Keeping feathers dry?

[Hoogster]

I will be going on a hunt in the South San Juans the last week of archery season. Had some wet weather opening weekend and I rigged some trash bag material around the fletching with tape. Does anybody have any slick ways to keep the feathers dry or from going limp when wet weather is likely?

[Kevin]

There was a commercial feather treatment that was a white powder. We found out it was underwater welding flux, worked extremely well.

I shot a blunt at a grouse that ended up in a water hole for 4 hours before the wind blew the arrow to the shore....picked it up and it was as good as new.

Not sure what else works. For plastic, baby bottle liners work, and you can shoot with them on the arrow, I am told.

[BS]

Kevin, where do you buy the "underwater flux"?

I did a search, but..............didn't find the flux forsale.

Thanks,
Bruce

[Hoogster]

I went to Sportsman's Warehouse and they said a guy came in and got the fly fishing powder to keep them afloat. Maybe the same type of stuff.

[Sawtooth]

Anybody ever tried Gink???

[Kevin]

I'll bet the dry fly floatant is the same thing. I'll check the inventory.

[beta male]

The dry fly floatant I have used makes the feathers stiffer but it was a liquid. you can buy the feather treatment stuff from trad archery stores like 3Rivers.com.

Why didn't a phrase like "keep your feathers dry" never catch on like "keep your powder dry"? /images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif

[Kevin]

Yeah, I'm sure this is it. Good stuff.

http://www.3riversarchery.com/Product.asp?c=2&s=129&p=0&i=5086

Works better than anyone would expect.

[Sawtooth]

Hey Smokepole,

Do you have any of this stuff Kevin's talking about???

I may experiment with Gink on an old arrow just for sh**ts and grins.

[Kevin]

Sawtooth/Smokepole, I've got some of the stuff if you want to try it. My arrows now are fletched with plastic, don't need the stuff.

Let me know.

[elmbow]

I use the white powder, I believe it's called fletch dry and may be marketed by Bohning company. It's a very "fluffy",material. You empty it into a ziploc baggie, (provided) and spin your feathers in it, and then knock the excess off. It gives the feathers a weird feel but works good. One bottle should treat several dozen arrows.

[simonsays]

There is a product out there called "Box Call Magic" for waterproofing turkey box calls. I believe it is rosin suspended in an alcohol like liquid. I used 2 years in a row on my feathers for an Alaska trip. This is the best thing I have found for feather fletching.....next to condoms but the "safe bowhunting" jokes got too thick and you have to pull them off. Good for the ego though to slap down 6 boxes of XL magnums at wally world.

[Smokepole]

Sawtooth, I don't have any. I plan to get so close that wet feathers won't make a difference. Heck, I may not even need the bow, I may just reach out and stick the arrow in by hand.....

[Sawtooth]

Smoke,

If my arms were as long as yours, I could do that too. I'm only drawing 26.5", so I'll stick to my stick (and string). /images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif My guess is that our fletches WILL get wet this trip, Smoke. Just you wait and see.

[elmbow]

Heck you guys, forget the arrows completey and do as Lord Greystoke did, jump out of trees onto their backs and do 'em in with a sturdy knife. That bow and arrow huntng is just toooo easy.

[Rod Jenkins]

Bob Gordon turned me onto his feather water proofing....Westley Black Magic...same stuff you use on your auto tires to make them look wet and shiny. Spay it on LIGHLY , work into the feather by hand...wipe off excess and your good for at least a season...smells bad for a couple days, but the smell soon goes away. Doesnt make feather stiff or gummy like some other feather treatments I've tried.

If you dont wanna use the tire magic... baby bottle liners work , but do make feather lay down somewhat

[CCH]

I've also had good luck with the Fletch Dry. It's held up very well in steady rain.

[PAboy]

Try "No-Snow". You will find advertised it by the Wisker Biscut arrow rests in magazines. That is what they recommend you treat the biscut with to repel water. It is spray on.

[Sawtooth]

I just returned from a multi-day backpack bowhunt for elk with my partner, Smokepole. On the way to the trailhead, I stopped by Western Archery in Salida and picked up a small container of Gateway Feathers "100% waterproof feather powder". Both of us applied the powder to our fletches and there was GOBS left in the plastic jar. 1/4 oz. of this stuff should treat about 50 arrows! Although it was too cold to rain, we did have high humidity, sleet, light snow and mist during the hunt. Our fletches stayed bone dry. I'm pleased with this product.

[falcon]

Probably lots of stuff that works good. We have a discount shoe store here called Payless Shoes. They have a product named Rain and Stain that is a spray on.

It is most likely the same thing as "Dri-fly", "Fletch-dri", "No Snow", just with a different label. I had an old can that I recall said it was mineral spirits and whatever propellant, but the newer ones don't say. I shot it on my feathers three or four times before I left and never had one come close to laying down. Lots of bushwhacking too.

I get them soaked and rub it in, then it dries in an hour or less. Just whenever you got time.
Glynn

[Pawnee]

Another more "Traditional" suggestion, per the writings of Jay Massey, Canada Goose feathers are amazingly waterproof. The only downside is that they are dark which makes watching the arrow in flight harder. I order mine from Raven Arrows (ravenarrows@hotmail.com). They are also not cheap - at about $1 per feather.

[razorsharp]

I was going to suggest the goose feathers when I saw the post title. If the color is a problem you could put the little fluffy indicator jobbies on the back of the arrow to help with the visual.

Also, a lot of people don't realize that vanes can be shot from traditional bows. Try them before you discount them.

[et]

Just got back from AK and we used a verity of waterproofing from Fletch Dry powder, Dri-tite liquid, simply spraying with silicone fabric waterproofing. All worked fine. The powder can obscure your vision a bit when shooting but seemed to be the favorite for simplicity and weight.

The other route was to use a cover to protect the fletching. A simple fleece cover did better then I thought it would but the best was using condoms. Now it was a bit tough to explain to the wife why I needed to take a pack or two of them on a hunting trip. We did our best to keep them hidden from the bush pilot. They work best if your using screw on points. Un screw the BH, cut a small slit in the tip and then pull it down over the fletching. Just pull off from the fletching when you want to shoot. The little rubber guys are now a part of my gear and I trust the system more then any other approach at this time.

To keep my BH protected I dipped (sharpened)them in"Pro-tect a edge" basically the material that router bits etc are dipped in when new. I would only have 2 heads exposed at a time which saved me from having to resharpen (touch up) all the heads every couple of days.

et

[Hills]

Used the Fletch Dry in Alaska and it was misty for a week. The powder worked fine. I was concerned about breathing the powder as the bow and arrows were with me inside a very small tent. When I got home I sent and e-mail to Fletch Dry and they said it was a common household chemical. Welders flux doesn't sound like a common household chemical.

[anthracitic]

Anhydrous borax?