Arrow Components - Part 3: Fletching Orientation

Now that we have discussed what their purposes are and the differences between plastic vanes and arrow fletching we will turn our attention to fletching orientation. The orientation of your fletching has always been thought of as being correlated to your shooting style. What I mean by this is that people believe that right handed shooters should adopt a setup where the vanes are setup to the right and left-handed shooters should have the vanes towards the left. If you are shooting an older bow, then there may be some truth to this, but most of the new bows will shoot equally as well with either setup of the fletching.

The way that your fletching is turned will dictate how the arrow will cut through the air when it is in flight. The more spin that the arrow is able to accomplish, the straighter the arrow will fly. There are different ways that you can accomplish this spin. The helical versions can be oriented either towards the right or towards the left and look like propellers. They are the best at stabilizing the arrows, but tend to lose arrow velocity. Offset fletching versions have little air resistance, but they too lose arrow velocity. Then of course, you have a straight orientation, which gives you the fastest flight but will not be as stable over long distances.

You must consider a few things when you are looking at the turn of your vanes or fletching. If you have a very tight arrow rest, then you might be limited to what you can do with the turn of your fletching. In these cases, the straight fletching is probably the best option for you. It has also been noted that orienting your vanes and fletching to the left will cause your tips to become loose. Orienting them to the right will tighten your tips when you hit your target.  Before you set up your fletching, know that each set up has its own pros and cons and it will depend on the preference of the shooter.

Check the Youtube Video about How To Fletch Your Own Arrow