Quieting a Howard Hill back quiver

[PennDude]

I purchased a Howard Hill back quiver some time ago but I don't use it because it is so darn loud.  The leather is stiff and it keeps its shape while it is on my back.  There is no padding in it and the arrows jostle around loudly whenever I move.  I was thinking of adding some foam or sheep wool to the base of the quiver.  Is there something I could line the sides with to pad the arrows a bit?

[old_goat2]

My vote would be to silence it by replacing it with a bow quiver:-) But I know some people that treat the leather with I think it's Neets feet oil I think it's called and also putting it under the bed to kind of mash it down, think back to being a kid and breaking in a new baseball glove!

[Gordon Jabben]

I think it just needs to be broken in.  It should start to form to your back and collapse on the arrows.

[PennDude]

I'll try the neatsfoot oil.  Thanks!  I already have a Big Jim quiver but I wanted something that holds a lot of arrows for when I squirrel hunt.

[1flyfish]

Chris it needs to conform to your back,lightly wet the quiver and wear it until you see it shape to your body then let it dry FULLY and then treat it with some leather conditioner,it will be very quiet once the arrows lay tight to your body. Hope this helps

[Hud]

Montana Pitch Blend products, use the leather oil.
http://www.montanapitchblend.com/

[centaur]

HHA sells two versions of the quiver. Sounds like you got the one with the stiff leather. The soft leather version conforms to your body very quickly, and is very quiet. You might try the Montana Pitch Blend or similar product, but if you got the stiff version, good luck.
You might try  putting some foam in the bottom, that might help, and sheepskin or similar lining around the top would also be beneficial

[two4hooking]

As stated you do not need to put anything inside of it, just break it in properly.  The heavy leather will soften up and conform to your back holding the arrows tightly.  Get the leather hot and apply generous amounts of Montana pitch blend and/or mink oil.  Work the leather until it readily collapses on itself and to your back.  The heavy leather actually adds weight and helps keep arrows even more secure.

Once broken in you can almost stand on your head and field tips will not fall out.

URL=http://s481.photobucket.com/user/two4hooking/media/pic10_zps6a239972.jpg.html] [/URL]

A tip from Louis Armbruster. I bought a couple of the hard ones for two new longbow shooters.  They came round , open and stiff. Louis's tip worked, it was soaking them with Neat oil from the inside until it showed through.  Then set them out in a hot sun, blow drier, or anything to get them hot.  Then work them until they collapse, then put on an old shirt, and wear them rather tight for an afternoon with only a couple of arrows in them.  The quiver will mold to your body shape.  After the Neats oil completely dries then I use the Pitch Blend on the outside.   They both will will get the job done, but I find that it is easier to get the neats oil more places faster, especially when treating them from the inside out.  Another tip I got from Louis Armbruster.  If you are walking fast and hard enough that you can hear your arrows in your back quiver, you are not hunting, you are hiking.  Once you get one completely broken in and shaped to fit your body, they become an old friend that you cannot do without and your freedom of movement will be rewarded with silence and still have the ability to get that second arrow out of the quiver and onto the string in short order.  Perhaps, I am the only one that occasionally needs to get that second arrow out of the quiver and onto the string, but it pays off in bowhunting for me, more often than I care to think about, but it always pays off.

[ChuckC]

Wear it with nothing in it.  Around the house, on the couch, in the car.  You didn't use a ball glove without breaking it in, you shouldn't use this either till its broke in.

ChuckC

[Duncan]

Neets Foot Oil is pretty stinky though. I'd go with mink oil and the pitch blend.

[Bud B.]

I wet form mine. Be careful to not crease the sides. I like a rolled fold at the side edges rather than a sharp fold. Don't get it too wet. Just enough to form it is all you need. And like said above, wear something old when you are forming it. It will bleed if it's latigo leather. That's why I make mine from vegetable tanned leather and wet form it when the leather is still untreated. Then after a good drying, treat it liberally with a good waterproofing oil treatment.

This one shows the rolled edge, but was not made from latigo or vegetable tanned.

[Dorado]

Mine is very quiet now. I made it from 6/7oz veg tanned leather. Mine was oiled with olive oil then sealed with SnoSeal. I wore it for a few weeks before it broke in and got quiet. To help it along I added some thick carpet in the bottom for the arrows to rest on and I lined the mouth with rabbit fur. Even with my limp it's still quiet and I can hold a dozen arrows without problem.

[Sam McMichael]

I have this same quiver. If it rattles, you are moving too fast. My stiff quiver is most commonly used when I need to carry a lot of arrows and stuff. For most hunting, however, I use softer quivers that tend to flatten against my back. Either way, if you move too fast, you will be noisy.

The soft quiver from Hill Archery needs little to no breaking in.

[Green]

Bud is correct about the wet forming.  The one he made for me got tossed in the swimming pool upon receipt (summer time).  I waded in and got it after a few minutes, then once the dripping had finished, I wore it for an hour while shooting, then hung it on a tree branch in the summer heat.  Noon the next day it was dry and got a thorough coat of Mink Oil on the inside and underside of the strap.  The exterior, and smooth side of the strap received multiple coats of Pitch Blend Oil.  I continue to add one coat a year.
Upon receipt
 

After wet forming
 

After the initial oiling and a little more use


After a couple of years of constant use and oiling
 

[Bud B.]

We need a "like" button on here  

Thanks, Rob.

[SCATTERSHOT]

Good ideas above. I had a friend who would break off a small pine branch to,put in the quiver with his arrows. They didn't move at all.

[PennDude]

Thanks for all the replies gentlemen.  I have a coworker that happened to have a bottle of Neatsfoot oil laying around from when his daughters played softball, so that's what I'm going to try, since it was free.

[TxAg]

Bump