Capt Jack,

What is the reason for feathers only on your hunting arrows?
I know there are those that use plastic vanes. Did you find
a big difference in a hunting situation between vanes and
feathers? Thanks.

Strongbow- feathers are much more forgiving than vanes- they're a little slower but also quieter in flight. In competition on a field range where the distances are up to 80yds- vanes give you much flatter arrow flight but when we're bow hunting we want stability and dependability. Your string knock can be a little off- your brace height down a little from string stretch- whatever- you're going to get better flight from the feathers (even when they get wet).
Everyone gets so excited about speed. Since most bow kills are around 20yds and less than 10% are 40yds why do we need all the speed.
All we need is a forgiving, easy to shoot 45# recurve with a good strong aluminum arrow, bullet-proof, very sharp, hard carbon steel broadhead with an arrow weight over 550grains. You'll shoot through most every time. The dozen 2018s I'm using now are 30yrs old!- killed over 20 animals with the same dozen- probably won't ever need to buy any more. I do have a fletching jig and replace the occasional smashed feather while watching TV on the coffee table I've never completely refletched any of them, just the damaged feathers.
KeepItSimple!

This is my Partners bow- it's 15yrs old- there's the 30yr old 2018s with Zwickey 125grn 2blade Eskimos- note one of them is a FluFlu with five full fletches- it also has an "adder" behind the broadhead. I also duck & goose hunt with my bows. The adder slows down the penetration on impact- works sort of like a judo point but screws in behind a regular broadhead- I'll post a pic later.






CaptJack
Be a better Hunter - Get a better Shot

Edited by - CaptJack on 10/20/2002 00:38:04

Capt Jack,

Thanks for answering my question about feathers versus vanes
in a hunting situation.