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Deer whistles......

B

buckeyeclark

Guest
I live in a part of Ohio that is loaded with deer. I ride 21 mile to work each morning before the sun comes up. I have, thank God, never hit a deer yet; however, have had a few close calls. I was wondering if anyone has ever tried a deer whistle and hoping to get some feedback as to whether or not they seem to work. I think I am going to get one regardless; still, your oppinions would be greatly appreciated.
 
If you get some, be SURE to install them the right way 'round. Otherwise you will have more deer stuck to your bike than mayflies.
 
BuckeyeClark said:
I live in a part of Ohio that is loaded with deer. I ride 21 mile to work each morning before the sun comes up. I have, thank God, never hit a deer yet; however, have had a few close calls. I was wondering if anyone has ever tried a deer whistle and hoping to get some feedback as to whether or not they seem to work. I think I am going to get one regardless; still, your oppinions would be greatly appreciated.

I have deer whistles. I've never had a deer accident - with or without them. I installed them on the ex-girlfriends Jeep two years ago and learned she hit a deer with the Jeep earlier this year. I've seen deer, I've never seen them run because of the whistles or even act mildly surprised. I haven't had an accident with bear, cougar, giraffe, or wallaby either :D Do they help? I can't say and the tests don't seem to think so, but I figure it can't hurt at $6/pair. I got less out of some crappy beer that cost more than that ;)
 
Hmmmm

Well, Every test that I have ever read came back inconclusive or that they had no value at all......

At 50 MPH, the sound will be behind you, not ahead of where the deer are. Also, and anyone who has honked a horn at them, what makes people think the sound will scare them away instead of into the path of travel?

One test, and this seems to be typical, had a police cruiser with deer whistles installed, drive through a corn field. Since no deer where hit, it was concluded that the whistles work.....

Anyhow, if they make you happy, install them. But, don't count on them. Stay alert, stay alive and see you at the National.... :twirl
 
Deer Whistles......

Thank you for the responses. I went to the thread Doc left and found it quite interesting. I have found that the most vulnerable time is definitely when there are cars coming at you. I have combatted that somewhat by switching to the four lane instead of travelling the two lane that runs through the state wildlife area. ( I can almost hear the "what the hell is he doing driving through a wildlife area in the dark" comments) It adds a few miles; but, vision is definitely inproved when the cars coming at you are on the other side of the median instead of just a few yards to the left. Not riding to work is seriously Not an option so I will simply stay alert and ready for any possible situation. Think I will give the whistle a shot. I doubt if it could possibly do any harm.
Thanks again, I have only been a member for a short while; however, I have found the other members to be more than happy to share their experiences and advice with me. Glad to be a part of it all.
 
Keep em' clean

It only takes one fat bug to render a deer whistle ineffective. I used to have them, and only once saw a deer attempt to run away as I approached. Can't say for sure if it was the whistle or the hi pitch whine on the K750 or maybe the eight bikes behind me. Good luck, slow down, keep your eyes open and your brake covered.
 
How about some really loud pipes that will keep them away. :laugh
But seriously My morning commute this time of year is at the morning peak for deer movement and I live on the border of state game lands which are teeming with deer, all I can do is keep extra alert. As for the whistles I have 2 neighbors with them on their cars, one has hit 3 in the last 4 years the other has hit none. Do they work :dunno but they cant hurt.
 
Fred Rau, at <i>Motorcycle Consumer News</i>, did an in-depth study of deer whistles a couple of years ago. I think it may have been September 2005. Anyway, he did an exhaustive comparative study and concluded that deer whistles have no effect whatsoever.

One finding I found particularly interesting. Some claim that deer, like dogs, hear high tones that humans cannot hear. Fred found this to be completely wrong with respect to deer. They hear about the same tones as humans. Thus, claims that deer hear deer whistles that humans cannot is nonsense.

The article is too long to reprint here. But here is a summary box:

<img src=http://forums.bmwmoa.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=6798&stc=1>
 
I have a friend who used to swear by them until a deer totaled his Lincoln and the deer whistles on the bumper. I've had several close encounters with deer but no hits. I think the problem is they panic; and when they do nothing helps. In one of my encounters, I honked the horn in plenty of time for them to hear and avoid, but they continued to run into the road in front of me. I was able to stop because I saw them well before they ran onto the road. I did have a run in with a turkey once. I'm afraid he's toast.

You're better off saving the money, keeping a good lookout and slowing down a bit at dawn and dusk.

Easy :german
Kerrville, Texas
I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it.
Saumel Clements (1835-1910)
 
BuckeyeClark said:
I live in a part of Ohio that is loaded with deer. I ride 21 mile to work each morning before the sun comes up. I have, thank God, never hit a deer yet; however, have had a few close calls. I was wondering if anyone has ever tried a deer whistle and hoping to get some feedback as to whether or not they seem to work. I think I am going to get one regardless; still, your oppinions would be greatly appreciated.

I think I have an excellent pair for only $75.00. Of course, since you own a BMW and only go for the best of everything, you will want a pair and a backup pair because dealers are so far apart.
:dance

Just kidding, everyone has already said anything that could be said.

If it makes you happy, use them.
 
Okay after reading all of your posts I think I will forget about the deer whistle and just hire a snowplow to drive in front of me in the mornings. I mean seriously, I own a BMW so what is a couple hundred dollars five times a week to rent a snowplow and driver right? haha Seriously, thanks again.
 
I recall reading somewhere that remember to blast your horn in on/off pulses so the deer can track your direction. They will get confused with a constatnt horn. For what its worth..
 
I have a set of elephant whistles on my cage. They are quite impressive, I've never hit or even SEEN an elephant anywhere close to me while I'm driving. Used to have a set on the bike, too, same results.

Deer whistles??? Not so sure about those, I've never heard of any scientific report of them working, or even doing what they claim to do (create high pitched sounds). Then there's the whole issue of what a deer can actually hear.

If there's not too much traffic when you are out at that time, I'd go with some serious candlepower instead. That will hopefully give you more warning time. I have a single 100W high beam that is switched by a relay and powered directly from the battery (through a self-resetting circuit breaker), and it is VERY bright.
 
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