# Fletching arrow right helical or left



## banded_mallard

What decides which way an arrow is fletched. Is it the way the bow naturally throws it, if you shoot right handed or left? I am about to fletch my fist arrows and have a right and left helical clamp.


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## Timevoid

There are several posts on forum about it. But check out PJ Reilly. 
Short answer, it depends on what direction your string is twisted.


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## AnchorPoynt

I could be wrong as I’ve been wrong plenty of times but the natural rotation of the arrow is caused by which direction the bow string was served in. I just fletched a dozen arrows this week and was learning all the same things. You want to fletch the same direction as your natural rotation so you don’t have any opposing forces. My arrows were rotating left so I fletched with a left offset so they’d be spinning as soon as they left the bow.


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## AnchorPoynt




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## 1/2 Bubble Off

banded_mallard said:


> What decides which way an arrow is fletched. Is it the way the bow naturally throws it, if you shoot right handed or left? I am about to fletch my fist arrows and have a right and left helical clamp.


I don't care about why my arrows spin one way or the other.... I already have a million bits of otherwise useless information floating around in my bordering on OCD brain.

I just shoot a bare shaft with an index mark and see which way they want to spin naturally.... then build my arrows to best support that. In other words, I want to support what the bow wants to do naturally.

I'm aware that folks have done experiments with this and all data seems to lead us to believe that it doesn't matter, and the vanes will eventually spin the arrow in the direction they want and the arrows will still hit in the same(ish) spot. Years ago I fletched every thing with Right twist and was happy.... I was happy with the malarky that an old timer at the club told me "Right handed shooters shoot a Right twist and Left handed shooters shoot a Left twist". It was simple and seemed like a logical "rule"... Now that I know my bows all naturally want to twist Left, I can't convince myself that "it doesn't matter". (See OCD comment above)


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## gOOdy2k15

Mark a line with a marker near the nock end of a bare shaft arrow. Shoot it really close into a target. I mean close enough so the whole arrow has cleared the riser of the bow by about a ft. Notice which direction the line on the arrow moved; clockwise or counterclockwise. Repeat this test two more times to confirm. If bare shaft arrow naturally rotates clockwise = right offset or right helical fletching. If bare shaft arrow naturally rotates counter clockwise = left offset or left helical fletching. And yes it matters. Watch this cool video to see arrow flight in super slow motion when the fletchings match the natural arrow rotation vs. not. The more you know. Knowledge is power.


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## Aihn

gOOdy2k15 said:


> Mark a line with a marker near the nock end of a bare shaft arrow. Shoot it really close into a target. I mean close enough so the whole arrow has cleared the riser of the bow by about a ft. Notice which direction the line on the arrow moved; clockwise or counterclockwise. Repeat this test two more times to confirm. If bare shaft arrow naturally rotates clockwise = right offset or right helical fletching. If bare shaft arrow naturally rotates counter clockwise = left offset or left helical fletching. And yes it matters. Watch this cool video to see arrow flight in super slow motion when the fletchings match the natural arrow rotation vs. not. The more you know. Knowledge is power.


That was really cool to see.


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## gOOdy2k15

Did you notice the in the video the time it takes the arrow (with the wrong fletching alignment relative to its natural rotation) just flies straight not rotating at all? Think about the impact of a cross wind during this time when the arrow isn't rotating. Think of the lost energy with the fletchings having to first stop the natural bare shaft rotation, then rotate it to their orientation. This is why pros match fletching alignment with the arrow's natural bare shaft rotation. It makes a difference. I have recently shot left and right helical outside on a bow that wants to spin arrows CCW. I could clearly see difference in accuracy. Tuning arrow inserts when gluing them in with a proper arrow spinner (not the POS Pine Ridge one) and bare shaft nock tuning are also very important for consistent accuracy. At this point in my archery career why not do everything possible to have the most accurate gear? Bows don't kill animals, arrows do. Take the time to build amazing arrows! The confidence it gives you knowing you are shooting the best arrow someone could possibly build is worth the extra effort ten fold.


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## idahoryan

Timevoid said:


> There are several posts on forum about it. But check out PJ Reilly.
> Short answer, it depends on what direction your string is twisted.


Great video.


