How much is too much Helical?

I have been playing around with fletching my own arrows for a little while now. I have been messing around with different offsets and am currently shooting as much offset as I can get and still have good fletching contact to the shaft. My question is this, how much helical is too much helical? Below is my current set up, it is shooting well with and without broadheads. I was just wanting everyone's opinions about how much helical is too much.

Thanks,
Hunter

 

Interesting.

There will be a point at which it'll look more like a propeller- which will spin great, but imagine dragging a boat with a prop vs one with flat rudders- it'll slow down too much eventually


The goal here is to build your rig stronger than you are stupid.

 

Right, I totally understand that. I can't tell that I have lost speed. My point of impact is the same from 10-60 yards as it was with a straight fletch.

I was just curious as to how much was too much and what the best offset would be.

It just got me intrigued while I was fletching this afternoon, I am curious to see what everyone has to say.

Thanks, keep them coming!

 

It sounds like what you have is working. I shoot Blazers and I fletch with the AAE EZ Fletch, but the rear view of you arrows looks very similar to the strong helical on mine. If they are shooting well, no major increase in drag, and you're getting good base contact, go for it.

Nice looking arrows btw.

V

 

Thanks, they do shoot just as well as any other set up I have shoot. Still tinkering with different setups to see which one I like the most. The one in the picture is the most helical I can get and still have good contact with the shaft. I fletched a few last night with a bit less and they shoot very well this morning. Same POI as the one in the picture. I'll eventually find the perfect setup but untill then I'll just keep buying more vanes and glue!!!

 

How many degrees of helical can one get from a jig... and what is yours currently?

 

your flight may be the same, but how is your penetration?
I've often wondered if anyone has done a ballistic gelatin test to really hash out this and other helical fletching arrow flight/penetration questions.

For instance, when using fixed blades does the spin from a hard helical cause KE loss at point of impact? That's a lot of RPMs that very suddenly run into resistance. That energy must go somewhere.

Or what it you're using a single-beveled head...should you make your helical spin in the same direction as the bevel so that the spin in flight is the same direction as the natural plane the bevel makes inside a wound cavity? Or does it even matter?

 

I also run the AZ EZ Fletch and it is set.. it is what it is ... With blazer vanes in the right helical. The jig makes it and everything works but beyond that I would think there may be drag or increased sound. ..

 

^what he said^. I use the AZ EZ Fletch and it does a Right Helical the same way every time.

 

This is exactly what I wondered about the Turbo Nocks years ago. I spoke to the owner and, while he understood what I was saying, he said that he hadn't noticed any penetration difference in the test that he ran. It just seems like a lot of torque getting stopped too quick to me.

All that being said, I was shooting full right helical and slight right offset off of the same set up, and at 50yds, only a slight, very sight difference in group size between the two.

V

 

With the setups I have tried I can not tell a difference in penetration from one to the next. I can see what your saying though. I don't think you would have a problem if you shoot a cut-on-contact head like the Montec's but I can see how it would with a single bevel head. Would be pretty cool to test that idea out though.

 

I'm currently doing a Helical four feather fletch with 4' true flights and a Bitzjig. I think the four fletch looks cool with a Slick Trick. But in all seriousness, I believe it's primarily about shot placement than the other important matters which are secondary.

 

I was thinking about this thread the other day when I bought these broadheads


If you could match the pitch of the cyclone broadheads, maybe all that torque would go into drilling this sucker through an animal rather than putting the stress of KE loss on the curved blades?

 

i think you are thinking way to hard, i would not worry about rpms of and arrow because there cant be much torque to stop anyway, if all your different ones all shoot about the same it probably means there isint major diffrences.

 

I use a hard helical and it drills them in there. if it flies true for you I wouldn't worry about having too much.

 

The rpms shouldn't matter because the rotating mass is next to nothing compared to the forward force. Ever stop one of those little battery operated fans that are spinning a mile a minute, doesn't take much.

 

You can not get too much helical if you keep the base centered on the shaft.

 

OH man! Try and use like 2 vanes and wrap them completely around!? I'd love to see how that reacts but I don't have any long fletchings.
I can't imagine it working, but i'd sure like to see it tried.