| Author | Message | ||
     Matthew Gibson (Mattgibson) Member Username: Mattgibson Post Number: 54 Registered: 06-2003 |
Don't think this is stupid- It could happen to you. Does anyone have experience with the best bar to protect the front end of a Disco I from the head on collision with a deer? About every two days, someone hits a deer in my area on the way to work. I've hit a couple in my other vehicle in the past four years, but I'm worried that it might happen to my Rover. How bout the Austrailians? Don't they have a kangaroo bumper? Or are roos smart enough not to jump out in front of you to ruin you Rover? It's not funny when a deer comes through the winshield (on a car- doubt it could happen on a Rover) The only other solutions I have are: 1. Straight wire the horn. 2. Always drive in low.(Crappy gas mileage) 3. Have someone in a truck always drive in front so his get's creamed first 4. Buy a Series w/o overdrive 5. Get a horse. Why call it a "bull" bar if it can't keep a little deer outa the radiator? Matthew G. | ||
| Paul T. Schram (Paulschram) Senior Member Username: Paulschram Post Number: 1756 Registered: 02-2002 |
Matthew: I bought an ARB for just this reason and promptly had a deer broadside me! Damned thing walked right into the drivers side of the truck and then had the audacity to get up and run away before I could get the shotgun out from under the stuff in the back seat. Not all car-deer incidents are head-on. | ||
| Nathan Hindman (Nathanh) Member Username: Nathanh Post Number: 58 Registered: 07-2002 |
Matthew, An ARB bar should have the strength to protect you from a deer collision, as long as you get the non Airbag version. Bear in mind though that you may still get damage from a hit. I've seen deer go through windshields or bounce up hoods before. A guy I know hit a Black Bear on the highway a couple of years ago. It did put a bit of a dent in his ARB, but it's still in pretty good shape. Thanks, Nathan Hindman http://www.pangaea-expeditions.com | ||
| Carter Simcoe (Carter) Senior Member Username: Carter Post Number: 694 Registered: 04-2002 |
I have a non airbag ARB and hit a deer while going literly 65 mph. It was dark, I was tired, it was running, and I didn't see it untill I was hitting it. There was zero damage to my truck. | ||
| noel Bond (93dico) New Member Username: 93dico Post Number: 14 Registered: 06-2003 |
Down here Mate we us ARB,Bloody good Roo Bars Mate. See Yu | ||
| Nate Jedinak (Ducati) New Member Username: Ducati Post Number: 34 Registered: 12-2002 |
Does the airbag version break away or something? I assume that if you hit something hard enough to crush the non airbag version you'll be crushing the whole front end... and the airbags will deploy correctly. Is that a safe assumption? | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 679 Registered: 02-2002 |
lol Paul! That also has happened to a number of people I know including myself where I'm from in W. PA. An ARB will certainly help protect the front of LR from a deer as Carter's experience shows. My experience with the critters is if you see one, there are always more and they come out at dusk and/or very early in the morning. My bigger fear with them is the side impact as they come bounding out of the woods onto the road into you. Jaime | ||
| Greg French (Gregfrench) Senior Member Username: Gregfrench Post Number: 470 Registered: 11-2002 |
Catcher's Mask | ||
| michael burt (Mikeyb) Senior Member Username: Mikeyb Post Number: 312 Registered: 03-2002 |
reactive armor... line a few claymores up on the bumper, push the button twice, wait. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 69 Registered: 02-2003 |
Where do you live? I'd like to help you thin out the herd with a .30'06. You can buy these ultra sonic "whistler" things at Wal Mart that you stick on your bumper to alert animals of your approach from miles away. They seem to work -- I attached one to my crotch rocket a few years ago after a near collision with a very large and stupid (horny) buck. Haven't had any problems since, with deer or dogs. ---Norm | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 682 Registered: 02-2002 |
if you had any luck with those whistlers you had more than luck due to them. general feeling from the mountain boys is they don't work worth crap. Jaime | ||
| John (Jroc) Member Username: Jroc Post Number: 124 Registered: 08-2002 |
I've heard that those "whistler" things don't do squat! I have no personal experience with them though. As far as deer being stupid for running into vehicles I've heard the theory that it's married bucks committing suicide! Again, I'm not sure, just something I heard. ARB, TJM, these seem to be designed more for this very reason (preventing damage from animal strikes). If this is more important to you, than things like approach angle, go with one of these. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 70 Registered: 02-2003 |
