Home > Archery Kit > Cat Whisker Silences
Cat Whisker Silences
Reviewed By Steve , 27 September 2009
Some folks love silencers and other hate 'em. I have used many different types and they all work to a greater or lesser degree. It isn't just about quietening the bow string so that prey won't hear you, a lot of archers use silencers and never hunt at all. One advantage of taking the noise and vibration out of the string is that the vibration won't be transmitted in to the bow and in to the archers hand. When a bow has been quietened right down there is nothing like the flat thud of an arrow being loosed toward the target.
These little chaps are probably the cheapest on the market, they can be installed through the string, which is my preferred method, or attached to the string either with serving thread or I have seen folks use zip ties. Most bows will benefit from the addition of a silencer, these type are particularly useful as many of todays' bows are dead or almost dead in the hand and many have built a reputation for quiet shooting bows, in some cases I will install just a half of a cat's whisker and these are easy to cut down. Another bonus using rubber is that they are waterproof, many fur or felt silencers will end up just a soggy lump on the string in wet weather.
I use several types of silencer on many of my bows, for a long time I was convinced they would steal speed from my string, however after extensive testing I now use them as thier effect on performance is less than negligible and I am the kind of archer who takes a couple of strands out of the string as it can add a foot or two per second to the speed of the bow.
| Rating | |
|---|---|
| Features & Design |   |
| Simple rubber silencer | |
| Performance |  |
| Perhaps not as effective as other methods but they will do the job and the difference is noticeable, | |
| Value for Money | |
| So cheap you should try them just for the hell of it... | |
| Overall | |
| Effective at making the bow more quiet and cheap as chips. | |
Steve Nicholson and Andy Gilfrin, are real archers interested in the best archery suppliers have to offer. In our search for the very best bow, arrows and equipment we have shot, used and worn pretty much everything on offer.
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| Essential Details | |
|---|---|
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What : Cat Whisker Silences Price : £1.75 |
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There are 2 strips in each pack.
For ease of application all the strands are connected.
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Magazine |
July 2010
The Mary Rose story comes to life this month, when Steve and Andy went to visit archaeologist Alex Hildred and got our hands on 500 year old long bows (literally). We look at the battle of Vernuiel, Andy visits France on a peace mission and we talk to Sid at Border.
June 2010
Bumper edition this month, a pig in armour, Geoff towers direct from Homildon Hill and a look at the Mary Rose. There is also news of the UK Atlatl championships and all the usual regular items.
May 2010
This month sees the release of yet another Robin Hood film, to celebrate this months magazine is a Robin Hood special. We look at the man behind the legend with a couple of articles about the man and the period that gave rise to him. We also have an article on Little John, not Robin Hoods side kick but John Cately of Little John Arrow, he talks to us about his life in archery and the way he likes to make his arrows.
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Your Comments
Tell us what you think, do you agree with the review or have something to add?
Posted by: Darren Chaplin on Jan 4, 22:49
Hi, Use these on my Dacron stringed Samick Deer Master recurve with a suede patch over the string grooves, seem to get by with as few as 12 strands of rubber per silecer (2in total, evenly spaced at1/4 along string each end) cut down by about 20% in length, through the string and secured/served on with dental floss, what I’m saying is these are adjustable as they are cheap, if a little fiddly, go experiment you may surprised at the results you,ll get. Have heard that 4 little ones work better than 2 but have never tried.
Regards,
Darren
Posted by: Andy@archers-review on Jan 8, 09:36
Hi Darren,
Thanks for the info, I personally never install string silencers but we often get bows with them already installed. The recent review I did on the Dick Boss had Cat Whiskers installed and it was one of quietest bows I have ever shot.
Steve is more the man for putting stuff on strings and if he says they are good which the review does then it must be true.