This year I am really considering removing my QAD ultra drop away rest for stationary type rest. I really feel like the noise of the drop down smacking my bow shelf caused me to miss a buck this year and so I'm looking for something that makes minimal noise on the shot. I definitely do not want a whisker biscuit. Nor do I want any other bristle type rest. I have been looking at the firenock aerorest and it seems to be the most thought out rest from what I've seen. Does anyone has any thoughts into what the best options are out there or have any of you looked into what is the quietest dropaway rest out there?
Thinking of ditching the drop away
- Thread starter Rob P
- Start date
Slugz
Veteran member
Interesting. We had a big mule deer step out of the way of my sons arrow this year from a 50 yard shot( modern bow pulling 68 pounds) You make me wonder if that thing is making more noise than I think. We use the same QAD. Thanks for the comments. Gotta take a look at ours.
Maybe you should look for a couple identical bows at a pro shop that have different rests on them and see if you can notice a difference. I know the QAD clicks a bit, but the bow also makes some noise regardless of the rest. Every advantage you can gain helps though, so its worth look if you can quiet it down some more.
Bonecollector
Veteran member
It may just need adjusted. Additionally, the acoustic properties on the rest and under make a difference. This was something I was concerned about when I switched to a drop-away, but have never had an issue on 10-100 yard kills.
Finsandtines
Very Active Member
Have you had your bows inspected? I actually just put this rest on my bow this past year thinking my old rest was causing it to be louder than that I felt it should be. Once I put the rest on it was still not in my comfort zone and I found out that I needed a cam replaced. After still not being to my comfort level and a thorough inspection at the bow shop, I had a small crack in one of my limbs. Once the limbs and cams were replaced (free of charge by Matthews), The additional noise went away. Just a thought.
mallardsx2
Veteran member
- Jul 8, 2015
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I know for a fact mine makes noise. I put a piece of moleskin for the "Fins" to slap against and it helped immensely.
That HeliM of mine is very loud.
That HeliM of mine is very loud.
Work2hunt
Veteran member
Interesting. I just went and shot mine and could not pick up a noise beyond the whole bow shooting. But I shoot a Ripcord Red and have not had any issues.
As mentioned, I would check timing and have the bow inspected. I also use moleskin on my riser more in case I let down and the arrow his the riser but I should look maybe my rest hits the moleskin, too.
As mentioned, I would check timing and have the bow inspected. I also use moleskin on my riser more in case I let down and the arrow his the riser but I should look maybe my rest hits the moleskin, too.
tdcour
Veteran member
I've shot the Ripcord and QAD and have no complaints with either. Your rest shouldn't be hitting your shelf either. If it's hitting your shelf you need to raise your rest and knocking point, and most likely your peep. I also put moleskin on mine to make drawing the arrow quieter. I shoot a Bowtech Insanity CPX and haven't had any issues with deer jumping the string on me out to 65. It isn't a quiet bow by any means, but I shoot a 500 grain arrow out of it which quiets things down as well. I wouldn't go back to a fixed rest simply from the accuracy, but thats just my opinion.
Thanks for all the replies I will add that I know the bow itself makes noise but just activating the rest with my thumb without even shooting the bow it makes a fair amount of noise. My goal is to find the quietest rest out there. I had a ripcord in the past and if I remember correctly the launcher on the ripcord seemed softer than the QAD launcher. Both have a prong which are more vertical and so they both hit the riser shelf. I have been looking at the trophy taker smackdown which has a launcher that is more horizontal and looks to not actually hit the riser shelf but instead hits two rubber bumps built onto the rest. I have not looked at this rest in person on a bow and so I'm not sure if that's the answer. It seems to me that a stationary rest would be most quiet and reliable but I want a full containment, quality, tunable, and accurate rest and I don't see all qualities mentioned in a stationary rest. Also I do prefer to wrap my arrows and I am wondering if the wraps will cause inaccuracies on a stationary rest.
