Deer Whistle thingys

[gpolakow]

Here in Iowa a major source of motorvehicle insurance claims is from collisions with deer. It's one of the reasons I try to avoid riding at night. They sell those deer whistle things that you mount on your bumper and are supposed to somehow, I don't know, scare the deer off, or something. Has anyone tried it on a bike and/or have idea if they really work? :histerica

[Rick-L]

For the price of a couple bucks I think it'd be worth a try. That is if you don't mind the appearance. I think they're ugly so I wouldn't have one. I like the 'slippery' look without things sticking out as much as possible.

I've heard good and bad reports on these over the years but mostly good. The bad that I've heard is that it confuses the deer and they will start to run rather than stand still like when lights hit them in the eye. Not sure if that's been proven or someone's speculation.

They operate by air passing through them but how many times have you seen them mounted directly in front of a headlight on a car? No air flow there makes it a useless effort. Gotta put them in the windflow somewhere. And I'd imagine the higher up the better to get the sound projected as far as possible.

[meese]

:histerica is right. The best i've been able to gather from hundreds of posts and threads in various forums is that the plastic whistles are pretty much useless, but make people feel better. There's some small evidence that electronic deer whistles may help, but it's inconclusive. And either way, deer are so unpredictable as to make any of the above pretty much useless.

My plan is to get the biggest HID lights I can that fit on the bike and use my own eyes as much as possible. That may not be much, but it did work last weekend when I came around a corner at 70 mph and saw the deer in my lane with plenty of time to stop.

[grifscoots]

The bad that I've heard is that it confuses the deer and they will start to run rather than stand still like when lights hit them in the eye. Horned rats are always confused and never do what's anticipated. The trick is to see them first. I've always like flashing the high beams when rounding a curve or after topping a hill (if no on else is coming) as that makes them look and you can see their devilish eye's reflecting.

[hschisler]

Whether on the bike or in a car, IF you can see the varmints it's always been my experience that honking the horn is a good way to break them out of their trance. A few honks apparently tells them this is something they want to get away from. They always turns the opposite direction and run away. So far, it's worked every time.

This doesn't help for the situation where the deer is running out of the woods and into your path.

[pkpr1998]

I put the Deer whistle in the demon bell category. It really is a joke, but unlike the demon bell, I wouldn't even put the deer whistle on the bike. :p

Demon bells are just "one of those" things that you put on the bike! :)

But, it has to given to you! After all, we wouldn't want to "curse" it now would we! :rotf:

[johnrehder]

Had two of them on my bike when the deer hit me! I think deer are so skitesh that nothing but luck and the grace of god well help you when those things run out in front of you.


Here in Iowa a major source of motorvehicle insurance claims is from collisions with deer. It's one of the reasons I try to avoid riding at night. They sell those deer whistle things that you mount on your bumper and are supposed to somehow, I don't know, scare the deer off, or something. Has anyone tried it on a bike and/or have idea if they really work? :histerica

[sonnata]

I sell the Hornet electronic deer whistle on my website. It was invented by a motorcyclist who had lost a good friend who hit a deer while riding his motorcycle.

When we first started selling it, I had read many articles about how they don't work, etc. and I was truly in that camp. However, my business partner has had them on his car has heard several anecdotal first hand accounts of people having Hornets installed on their vehicles & not had them turned on when they saw a deer. The second they turned them on, the deer ran. This has also happened to my business partner as well.

However, where he lives there is either a municipal or state park, I forget which, that attracts a lot of deer & these deer are accustomed to people driving by in cars as well as being fed by people in cars. He has intentionally driven near these deer without the Hornet turned on & then turned it on when the deer were in his path on the road. The deer were totally unaffected.

On our website, we also have a report that was done in Modoc County California of a test that the county ran using The Hornet and an air actuated deer whistle. The results did indicate that fewer deer hits occurred in the vehicles that were equipped with deer whistles.

IMNSHO, is impossible to either prove or disprove if any type of deer whistles work or don't work 100% of the time, but I believe my partner's story, so I do think they work some of the time.

We carried The Hornet for several years before I was convinced they work, if even occasionally. When I got my new bike last year, i put one on it. I still watch for deer constantly, because even the manufacturer says they aren't magic, but I've seen too much evidence to believe they don't work some of the time, and for me, that is enough to get me to put one on my bike.

The way I see it, I'm not willing to bet my life against the small price of The Hornet that they Don't work 100% of the time. Helmets don't work 100% of the time either, but I still choose to wear one. If it only works the one time I really need it to, it is worth it to me.

Kevin

[gpolakow]

I sell the Hornet electronic deer whistle on my website. It was invented by a motorcyclist who had lost a good friend who hit a deer while riding his motorcycle.

When we first started selling it, I had read many articles about how they don't work, etc. and I was truly in that camp. However, my business partner has had them on his car has heard several anecdotal first hand accounts of people having Hornets installed on their vehicles & not had them turned on when they saw a deer. The second they turned them on, the deer ran. This has also happened to my business partner as well.

