Im wanting to try feathers for next year maybe even for this year but i know absolutely nothing about them. I was looking in cabelas and there is left wing and right wing, whats the difference? Also there is 5",4", and 3", which would be the best or does it matter? I have a jo jan fletcher with a right helical clamp, can i fletch them with that? Sorry for my ignorance but i know nothing about them, thanks in advance for any help.

Since you have a right helical clamp, you are going to want to buy and use ONLY right wing feathers. The difference being which side of a turkey they come off of. Since feathers have a natural curve to them, they will make an arrow spin in different directions... if you were to fletch a left wing feather with a right helical (if it would stick) you'd have two forces trying to fight each other... I suspect your arrow would fly like a bottle rocket with no stick.

Honestly, length doesn't matter all that much unless you are using some haneous fixed blade head like a buck blaster or a gobbler gillotine. 4" will work fine... or you could try out the 2" Razor feathers.

Feathers are expensive, and if you don't fletch them properly, they won't stay on worth a hoot. Even at that, they are not overwhelmingly tough. They do, however, stabilize an arrow faster and probably better than just about anything ever made by man. A bit on the noisy side, and you'll want use waterproofing too.

I didn't even realize fleathers came in 2", i think i will be giving them a try, thanks for the advice.

Thanks for swampcollie's reply-I had forgotten about that of the right vs left wing thing since I only use right wing for my right helical for so long,it's been AGES since I've ordered feathers. What I personally use is 5" helical and NEVER have a problem after tuning bow/arrows with flight with almost any broadhead I've ever tried.All I can say is to my way of thinking,there's no such thing as too much stability or too much accuracy. Sure,other setups or vanes will do the job,but I seriously doubt that my 5" helical feathers are slowing my arrows down much within my acceptable range.

I shoot 4in parabolics out of my GTO. Yet to find anything as accurate as these...

All good info and advise here. One thing to add is that shield cut stabilize a bit better than parabolic (rounded) cut and they look cooler too. I haven't seen any better performance from 5" than from 4" so my preference on my traditional shafts is for 4". If I were in a drier climate I'd use feathers exclusively but they don't hold up well to moisture and being dragged through the brush constantly.

Not to argue with ya Kodiak, but parabolics are also considerably quieter, so they both have their trade offs. I do like the looks of the shield though.

I know i made this thread a long time ago but i have another question. I read on another thread that i will lose down range KE if i switch to feathers. So wouldn't this be bad since im using the rage 2 blade? And im only pulling 60lbs so that dosent help either. How much will i lose say at 30yrds? 40yrds? Or am i over thinking this too much?

Thanks again, Wayne

Those damn Rage's really throw me curve balls. I've had guys shoot deer at 80 yards with them at 63#'s and just eat them up.... then guys shoot them at 23 yards with 72#s and couldn't by a pass through. These are my "believeable" customers... the regulars... the hardcore's. I can put stock in their results. They are just so night and day though.

The amount of energy you lose out to 40 yards with feathers vs vanes is academic really. It is beyond 40 yards that feathers and vanes start to have some pretty stark differences. Vanes will be faster out of the gate... but they have a lot more drag, which is part of the reason they stabilize so well. But more drag will mean they slow down faster.

With all the issues folks have been having with Rages', I am hesititant to recommend them to anyone who isn't shooting a ridiculous amount of KE... over 75 ft/#s.

Im 2 for 2 with the rages. I shot a doe and my buck withthem. The doe was 18 yards and the buck was 28 yards and i got pass thrus and both. I probably wont be shooting any farther than 30 yards soi guess ill be fine? I like the extra accuracy i will get with feathers but im just worried big boy will step out at say... 30 yards and will getbad penetration and lose the deer.

Wayne