I guess the "mountain boys" bought crappy whistlers at Dollar General instead of superior whistlers from Wal Mart. Of course, hillbillies aren't exactly known for their smarts or their ability to follow directions printed on a box, so it's no wonder they can't get things to work right. For that reason, I don't put much stock in their opinions, whatever they may be. With any luck, they'll blow themselves up in their trailer/meth "lab." I can only speak from personal experience with a lot of deer and dogs in my "neck of the woods." They work if you buy a decent one and install it correctly. ---Norm | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 683 Registered: 02-2002 |
yeah Norm, a "decent" one really is superior over the lower quality version. lol!! its a fucking whistle. yep, figuring out which way the wind blows really takes a "rocket scientist" like yourself to mount it correctly. of course! now I get it. the whistles in your area are specially tuned to the hearing range of your local deer and the local Mensa members perform the installation. yep, get yourself a specially tuned whistle, have it installed correctly by following those detailed directions supplied by the manufacture, and motor with confidence. oh, hey - have you checked out those gas saving turbo things yet? Jaime | ||
| Matthew Gibson (Mattgibson) Member Username: Mattgibson Post Number: 55 Registered: 06-2003 |
Hey guys, I sell those deer whistles in my shop- unfortunately, I don't believe they are very effective because two of my friends have hit deer with these installed. Collisions with deer in GA have become so common that the car insurance lobby was the group that helped to pass much more liberal season limits. (this year the limit is 12 deer on private and regular federal land/ no limit on deer taken on Wildlife Management Areas) Guess I'll have to invest in an ARB bumper w/ wrap-around protection shortly. I thought a good bar would help protect me and my vehicle. Now which one to choose? A little proactive insurance with the crossbow won't hurt when the season starts either. If anyone else wants to help out, just holler. PS: Confucius say- "Life too short to go through it with ugly gun or truck." | ||
| Toby Walsh (Toby) New Member Username: Toby Post Number: 5 Registered: 02-2003 |
G'day Matthew, I'm in Australia. I've hit lots of kangaroos and emus when I used to work in the bush. Mostly in Toyota Landcruiser 75 series vehicles. I've also come close to camels, cattle, donkeys and eagles. One thing that I don't see so much any more, but which used to be common, is bullbars that tilt downwards i.e. the top of the bar is further forward than the bottom. This is also very common on haulage trucks in Australia. I guess the reasoning is to throw the animal down under the vehicle. Most animals I've hit have gone straight down under the vehicle, and it does minimise damage. We would always try to hit them straight on, too. Hitting them side on causes a lot more damage than hitting them with a solid bar, and bars are cheaper and easier to replace than body damage. Most cars I used to drive were fleet vehicles and bars were usually done by fabricators who would fit out the whole fleet with a bunch of accessories i.e. no-name brands. To get an idea, check out the black-and-white picture halfway down at http://www.ecars.com.au/Toyota/70.html The vehicles are bought from Toyota as cab/chassis and buyers then find fabricators to build them to their specs. One thing I notice with our Disco is that the bonnet height is a bit lower than LandCruisers and Nissan Patrols, so they might have an advantage in hitting animals higher. That just gives me an excuse to get new tyres and suspension, though! One more thing - most Australian wildlife comes out at dusk and dawn, so we'd be extra vigilant at those times. If it was dark and a roo or emu was on the road (or verge) we'd turn off the headlights and hit the horn. Most of the time, if you leave the lights on you can drive right up to within a few metres of wildlife, but as soon as the lights are off, the animals take off. Obviously road and traffic conditions have to be taken into account when turning off lights ;) A quick side story - on outback roads there is often a lot of roadkill. We have a bird called a wedge-tailed eagle that is the largest bird of prey in Australia. They love to scavenge on roadkill - I once counted 23 eagles on one dead animal. They take a long time to get airborne and the stupid ones fly so their flightpath crosses the road so you have to be careful if you see them near the road. A girl who worked for the same mining company as me was driving one of our vehicles and hit an eagle once. It came through the windscreen and landed on her lap. Luckily the impact killed it. Imagine having a wounded bird of prey with a 6' wingspan thrashing around on your lap... | ||
