Aerovanes are the first ever vane that employs airfoils on the vanes of an arrow. Unlike traditional vanes, the Aerovane is not flat, and should be fletched straight to function best.
Instead of using drag, the Aerovane uses an airfoil to create spin. Bernoulli's principle, a fundamental law of fluids in motion, states that when flow speed increases, pressure decreases and vice versa. Just like an airplane wing is design so that air will flow more rapidly over the upper surface than the lower one, decreasing the pressure on the top surface and increasing the pressure on the bottom surface. This difference in pressure provides the lift that keeps the airplane in flight. In case of Aerovanes, as there are multiple vanes on a shaft, circular lift occurs, causing the arrow to spin.
There are 3 main contributing factors that make Aerovanes quiet:
Very rigid airfoil: by having a rigid airfoil, a lot of wow and flutter (also know as harmonics) are minimized. Aerovanes are not only one of the hardest vane on the market it also employs the design of an ultra slim pyramid which is one of the most rigid structures based on volume.
Very round leading edge: just like an owl's wing. This round leading edge allows air to flow over it while creating minimum air molecule to air molecule disturbance. This also minimizes the formation of a delta vortex, which robs speed and creates sound. To further reduce sound, all edges of Aerovanes are round.
Micro texturing: in case of Aerovane Ir1 and II, 5 and 3 zones respectively of micro-texturing is applied on different areas of the surfaces of the vane to get the least amount of back end turbulence to minimize the vacuum back pressure (bubble). This micro texturing also helps to generate a different level of micro turbulence to minimize surface to air drag.
If you follow the information presented in the above FAQs concerning installation and tuning, Aerovane II could tighten your groups and increase your effective range. The use of Aerovane will not turn an average archer into a tournament archer over night, but they will provide more consistent flight. Thus, allowing the average archer the ability to tune their specific set-up for a possible increase in accuracy.
Since Aerovanes are based on airfoil technology, it is essential that it is as rigid as possible to generate as much lift as the material science allows. If safety were not an issue, the Aerovane would be made out of metal to fully utilize the airfoil.
The Aerovane is made of very stiff plastic, no doubt about it. Like all high durometer plastic, low temperatures will make it very brittle. When the temperature reaches around -10F, any in flight contact with the Aerovane will lead to shattering of the vane. As long as it does not make contact in mid air, the Aerovane will not crack or tear even at much lower temperatures.
Most fletching glues should work well with Aerovane, but due to the release agent embedded inside the material, acetone should be used remove all foreign material before gluing the vane on the shaft. Low viscocity glue Aerovane glue AG0600 or super glue type like GoatTough glue will also work in many occasions as long as the vane is clean and treated correctly. For best result regarding Aerovane fletching see procedure in [07].
Aerovanes are injection molded, thus Aerovanes will have oil on them and in them. Although the factory may have cleaned the vane with soap and water, it is always advised to clean the gluing surface and the feet of the vane by using a Q-tip soaked with pure acetone (available in Wal-Mart cosmetic section) to swipe the Aerovane and then swipe dry with a dry end of a Q-tip, then fletch as normal.