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## Jesse_b_33

banded_mallard said:


> What decides which way an arrow is fletched. Is it the way the bow naturally throws it, if you shoot right handed or left? I am about to fletch my fist arrows and have a right and left helical clamp.


Following 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## omoore

I'm sure I probably don't shoot accurately enough for it to make a huge difference, but the first time I saw the video of an arrow stop spinning in mid-flight and change direction in rotation, I went online and ordered a left wing clamp to add to my arsenal. That was evidence enough for me. Now I check my bareshaft rotation and fletch right or left helical as needed.


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## gOOdy2k15

It is determined by your bow string. Do the bare shaft rotation test. If bareshaft spins Clockwise = Right Offset or Right Helical. If bareshaft spins Counter Clockwise = Left Offset or Left Helical. It doesn't matter which hand you shoot with. Fletchings spin the arrow the same direction regardless is your right or left handed. Here is a rough drawing I did of fletching and what rotation it cases.


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## gOOdy2k15

omoore said:


> I'm sure I probably don't shoot accurately enough for it to make a huge difference, but the first time I saw the video of an arrow stop spinning in mid-flight and change direction in rotation, I went online and ordered a left wing clamp to add to my arsenal. That was evidence enough for me. Now I check my bareshaft rotation and fletch right or left helical as needed.


I'm very happy to hear that! If I can enlighten a single person and help them become a better archery I feel great.


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## banded_mallard

Thanks all for the responses. Now I just have to figure out how to set up my left offset and helical. I have a left helical clamp for my bitzenburger but I don’t know how to change the offset correctly.


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## Willyhunts2

Good topic. I’ve always gone straight with my fletchings.


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## TheMinusHuman

1/2 Bubble Off said:


> I don't care about why my arrows spin one way or the other.... I already have a million bits of otherwise useless information floating around in my bordering on OCD brain.
> 
> I just shoot a bare shaft with an index mark and see which way they want to spin naturally.... then build my arrows to best support that. In other words, I want to support what the bow wants to do naturally.
> 
> I'm aware that folks have done experiments with this and all data seems to lead us to believe that it doesn't matter, and the vanes will eventually spin the arrow in the direction they want and the arrows will still hit in the same(ish) spot. Years ago I fletched every thing with Right twist and was happy.... I was happy with the malarky that an old timer at the club told me "Right handed shooters shoot a Right twist and Left handed shooters shoot a Left twist". It was simple and seemed like a logical "rule"... Now that I know my bows all naturally want to twist Left, I can't convince myself that "it doesn't matter". (See OCD comment above)


HAHA i loved reading this: I can't convince myself that "it doesn't matter" 

I feel ya man, im in the same boat haha.


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## TheMinusHuman

banded_mallard said:


> Thanks all for the responses. Now I just have to figure out how to set up my left offset and helical. I have a left helical clamp for my bitzenburger but I don’t know how to change the offset correctly.


Check out Nock On's web site. John Dudley does a video on how to adjust your Bitz to make the offsets and stuff. he makes some really easy to follow along with videos. I used his video the first time i made my own arrows.


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## Junglesow

banded_mallard said:


> What decides which way an arrow is fletched. Is it the way the bow naturally throws it, if you shoot right handed or left? I am about to fletch my fist arrows and have a right and left helical clamp.


Right for right handed i think.


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## 290Guy

Junglesow said:


> Right for right handed i think.


wrong.....think harder


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## GreggWNY

My arrows clock left, I fletch left wing helical. Does it help? I have no idea but it makes me feel better. I do know my Magnus Black Hornets hit the same POI as my field points out to 40 yards.


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## acrocco

I’d like to think same brand, spine etc would spin the same direction off a bow but wonder if anyone has experience to the contrary. I’ll prob be checking them all anyways. Thank you for the input and this forum.


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## JCondon39

TheMinusHuman said:


> HAHA i loved reading this: I can't convince myself that "it doesn't matter"
> 
> I feel ya man, im in the same boat haha.


I am so much in the same boat that I am about to drop the coins and make bills rain for a bow press just so I can tinker on my bow. I already went out and bought a new Bitz with a left clamp last week instead of using my as fletch. And the firar set of test arrows and wraps came out great. 

