Growing up as a gear-starved kid, I never imagined a day when I could have too much outdoor equipment. Years later, working as a freelance writer, I finally reached the point of gear saturation. I still liked getting good stuff in the mail: scopes, binos, and new hunting clothes, but for every useful item I received, I got a dozen "has beens" and as many "never will be's". In fact, I was getting tired of getting useless gear that someone thought was the next best thing since sliced bread.

This thought came to mind when I first got a small package from Sims Vibration Laboratory. Limb Savers, the package read.

"Two discs of rubber" I thought to myself "How cute" and with a quick flick of the wrist the package landed in the open box designated for items that I would look at in the next millennia.

The following week I was at a local 3D shoot. Over half the shooters there were sporting LimbSavers on their bows, and needless to say, they were not the losing half. Everyone I talked to had nothing but great things to say about the product. So with this info in mind, I decided that maybe my judgement might have been a bit premature.

Arriving home that afternoon, I dug out the package and read the instructions (Ok, I tried to figure them out first and then read the instructions). They were simple enough: "Affix the LimbSavers to the inside of the limbs, close to the axles, with the self adhesive tape". I put the pair on my bow and stepped outside to give them a try.

The difference was immediate and drastic. No longer was there any excess vibration or noise, the bow simply made a quiet "thunk" when the arrow was released. The hand shock was also cut down significantly. I was so impressed, that the next time I went to the local archery shop, I attempted to pick up a couple of extra sets; unfortunately, I was not the only one who had discovered the great product. The shelves were bare.

Since I was getting ready to go on a bowhunting safari in Africa I wanted a set for my backup bow. I had seen how flighty some of the smaller African antelope species were, and I didn't want any of these fleet-footed leapers jumping the string. I made a call to the marketing department of Sims Vibration Labs to see if I could get an extra set for a field test. Alan Lotton, the marketing manager, was more than helpful and said he would send the complete line out the next day.

"The complete line?" I asked a bit puzzled. "I thought you just made the LimbSaver?"

"Oh no, we have a complete bow dampening system that I think you will enjoy"

A couple days later, a box arrived by UPS. Inside was the treasure trove of bow dampening accessories.

Alan had not been kidding, Sims did make a complete bow dampening package.

The first item I pulled out was an Sims Enhancer 2000. Like all Sims products, it incorporated their own NAVCOM rubber developed by Steven Sims. NAVCOM is a unique energy absorbing material that is specifically engineered to dampen unwanted vibrations and noise. The Enhancer 2000 is available in camo or black and measures 3-inches with a 2 1/4-inch diameter. Both models are relatively compact, so they are perfect for hunting as they are easy to carry through the woods yet still reduce up to 60% of a bows vibration.

The next thing in the box was several varieties of LimbSavers. The standard ones, which I had previously tried, measured about 1.5" x 1.5" x. 875" and were called the Solid LimbSavers. Since I did not specify which bow I had, Alan also included a package of "Split Limb" LimbSavers. They were the same diameter as the solid LimbSavers but designed a little longer to be screwed together between the two separate limbs on a split limb bow.

Digging deeper, I found two different sets of smaller LimbSavers that have a whole host of uses. One set was .875" in diameter while the other was 1". The 1" model is designed to be used on limbs of youth bows and recurves, and like the smaller .875" model, they have many other applications such as on quivers, sights and stabilizer ends.

Next in the box were two other useful dampening items. The first was several sets of string leeches. At first, I was a bit skeptical, because I have always thought that silencers needed a lot of yarn or rubber strands to be effective, but like my original assessment of the LimbSavers, I was wrong. They worked every bit as well as any string silencer I had used previously, but without the 5-7 fps loss in arrow speed that is so common with other string silencers.

In combination with the String Leeches, I attached a Cable Dampener. It is also made out of NAVCOM rubber and virtually eliminates all cable vibration.

With all these accessories on my PSE Durango, I was amazed at the results. According to Sims statistics, I had eliminated over 85 % of all my bow's noise and vibration. Without sophisticated testing equipment, I had to use their data, but the difference was very noticeable. The bow was much quieter and vibrated less than with the other equipment I previously had.

With the gear in place, I embarked on an extended field test. The hunting grounds: Africa. The duration: six months. I knew the products worked; now I wanted to see for how long under rough use.

During these six months, I drug this bow through four African countries, shot numerous animals and also regularly competed in 3D and indoor competitions (I was surprised to find a big archery community in Africa that competed regularly- more surprising, most had LimbSavers already attached to their bows). The Sims items froze at night, baked in the day, were covered in Kalahari sand and even got completely soaked several times. Not a single item cracked, broke or fell off, including the stick-on LimbSavers.

Towards the end of my African Safari, I found myself still trying to harvest an impala. I had shot many other animals, but I had yet to get a good shot at an Impala (even though it is one of the most common African antelopes). It was the last night on what was to be my last hunt in Africa on this trip. I was sitting over a water hole in an elevated hide (blind). The sun had dipped below the horizon, and perhaps a half an hour of shooting light remained when a herd of impala cautiously approached to drink. There was one decent ram in the bunch. He definitely was not a trophy, but for all the time I had put in and under the circumstances, I was happy to see him come. He was a trophy to me.

The whole herd was extremely flighty; getting close then snorting and trotting off a few yards before gradually working close again. The ewes drank while the ram held back. When they were finally done, he tentatively stepped forward and lowered his head. I drew back and centered on the spot where the light tan lower chest met the dark side. I squeezed the trigger on the Scott release, and the arrow was silently on its way. Impala, especially high-strung ones are notorious for "jumping the string" at the sound of the shot. Due to the quietness of the bow, this ram never even flinched until the arrow met with hide. At the sting of the arrow, the ram jumped high, temporarily silhouetted in the setting red African sun. He landed ten yards away on the other side of the small water hole. The arrow had passed completely through and was sticking in the soft ground. He stood there looking back at the group of ewes and young rams, undoubtedly thinking one had snuck up beside him and horned him while he was drinking. They looked back at him, contently chewing their cud's, wondering why he had jumped since there was virtually no sound even though they were less than 15 yards away from the hide. I looked back at the ram in time to see him collapse where he stood, not ten yards from where I shot him.

To say I was pleased with Sims Vibration Labs products is an understatement. I have since used them on bears, blacktails and mulies and plan to make them an integral part of any bow I own in the future. You can bet I will be adding these products to my already extensive line up of Sims products. I only hope I get another chance to test them as thoroughly as I did the last.

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