Feathers are better in any situation period!!!! If you have any contact what so ever, a feather will colapse and forgive. Aplastic vane will fold or ramp off and cause irratic flight. If there is anything we can all agree on is that while bow hunting, anything that can go wrong=will go wrong. Just think if you finally get that shot on the buck of a lifetime and you shoot too close to a limb, the feather might just give and brush the limb a little, while the vane might kick and through the arrows path off right into the sholder blade!!! Far fetched,maybe. Possible, definatly!!!!!! Plus, feathers are lighter than plastic vanes, most of them anyway...............