Beaver's Ball's and cat's Whisker's
Moderator: Moderators
Beaver's Ball's and cat's Whisker's
Just curious as to Which are prefered by other's.And were you get them from, Also were do you get custom strings from?
Bowhunting (Hunting for Bows)
Known Carrier of "Fox Bow Fever"
Known Carrier of "Fox Bow Fever"
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Glenn Newell
Clinton I use to use cats whiskers but I don't use them anymore, I think they are too heavy and if you don't place them in the right place they don't work very well. I prefer to use polar fleece silencers these days. They are light and not effected by moisture and do as good a job as any silencer on the market, as with any silencer you need to get them up towards the the bow tip...Glenn...
I like cat whiskers myself. I love the look of fur, but it didn't work as well for me. I haven't tried fleece (sounds like something to try in the future), but have been happy with cat whiskers. I tie them on around the string so they are easy to adjust (and you do have to tune your silencers, just like everything else, for the best performance). Ususally, when they are in the right spot, they can be trimmed down a good bit to reduce the weight. Mine look like two little fuzzy balls on my string.
I get my strings from me.
Chad
I get my strings from me.
Chad
Long Bows Rule!
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Glenn Newell
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Mick Smith
- Posts: 4957
- Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2005 9:09 pm
- Location: Surf Coast Victoria
Clint
If you're looking for custom strings, Chad makes beautiful ones at a reasonable price, together with great service.
I've been making my own woolen silencers out of natural fleece. The work well, but I've had a problem with my design, they keep getting smaller and smaller as strands of wool are lost when I shoot. I tie the shanks of wool to the string, allowing the silencers to be moved up and down until the "perfect" spot can be found. I think I might try a drop or two of glue on my next attempt, either that, or I might try Glenn's Polar Fleece idea.
Mick
If you're looking for custom strings, Chad makes beautiful ones at a reasonable price, together with great service.
I've been making my own woolen silencers out of natural fleece. The work well, but I've had a problem with my design, they keep getting smaller and smaller as strands of wool are lost when I shoot. I tie the shanks of wool to the string, allowing the silencers to be moved up and down until the "perfect" spot can be found. I think I might try a drop or two of glue on my next attempt, either that, or I might try Glenn's Polar Fleece idea.
Mick
There is no use focusing on aiming if you don't execute the shot well enough to hit what your are aiming at.
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Glenn Newell
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Glenn Newell
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little arrows
- Posts: 2856
- Joined: Sun Feb 29, 2004 2:14 pm
- Location: Sunshine Coast QLD
Most any fur will work--I've used fox, bobcat, mink, raccoon, otter, etc. along with beaver. Water critters are preferred because their fur naturally sheds water, at least for a while.
Use a tanned hide. Cut strips about 1/8" wide and about 6" long. A word of advice here--use a very sharp knife, like an Exacto or other razor knife. Stick the point into the block of wood you are using for a cutting board (I did mention a cutting board didn't I?) and pull the hide against the knife rather than trying to run the knife down the hide--you will cut a lot less hair off this way.
To install, separate your bow string into 2 equal bundles (easy with flemish). Insert one end of the 6" peice about 1/2" or less, let the string go back together, and wind the long end around the string until you have about 1/2" left. Push it up into a tight wad--the "ball"--the insert the tag end into the string, the same as the way you started. Pull the tags tight, and trim a bit if required.
I love the looks, but they are impractical to me. They don't work as well as cat whiskers (in my experience at least), and are a bugger to tune as you have to take it off, move it a bit, and do it all over again. No biggie if you have a quiet bow to start with, but a pain if you really need to quieten it down. Longer strips work better, but that's just more weight added to the string.
Use the same process for about any fur. I've seen coyote fur used--looked like a couple of hamsters (long hair type) had been tied to the string.
Chad
Use a tanned hide. Cut strips about 1/8" wide and about 6" long. A word of advice here--use a very sharp knife, like an Exacto or other razor knife. Stick the point into the block of wood you are using for a cutting board (I did mention a cutting board didn't I?) and pull the hide against the knife rather than trying to run the knife down the hide--you will cut a lot less hair off this way.
To install, separate your bow string into 2 equal bundles (easy with flemish). Insert one end of the 6" peice about 1/2" or less, let the string go back together, and wind the long end around the string until you have about 1/2" left. Push it up into a tight wad--the "ball"--the insert the tag end into the string, the same as the way you started. Pull the tags tight, and trim a bit if required.
I love the looks, but they are impractical to me. They don't work as well as cat whiskers (in my experience at least), and are a bugger to tune as you have to take it off, move it a bit, and do it all over again. No biggie if you have a quiet bow to start with, but a pain if you really need to quieten it down. Longer strips work better, but that's just more weight added to the string.
Use the same process for about any fur. I've seen coyote fur used--looked like a couple of hamsters (long hair type) had been tied to the string.
Chad
Long Bows Rule!
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hardgainer
- Posts: 550
- Joined: Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:43 am
- Location: Melbourne Australia
I have tried a few types but the US Beaver Balls seem best by far (made by Mountain Man furs Channing Michigan). If they get wet a plunk on the string gets them back on end. I use on both recurve and longbow never been a problem to tune. Measure string touch to touch (recurve) and set at 1/4 down to start. Fitting to flemish is a breeze. My bows were pretty quite anyway so now super quite.
Tony
Tony