To Fletch Aerovane, the following material are needed;
Aerovane(s)
Arrow shaft(s)
a precision index vane jig
a bottle of 500 centipoises (Cp) or higher viscosity super-glue with precision applicator (e.g. Firenock Aerovane glue AG0600 with stainless Luer lock needle no larger than 24 gauge
100% pure Acetone (available at Wall-Mart cosmetic section)
Q-tip that does not have plastic or synthetic material in it
a 100 ML Nalgene flat bottom flask with cap (fill with acetone) for Q-tip vane cleaning
a 500 ML Nalgene flat bottom flash with cap (fill with acetone) for arrow dipping/cleaning
a roll of paper towel
a cut top quarter half of a 2 liter soda bottom
Procedure
Thoroughly clean the surface of the shaft(s) by dipping the shaft(s) into a 500ML bottle of 100% pure acetone
Swirl the shaft inside the 500ML bottle for a few time to loosen all particles and dissolve all possible contaminate on the shaft(s)
Wipe dry with clean paper towel
Let air dry then surface of the shaft(s) is ready for fletching
Insert the Aerovane in a vane clamp
Dip one end of the Q-Tip into the 100ML bottle acetone and wipe down the base of the vane from one end to the other
Take the dry end of the Q-Tip and wipe dry the vane with the same direction as above
Apply a small bead of glue down the length of the vane base. Should envision the vane base as 3 tracks and the bead should be 1/3 the width of the entire vane base width
Place the bottle of glue top down on the cut soda bottle so the air will not roll back into the stainless needle and allow the glue to dry and clocked the needle in the process
Place the back end of the clamp against the inner wall of the jig just above the arrow
Slowly lower the clamp until the magnets grab hold of the clamp
Firmly push the clamp all the way to the arrow, and wait the allotted time depending on the type of glue you are using. (Firenock Aerovane Glue setting time is 11-15 seconds)
Open the clamp to free the vane from the clamp and rotate the vane away from the clamp while the clamp is still on the magnet
With the vane away, slide the clamp away from the jig and away from the magnet at no less than 45 degree from the magnet
Most metal straight clamp type jigs with Aerovane tool installed would be usable to fletch the Aerovane effectively. Please note that although the Arizona Easy Fletch straight clamp claims to be straight, it is actually a 1 degree offset, thus not suitable for fletching Aerovane for high speed. For best overall performance, Aerovane Jig with up to 1/72 degree tolerance is best suited for Aerovane.
Aerovanes are entirely based on airfoil design. To harness the full potential of the Aerovane, the only way to fletch it is straight; zero degrees. That's to say, when archery projectile speed is below 260fps, up to 1.5 degree offset fletching approach can significantly increase the rotational ability of Aerovane II as drag is the only valid air to vane/wing interaction at low speed.
Aerovanes are based on airfoil design, this design resembles the profile of the frontal portion of an owl's wing. With this design, the vane is no longer flat which makes a standard straight clamp close to impossible to clamp it straight. To overcome this design difficulty, our Patent Pending wind channel solves the problem by utilizing the 1/16" square brass bar as a spacer inside the wind channel. The thickness of the bar will allow the clamp to clamp the fletching straight at its feet on both sides. In other words, if you want to fletch Aerovanes correctly, it is essential to use the Aerovane tool on the clamp as indicated in the manual.
As of 2011, Firenock will offer Aerovane Jig , Aerovane Clamp and Aerovane Glue for absolute best combination. The 1/16" square bar would be part of the clamp, thus no need to hassle with installation process of the 1/16" brass bar.
Based on the field reports, Aerovanes seem to work best under 1" (<25mm) from the center of the nock to the end of the vane. Although Aerovanes do not create turbulence by themself, the combination of the vanes in a vertical lift does. Therefore it is best to leave less than an inch from the nock point to the vane for best performance.
Traditional vanes or feathers are usually flat in design. In order for them to spin in the air, helical fletching, angle fletching or adding a flipper (rudder) is a must to create drag which causes the arrow to spin. The Aerovane spins based on Bernoulli's principal, the utilization of airfoil, which creates lift based on a variation of airflow speed on the 2 sides of the vane. By utilizing multiple vanes, the multi directional lift will create spin.
After continuous difficulty of making Aerovane I perfect, it is discontinued as of 2011. As a deeper understanding of how an airfoil on how the Aerovane II works, and the market demands for a lighter and shorter profile vane for high-speed bows, Aerovane II proves to do it all with lighter weight and easier to fletch. By fletching Aerovane II with 1 degree offset, it can do what Aerovane I was designed to do (spin well at low speed of < 260fps) which made us decide to discontinue Aerovane I all together.
The Aerovane II is currently available in 10 colors: white, red, orange, green, pink, black, clear, yellow, lime, and blue.
For the latest stock and color offering for Aerovane, please visit our web store.
Aerovane II is not just rough on the surface. There are actually 6 different textures, 3on each side of the Aerovane II respectively to get the maximum benefit of the airfoil. The front portion of the vane where the airfoil is the roughness if 0.0402 mm, the trailing end of the airfoil is 0.0201mm, the back of the vane is 0.0150mm. To read more about why and how the roughness makes Aerovane II so efficient, read more about it at Technical Aspects of Aerovane II.