Love all the great info out here.


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## Drop-Em

Just got "enlightened" myself this year about arrow rotation. Checked mine and sure enough they spin counter clock wise. Have always fletched mine straight and thought I was fine ( guess it was better than having them right fletched ). Now everything is fletched left! Never too old to learn a new trick.


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## grander

Bout time for ole Sonny Thomas to chime in and tell everyone they're wrong.


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## BigXX78

grander said:


> Bout time for ole Sonny Thomas to chime in and tell everyone they're wrong.


Since Sonny hasn't chimed in yet, I'll give it a whirl.

I've seen no conclusive evidence that helical fletching in the opposite direction of a bare shaft's natural spin, has any significant effect on down range accuracy or arrow speed. For one thing, a bare shaft's spin, coming off the string, is so slow compared to helically fletched arrows, the spin reversal, when fletched in the opposite direction, occurs within a few yards of the arrow's release.

I've seen YouTube video tests, in which the tester shows faster helical spin rates, when fletched left helical with counter clockwise bare shaft spins, but actual better accuracy with right helical fletching.

Is a faster spin rate really better? Might is also be creating extra overall wind resistance to have an arrow rotating too fast? I don't know.

I've also seen some individuals report that different arrows may clock differently, either way, shot from the same bow.

I've been shooting right helical for over 30 years. My fixed broadheads and target points have same POIs out to 80 yards. I've only recently even thought about which direction my bare shafts clock. I resisted the urge to check, but curiosity finally got the best of me. My bare shafts do indeed rotate counter clockwise, at a rotation rate of about one complete rotation in about 15-20 feet.

I have no plans to start fletching left helical, because I see no reason to potentially break something that doesn't need to be fixed.

I'm completely open to the fact that individual results may vary. If someone finds they get better accuracy and/or speed by fletching helical in the same direction their arrows naturally clock, then I'm 100% for them doing so. I just don't see how this could be a standard, universal benefit (or even rule of thumb) for all archers with all arrow builds, shot from all bows.


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## 910199

My bare shafts rotate counter clockwise so I started fletching a left offset a few years ago. Can’t say I notice a difference in flight or accuracy but I do notice my points tend to come loose way more often, which I attribute to the unscrewing motion as the arrow hits the target. It’s annoying.

Edit: My bad for reviving an old thread. Whoops.


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## Cumbo

Draw a line on the shaft below the nock. Shoot the bare shaft onto a target about 6 feet away and see if the line is turned to the left or the right. Fletch with a right or left helical accordingly


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## NWoutdoorz

Following


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## llanier44

So... I think my bow has always naturally spun the arrows counterclockwise. I have a LOT of right helical-fletched arrows that I shoot well. I read the post form PJ saying the way the bow string is twisted determines which natural direction the arrow spins coming off the bow. I just got a new bowstring, so i will see if the new bow string spins the arrows counter or clockwise. Regardless, my bigger question is "when i order my next bowstring, can i request that it be twisted so that i can use right helical?" seems like a better fix that changing how i have fletched arrows for 20 years


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## doulos

Like many here have said. Your arrow rotation is influenced by your string build. Nothing else. I build all mine with a clockwise twist. Every arrow I have tried regardless of brand and spine rotates counter clockwise. So I fletch left helical. Does it matter? I am probably not a good enough shooter to tell at the ranges I shoot. But a really good shooter might be able to tell at longer ranges with fixed broadheads. 
IMO a fixed broadhead immediately wants to control the arrow. Any thing that will cause the fletch to have more control sooner would probably have to help with accuracy. But is it noticeable to guys like me?
Guys who are mostly Eastern woods treestand hunters who never shoot past 35 yards. Probably not. I see no difference with broadheads out to 35. I have not taken a shot that far in 30 years.
There is not a doubt with the plentiful video evidence available that when the natural arrow rotation is combined with the matching helical the arrow starts spinning almost immediately. How can this not be better? Many Pros fletch this way. But they are good enough to take advantage of the small differences that I cant see when I shoot. For the vast majority it wont matter a bit.
But I still fletch left. It was not a big deal to pick up a left wing Bitz and try it. I think it could have an impact at longer ranges for a very good shooter.


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