Feathers....a question???

[darthTer]

I have just got some 4" Gateway feathers....on reading the box, they make the following claims:

1. "Feathers will increase your arrow speeds giving flatter trajectories"

2. "Feathers are up to 500% lighter than plastic"

If this is truly the case....why do the vast majority (possibly all) recurve/compound archers use plastic vanes outdoors???

[Little Miss Purple]

Because the wet weather plays havoc with them and stops them looking sexy????

[darthTer]

Originally Posted by Little Miss Purple

Because the wet weather plays havoc with them and stops them looking sexy????

Obviously, the lack of sexiness will have a negative impact....

[Watch_Man]

Originally Posted by darthter

I have just got some 4" Gateway feathers....on reading the box, they make the following claims:

1. "Feathers will increase your arrow speeds giving flatter trajectories"

2. "Feathers are up to 500% lighter than plastic"

If this is truly the case....why do the vast majority (possibly all) recurve/compound archers use plastic vanes outdoors???

As LMP says, they are prone to rain attack unless you treat them. Great for indoors though You also get less clearance issues with feathers because they come back into shape very quickly if they wack something. Gateway have a little video clip showing this somewhere.

A lot of compound archers shoot feathers indoors.

Also outdoors you tend to use much smaller vanes and the feather loses some of its advantage. Plastic ones are also easier to fletch.

[Little Miss Purple]

Originally Posted by darthter

Obviously, the lack of sexiness will have a negative impact....

exactly

I actually find that on my skinny malinky shafts, feathers are to wide to fit the shaft nicely.

[Tarkwin]

having shot X7's with feathers in the rain and dunked more than one arrow in a pond during field shoots, I can confirm that water does play merry hell with feathers.

They tend to contract somewhat and lay flatter to the arrow, effectively decreasing the surface area..but dry out ok.

Something you need to bear in mind is that feathers are available in a limited range of sizes, the smallest I've seen is 3", not many target archers I've seen shoot 3" vanes outdoors - with the exception of longbowmen.

T.

[Watch_Man]

Originally Posted by Tarkwin

Something you need to bear in mind is that feathers are available in a limited range of sizes, the smallest I've seen is 3", not many target archers I've seen shoot 3" vanes outdoors - with the exception of longbowmen.

T.

The Gateway Rayzr is 2" but you would probably have to get them from the USA

[darthTer]

Originally Posted by Watch_Man

A lot of compound archers shoot feathers indoors.

Thats exactly what I'm planning on using them for....got 1/2 doz shafts which will be my indoor only arrows!!!!

Outdoors, I'll keep my Plastifletch Max Shields.

[Little Miss Purple]

Originally Posted by darthter

Thats exactly what I'm planning on using them for....got 1/2 doz shafts which will be my indoor only arrows!!!!

Outdoors, I'll keep my Plastifletch Max Shields.

ditto... the purple shield max fletchings are sooooooooooooo sexy

and I've got 4" purple/black coloured feathers on my fat ally's

[darthTer]

Originally Posted by Little Miss Purple

ditto... the purple shield max fletchings are sooooooooooooo sexy

and I've got 4" purple/black coloured feathers on my fat ally's

my 4"'ers will be going on my Carbon Impacts.....