Shooting cock feather in

[1flyfish]

Does anyone's longbow shoot better cock feather in and why do you think that is.I have done numerous things to tune for cock feather out but the bow shoots better with it in.I have not rotated my nock alittle yet but that is the next move.Thanks for any input.Keep em flyin straight.

[Bender]

I do it. If nock in is giving you better flight then most likely there is still something slightly off in your tune. Most likely spine is a little off. Dynamic spine that is. How the arrow is really behaving in flight, not based on numbers taken from a chart which is static spine.

[dagwood64]

I shoot cock feather in and get great flight out of my arrows. Also if I shoot cock feather out, my Bow hand gets cut by the lower hen feather. Duane

[plentycoupe]

http://www.arrowsbykelly.com/Other_Tips.html

check out this site. The reason you get better flight is better rest clearance.
Good shooting
Jason

[JRY309]

I am RH and if I fletch with RW and can not rotate the nock I'll shoot cock feather in,it gives me the best clearence.But these days with tunable nocks on most arrows I just rotate for best clearence.I try not to have the feather hit the shelf.It may or may not make a difference but have always done it this way.On wood arrows with RW I would fletch with a TM nock reciever which I would fletch with the cock feather up,it gave me the best clearence.

[NW Jamie]

Originally posted by plentycoupe:
 http://www.arrowsbykelly.com/Other_Tips.html  

check out this site. The reason you get better flight is better rest clearance.
Good shooting
Jason

I am sitting here looking at the inch long slice on the index finger of bowhand wondering what was wrong, then I read this thread. The link above to "arrows by kelly" is a source of great information in a few minutes, thanks for the site Jason, I really have been getting frustrated at some of the inconsisities that I am getting in the arrow flight, and now I can try some of this out.

[crandog]

Yeah, due to paradox that cock feather almost passes clean.

[plentycoupe]

No problem Jamie. Glad I could be of some help!!

[joe skipp]

In the late sixties, the late Jack Howard told me to shoot cock feather in. Reason was clearance due to the long shelves. He also convinced me to shoot off an elevated rest where there would be less contact. Been shooting that way ever since.

If your a right handed, shooting a longbow that nots centercut, you need to use LW feathers. The odd hen feather on RW will cut that finger badly due to the paradoxing.

[Flinttim]

I like shooting the taller fletches, usually bananas. Cock feather out I get some "up bump" from the arrow as it leaves the shelf. No ptoblem,  cock feather in.

[Fletcher]

Black Widow recommends fletching arrows with the cock feather at 12 o'clock.  It accomplishes basically the same thing.  How is a fletcher supposed to make everyone happy?    :confused:    

[Daddy Bear]

Every high speed film I've seen with a longbow using hunting sized feathers, shows the hen feather hitting the corner of the shelf/plate when shot cock feather out. Shooting cock feather in allows you to lower the nocking point and still clear the corner during paradox.

Jamie,

I've been shooting longbows and selfbows for over thirty years, and on every bow I own, I shoot the arrow across my knuckle. The old rule of thumb was to use left wing fletching(when right handed) to prevent the feather from turning into your finger when shooting off your knuckle. I've lost count how many sections of fletching I've pulled out of my finger, it is covered in scars.

I mostly shoot fletching from turkeys I kill. I strip the feathers instead of splitting, which removes the quill from the equation. I also ensure that I add a dab of glue on the leading edge of the fletching so that it doesn't snake under my skin. I do not believe that the arrow rotates much(from the high speed film I've studied) while crossing over the finger, so I don't think it matters much if LW or RW. But, I do believe that combining cock feather in along with RW feathers helps to reduce being stabbed by the quill.

[Don Stokes]

Sometimes fletching clearance problems can be caused by torque in the string hand, depending on an individual's hand geometry. Holding your hand flat, fingers extended normally, palm up, look at the crease of the first joint of your index and ring fingers. If they align well with each other, you will not torque the string when you draw. If your ring finger is shorter, so that the crease is below the line of your index finger crease, a very common hand shape, then torquing is possible. Turning the cock feather in helps get better shelf clearance when this is the case.

Another thing I learned from ol' Dan Q. He said people with the creases aligned were born archers!

[Don Stokes]

Did anybody out there NOT look at your hand?

[dragon rider]

Nope. We all looked. Which raises the interesting question of whether you're serious or just proving that the trout will always bite on something?  

[Don Stokes]

Serious. My ex had this kind of hand, and even when bare-shafted perfectly she still had "kick" in her arrows until we turned the cock feather in. When I shot the same bow, no problem. Since then, I've encountered it in several other people.

[jcar315]

I looked too!!! I have shot with cock in and out just to experiment with sound reduction and flight. I have never had a cut though from the feathers. I do hold the bow very loosely with my hand almost in a "choke hold" type of position. I dont even wear an armguard and never get hit. If I have a arrow that works better one way I mark it a shoot it accordingly.