Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Bow silencing strategy

I have several bows, and they all have different levels of noise when shot.

The Switchback is the quietest, then the Legacy, then the Martin Firecat.

The Firecat is an absolutely beautiful and accurate bow which I just adore shooting in every way. However it's got quite a "swack" when released. It has a factory string stop.

There are a ton of rubber bits on the market today to glue on or attach somehow to the riser and limbs for sound control. But I could have 80 bucks into that investment before I find the selection that does it. My buddy has a Z7 and it's quiet, but not really as quiet as the Switchback, although he's shooting like 74lbs and I'm shooting 62lbs. I would say the Martin is a bit louder then the Z7 too.

Before we get too far down the road here, My arrows are spined correct, and the correct weight. I shoot the same arrows and draw weight and length for all my bows and the accuracy and paper tuning is spot on. They are Hunter 400's and with the point weigh 437 grains at 28.5" ( if my memory serves me well)

What have you done to quiet the shot sound of your bow? Any suggestions welcome.

string stopper...I have nothing on my strings.. shooting a Drenalin

What kind of rest? Some drop-away rests can be pretty loud as they bottom and smack the riser.

People like to poo-poo string silencers these days but a couple pieces of wool on the string will make it quieter...or catwhiskers if you prefer.

I've tried stops and various types of string silencers and vibration dampeners. The best I've found is to put two Sims string leeches on the string and install the stick on Limb Savers. Buy them online, they aren't expensive and they work quite well.

Some get worked up over losing speed and yes, you lose speed with any type of silencing equip. With the Sims stuff I've only lost a few fps on my last few bows. I usually take off factory silencing equip and go with Sims on every bow.

The release is another big noise maker, most have a pop when you pull the trigger.

Thanks, the release is dead silent, Scott caliper release, and the rest QAD is also dead silent.

They are the same identical units on the Switchback. I think string leaches/cat whiskers are the next logical step.

Catwiskers and heavy arrows here.. I also think it helps that my bow is a heavy mofo..

Components can make a lot of noise, but if it is the bow, some of the add-on stuff will help, but heavier arrows do wonders. Plus the heavier arrows will help on the terminal end. Just info, sounds like you're not really wanting to change the arrows.

My arrows are correct. My other bows are the same draw weight and they are much quieter, the switchback is almost silent.

I've done this for 30 plus years and have lots of archery hunting clients. They come with all sorts of archery gear. Getting lots of experience with so much different gear in actual use while hunting on big game and some REALLY big game!

I don't want the "noise" issue to seem like it's extreme, just wanting to tweak it to be even better. It's tough for any bow to follow the quiet nature of the heavier switchback.

JJHACK, I thought my calipers were silent as well until I took my recurve and purposely used them with it. They had a definite loud pop compared to finger shooting.

The Simms S Coil stabilizer helps. I use it with cat whiskers and their limb savers and no bow mounted quiver.

Lots of good advice. Some suppressors will hurt performance depending where they are placed. Best to use the chrony when adding to limbs or string. Adding string leaches can slow it a bit but speed buttons will offset the loss if placed in the right location. I'm shooting a Maxxis 31,HHA sight,QAD rest. Don't really have any noise issues with this particular set up.

I had good luck with Cat Whiskers on my Maxxis 35, they took a bit of vibration away resulting in a quieter shot. Now with my Matrix Plus I need nothing on the string, quietest bow I have ever shot. A lot can be said of a good stabilizer also, trying different one's at your local shop should tell you a thing or two. The right one can kill a lot of vibration. My target bow, a Pro Elite, was like a tuning fork running a 12" B-Stinger. Vibration was bad resulting in a pretty loud bow. Not that loud matters with a target bow, but I have since gone all-in with a Freestyle setup, 30" carbon fiber doinker. That stabilizer took nearly all vibration out and makes for a much quieter bow. Find the right hunting length stabilizer for your bow might make all the difference for you.

Brent why didn't you try a longer B-Stinger? That is a very stiff stabilizer. I shoot a Doinker myself but have been tempted to try the B-Stinger.

Heavier arrows will quiet any bow. There is always a happy medium but the heavier the arrow, the more energy transfered to the arrow and less lost to noise and viberation. Bow design is a close second, some just make more noise than others, brace height, what the string touches at brace (cam shape) IBO speeds etc all come into play. Cat whiskers are about as good as anything on the string and string stoppers have always added noise to my setups, so I go without. Accessories can also be a culprit, make sure they are tight and not buzzing.

Arrows can be "correct" in many different weights (I'm referring to actual weight, not deflection, or spine as it has come to be known). I like more momentum, and with my traditional bows, I need it.

More mass to "absorb" vibration is key, arrows do it wonderfully. string-stops are top game, and string suppressors like leeches make noticable gains in most senerios.

I bought a new bow this season, PSE Vendetta XL and it is super quiet. I am, however, shoting a 468g arrow including a 125g broadhead. There are a few vibration dampeners on the bow but the string stop, IMO, is the best thisng to make it quieter. With the heavy arrow, I am still shooting 296fps so it's not the speed that is the sound. I will say this, though. When I shoot a 100g tip, I seem to notice more noise. Not sure why but I can't imagine the speed goes up enough to make a difference.

Good luck in your search for a quiter bow. My search ended with a purchase of a new rig.