two weeks before the season, with a few heads bought just for practice

NAP sells practice heads for the Spitfire, Killzone and Hellrazor. They save the hunting heads for hunting.

Safety

Keep broadheads in a covered case or quiver, and handle them with the blades away from your hands. Use a wrench or a broadhead tool to screw them on. Never dry-fire a bow or crossbow.

NAP facts

Here's what I could verify:

• Founded: 1971, per Archery Business (2019)
• Founder: the late Andy Simo, who worked for Lockheed on the Saturn rocket before founding NAP
• Where: the NAP site lists GSM Outdoors at an address in Irving, Texas
• Made: the maker calls the Thunderhead Nitro "100% American made"; it doesn't state origin on the other heads I read

The warranty page on NAP's site covers a ground blind, not broadheads, so I've left warranty terms out.

Spin every head before it goes in the quiver. A wobble found at the kitchen table is a two-minute fix. A wobble found in October costs a weekend.