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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: Andy Cooper on November 27, 2010, 01:58:00 PM

Title: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Andy Cooper on November 27, 2010, 01:58:00 PM
I've noticed a whirring sound, when I shoot arrows helically fletched with 3 5" banana cut feathers, that is not present with the other shapes. Anyone done any checking to see what the quietest shape is?  Does length affect the sound?
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: rastaman on November 27, 2010, 03:00:00 PM
Quietest feather cut (http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=076562;p=1)  
   Quietest feather cut search 2 (http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=053211#000007)

Here are a couple of older threads on the subject. In my experience and my subjective opinion, parabolics are quieter for me, but i shoot them and shield cut.  Right now i am shooting 4 x 4 inch shield cut.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Andy Cooper on November 27, 2010, 03:35:00 PM
Thanks Randy!
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: sbschindler on November 27, 2010, 03:38:00 PM
parobolics are given the nod for being quiet thats what i've heard anyway
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Bjorn on November 27, 2010, 03:41:00 PM
Yep, I found parabolics the most quiet and bananas to be the loudest.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Night Wing on November 27, 2010, 03:53:00 PM
I'll third it for parabolic feathers.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: lpcjon2 on November 27, 2010, 03:54:00 PM
I found any cut that is low profile to be quiet. I burn my own pattern(kinda like a trad cut) but a little lower than a shield cut and they are super quiet.JMHO
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Lee Robinson . on November 27, 2010, 08:37:00 PM
Parabolic.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: magnus on November 27, 2010, 08:41:00 PM
My 4-4" straight offset banana are very quiet.

Keeping the Faith !
Magnus
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Jim Wright on November 27, 2010, 09:22:00 PM
Never had a parabolic fletched arrow make any noise,(unless there is a gap in the glue line) but shields have to be cut LOW or else they are commonly noisy.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: rick7 on November 28, 2010, 01:33:00 PM
parabolics are the quietest for me
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: JRY309 on November 28, 2010, 02:54:00 PM
I think height and length has the most to do with feather noise.Parabolic is quiet,but I had some 5.5" high back parabolic's that were noisy too.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: stickbowhntr on November 28, 2010, 03:13:00 PM
For me if I keep the height under 5/8in they saty pretty quiet , even bananas. I try to keep my stuff like 1/2in high.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Mike Vines on November 28, 2010, 05:49:00 PM
I shoot 5 3/8" banana feathers I burn myself, and I have never heard a noise, and I have asked others, and they say the same thing.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Andy Cooper on November 29, 2010, 03:10:00 PM
Mine are 5" and done with a chopper...they're probably too high, judging from the comments here. Maybe I'll do a test starting high and gradually reducing the height to see where the noise begins.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: 2fletch on November 29, 2010, 10:35:00 PM
What Bjorn said. Parabolic are the quietest and banana and maxi are the loudest.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: SEMO_HUNTER on November 29, 2010, 10:42:00 PM
I chop my own full length feathers and grind my own natural turkey feathers, then chop all of them shield cut 4.75" and I have not noticed any noise at all with factory full length feathers or adult turkey wing feathers.

I did have some that whistled when they flew, but they were off of a young bird. The feathers are too thin unless the bird is mature like a gobbler or old adult hen. Then they are whisper quiet.

I've also fletched parabolics and they are really quiet, but the longest I have fletched in those is 4"

I actually found that carbon arrows make more shaft noise than the feathers do, but my woodies make no noise at all. I think the woodies actually help deaden the noise of the bow some also.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Don Stokes on November 30, 2010, 08:13:00 AM
For the same amount of surface area, shorter and taller = louder, longer and lower = quieter.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: BobCo 1965 on November 30, 2010, 08:51:00 AM
Another vote for parabolics (from the types that I have tried anyway).
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Jeff Strubberg on November 30, 2010, 09:58:00 AM
The taller the fletch gets, the weaker the quill of the feather and the more it will vibrate in flight.  This gets wose with cheap feathers or, as SEMO pointed out, feathers from a young bird.


Result = noise.

I think the quietest I ever used were some low profile bannanas I chopped myself.  Unfortunately they looked awful and were long enough that I had to watch my brace height to keep 'em off the riser of my bow.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: rdoggsilva on February 09, 2011, 12:50:00 AM
Parabolic
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Slinging 24/7 on February 09, 2011, 01:09:00 AM
Right now I shoot 4 fletched with 4 parabolic feathers and think they are pretty quiet compared to some of my shield cut ones.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: on February 09, 2011, 11:27:00 AM
blazers
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Balding Kansan on February 09, 2011, 12:58:00 PM
I've put quite a bit of thought into this and unless your bow shoots an arrow faster than the speed of sound, the deer will hear the bow before it hears the arrow, so I focus on keeping the bow quiet. JMO.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: rick7 on February 10, 2011, 01:57:00 PM
parabolic
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: J. Oles on February 10, 2011, 06:05:00 PM
5 3/4" low profile banana is the quietest for me.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: JEFF B on February 10, 2011, 06:20:00 PM
5" parabolic much more Quiet than others i have shot fer sure.
Title: Re: quietest fletch cut?
Post by: Rob DiStefano on February 10, 2011, 06:23:00 PM
"less filling - tastes great"  :laughing:

imo, and without a doubt, any feather with a pronounced rear point (think: some shield cuts, elb medieval cuts, trad cuts, indian cuts, etc), or those without a gradual slope transition of the high point, will all be noisy as those points vibrate like a rattler's tail.

quietest feathers will be ones that are the longest and lowest, and very aerodynamically rounded.

for me, that's a low profile, short banana cut.