To correctly set up Aerovanes, a straight jig with the ability to mount the 1/16" square bar is technically a must. Just like any other vanes, basic cleaning and care is all that is needed to successfully fletch the Aerovane besides the modified straight clamp as mentioned above!
We have learned how the Aerovane affects the wind around it. A term called "Cross Wind Signature, CWS" is introduced to make it easier to describe what is actually happening. In reference to the Duravane 4" long vane with a 2 degree helical fletch shooting out of a 295 FPS bow, it was observed that no less than 10" of air was disturbed when the arrow passed through the still air. This column of air being disturbed is what is called the "Cross Wind Signature". Many vanes in the market have even bigger CWS, which is not the case with Aerovanes. As the Aerovane uses airfoil technology instead of drag, the vane is disturbing a minimum amount of air when the arrow passes through. As the air column decreases in size, so does the CWS. The smaller the CWS, the smaller the effect of crosswind, thus Aerovanes are less affected by crosswind.
The Aerovane II is a very high performance vane. In some cases due to the inability for the bow to be tuned, one can use the arrow length and spine to fine-tune the bow. Very much like the traditional finger shooter with a longbow. It is advised that one can use an arrow with a full spine size lower in an Aerovane II for twin cam bows. And use normal spine for single cam or cam and a half bows application and start up to 3 inches longer to make fine tuning possible.
With the Aerovane II, nearly all arrow rests (except a brand new Whisker Biscuit) will work. In the case of some binary cam bows, people had much better luck with an arrow rest like the Hostage and QuickTune if they are not great bow tuners. If a bow is micro tuned properly, any rest besides the WB will work very well with the Aerovane II.
The Aerovane II, is as a high performance vane that will create some serious spin. Any deviation on the launch cycle (nock travel) will show. That is why the Aerovane II is easier to shoot out of bow that can be micro tuned by means of a cable guard from center shot distance and yolk cable adjustment. In the case of a binary cam bow with fixed cable guards or rollers, it is a lot more involved to get the bow tuned with the Aerovane II. That being said, we do find by utilizing a full containment rest like the Hostage™ and QuickTune™ 360, the Aerovane II can be shot out of binary cam bows with an easier set up process.
The 09 Dream Season is a great bow that can be shot with either a full capture or drop away rest. Since the nock travel on this bow is not level, the full capture rest is the easiest and quickest way to tune the bow. If you choose to go with a full capture type rest, either the NAP QuickTune 360 or Octane Pro Hostage will work fine. Set up the rest based on the centerline markings of your bow and you will be very close to shooting a bullet hole through paper. Some minor adjustments will probably be necessary.
If you choose to go with a drop away rest; which is my preference, you will have to make several adjustments to get your bow in tune. These adjustments are as follows:
D-Loop/Nock location: In order to counter the nock travel, you will need to have a high nocking point of at least 3/8". To give you an idea of the distance I am talking about, the distance from the center of the string suppressor to the center of my D-Loop is 6 3/8".
Cable Guard: You will need to move your cable guard as close to your rest as possible without causing any interference, this will help to line up your string, arrow and rest when the bow is in the drawn position. You do not have to move the cable guard very much, I only moved mine approximately 1/8". Keep in mind, when you look at the bow from the back with an arrow on the string, it will look like the arrow will strike the cables; however, due to the nock travel it will actually miss them. You will be able to adjust this through further paper tuning.
Left Yoke: In order to bring your arrow back towards center line, you will need to put twists into the left yoke tightening the string. Start out with six twists, you can always add more if needed. I ended up putting nine twists on my bow. To give you an idea of what to look for once you twist the left yoke, when you are looking at the top cam from the back of the bow, follow the string down from the top of the cam to the bottom. At the bottom of the cam, it will appear as if the right edge of the cam and half of the string (on the cam itself) are to the right of your main string. Keep in mind, after you twist the left yoke, you will have to adjust the cams to get them back into timing the best you can. I was able to get my bottom cam timing mark to lay perfectly center on the cable; however, the upper cam timing mark lays on the front part of the cable. This did not seem to effect the performance of the bow.
