# Spin Wings



## baller (Oct 4, 2006)

First off very nicely put.

Secondly, you are correct, draw weight and arrow speed, as well as the other shooter's shot timing in regards to the wind and his experience is shooting in the wind etc all played into you getting a 6 and him getting a 10 and beating you. At 2 years in you are shooting good scores at 30m. However, form beats gear any day of the week, so adding or changing something because someone beat you isn't the way to look at. Next time you are in that situation....SHOOT BETTER  In all fairness, we've all been there, and the only way to learn is unfortunately to lose and move on to the next match.

That said....for your experience level, distances you will be shooting etc, I'd recommend sticking with Vanes over spin wings. You will see a negligible difference in your scores and consistency and the fragile nature of a mylar vane will only add frustration to your shooting. There are several on here who shoot 300+ at 70M with Vanes instead of Wings, simply so they don't have to refletch one when you look at it funny.

I did a test at the end of last season....fletched 6 of my arrows with wings (had been shooting them that way all year) and 6 with Flex Fletch 187 Shield cut vanes....used two different plungers as the added weight (about 10 grains difference total) between vanes and wings was enough to change the arrow stiffness. On a fairly calm Saturday I shot the spins, that Sunday equally calm I shot the vanes....I was well within my season average on both days with both setups....has to be a fluke right. Continued my test for three week, actually ended up shooting my season high with the vanes on the second Sunday, then was 1 point under that later that week again with the spins.

One of our resident Olympic alumni LIMBWALKER used vanes on his arrows to make the Athens team, and shot vanes in Athens as well if I am not mistaken, although I cannot find the link to that thread where he explains this.


Anyhow, because of some influence here and there, my shooting last year, my test at the end of the season and a few other factors that you aren't dealing with, I am going to at least start the season off shooting vanes this year, mostly so that I don't have to repair or refletch some or all of my wings each time I shoot. For your purposes, I encourage vanes, for simplicity, for durability, and because they work just fine.


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## damncholeric (May 9, 2013)

I guess being frustrated at losing made me want to get new if not better equipment when I really should be focusing on my form instead. Seeing as how someone can shoot great with either wings or vanes, I think I'll stick to vanes. Less expensive and less delicate. And since I wouldn't notice the difference anyway, more time for me to focus on my form rather than my equipment.

Thanks for the advice and for saving me money


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## rstgyx (Apr 13, 2013)

I use XS wings. They're much more sturdy than Spin Wings (I was really surprised how fragile they were, like paper soft). I've shot my arrows through the clicker countless times and the XS wings only get creased and the arrow veers off the left (I'm a left handed shooter).


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## hwjchan (Oct 24, 2011)

Personally, I shoot wings (elivanes) because it's more convenient to refletch them in case one does get damaged. I can redo a wing in a couple of minutes with no extra equipment. Redoing a vane requires glue and a jig. The elivanes are a good compromise of durability and ease of use for me.


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

Are they worth the price and maintenance headaches? That is a question only you can answer. For many, the answer is yes.

For me personally, Elivanes provide the best of both worlds - low profile mylar spin vane performance, but the durability (nearly) of plastic glued-on vanes. 

Having said that - I wouldn't look to change vanes because of a single unfortunate shot. 

If you weren't asking these questions before that event, then chances are they aren't worth asking afterwards.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

I second John's post. My wing's solution is Gas Pro instead of Elivanes, but both brands are more durable than Spin Wings and easier to repair than glued on vanes.

And almost (every?) all world target records the last 10 or 20 years have been set with curled wings. I can't drive like Rick Mears, but it can't hurt to use the same oil that he does.


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

My daughter "tested" out some Gas Pro's for me for nearly a year. The performed beautifully on her Medallion XR 1500's - helping her achieve her yellow JOAD pin at 60 meters with just 24# on the fingers. They are more durable than Elivanes, but also heavier.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

limbwalker said:


> My daughter "tested" out some Gas Pro's for me for nearly a year. The performed beautifully on her Medallion XR 1500's - helping her achieve her yellow JOAD pin at 60 meters with just 24# on the fingers. They are more durable than Elivanes, but also heavier.


Better looking, too. :rock:


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

lksseven said:


> Better looking, too. :rock:


Yes, for the vain among us, that could be a consideration.


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## w8lon (Jun 2, 2012)

The GasPro's are very durable replaced perhaps 3-4 shooting all summer. I wish Lancaster still offered the soft version though as they work better with the lighter limbs. I used both the recurve specific in soft and the field shield type cut in mediums last summer, soft performed better at closer distance than the medium shield. The only real failures that I had were at sub zero temperatures.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

limbwalker said:


> Yes, for the vain among us, that could be a consideration.


Ok, then, I'm using GasPro 'vains' ... ouch.


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

Hey, you're in good company, as my daughter requested the Gas Pro's based on how they looked.  ha, ha.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

limbwalker said:


> Hey, you're in good company, as my daughter requested the Gas Pro's based on how they looked.  ha, ha.


You just made me feel worse!


