I have always made my own silencers from wool yarn and I am looking into buying some bulk cat whisker s silencer material. Through my searching, I found a few different types and need some advice from more seasoned people than myself.  They have silicone, rubber, regular, fine, etc. I am wondering exactly which one of these I am looking for.

Thank you for your help.

This thought comes from a little research that I have done. It looks like the rubber skirts that are used for fishing lures should work well. They come in a variety of colors. You can also select a fine or medium skirting . I would think the fine skirting would work for string silencers.

I bought a roll of the fine rubber from a fishing lure co. I don't remember which one but it works great and you can make hundreds of silencers from a roll. You could also buy smaller pieces about 4 feet long . They had many different colors.
  I don't remember the name of the company but they sold lure material to fishermen that build their own tackle .

Greg's idea sounds good, or you could just buy a bundle of wool yard at a craft store. Both inexpensive and can be bought in bulk.

QuoteOriginally posted by Tim Finley:
I bought a roll of the fine rubber from a fishing lure co. I don't remember which one but it works great and you can make hundreds of silencers from a roll. You could also buy smaller pieces about 4 feet long . They had many different colors.
  I don't remember the name of the company but they sold lure material to fishermen that build their own tackle .

I buy the skirting from Jan's Net Craft, it wlll last a long time.

I use the regular round rubber.

Keep in mind the biggest mistake folks make with rubber silencers is leaving them too long.  Too long and they will tangle and/or make their own noise.  All you need is a small, tight ball.  Tied on around the string is best, but it may take a little practice.

Daniel, I sent you a pm

I use round silicone rubber by Raineys...fly tying stuff in large diameter.  The round silicone rubber stays separated/flared verses the flat rubber which want to tangle.  It's very tough and only need 7-8 strands just tied on the string...tippit

 

I usually use wool, but I've also bought the rubber skirting from lure companies. Very inexpensive and they work well for me. What I like to do is use twice as much of it, but trimmed very short so I get a compact, round ball instead of the long strings.

I bought some from a fishing lure company,it was like $1.67 for a 5 ft. piece.I bought a couple of different colors that will last me for a long time with about 30 ft. of material.

QuoteOriginally posted by JRY309:
I bought some from a fishing lure company,it was like $1.67 for a 5 ft. piece.I bought a couple of different colors that will last me for a long time with about 30 ft. of material.

I just bought three roll from them...Three 5 1/2 ft rolls for for $10 and change shipped

Buying the bulk really saves money. I haven't bought cat packaged whiskers in years.

Thank you for all the replies guys.

So it seems everyone ties them on? No one puts them between the strands? Anyone have any preference? I have always put wool silencers between the strands, see like it would do better that way, thinking logically.

I use the round rubber. I've had them on my bows since January and show no signs of wear. Check out Ryan's techique for tying them on on YouTube-works great.(Tying On Catwhiskers) Good Luck!

Tying them on looks better, and more importantly they are adjustable when tied on around the string.  Silencers can be tuned just like brace height, and they have a spot where they will work best.

Yes, put wool between strands.

Janns Netcraft sells quite a few different colors of round rubberbug legs. I've used them on all my bows for years.

Janns Netcraft has a good supply of skirt material for spinnerbats. Also Hareline Dubbing carries the same materials for fly tying.

S2 Bowstrings, Ryan Sanapei from Hawaii has a video on putting cat whiskers on. I can't find it in the How To Resources, but it's here somewhere...
Like the others say keep them short. Ryan cuts the pieces 1 1/4" long and ties them on. They are very neat little balls.
Another thread on material listed lurecraft.com/catalog.cfm/living - rubber as a source. I haven't checked it out, but will now.
I need some material myself.

Jan's Netcraft is a good source. I like to tie a small bunch of the whiskers... lay them on the string like rolling a cigarette then tie in the center very tightly to make them "puff". Then I slide a small bunch of yarn on either side between strands of the string. Push the yarn up tight to the rubber and go huntin'. Best of both worlds.