You will have to play around with #2 and #3 above to get the right combination of adjustments for your bow. It may sound like a lot to do, but it is well worth the time and effort in the end. Just to give you an idea of how well the above steps will tune your bow, after I completed these steps, I was able to shoot a field point and a fixed blade broadhead into the same spot out to 50 yards.(written by Jeffery Bailey)
With a 65lb bow, the 400 spine arrows react as if they are slightly weak in spine (hit to the right); 350 spine arrows react as if they are slightly stiff (hit to the left); and 300 spine arrows react as if they are stiff with a field point and weak with a broadhead. The simple solution to correct the 350 spine arrows would be to move the arrow rest closer to the bow (i.e.: more in line with the center of the bow). For the 300 spine arrows, the field report suggested the solution would be to increase draw weight from 65 lbs to 67 lbs or even 68 lbs; which would help to even out the results.
Both, Aerovanes are great for both target and broadhead flight. The inherited high spin design of Aerovanes would easily stabilize a broadhead tipped arrow faster than traditional vanes & feathers. That's said, not all broadhead are meant to spin at high speed. Most radial design broadhead are not meant to spin, this would not work good with Aerovane.
No turkey broadhead that is NOT mechanical will work with Aerovanes. Aerovane make such a high speed spin it will make a BIG turkey broadheads like the Gobbler Guillotine™ and the Magnus Bull-head behave more like a helicopter when shot. If one decides to use Aerovane equipped arrows for turkeys, the American Turkey Terror, Rage (with Gator rubber-band), and the Trophy Ridge Turkey Tom-O-Hawk are the few that will work well with the Aerovane.
With the turkey broadhead, both Aerovanes spins way too much for the big turkey broadhead to fly true.
With the Aerovane I: It is really a personal preference as it is a very forgiving vane. One can choose from the big Magnum fixed blade broad-heads to an expandable broadhead. As long as the bow is tuned well, the arrow will fly the broadhead well with the Aerovane I.
With the Aerovane Ir1: It is the most aggressive aerodynamic profile of all Aerovanes today. Its ultra high circular lift capability requires broad heads that can handle high spin rates. The following spreadsheet showing the broadhead testing results from a slower bow. The bow set up is as follows:
Bow: old PSE compound set at 54 lbs
Arrow: Easton Axis 400, cut to 29.5"
Rest: Trophy Taker
Release: Pro Diamond
Target: Block set at 30 yards
The few shots using the Aerovane 1r1 were with field points to ensure the sights were accurate for the set up. Needless to say, every shot with a field tip went straight into the bulls eye. After using a chronograph, it was found the average speed was 213 fps; along with an average arrow weight of 415 grains, thus equating to a Kinetic Energy of 41.8. After reviewing the test results, it is easy to notice a speed of 213 along with a heavy arrow would easily drop the arrow at longer ranges. The rotational force on the arrow produced by Aerovane 1r1 is not enough to overcome the heavy weight of the arrow itself. Overall, this was a very good test to show the effects of the vane on a heavy slow moving arrow.
With the Aerovane II: We recommend fixed blade broad-heads in most cases. As big as 1 1/2 inch cut fixed blades. One must however take into consideration the ultra spin rate of the Aerovane II, and look at the cross section of the broadhead. The more it pushes air, the worst it will fly. Some of the expandable broad-heads may not work well with the Aerovane II, because the vane spins the arrow so much it can deploy the blades in flight. All truly secure expandable blade broad-heads are good with Aerovane II.
Below is a list of the broad-heads that we have tried with Aerovane out of bows at 320+ FPS and their respective flight accuracy. For these tests, we shot two arrows with the specific broadhead at a 30 yards target for accuracy and grouping. Poor results are defined if both arrows hit at least 4 inches away from the bulls eye at 30 yards. Good results are defined by at least one of the two arrows hitting the bulls eye at the 30 yards target; while the second arrow will hit within a 4 inch circle from the bulls eye. Best results are defined by both arrows hitting the bulls eye at the 30 yards target. The tests were carried one step further and shot the Best results arrows at a 40 yards target and 50 yards target. Both arrows with the Rocky Mountain Blitz hit the bulls eye at 40 yards; whereas one arrow hit the bulls eye at 50 yards and the second arrow was just outside of the bulls eye (archer error).&nsbsp; It is very obvious to us that speed and rotation play a huge factor when shooting broad-heads Poor Results
Wasp SST Boss (one arrow missed the target)
ABC Sonic
Crimson Talon Hyperspeed
Eastman First Cut XT (both arrows missed the target)
Innerloc Raven
Innerloc Stainless
Magnus Stinger
Muzzy Phantom MX (one arrow missed the target)
NAP Hellrazor
Slick Trick
Steel Force Venom
Trophy Taker Shuttle T-Lock
Wasp Sharpshooter
Wasp SST Boss (one arrow missed the target)
Good Results
Innerloc Carbon Tuner
G5 Striker
Razorcap
Wac’em
Best Results
NAP Nightmare
Rocky Mountain Blitz
Smoke Broad-heads Ramcat
More detail testing were done to see which broadhead was best in longer distance with Aerovane II which has much higher rotation rate than Aerovane Ir1.
