Thinnest strike plate material to quiet draw.

[Morgan]

I am wondering what the thinnest material is that I can use to quiet my draw. A friend of mine has a food plot that he isn’t going to hunt this year. Has some pretty poor bucks spending a lot of time on it and asked me if I wanted to hunt it. I recently made an eastern woodlands inspired bow from a tree that grew about 20 yards from that plot. I want to use this bow but it is loud on the draw and I absolutely would get busted without something to quiet it. I don’t want to carve into the side of a working limb for a recessed plate, and would like to not glue something on that won’t work. The arrow pass area is about 1 3/8” or so and I’d like to not make it too much wider. Would a thin cloth work? Or maybe very thin leather. I’m thinking the thinner the material, the less it will be effective at damping the sound.

[PatM]

Just wrap something on and test it out. Thin chamois from a car cloth, buckskin, moleskin patch from the drug store etc.

[Dakota Kid]

Try some of that adhesive backed moleskin. You should be able to find it at any drug store or pharmacy near the foot care products I would think. It's thin, non-permanent, and should lessen the noise considerably. 

[Dakota Kid]

You beat me to it Pat.

[Morgan]

Just wrap something on and test it out. Thin chamois from a car cloth, buckskin, moleskin patch from the drug store etc.

Moleskin! I think I have some of that. It’s be an easy try too. Thanks. That also made me think of the sticky fabric off of a fabric bandaid. Thank you. I get mental block sometimes and was picturing gluing on and scraping off multiple materials before I found a fix.

[mullet]

Thin Whitetail Brain tan.

[GlisGlis]

you may also use a very thin layer of felt

[Ed Brooks]

tape on, Velcro works well too, the fuzzy part.

[ty_in_ND]

I’m thinking the thinner the material, the less it will be effective at damping the sound.

It really depends on the material.  I haven't seen how long it lasts, but I have 1/64" cork on a bow I have and it does an adequate job of dampening the arrow pass.

As others have said, thin leather is good, too.  I have an old leather jacket that I take scraps off of for grips and whatnot and it measures a hair wider than 1/32" (.032" to be exact... or approx .81 mm for our metric friends!).  I've had no problem with durability and noise with this leather.

[bradsmith2010]

i cant add anything but do agree drawing the arrow quitely,, makes a difference on deer

[George Tsoukalas]

Morgan,
Is the arrow shaft making noise as you draw?

Or is the arrow making a loud noise on release?

Jawge

[Badger]

   Same question as George, on release I find the arrow usually clears the arrow pass area.

[Morgan]

It’s the rub on the draw thanks making the sound that I was referring to. I can’t tell if it’s making any sound on release, but I don’t think it is.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Nothing works better than velcro. Leather is only good for so long then it wears to a hard surface and gets loud. Suede leather will work a bit longer.

[PatM]

You can also use pieces of hair on hide of various types. Sealskin was popular and you can still occasionally find bits of that.
  Deerskin from a part where the hair is really short might be worth a try.  Lower legs or facial area.