noise

[BOB VANDRISH]

Digger,I have the 175 lb Exocet.
As I said,all the noise reduction items recommended for noise reduction have done little to the sound in my ear,but maybe Wabi is right,I should try them again and have someone else fire the bow.
I did have an occasion where a friend of mine was off to the side,and he heard the sound of one arrow quite different from the rest.
We were able to confirm that it was one where the plastic fletching had been distorted from going too deep into the target.
That sound would alert a deer more than the twang of a bow!
Thanks for the feedback,
Bob

[Tom]

Bob I believe that most of the noise is not really as loud as it sounds. I have ear problems and have found out that the viberation from the stock will transfur dirrectly into your inner ear just like a Dr's tunning fork does during a hearing test.

Furthermore, if your standing downrange 20-30 yards from the bow when shot, the loudest noise you will hear is the arrow in flight. It is amazing how loud the arrow is. Now feathers are louder then veins, but both are loud.

So the question is, can you silience the bow ......... yes you can. But should you, at the risk of loosing some arrow speed ......... I wouldn't because of the arrow noise. The faster the arrow gets there, the less chance for the animal to react from the sound or either the bow or the arrow.

Just my thoughts on this topic.

[TNhunterKMC]

In the beginning I wanted to believe my Exocet was too loud and I could quieten it down. I am a big believer in the limbsavers for vertical bows. I knew they worked and figured they'd have to work on my crossbow as well. I wanted to test out the Sims products so I bought their crossbow limbsaver kit. First off - with the Flemish FF string on your Excalibur it is twisted too tight for these small pieces of rubber. BEFORE I made the first shot - one of my string leeches was tearing due to the pressure put on it by the string. They only lasted a few shots before they were completely ripped in half. I really didn't notice ANY quitening from the limbsavers either. I did however notice a loss of speed due to the fact I had to reset my speed ring on my Varizone scope. I removed the 2 limbsavers and went back to a bare bow. None of the 3 deer I killed with it this year ever knew what was happening when the arrow passed through them. SAVE your money and just enjoy shooting one of the BEST crossbows on the market.

[grandtrout]

I got a phoenix last fall and found it loud out of the box too. I don't think this makes a difference hunting but it bugged me on the range so I made some changes & my partner and I took turns shoting it on the range to see what helped. Here's what I did:

1/ Added the FF flemish twist string, lost 3 fps but reduced string slap noise substantially.

2/ Removed the cap off the bottom of the grip on the stock and filled this space with silicone, I also put a thin layer of silicone in the gaps in the forestock. This made a big reduction in the noise / vibration I felt while shooting & moved the center of gavity on the bow back slightly (also an improvement)

3/ Put sound stopper strips (horton) on the side of the rail just behind the riser. This helped slightly & didn't cost any speed.

4/ I put horton limb pads on the inside of the limbs as close to the riser as I could (oval one's). This made a noticable difference to the nose and vibration but I loose about 5 fps

5/ I put noise vibration strips on the outside of the stirup. Not sure if this helped much.

6/ Tried different arrows and fletches. Lasers II with 5 inch fethers is the loudest, same bolt with vanes is quieter. Beman bolts with 5 inch feathers are quiter still but noticibly slower at longer ranges , Beman with vanes are the quietest & slowest. I can't tell the difference in noise between bolts while shooting but you realy notice if you stand 10 feet away.

7/ Broke down and got a wood stock by Mark, this makes a noticable improvement over the factory stock but only a slight improvement over the siliconed stock (from the observers perspective). But, the stock changes the feel & noise / vibration of the bow to the shooter & makes it realy sweet to shoot!

I tried string silencers (2 types) on a horton recurve x-bow that I own, they wore out fast and only had a marginal reduction in noise. I lost around 10 fps & for what I gained didn't figure it was even worth trying with the excal.

Hope this helps, my bow is now noticibly quieter than any other crossbow I've ever seen & I'm still getting around 295 +fps with the Laser II bolts. Were I hunt 25 yards is a long shot so none of the changes I made will realy matter in a hunting context I just can't seem to leave a good new toy alone without customizing.

[Mark]

Man Deer season is almost over here in Ohio...but turkey isnt far off , I love this topic of noise...I didnt like the sound my bow was making so that was the biggest reason i started making the wood stocks. Pretty much the same reason dissipator bars and string silencers etc. were created to start with. I really believe that any edge you can gain , be it 5 or 6 fps or a little less noise to alarm a deer/game during the shot will eventually work to your favor. When you work it out mathmatically a deer can/will react faster than any bow out there can shoot. So why worry about noise at all??? Simple....the one time you need the extra speed or less noise may be one chance you get at a hard won shot opportunity at the buck of a lifetime. I dont know of a single guy out there that will shoot the loudest , slowest bow available thinking that he is increasing his odds of harvesting that deer of a lifetime. I have heard guys claim it doesnt matter how the bow sounds at ethical shot ranges....the arrow is there before the deer could react, bull , ( No offence intended Wabi , i agree 7 yrds would be hard for a deer to get out of the way) this has alot to do with the deers state of mind before and when the shot occurs. If i can make it harder for that deer to determine where the noise originated from when i shoot then the less reaction he may have causing a better, more lethal hit because he didnt move as much, and maybe even a follow up shot.

Just my .02$ worth of advice...if a guy tells you it isnt worth it or he isnt or wont do something to gain an edge like shooting a faster bow , quieter setup , or the best broadhead he can find then he isnt tring to do the best he can to cleanly harvest his game. I dont know about all the other guys out there, but i have to work too hard to get a good shot at a nice buck , i dont want to blow that chance because my equipment rattled or a cable broke , or the bow going off scared the begeeebbers out of the deer. Thats one of the biggest reasons i shoot an Excalibur its the best available when all the chips are on the table.

Mark

[exocet]

Hello to everyone and this is my first post. I am getting an Excalibur Exocet very soon after shooting my buddies new one. It is very easy to use, accurate and very quiet, without string silencers. what a super peice of equipment these crossbows are. I can`t wait Regards-Jack.

[A.W]

Welcome aboard Jack.

[exocet]

Thank you very much Jack.