These broad-heads included Smoke Ramcat, NAP Nightmare, Rocky Mountain Blitz (Right Offset) and Rocky Mountain Blitz (Left Offset). The basis of the testing was to shoot two of the above listed broad-heads to a Block Target 30 yards away. If both arrows hit the center bulls eye, the broadhead is classified as "Best"; if one arrow hits the bulls eye and the second hits within 4 inches of the center, the broadhead is classified as "Good"; if both arrows hit greater than 4 inches from the center, the broadhead is classified as "Poor." For all arrow / broadhead combinations that are classified as "Best". The tests were repeated as above shooting at a 40 yard and 50 yard target. Prior to shooting the broad-heads, the bow was ensured proper set up by shooting through paper at 3 feet, 9 feet and 15 feet with a complete bullet hole. The bow that was used for this test is the Darton Pro 3500S set at 65 pounds at 29" draw with 29 inch Victory Archery VForce HV V1 350 arrows fletched with Aerovane II and Firenock practice nocks.
30 Yard Target Results
Smoke Ramcat - Best
NAP Nightmare - Best
RM Blitz (Right Offset) - Best
RM Blitz (Left Offset) - Best
40 Yard Target Results
Smoke Ramcat - Both arrows hit the bulls eye
NAP Nightmare - Both arrows hit the bulls eye
RM Blitz (Right Offset) - 1 arrow hit low 1"; 1 arrow hit left of the bulls eye 1"
RM Blitz (Left Offset) - Both arrows hit the bulls eye
50 Yard Target Results
Smoke Ramcat - 1 arrow hit the bulls eye; 1 arrow hit left of the bulls eye 1.5 "
NAP Nightmare - Both arrows hit left of the bulls eye 2"
RM Blitz (Right Offset) - 1 arrow hit below the bulls eye 1"; 1 arrow hit left of the bulls eye 4"
RM Blitz (Left Offset) - Both arrows hit left of the bulls eye by 2.5"
In summary, the Smoke Ramcat appeared to match the spinning effect (or rotational force) placed on the arrow by Aerovane II becoming a very accurate arrow / broadhead combination especially at longer ranges.
The Aerovane II being a high performance vane needs speed to show its potential. We believe, to achieve optimum performance 295 FPS is where it really shines. However Aerovanes can work well with lower launching speed arrows by offset Aerovane II as much as 1 degree at speed below 265 fps. Even at slower speeds one should still be able to enjoy tighter groups and silent arrow flight, as they are the original design goals.
Just like the Aerovane II which has been shortly released after we introduced the Aerovane I in September 2008. The more we understand, the better the design can get. The field data is pouring in daily and this leads to a deeper understanding. The Aerovane is a continuous learning project both in design and theory. You can be most assured that newer designs are being worked on at this time.
Both the Aerovane I and II are designed to take the most advantage of aerodynamics as the arrow passes through air. There is no gain in speed when launched from a bow. Aerovanes are about how long and flat one can shoot an arrow via the advancement in hang time provided by the means of airfoil and lower air drag. One however will notice a significant gain in speed as the shooting distance increases comparing with other vanes due to a reduction in drag compare to the common vane on the market.
Based on the current field test data, 280 FPS seems to be a good launching speed for Aerovane II to achieve the maximum potential with straight fletch. At 265 to 295 fps, half a degree offset work well, and below 220 1 degree seems to work best.
[01] What makes the Aerovane so unique?
