Vanes Off The Shelf?

[RickBarbee]

Everyone has their own preferences but if one is drawn to traditional equipment I don't understand a fascination with shooting plastic (carbon) shafts adorned with plastic fletching material. For hunting, noise is more a function of poor bow/arrow tune and a poor release than than using plastic vs. feather fletch material. Feather length isn't much of a factor re noise, its feather height that matters. If fletch noise is a bother its easy to simply cut them lower. As far as hunting in the rain, it isn't as much a matter of keeping fletch dry (that is fairly easy to do using waterproofing or a fletch cover), it's trailing game after the hit that can be problematic. Plastic fletch doesn't do that any better than feathers, and logic suggests that if its raining hard enough to need plastic fletch its better to just stay in camp and avoiding the problem of losing the blood trail and the animal.

For many people much of the fun of traditional is using materials like they did when archery really was simple, in practice and in equipment. Sometimes the advantages of modernizing traditional gear really aren't that much of an advantage at all.

Have fun shooting.

There's a difference in being a Primitive Archer & Bow Hunter, and being a Traditional Archer & Bow Hunter.

For me:
Being a Traditional Archer & Bow Hunter has absolutely zero to do with how I, or my equipment look. It has everything to do with the style of shooting within the realm of single string equipment, and the functionality of that equipment.
The better I can get it to function, the better I like it.

Also, for me:
Shooting vanes has zero to do with keeping my fletching dry, and everything to do with quietness in flight, clean up after a kill, and durability.

Modernizing Traditional gear is usually of benefit "IF" you know how to take advantage of those modernizations. Of course, if you get down to the history of it, those modernizations aren't really all that modern. Not Primitive, but not Modern, yet still Traditional. again.

Rick

[Felix40]

Better be shooting a selfbow with a sinew string, wooden arrows, and stone points if you want to play the "not traditional" card.

If the plastic vanes work better than feathers I cant see any reason not to use them besides asthetics. I dont know if they do but reports are that they fly the same, dont get matted down when wet, and are quieter. I think thats enough to make them a valid piece of equipment.

[DRT]

Better be shooting a selfbow with a sinew string, wooden arrows, and stone points if you want to play the "not traditional" card.

If the plastic vanes work better than feathers I cant see any reason not to use them besides asthetics. I dont know if they do but reports are that they fly the same, dont get matted down when wet, and are quieter. I think thats enough to make them a valid piece of equipment.

Well put.

Gary

[Jspradley]

Better be shooting a selfbow with a sinew string, wooden arrows, and stone points if you want to play the "not traditional" card.

If the plastic vanes work better than feathers I cant see any reason not to use them besides asthetics. I dont know if they do but reports are that they fly the same, dont get matted down when wet, and are quieter. I think thats enough to make them a valid piece of equipment.

Wrong. That's not trad. Only an atlatl is truly trad.

If we REALLY want to take it back to be trad we need to hunt with thrown rocks and pointy sticks, naturally pointy only though, better not use tools to sharpen it coz that ain't trad!

The tradder than thou thing is pretty ridiculous... I generally dont even like to use "trad" because there's so much baggage behind it it's almost meaningless.

I fletched a few arras with my trad vanes and they are fugly but seem to work as designed, even though I'm only shooting about 15 yards in my back yard..

[DRT]

I actually understand the sentiment. I really would prefer not to shoot a metal riser. I actually will continue with feathers, although a few arrows could end up with vanes. I also like the wood looking carbon arrows. Vanity? Maybe, if so I don't care. Aesthetics do make it more for some.
A wet feather may not stabilize an arrow quite as well but a well tuned arrow set up needs less stabilizing. But wet feathers also add weight to the back of the shaft which does change arrow tune characteristics. However at the short range most of us take on game shots I doubt the effect will be enough to really matter.
That said a feather can take a clip from a field point in target practice and future flight won't be compromised. A punctured vane is now a flight compromised arrow and must be changed.
Have to weigh the pros and cons then go the way you want.
It's not up to me, or the "trad police" to tell you what's best for you.




Gary

[RickBarbee]

A punctured vane is now a flight compromised arrow and must be changed.
Gary

Sorry, but that's not accurate.

You can "V" cut out the punctured area, and it will shoot just like it always did.
Might look funky, but it'll shoot the same.

I can't count the number of times I've done that (even with compound arrows),
and they always shot plenty as good as I am capable of shooting.

You would be hard pressed to find anyone who shoots at a level where they could
tell a difference.

Rick

[DRT]

Funny I have three in the "needs work box" that say differently. But they are Blazer vanes. Maybe the clip on them is different than standard smooth vanes.

Gary

[DRT]

At 20 and 25 hard to tell if it's a slight twitch or. . .
At 50 it's very noticeable.
And I hate trying to fletch in just one. Thus they sit in the box.

Gary

[RickBarbee]

Well, I've shot them at 100 yards with a compound, and remained milk jug accurate, and that's with 2" vanes where by the time you "V" it out there's not a lot of vane left.

You just have to keep the angle from being real steep, and you're good to go.
At least that's how it works for me.

Rick

[DRT]

I tried to cut a small v. I tried to trim it straight off. Better results. Then I tried to trim the other two to match that one. Lol I really screwed that up. I don't know why I bothered. Like with a single string I'm set up really close with a compound too. The long range doesn't mean squat.
But in practice I like to play. Not near as seriously as you Rick. You got some good stuff going on.

Gary

[DRT]

Honestly with a single string I don't shoot well enough to tell a flyer from a bad release.

Gary

[ballgame]

So I finally got around to shooting a few broadheads with the 4" trad vanes.

As far as I can tell they steer broadheads the same as my 5" feathers do.

[popup_menace]

So I finally got around to shooting a few broadheads with the 4" trad vanes.

As far as I can tell they steer broadheads the same as my 5" feathers do.

Do you think you’d get too much wrinkle in these to use them exclusively? I think when I get started I want to have mostly feathers for practice for longevity sake and them some plastics for hunting. But, if the vanes would hold up long enough to be practice arrows as well it may be easier to go strictly vanes

[DRT]

So I finally got around to shooting a few broadheads with the 4" trad vanes.

As far as I can tell they steer broadheads the same as my 5" feathers do.

At what distance?

Gary

[ballgame]

20 yards.

I think you can use these for everything without worry. I have no doubt that they'll out last your feathers.