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## alaz (Mar 8, 2009)

Is there a preferred Eli vane (p2 or p3)?
How about gas pros?


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

lksseven said:


> You just made me feel worse!



Actually Larry, she has an excellent sense of style. I would do well to let her pick out my clothes. ha, ha.

Alaz, most of us are shooting the P3, with some offset. I don't see how P2's can provide enough stabilization really. Gas pro's worked out well for my daughter. I personally haven't tested them much, but the little bit I did, I found that Elivanes grouped better on my arrows.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

alaz said:


> Is there a preferred Eli vane (p2 or p3)?
> How about gas pros?


I'm shooting Gas Pro target vanes 2.5" ....
http://www.lancasterarchery.com/gas-pro-2-5-target-effcient-spin-vanes.html


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## alaz (Mar 8, 2009)

Limbwalker and Larry, thank you both for your replies. 
Very much appreciated.


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## dmassphoto (Feb 8, 2010)

Were the AAE WAV Vanes a bust? I remember a thread about them months ago, and lots of people liked them in favor of wings, but wasn't around to see the conclusions about their effectiveness.


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## caspian (Jan 13, 2009)

the thread is here. http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=2001594

from a recap of the last couple of pages, they performed OK, but at the expensive of fragility. since they're not easily field replaceable, they kind of fall into a no-man's land.


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## bowmaster1972 (Oct 22, 2012)

I've been using Kurly Vanes for the paast 6 months, and was mildly surprised at their durability. I only had to replace those that were torn/cut from arrow impacts. I even had a pass through on a local clubs target, and only needed to straighten the vanes, no tears or even wrinkles. They are slightly thicker than the Spins, probably due to the metalic coating.


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

Larry - for what it's worth, my daughter got a new set of Nano SST's in yesterday, and she's requested we put Gas Pro's on them.


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## andyman1970 (Apr 2, 2008)

I've been using the AAE WAVs for shorter distances with some great success. I've noticed different performance at the longer distances so I've decided to experiment with some spin wings (of course it COULDN'T be me....)  

I've only used vanes exclusively, so the different fletching is a bit new for me. I use a Bitz to fletch and I suspect I'll start experimenting with the Gas Pro 2.5"s. I'm curious as to what type of installation methods and tape / adhesives are commonly used.


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## lksseven (Mar 21, 2010)

I put my arrows in a jig, mark them with three equidistant pencil marks, then istall my Gas Pros with zero offset, using the double stick adhesive tape that comes with the Gas Pros. Easy and relatively painless.


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## w8lon (Jun 2, 2012)

As I had a spare straight Bitzenberger clamp, popped the clips off to use the half clamp for my lines. Scribe line with mechanical pencil then click to the next line. Can also play with a little offset to experiment with although the 2.5" GasPro's may not require any offset.


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## davemmevad (Apr 11, 2012)

I'm sitting here looking at my box of all the vanes I've tried, and to date the ones with all my best scores and best averages are plain ol' AAE Max vanes. Durable as heck, and they always get the arrow to the target for me. Tried 3 different mylars, WAV vanes and some others, but the Max vanes always win out for me.


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## rambo-yambo (Aug 12, 2008)

I see that Gas pro has left and right hand styles, are they specific to LH and RH bow? Thanks,


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

AAE Max are great vanes. Very heavy, but very durable and accurate. I shot 336 at 70M with those on my arrows at Leg 1 of the 2012 trials event, so they can certainly get the job done.

Rambo- the LH/RH thing has been debated for years. Since the arrow doesn't begin to rotate until a good 10 feet past the bow, it matters not one bit which you choose.


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## Ar-Pe-Lo (Oct 16, 2011)

limbwalker said:


> AAE Max are great vanes. Very heavy, but very durable and accurate. I shot 336 at 70M with those on my arrows at Leg 1 of the 2012 trials event, so they can certainly get the job done.
> 
> Rambo- the LH/RH thing has been debated for years. Since the arrow doesn't begin to rotate until a good 10 feet past the bow, it matters not one bit which you choose.


I would say it's matter for clearance.....if you use LH for LH archer there is better clearance for arrow rest in the way the spinnies are curved.


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## gster123 (Dec 17, 2012)

Ar-Pe-Lo said:


> I would say it's matter for clearance.....if you use LH for LH archer there is better clearance for arrow rest in the way the spinnies are curved.


If you've got the right arrow spine this shouldn't be an issue.


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## Jeb-D. (Sep 21, 2011)

Do the spin wings/Elivane/gaspro type vanes handle crosswind significantly better than plastic vanes?

My local range tends to have a pretty consistent crosswind that kicks the tail end of my arrow around.


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## Ar-Pe-Lo (Oct 16, 2011)

gster123 said:


> If you've got the right arrow spine this shouldn't be an issue.


Yes it should not, but it's good to have some buffer


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## airwolfipsc (Apr 2, 2008)

Fyi. Using rod clicker vs blade clickers helps if you shoot thru.
Switched to rod clicker coz I have to repair spin wings everytime.
Just my 2cents.


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