Work2hunt
Veteran member
I'm concerned with your comment that your rest hits the riser as you stated and as mentioned previously it should not. I looked at my and my Ripcord does not hit my riser. I think you need to look at the set-up of your riser as TDCour mentioned it should not hit and probably needs to be moved upwards along with your nock point and everything else then.
In regards to the rest being too low my arrow is lined up with the Berger hole. I am shooting an Elite Synergy fwiw. The shelf on it is pretty flat whereas my older bow had a rounded shelf which seemed to it more room so to speak. With the rest not engaged it sits about 1/8 or less from the shelf but the force of activating it causes it to hit the shelf. I'm not entirely sure all the noise is coming from the slap or just the mechanics of it in general. All drop aways are going to make noise based on their moving parts. That's a fact. I'm just looking for the quietest solution out there.
tdcour
Veteran member
I think QAD makes a great rest. Trophy Taker rests look pretty good as well, but I liked having a rest I could "cock" where it didn't flip the arrow up every time I tried to draw. That is why I've gone with the ripcord and QAD on my bows. As for your arrow going through the Berger hole, that is just a starting point. From there you need to tune everything to your bow. Since the shelf is different on your bow than mine, you would most likely want to move your rest and nocking point up to keep the rest from hitting the shelf. This will also help minimize contact between the rest and arrow which will cause accuracy issues. I would consider all of the attributes of the arrow rests not just how quiet it is. Is quiet important, yes, but quiet doesn't mean much if your rest isn't easy to use, accurate, and dependable. I think you have that with the QAD. I'm sure the trophy taker is good too, but I liked the setup of the QAD better. Have you tried putting mole skin on your shelf and raising your rest just a hair to see if that makes it a bit quieter?
I am curious to hear how people like the trophy taker smack down rest. I have used QAD rest for a while now with no complaints, but they are not silent. Having your arrow set slightly high to eliminate the rest hitting your shelf shouldn't cause too many issues. The QAD will actually slam down and bounce back up, so it could still be hitting the shelf and stopping 1/8" above it after the shot. You can put some talcum powder or something on the shelf and flick the rest to see if it hits.
Also, with the rest bouncing on the shelf, you can get annoying fletching clearance issues. Even though you think a drop away eliminates fletching contact, you still need to watch the interaction between the rest and the fletchings as it passes through.
Also, with the rest bouncing on the shelf, you can get annoying fletching clearance issues. Even though you think a drop away eliminates fletching contact, you still need to watch the interaction between the rest and the fletchings as it passes through.
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I don't not recommend this...however the way I test the Noise of a bow is to be down range, usually on a 40 yard shot near the target and not facing the shooter. The sound will be a surprise and you will know what you are hearing. Many times you hear the strings, arrows/broadheads making the noise. Don't think I have heard the click sound of the QAD as the bow string and arrow make more noise then those when you are down range.
again, this is NOT my recommendation and I take steps to ensure this practice is as safe as possible for me when I have done it.
again, this is NOT my recommendation and I take steps to ensure this practice is as safe as possible for me when I have done it.
dustin ray
Veteran member
This is interresting i have had this discussion with a friend before and i find it amazing how fast a deer can respond
if you did the math sound travals at 1126 fps
the deer is at 45 yards 135 ft
arrow leaves the bow at 287 fps
even if the arrow takes 1 sc to hit the target the deer has only eight hundreds of a second to move out of the way.
iv had deer jump the string before and i just walk away scratching my head
if you did the math sound travals at 1126 fps
the deer is at 45 yards 135 ft
arrow leaves the bow at 287 fps
even if the arrow takes 1 sc to hit the target the deer has only eight hundreds of a second to move out of the way.
iv had deer jump the string before and i just walk away scratching my head
brianboh
Active Member
depending what bow he shoots this could effect the tune. it does on my bowtech but would probally not with a single cam
tdcour
Veteran member
Definitely would with my bowtech as well, but yeah I agree not with a single cam nearly as much. Maybe a little resighting but I don't think you would have to move it much.