Arrow nock/ fletching position

Lowly Darton · 07-29-2003, 07:21 PM

Got laid-off awhile back, figured I' d dust off the old recurve (20 yrs. worth) & try the old basics & SIMPLE(?) way of hunting. Just got some new arrows in.
I' ve included a pic taken from the rear with a ruler running thru the 2 nocks.

These are supposedly left wing helical. I shoot right-handed, the top arrow( the way they came in) is nocked perpendicular to the rear of the feather. The bottom is perpendicular to the front of the feather.
Which is correct? I thought the fletch was to twist away from the rest. Yet the top one runs completely right into the rest.
As you can tell, I' m totally lost on this left wing, right wing, left helical, etc.
Thanks for any help & please be gentle on an old fool.
John

Dick4bows · 07-29-2003, 07:33 PM

The bottom picture is how I index mine. Dick

LBR · 07-29-2003, 08:50 PM

Yep--what Dick said. It shouldn' t make much if any difference as far as arrow flight goes with feathers, but you will get less wear and tear on the fletching.

By the way, welcome to the board and back into the sport! Don' t be bashful about asking questions--shoot, we all had to learn (and are still learning!).

Chad

Lowly Darton · 07-29-2003, 09:11 PM

Dick & Chad - Many Thanks

So this doesn' t happen again, is there a name or term for these 2 types of indexing?

Also, these are beautifully stained & laquered & when I try to heat the nocks to remove or turn, the finish catches fire. (These things would make some great flaming arrows)[>:]
Any ideas?
I was thinking of trying to wrap the ends in tin foil, this may allow the heat to do it' s job without damage to the finish?
Thanks Again

Arthur P · 07-30-2003, 07:43 AM

You' ve got cock feather out and cock feather up. I' ve used both, depending on what the bow likes. I know several bowyers that recommend cock feather up because of their shelf design.

arrowsmit · 08-02-2003, 05:56 PM

I' m w/Arthur, some bows seem real picky about fletch/nock orientation while others seem to not matter. In theory, w/the right spined arrow the fletchings will never contact the shelf (so the orientation won' t matter), but I' ve found this to be impossible w/some set-ups. Actually it' s usually the quill of the fletching that' s the culprit. Since you have arrows set-up both ways, I' d experiment to see which shoots best.

Vic

BTW, I cut the nocks off wood arrows, so never tried heat on ' em...