Plastic feather fletches

[alanesq]

Can anyone tell me where in the U.K. I can buy the fake feather fletches

I have heard several rumours that they exist but I have never seen any and assumed they were just people mistaking trueflight type feathers for fake feathers (as they can look artificial)
but then I found a web site which actually referred to them as fake feathers using strands of plastic
but it seems these are only made / available in Indonesia?

[Macbow]

Perhaps not exactly what you're after but you could try these - you'll need the Rain Vane Magnums which you could cut down a bit. Not in the UK but available to the UK
Bi-Delta Vanes & Archery Products Vane Model Page,Bi-Delta 2.5" Shark's Tooth,Bi-Delta 4" Rain Vane Feather-Like,Bi-Delta 4" Shark's Tooth,Bi-Delta 4" Jet 35,Bi-Delta 3" Hyper Delta,Bi-Delta 4" Hunter 3-D,Bi-Delta 5.3" Mangnum Bee.

[alanesq]

These look interesting and may be worth a try - thanks

But now I am now sure there are fake feather ones out there somewhere, and I would love to get some - see what they are like ?

I dont get on with real feathers at all, they just seem such a pain to keep in good condition and useless in wet weather

[Windknot]

3 Rivers had them in their last catalog, but from the sound of it they're not all that great. At least, that was the feeling I got from most users over on Tradgang.

Jakes,

who still thinks of poultry as vegetables...

[Macbow]

Natural feathers are superior to any petrochemical-based fletching especially when shooting off the shelf/off the hand. Try using Fabsil (silicon spray for outdoor clothing) - several lightly applied coats with plenty of drying time between applications. Steam usually brings bedraggled looking feathers back into shape. If the feathers are getting frayed from shooting your shafts are probably out of tune. Try tapering the nock end of the shaft to give extra fletching clearance.
Fletch a few shafts with the smallest feathers you can find or cut some feathers down to under 2" long by about 0.5" high. Tune them so they are grouping with your big-fletched shafts at 20 yards. In effect you are bareshaft testing but with just enough extra stability as you are shooting heavy bows off the hand so can't be expected to have a perfect release every time.
Once you have totally sorted spine, point weight, nocking point, brace height etc make a full set of arrows to the same spec but fletch with 5"+ feathers. Even if they get soaking wet whatever feather is there will still give reasonable steerage as the shaft and bow are in tune. When you finish knock the excess water off the shafts and let them dry naturally before steaming them up again.
Damaged sections of fletching can easily be cut out and replaced with a splice of the same or a different colour.

[English Bowman]

I agree with Macbow above.

I use natural feathers, and have had no problems with them. Look after your arrows, store them properly, and don't put them away soaking wet and you shouldn't have any trouble with them.

(Not only that but fake ones are against the rules should you ever want to compete)

Daniel

[alanesq]

Thats my problem, I dont tend to take great care of my arrows and they get a lot of abuse and now I have got used to plastic fletches and not having to worry about them I find real feather a real pain.
Also, as I am using naturally dropped swan feather I have a very limited supply (being vegan I refuse to use the commercial ones)
I will of course as you say have to use real feather for competition but for every day arrows the fake feathers may be ideal for me but I cant find anyone who has them :-(

[RichardH]

Alan, we have loads of swans nearby. If it would help, I can gather any feathers dropped and post up a little bundle when I have a few for you.

[alanesq]

Originally Posted by RichardH

Alan, we have loads of swans nearby. If it would help, I can gather any feathers dropped and post up a little bundle when I have a few for you.

Thanks for that, its very good of you, yes please :-)
I will of course pay the postage etc.

I have a swan sanctuary sending me all their feathers in return for donations to the sanctuary but supply is pretty limited and I can always use more
I think it is molting season so now is when I get most of my supply for the year

[Macbow]

I know veganism and green consumerism don't have to go hand in hand so this comment is not directed at you Alan. I respect your stance on the use of feathers (although I personally think if the turkey's being killed anyway for meat using its feathers is OK).
What I do like about the trad aspect of archery is the biodegradable aspect of the arrows. It doesn't take long for wooden shafts, natural feathers and steel points to rot & rust away if lost in the woods. Discarded plastic fletchings will probably be around for thousands of years. It's a pity there isn't some kind of trad nock that is a bit more environmentally friendly. Perhaps hardwood nocks with the string slot precut and a 5 degree taper.
There is a guy in the USA (Reparrow) making repair footings that are internally tapered so you just taper the broken end of the shaft and stick them on. I have used them and they are very strong. I would imagine making a nock would be a similar process.
I know you can cut the shaft and reinforce with thread but it's not for me. My groups suffer if my plastic nocks are even slightly misaligned plus I just don't trust self-nocked shafts being shot from a turbocharged AFB or recurve.
Having said all this I'm a huge carbon fan and accuracy is more important to me than being trad or green. I've only broken/lost four carbon shafts in two years whereas with woodies I am personally responsible for cutting down a forest the size of Belgium.