If you are an archer like me you probably have arrows with fletchings that look like they have been attacked by Robin Hood and his merry men. They are shot to all heck, but the fact that they still hit the target (most of the time) means you have not opted to replace them quite yet. Call me thrifty or call me dumb, but my small batch of dual hunting/practice arrows finally needed new fletchings; I could not ignore the matter any longer. Since I did not want to invest in all the tools to fletch arrows from home I searched for more affordable and quick options to Do-It-Yourself (DIY). What I came across was ultimately suggested to me by my father in the New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings. So, today we will take a look at my experience of replacing my own fletchings from home by… boiling them on! Let’s dive in!
Specifications: New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings
When it comes to fletchings they are one of those archery components that are simply an after-thought. Yes, we want them to guide our arrows home and possibly have some sweet looking colors, but that is about it. So, with me having this laissez faire, laid-back attitude about my fletchings, the concept of simply boiling on some new fletchings sounded perfect to me. What could go wrong, right? Well, later on we will talk about my experience of installing my own fletchings for the 1st time. For now, you can read the short, but concise description below of the QuikFletch QuikSpin fletchings from New Archery Products (NAP):
- Made of Super Tough Materials
- Won’t Come Off Arrows even on a Game or Target Pass-Thru!
- Easily Replaced – just Slice and Peel – Arrow Stays Clean
- Colors: White/Green/Green | White/Orange/Orange | White/Yellow/Yellow
These QuikFletch QuikSpin fletchings are covered against breakage due to defects in materials and workmanship from the date of purchase for the original owner like all NAP products. The MSRP was $19.99 for a 6-pack, and since all of the local archery shops in my area were sold out I bought these direct from New Archery Products. A further explanation of the QuikFletch QuikSpin fletchings can be read below courtesy of NAP:
“If you can boil water, you can professionally crest and fletch an arrow in less than 10 seconds. QuikFletch is the easiest way to fletch your arrows either in the field or at home and they are guaranteed not to slip. They shrink to fit any size carbon or aluminum arrow shaft and are available in popular color combinations of Flo Yellow, Flo Green, Flo Orange and White.
The QuikSpin vane is the most accurate vane ever created in the history of archery.“
Installation: New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings
When it comes to installing these fletchings from New Archery Products (NAP) easy is the name of the game. I specifically sought them out because I knew it was going to be easy and once you have your arrows adequately prepped, or if you have recently purchased new arrows, you will be good to go. The directions from New Archery Products (NAP) are as follows:
- Slide onto arrow
- Dip into boiling water for 8 – 10 seconds
- Wait 15 minutes and you are ready to shoot a perfectly fletched arrow
The most difficult thing I had to do for this whole process was actually prepping my arrows by removing the old tattered fletchings that were currently on them. For this exercise, I used a small pocket knife and cut off large chunks of the old fletchings followed by quickly, but lightly shaving off any remaining glue residue that may have remained. This whole process took well over an hour for the 5 arrows I was working on, but I got it done without damaging the main shaft of any of the arrows.
Once my arrows were prepped and ready to go the fun began. I got a huge pasta pot full of water and heated it to a boil. Then, I got all of the arrows I was going to do ready along with the New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings. I simply slipped a fletching onto an arrow shaft, dipped it into the boiling pot, counted to 10, and pulled the arrow out. I was unsure whether the fletching was going to be deformed, melted, mishapen, or something else… but it came out perfect!
The one pointer I would give is to have your water at only a light boil. Once it gets hot enough where it is boiling I would not push the heat further where it is violently boiling off water. I had my pot at a light rolling boil so I could insert an arrow shaft by hand without worrying about scalding hot water splattering on my hand while I did it. I also would gently pat down the arrows with a towel when I was done so there was not any extra water on the arrows as they cooled.
I repeated this process 5x over until my tiny quiver was filled with newly fletched and sharp looking arrows. All in all, if you include the time it took me to clean and prep my arrows it was about 2 hours to switch out my old ratty fletchings to new, clean ones. At the price of $19.99 and them holding up for over a month since I did this I believe it is well worth the affordable asking price.
Final Thoughts: New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings
So, what are my final thoughts?… On the face value of it, if someone tells you that you can boil your own fletchings and it will turn out amazing, you would think they are mad, but that is exactly what I achieved and what I am telling you. If you want a simple way to put new fletchings on your arrows that could take 10 minutes or less with new, clean arrows… this is it. I would definitely recommend the New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings product.
The last question that remains is what do you think? Is the New Archery Products (NAP) QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings something you would be willing to invest your money in? Would you use the QuikFletch QuikSpin Fletchings for your practice arrows? Your hunting arrows? All of the above? As always, let us know all of your thoughts in the Comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.
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