feather brands ?

[runningbird]

So I am getting ready to make up some arrows.  I see all different brands/makes of feathers.  I am looking at 5" shield feathers.  Is there a difference in quality between the different makes?
Or a difference in how they perform. The price variance is pretty significant when buying 50 or more and I'm just trying to make the best choice.

thanks for any help.
Mark

[dhaverstick]

I've always had really good luck with True Flight Feathers. I think they are better quality than Gateway; especially the vividness of the color.

[BOWMARKS]

I have to say the Trueflight feather has the most consistant grind on the quill,which makes them easier to fletch.

[JR Williams]

Trueflight has a nice quill thickness. I tried Gateway once and the quill seemed overly thick.

[chanumpa]

TrueFlight,Best!Hands down.Others are good though and when moneys tight,hey.

[Tall Paul]

When I started building my own arrows, I bought Trueflight due to their reputation.

The arrowsmiths I used would use lesser priced feathers.  I can see a big difference in quality.  Truflight is much better.

[Grey Taylor]

The only real difference I see between brands is the way the bases are ground, colors available, and price.
Trueflight has thin but wide bases. Gateway has thick but narrow bases. Trueflight has a better artificial barred design than Gateway but Gateway has a better camo pattern.
I've never used AMG feathers so can't comment on them but I have used feathers from a small California supplier and like both the bases and the prices.
For me the narrower bases are easier to get good cuts in a Little Chopper.
As far as durability or performance, I've never seen a bit of difference between any of the brands.

Guy

[Alexander Traditional]

I like feathers from Magnus for the quality and sometimes for a look i'm going for,but for everything else it's True Flight. I buy alls kinds of there barred colored feathers. They have way the most colors available.

[Petrovic]

x2 on True flight, and also look at AMG. I had some Gateway and the grind on the quill was really thick compared to the True Flight and AMG feathers.

[Thare1774]

I haven't noticed any performance difference between brands. If you wanna spend less go with Gateways, but their barred colors are terrible looking. If you have the money and want a gorgeous barred color and you want the more consistent grind go with trueflight. But like I said, I shoot both and they seem to shoot the same for me. The trueflights also have a higher profile on their shield cuts which may or may not be something you prefer.

[emt137]

Natural turkey or goose fletching

[1Longbow]

Yep  , Magnus

[Sirius Black]

Trueflight. I've tried both Trueflight and Gateway, and shooting thru the cardboard animal cut-outs of broadhead league, the Trueflights held up much longer. I think flight and accuracy were the same, but I didn't have to refletch the Trueflights as often, making up for the difference in price.

[runningbird]

Looks like I will try the trueflight,  Just seems expensive compared to others but if they are truly better I'll go with them.

[wapitirod]

I like trueflight but I primarily use Bearpaw Shield feathers from kustom king.  They are almost half the cost and I shoot them and my trueflight parabolics side by side and I can't tell any difference in performance or durability.  I think they are 4.75 per dz or 29.95 per 100.

[joe skipp]

AMG....

AMG or Gateways for me. I like the AMG the best but last time I ordered I could not find white 4" parabolic so I just went with the Gateways. I don't like the thin grind on the Trueflights. They all perform the same and some have beeter colors than others but I only use flourescent yellow and white so none of the other colors matter to me.

So you can see from all the responses (just like most everything) it is a lot of personal preference. You just have to try different ones and decide for yourself which you like the best.

Bisch

[LAMADMAN]

I had good luck with the AMG feathers. They have held up well.

[Dan Adair]

I've shot a lot of Gateways and Trueflights, and that's the only two brands I've got any real experience with.  Of the two, I prefer Trueflights, the thinner ground quills are much easier to fletch with consitancy.  I've been at the game long enough that consistancy is my primary concern.  Pretty colors or the best camo are a ways down the list...

[PeteA]

Another AMG fan... Great, bright colors, at a good price point.