Bowhunters - feathers vs plastic vanes

[clfergus]

Well I had been shooting pretty good through my whisker bis with goldtips and 2 inch blazers. Sometimes I would have a flyer but I attributed that to me.

I had the WB professionally installed and was shooting keyholes.

I did notice that I had slight markings on my vanes, looked white/grey. I was perplexed so I broke down and journeyed to the Outdoorsman today.

Tim told me that my setup looked good and that most likely on some of my shots were due to bad form and it was contacting the WB. He said it was a combo of jerky and the stiffness of the vane passing through the WB.

He suggest I try some 4 inch feathers. He said the arrows would pass more free with the feathers.

I bought two to try...didn't even know you could find these to be honest.

Tried them out and I do think my groups are better and accurate. It does seem like my speed might have decreased. Maybe its that i can actually see the spin of these feathers in flight that throws me off.

He also said my arrows were dangerously too short..only an inch in front of my rest and could slice my finger off if i jerked while hunting. He took me from a 26 to 28 inch...just at the tip of my riser.

Could the 2 inches slow down the arrow as well?

Tim said all of the shop guys shoot feathers vs plastic vanes. Curious on the input.

 

[RichardR]

I've always used plastic vanes, I might have to pick up some feathered & give them a try.

 

[brotherbill3]

4" Feathers will slow down the arrow more ... both initially (as they are heavier); and they increase resistance.

Also - I think Whisker Biscuit recommends only using blazer or similar 1" vanes. the 4" feathers will wear more themselves but will also increase the wear on the biscuit itself. I use the "Octane - Hostage Rest" ... and I will soon need to replace the brushes - even though I use the blazer vanes. ... they would wear out quicker with longer vanes (and even more with feathers)

I personally have my arrows very short - my broad heads are probably even w/ my riser when at full draw. but I have no idea how the broad head there in a 'capture' rest - could slice your finger off? ... but unless changed arrow TYPE ... to get a lower grains / inch ... you just added anywhere from 15 to 25 grains with the change in length too.

That is probably about 40 grains difference overall - and that's about 10 or 20 FPS slower at release.

Do a search for "Jackson's Archery Page" - there are some velocity and archery ballistics calculator pages on there that will show you the difference. I can't get it to load ... but here is the link:
http://home.att.net/~sajackson/archery.html

(never had a problem before now) ...

Good Luck

"Brother" Bill

 

[kwatters]

depending on what arrows you shoot you may be adding 14-25 grains of weight in the extra arrow length plus the additional weight of the feathers.
That makes a small difference, the big difference in speed will the the feathers as they put much more drag on your arrow. This also contributes to the better shooting as they stabilize the arrow more. I shoot 2 inch blazers myself and the bow needs to be tuned properly for sure.

 

[Anonym]

I'm switching from Duravane Predators (like Blazers) to Gateway Rayzr feathers this year. They are lighter than Blazers, steer the head very well, and are more forgiving if you have any contact with them compared to a plastic vane.

One word of advice, I'm not sure I'd shoot any feathers through a biscuit as they'll wear very badly and you'll be replacing them more often. Honestly, I'm not sure a 4" feather would weigh more than the blazer. Probably close, so your speed should not be due to the weight difference. They do have a rougher surface which could slow it down a bit, but that's where you get the increased control out of the arrow flight.

One last thing to consider before switching up too much is whether that 2" of extra length is going to throw the arrow spine off from what your bow poundage needs. Your shop, if they're any good at all, should be able to help you with that or you can get a good idea by looking at the spine calculator program on the Easton website...

Anonym

 

[clfergus]

I guess the extra length might be the culprit. I checked online and the blazers are heavier than my 4 inch feathers. But my old goldtips were 8.2gr/in where these new easton ST excels are 8.6. Sp right off the bat i increased the weight some 17.2 gr...then just by going to a heavier arrow in general i added an addl 11.2 gr.

I guess I never paid that close of attention being a second year hunter. I guess 28 grains would cause slight slower speeds.

 

[DragonGunner]

According to Chuck Adams, plastic vanes add about 45 gr to the arrow...feathers add nothing to the arrow, so if your arrow feels like its slower it would be the the extra 2" of arrow. I am a firm believer that feathers with a slight twist fly better than plastic, but the differance for some shooters may be slight. Plastic may be better in rain, but I've never had a problem with feathers in any condition.

 

[JDubb]

I have shot both style. I used the feathers on slower bows, but I currently use the 2" vanes. I like them both, all depends on shooter, set-up, etc.........

 

[griff5687]

Swtiched from the 4in plastic vanes to teh 2 in blazers 3 yrs ago. I'll never go back

 

[Yeah]

I like FOBs. Doesn't seem to matter much with field points but they are much better with broadheads.

Started with them because I got too lazy to refletch my beat up arrows. They won't go through a whisker biscuit though, only drop aways.

 

[Tryin']

I used quikspins, fusions, regular 4" vanes, and Razyr "feathers". The durability on the Razyrs SUCKS, I developed chatter with the 4 inch vanes, and the Fusions wouldn't always stabilize my arrow for a number of reasons.

I bought a Ripcord and some FOBs and never looked back. . .

 

[Jack Ryan]

Well I had been shooting pretty good through my whisker bis with goldtips and 2 inch blazers. Sometimes I would have a flyer but I attributed that to me.

I had the WB professionally installed and was shooting keyholes.

I did notice that I had slight markings on my vanes, looked white/grey. I was perplexed so I broke down and journeyed to the Outdoorsman today.

Tim told me that my setup looked good and that most likely on some of my shots were due to bad form and it was contacting the WB. He said it was a combo of jerky and the stiffness of the vane passing through the WB.

He suggest I try some 4 inch feathers. He said the arrows would pass more free with the feathers.

I bought two to try...didn't even know you could find these to be honest.

Tried them out and I do think my groups are better and accurate. It does seem like my speed might have decreased. Maybe its that i can actually see the spin of these feathers in flight that throws me off.

He also said my arrows were dangerously too short..only an inch in front of my rest and could slice my finger off if i jerked while hunting. He took me from a 26 to 28 inch...just at the tip of my riser.

Could the 2 inches slow down the arrow as well?

Tim said all of the shop guys shoot feathers vs plastic vanes. Curious on the input.

You didn't know you could get feathers instead of vanes? I heard something about this "feathers" thing you speak of, some where before. It seems long and far away...

Yes 2 more inches of arrow will slow it down all other things being equal. Feathers vs vanes will not slow it down. Any thing you ad to the string will also slow it down.

I hear a faint yet clear sound of harp strumming every time I read the word "feathers". It's strange yet pleasant. I like it.

 

[turkeydeer]

2 in blazers are the way to go. Feathers are more forgiving but are noisier.