Dr. Ashby question?

[stringstretcher]

In all of your studies, have you found it to be the truth or just a mith, that a right handed selfbow shooter should shoot left wing feathers and a left handed selfbow shooter should shoot right wing feathers?  And if this is so, is there somewhere that I can read this study by you?

[Dr. Ed Ashby]

Charles, as far as I can determine, whether you use right or left wing fletchings makes no difference at all to the quality of arrow flight. That holds for MOST arrows (see below), and whether you shoot right or left handed.

Some right hand shooters prefer to shoot left wing fletchings because they feel it gives better clearance of the feathers around the bow. If you'll check the feather manufacturer's information on their web sites, you'll find that their testing indicates that it makes no difference at all which you use; left or right fletching; so long as you don't mix right and left wing feathers on the same shaft.

Now, having said that, there are some other things to consider when it comes to specific broadheads. The first consideration is that single-bevel broadheads induce arrow rotation during penetration. The direction of rotation that the fletching induced during arrow flight should match the direction of rotation that the single-bevel induces in tissues; i.e. a right single-bevel BH should be used with right wing fletching, and a left single-bevel BH with left wing fletching. Failure to do so robs you of a great deal of the arrow's penetration potential. If you mix the direction of rotation between the fletching and the single-bevel, the average penetration will be less than had you used a double-bevel broadhead of identical mechanical advantage and profile.

Single-bevels on BH's also demonstrate some arrow rotation effect during flight. This occurs in the same direction as the single-bevel induces in tissues. This amounts to no more total 'steering influence' in flight than the wind shear effect of double-bevel BH's, but is of a much more predictable nature.

If you use fletching of the size (surface area) commonly used on most hunting arrows, you will notice no difference in accuracy or flight stability with a single-bevel BH, when used with either a right or left fletching. However, when trying to use minimum amounts of fletching area the fletching's rotation needs to match the single-bevel BH's rotation in flight. That permits the two to act in a concert.

So, for most arrows it will make no difference in either flight stability or accuracy which fletching you use. However, any time you use a single-bevel BH, it is to your advantage to use the fletching that will match the arrow's rotation to the rotational effect the BH's single-bevel induces.

You can find more specific information on all this scattered through the 2004, 2005 and 2007 Study Updates and in the "Why Single bevel broadheads?" article. All are to be found here on TG.

Hope that helps,

Ed
TGMM Family of the Bow