Do string silencers REALLY make a difference?

[Covey]

They diffinitely work! Some work better than others. I'm a recurve guy, and most recurve's need them. Maybe not all, but most. JMHO! Jason

[gobblegrunter]

Thanks for the great input fellas. There are some good ideas here to experiment with as well. I have been shooting with the cat whiskers recently. I think that maybe I'll run an experiment similar to what nightwing and keefer are suggesting and go from there. I'll also try some different types of 'em. Smilinicon, you've got a very good point...the tone on the guitar string would definitely change...

[Bjorn]

TBM ran the tests about a year ago and wrote about it..........various materials, decibel meters-the whole nine yards-multi page etc. I'm sure you can search for it. There have been some tests on here too in the past.

[JimB]

Animals,like humans,react faster to noise than to visuals.A deer "jumping" the string is a deer reacting to the sound of the bow.I don't think a bow can be too quiet.

Proper brace height with a string the bow likes and the minimal amount of silencer material to dull the sound down further,I think just makes sense.

I think deer react a lot more often to a sharper "twang" than a lower pitched,dull sounding thump.

[Bowwild]

My favorite, of those I've tried are Cat Whiskers. But from time to time someone writes they degrade performance more than other types. On some bows I've simply kept, for now, what the Bowyer or previous owner has on the string. So I have one with wool balls, Bojack, String Leaches, and Cat Whiskers. I did take the Spiders off my PAX when I arrived --I just have a hard time accepting four of those things aren't too much "slow down" on my string.

I traded for a very nice Checkmate several weeks ago (since traded it again). It came with these yarn-like strips, I think they are called "Tarantulas"?  That bow was whisper quiet!  When I have to make my self listen for the bow's sound instead of noticing it right off, I know I have a pretty quiet set-up.

I like that video test idea mentioned above!

[traditional beagle]

To keep it short. Definitely yes.

[gobblegrunter]

I'll put "tarantulas" on the list to experiment with. Thanks again everyone.
 

[bowkevin]

If they even work a little, i want to use them. If they can help keep an animal from reacting to my shot then I want them.

[BWD]

I've never owned a bow that didn't benefit from some type and amount of string silencers.

[Earl E. Nov...mber]

What ever you do, don't put anything on the string till you have tuned the bow, arrow, string and brace height. Then what ever you do add, keep it light and make sure you put them at the 1/4 and 1/3 node locations..

I have found tying in a few small rubber bands at those points does as mush good as fur balls etc.

[gobblegrunter]

Originally posted by Earl E. Nov...mber:
What ever you do, don't put anything on the string till you have tuned the bow, arrow, string and brace height. Then what ever you do add, keep it light and make sure you put them at the 1/4 and 1/3 node locations..

I have found tying in a few small rubber bands at those points does as mush good as fur balls etc.

Interesting! ...do you have any pics that you could share?

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Without my beaver silencers I can hear a definite twang from the string, it's a reverb twang that resonates up my spine and makes my skin crawl.
But with a 500+ grain woodie and a set of beaver silencers I hear nothing but a very low and almost nonexistent thwud.....
So yes, they do make a difference at least for me anyway, and it's a real significant difference in noise reduction.

[Earl E. Nov...mber]

Sorry I don't do the photo thing.., What I do is just split the string, and tie in a rubber band. Pull it tight and nip off the end loop.Two or three bands at each location is all I use.. Being cheap I just use the rubber bands that come on the newspaper.

[Swamp Yankee]

Yes, string silencers do quiet a bow.  I've found I don't need more than 2 on any bow I own.  As suggested, I tune first, then install the silencers.  To find the best location, I put on two rubber bands (by looping them through themselves), then pluck the string and move them around until they dampen the noise the most.  I then mark those two locations and install my silencer of choice.  I like the beaver fur on the longbow but prefer string leaches on the Black Widow recurve.  Your results may vary.

[Bowwild]

This got me to thinking a bit.

I mess around with weighing arrow components all the time.  I decided to weigh some silencers.

I was surprised how much some of these things weigh, especially compared to arrow parts.

-Carbon Express Cat Whiskers (pair): 50 grains
-Widow Spiders-4: 53 grains
-Sims String Leaches-2: 40 grains

Of course I intend to continue using some of these as needed to quiet the bow.

[Night Wing]

When I get my new bowstring for my 37# bow, I'm going to weigh my home made yarn string puffs and see how much they weigh compared to catwhiskers.

[reddust]

Yes they do,I use the rubber cat-wiskers and they work good for me.

[cacciatore]

Of course they are essential on a string,also bows very quiet like the old Bear are much noiser without.Just work a little bit on the position,like other guys have already said.The kind you wanna use is most of the time just a personal preference.

[69RECURVE]

On those wool silencers I am making (puffs) the thread is constantly breaking after a few shots. Is there a super thread out there or a better backing material than I am not using?

Thanks

[Night Wing]

For yarn puffs that last, get Lion Brand Yarn "Wool-Ease" Thick & Quick. It's 80% acrylic and 20% lamb's wool. It also comes in different colors too. It cost me $6.49 for a 108 yard bundle and I get mine from my local Hobby Lobby store.