However, where he lives there is either a municipal or state park, I forget which, that attracts a lot of deer & these deer are accustomed to people driving by in cars as well as being fed by people in cars. He has intentionally driven near these deer without the Hornet turned on & then turned it on when the deer were in his path on the road. The deer were totally unaffected.

On our website, we also have a report that was done in Modoc County California of a test that the county ran using The Hornet and an air actuated deer whistle. The results did indicate that fewer deer hits occurred in the vehicles that were equipped with deer whistles.

IMNSHO, is impossible to either prove or disprove if any type of deer whistles work or don't work 100% of the time, but I believe my partner's story, so I do think they work some of the time.

We carried The Hornet for several years before I was convinced they work, if even occasionally. When I got my new bike last year, i put one on it. I still watch for deer constantly, because even the manufacturer says they aren't magic, but I've seen too much evidence to believe they don't work some of the time, and for me, that is enough to get me to put one on my bike.

The way I see it, I'm not willing to bet my life against the small price of The Hornet that they Don't work 100% of the time. Helmets don't work 100% of the time either, but I still choose to wear one. If it only works the one time I really need it to, it is worth it to me.

Kevin

Can you email me your web info?

[CharlieVT]

a deer whistle thread? :)

I don't have a deer whistle installed.
I do have a "demon bell". (I didn't know they were called that).
The bell only works if it was given to you by someone. Grif gave me mine. Actually he gave me two. I lost the first one when a deer kicked off the Moto-light the bell was attached to. At first I reported that the bell hadn't worked since I hit a deer (the deer hit me?). But then I realized that the bell clearly had worked (clear as a bell?) since the only damage of this deer strike was to the MotoLight. This deer came out of the woods crossed right in front of us (riding two-up), I had zero reaction time. The bike shuddered and kept on tracking. Pulled over to inspect only to find only the MotoLight and bell missing.

Now about deer whistles, bear with me here:

A man passed out in a public park. A passer by who knew CPR assessed the guy and started CPR. A crowd gathered. The CPR went on for a long time before the EMTs got there. From somewhere in the back of the crowd, someone yelled: "Give him an enema!". The CPR continued without any success, and then the EMTs arrived. They hooked up the LifePak and and IV without any success. The guy in the back yelled again: "Give him an enema!" After contining attempts to revive the victim, and continuing yelling from the guy in the crowd: "Give him and enema!", the victim was transported and presumed dead. After the victim was gone the first responder and one of the EMTs sought out the guy who had been yelling and asked him why he kept shouting "Give him an enema".
The guy replied: "Well, nothing you guys were doing was making any difference, I figured giving him an enema couldn't hurt anything."

So back to deer whistles, having a deer whistle probably can't hurt anything. ;)

[KMC1]

:rotf: :rotf:

[strsout]

They sell those deer whistle things that you mount on your bumper and are supposed to somehow, I don't know, scare the deer off, or something. Has anyone tried it on a bike and/or have idea if they really work? :histerica


I really think it works.
I bought a pair, but never got a chance to install on the bike, then I left it on my garage, and so far, I never saw any deer near by my house.

[doug816]

I mounted a Hornet on by bike and can testify that it works. I was on a quiet open rode near dusk when a doe, a yearling and a couple of fawns were about to cross the rode and would have done so at the exact time I got to them, but with the whistle on, they looked directly at me and were startled, turned right around and disaster was averted.

[SilverBuffalo]

It doesn't surprise me that the "bell" topic came up on a whistle thread,
as both of those only work if "you" believe in them :)

I have a friend who after riding many years and hundreds of thousands of miles,
installed a set of deer whistles on his bike, a week later he "hit a deer"
He'll tell you them whistles are dangerous and attract deer, :confused:

What I don't understand about the "demon" bell superstision is,
there are some of "you guys" who don't believe in a God,
but you'll believe in a bell?

I've been fortunate and have never hit a deer,
however I have hit a pheasant, rabbit, dog, turkey vulture and last year an Elk,
There's just not enough room to put all those different types of whistles on my bike.

[gpolakow]

So,either a deer whistle or an enema should have about the same effect? Well, the deer whistle is a little less invasive, so...

[gerryrenstrom]

Isn't part of the fun of riding a motorcycle the challenge of getting to your destination and back without hitting something or being hit.

[meese]

I have a friend who after riding many years and hundreds of thousands of miles, installed a set of deer whistles on his bike, a week later he "hit a deer." He'll tell you them whistles are dangerous and attract deer, :confused: Obviously, your friend installed them backwards. :D

Y'all are lucky you just have deer to look out for. Down in SoCal, it's the clueless cell phone wielding SUV drivers we have to watch out for. They're far more prevalent, and far more dangerous. Some days it's like a video game out there, except you only get one life. :eek:

[Texas42]

My kids bought them for me, before I put them on I had several near misses and since I put them on, I haven't so I will keep them on. They sure are a conversation piece.