Feathers or Vanes??
 

I am looking to buy a dozen new arrows to be dipped and such and I was wondering which would be better, vanes or feathers? I have shot a bow with feathered arrows and I liked them, but I wonder if i could use them for my bow. A browning compound, 55#, 28" draw, aluminum arrows. Any help?;)

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Feathers are the best way to go IMO:)

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Feathers all the way.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

You have to use the one that would best suit your needs.

1. - Feathers are more forgiving than vanes as far as rest clearence goes unless you shoot a drop away than this point is null.

and

2. - Vanes are much better in harsh weather such as rain whereas feathers will tend to lay flat when they get soaked. and vanes are much more durable and last longer.


so it's really up to you as to which one better suits your needs, good luck.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

I was constantly refletching arrows and replacing torn up, shot up vanes. Since I switched back to feathers on ALL my arrows, I have to knock cobwebs and dust off my fletching jig before I can use it. It's that long between fletching sessions now. I have found feathers to be far more durable than vanes.

The one and only advantage vanes have over feathers is they are waterproof.

Feathers are much more forgiving of rest contact. They stabilize the arrow quicker coming off the bow. They are much lighter than vanes, with means your arrows have better FOC balance AND they shoot faster over normal hunting distances. They don't have that plastic smell, which is one area of scent elimination a lot of guys don't even consider.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Feathers..............go with the feathers.......they will work for your setup!

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

i think vanes are ugly and feathers are cool. but i use vanes there quiet they don't get wet there durable when shooting single targets and not groups. and as forgivness no problem drop away.as a hunter i will always use vanes to many +s not to. but there still ugly.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Arthur; I tried Scotchgard fabric spray on feathers and they hold up well in rainy Rochester, NY. I do spray with a cover scent and have not had any problems, so far. This was 1st yr. trying so I will wait and see if the product seems to affect feathers over a longer time span.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

As far as feathers being more durable, I have found the opposite to be true. I don't know about anyone else. When shooting feathers, if any part of the feather enters too far into the target it gets all mangled and unable to shoot. I also noticed that if you have any rest contact then the feather will start to wear at the point of contact. As far as vanes, you can hit the rest and shoot through any target you want. Yes, they will be all wrinkled but if you take a hairdryer to them they straighten out as good as new with no need to re-fletch. The only time I ever have to refletch vanes is if I am too lazy to keep pulling arrows and shoot 6 into a bunch causing me too shoot through a vane. (This would be easily avoidable if I wasn't such a bonehead)

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

First, just smooth the feathers back into shape and keep shooting. Second, just like taking your hairdryer to your vanes to straighten them out, you take a mangled feather and run it through the steam coming out of the spout of a tea kettle and it straightens right back like new.

Anybody that's ever done any field archery or 3D tournament shooting whatsoever knows how durable feathers are in comparison to vanes. When you've got 3-4 other guys shooting at your nock, you don't want vanes on your arrows.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

What are the feathers everyone is talking about here made of. I've heard the idea that the rain causes problems with the feathers. I assumed those were real feathers like from a pheasant or something. If they are made of plastic why would the rain affect them any different than vanes. I know dumb question.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

DC, they are real feathers. They're taken from turkey wings. You can find out everything you never knew you could know about feathers here:

www.trueflightfeathers.com/

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

I use feathers for hunting, vanes for target archery. Feathers give you a few more fps, not much. They are more forgiving if you don't shoot a drop away. If your bow is tuned perfectly, at short ranges it won't matter if your feathers are wet. I shot one of my better scores in the rain with feathers.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Feathers here too!![8D]

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

"…..unless you shoot a drop away than this point is null."

Not true! There are several other advantage vs. disadvantage factors then just feather/vane clearance (contact) of rest.

"….vanes are much more durable and last longer.

Not true as a "blanket" statement! Too many differing factors exist. I have some feather-fletched arrows from the early 70's. The feathers are still strongly attached to the shaft and in great condition.

In time, sometimes in short time, vinyl/plastic will warp, wrinkle, cut, and rot.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

If you re-read my original statement when I said "this point is null" I was refering to fletching clearence upon release and nothing more. And in fact, if you do shoot a drop away then fletching clearence should be a mute argument. If it is not then I would recomend buying a new drop away. At no point did I make any statemet referring to anything else being null. You are arguing against something I didn't even say.

Also when I said that vanes hold up better in harsh weather, I still FEEL that this is an accurate statement. Granted you will find a few people who shot feathers in the rain from really close distances and made good shots (I didn't say that everything was 100%). But in general if you had to rely on feathers or vanes in the rain you would have to say vanes. And if you still don't agree then there is no point discussing this matter any further because some people just like feathers and they will give no credit to vanes whatsoever.

As far as it being a "blanket" statement, of course it is. The original question was Feathers or vanes? not orange barred Feathers made by tru-flite between 1975 and 1978 vs. Red 4" vanes made in 1999. I just said that overall I have noticed that vanes hold up much better. I understand that you can straighten feathers out but I have had too many people shoot small pieces out of my feathers. Even though they do lay back down I still don't like it when I can see through them (once again, my personal experience and not written in stone). Please remember that in no point during my entire post did I say that anyone HAD to shoot vanes. All of these statements are from my findings and in my opinion. I understand that everyone has there own personal likes and dislikes. As far as feathers go, yes they are more forgiving, and do fly better than vanes, to this I agree, however if no one has any good points to give vanes than this topic should be call "why feathers are so great" and not "Feathers or Vanes ?"

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

OK guys, let's not get into arguments here;) Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I just like to hear from anyone and everyone to get all kinds of ideas.

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Thanks Arthur P. I checked out the trueflight site. Maybe I should be starting a new thread here but ole well I'm posting it here. I noticed that on their site you can send them your own turkey feathers and they will do their magic and send them back for a small fee. Well my question is has anyone here ever tried to make their own feather fletchings from turkey feathers. I have two wings in the freezer.[:-]

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

another vote here for feathers

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Very true and considering that this is the number one tuning problem , feathers go a long way in makeing archery fun instead of a chore . I allso find myself in agreement with c903 feathers have many other advantages . I shoot a fallaway rest and would much rather have arrows with feathers on them in my quiver than vanes .

RE: Feathers or Vanes??
 

Feathers all the way!