4 in feathers

[Weekend Warrior]

Anyone shoot 4 in feathers?
Think they would work with Broadheads?

[buck-tamer00]

naw,
i quit usin those,
they could even keep my 2 blades flyin straight,
its all 5" for me now.

[Gray Buffalo]

4- 4 inch works but just doesn't look right to me

[Killdeer]

I would think that it would depend upon how well tuned your arrows were to your bow.

Killdeer

[Charlie Lamb]

Like Killdeer said! Graybuffalo is just picky and I got 4", 4 fletch arrows older than buck-tamer00!
  :D

[Charlie Lamb]

Speaking in generalities... 3, 5" feathers has a surface factor of 15. 4, 4" feathers has a surface factor of 16. So techniquely speaking there is more steering surface with the 4" feathers.

Heck! I often use 4, 5" fletch and that's a surface factor of 20... those things are dead stable.  

[Shakes.602]

Howzabout 3 Fletch - 4" Feathers? For Stumpin' or Target Shooting? I mean if your Arrow Shafts are within Spec., it should do anything Negative Right?

[buck-tamer00]

haha charlie!!!

[doctorbrady]

I shoot 3 4" feathers with 700 grain arrows and big heads up front.  The seem to do a good job at keeping them under control for me.  Maybe I'm just weird....OK, I am just weird.

[DarkeGreen]

Last year I ran out of feathers and the shop I went to only had 4". I bought them and made up 3 arrows. They flew much better than the 5" feather I was using. I had no trouble with any of the broadheads I tried on them. I always used 4" feathers with my compound so I don't know why I thought I needed 5" for my wood arrows shot from a long bow. If I was going to have a problem it would have been at the higher speeds.

I think the reason the 4" worked better for me was less contact with the shelf on release. All of my arrows have 4" feathers cut 1/2" high now.

[Orion]

The bigger the broadhead and the less centershot the bow, the bigger the feather needed to stabilize the arrow.  A 4-inch feather out of a center shot recurve should handle an average size broadhead nicely.  However, it will likely take more feather to quickly stabilize an arrow sporting a wide 160 grain broadhead shot from a bow that's say cut 1/8 inch from center.

[Weekend Warrior]

I shoot 2 blade 125 gr zwicky. Bear grizzly 48# @ 28 draw...

[Jason R. Wesbrock]

I've been shooting 4 4" feathers for several years and have no problems stabilizing broadheads as big as Zwickey Deltas (haven't used anything larger). If your bow is well tuned you should be just fine.

[cjones]

Well just to be different, I shoot 3 4" feathers on my hunting arrows. I shot these all last year and got great flight out of them while using snuffers. Charlie watched me shoot them so he can tell ya if they were flying ok. Truthfully, with my shooting it would be hard to tell if they were effecting flight or not.  

[CJ5]

I use 3 4" feathers with just about all my bows/arrow combinations, and get great flight with the heads I use. Like others have said, I think alot depends on how well the arrows are tuned to the bow. Of course, an arrow with 5"ers can be tuned equally well, and would probably offer more security in the event of a bad release, wet feathers, etc. But, fletch clearance is a factor too, and I tend to come down on that side. I usually shoot off elevated rests, on bows that are cut past center though....

[Scotty L]

I shoot 3  4 inch shield cut on cedar with 2 blade and 3 blade heads they boyh fly great.        57 pound longbow