| Dean Chrismon (Chrismonda) Member Username: Chrismonda Post Number: 110 Registered: 12-2002 |
Those whistlers are useless, deer have the same hearing that humans do. A brush guard is the answer, my 97 had a factory one that kept me from wearing vinison. The deer was around 180 lb buck, the only damage I had was a cracked grill and a busted head light. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 72 Registered: 02-2003 |
Jaime, It doesn't take a rocket scientist to install the whistles, but I'm sure if you follow the directions on the box, even you can install it correctly. Why don't you give that gas-saving turbo thing you're talking about a try and let us know how it works out.? But be sure to follow the directions on the box. Matthew, It sounds like the problem in your area is too many deer and not enough hunters, or maybe too many urban PETA assholes. If only two of your friends with the whistles hit deer in an area with a deer bag limit of 12 to unlimited, the whistles you sell are probably doing a good job. If you have that many deer running rampant, you probably have more car/deer collisions than most states' annual deer harvest, which is the case in California -- more deer are killed on the highways than during hunting season. I don't know about a deer's hearing range, but these things certainly work on dogs, which definitely have keen hearing and are a more prevalent danger when driving a motorcycle at speed, where a collision with an animal at 100+ mph would be catostrophic. All I can say is that with the whistle, Fido stops and takes notice instead of blindly sauntering across the road into my path or trying to "intercept" me at speed. Whereas before I put the whistle on my bike I had several near misses with dogs, cats and the occasional deer, I've had no problems since I put it on several years ago. So, go ahead and drive without the whistle installed correctly and see if you end up with a deer in your lap at 60 mph, with or without a bull bar. Let me know how it works out, but don't say I didn't warn you. $2.98 is pretty cheap insurance, even if it only works once. ---Norm | ||
| Robbie Donaldson (Robbie) Senior Member Username: Robbie Post Number: 395 Registered: 02-2002 |
i know this isn't tech, but kind of goes along with the thread: Service call of the month from a Baltimore Gas & Electric residential customer .. BGE received a call from a customer saying: "My power is out. When you come to fix it be sure to bring a truck with a tall enough bucket to remove the deer". "What deer"? The customer replied "There is a deer on top of one of the electric poles on Wilkes Rd about 1/2 mile west of Perimeter Rd." The customer service rep tried desperately to pull herself together and not laugh in front of the customer and replied "We will dispatch someone right away to investigate the power outage. Thank you for the call". Upon completion of the call, the customer service rep proceeded to share the funny story with her coworkers in the office and they all had a good laugh. Well, lo and behold, the serviceman who repaired the problem stopped by the customer service office the following day with these pictures.    Sure enough, the deer had been hit by a train & landed on top of a distribution feeder pole! | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 684 Registered: 02-2002 |
lol! great photos. that train just needed some of Normie's whistles on the front. Jaime | ||
| Nate Jedinak (Ducati) New Member Username: Ducati Post Number: 36 Registered: 12-2002 |
Nasty. So back to the bars... Do the ARB "airbag" bars not hold up to impacts like the non-airbag versions? Down the road I'd like to replace my stock bumper with something that I can mount a winch on... But I don't want some POS that bends when I tap a tree... | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 688 Registered: 02-2002 |
Nate, there have been a few threads on the airbag version. check out the search for the info.. in summary - they suck. go with the non-airbag version. imho. Jaime | ||
| Nate Jedinak (Ducati) New Member Username: Ducati Post Number: 37 Registered: 12-2002 |
Thanks, did the search, confirmed that what I want is the non-airbag version. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction  | ||
| Dean Waters (Muddy) New Member Username: Muddy Post Number: 5 Registered: 06-2003 |
In AUS, we have the whistler horns, they are known as Shoo Roo's and from what I have been told by friends who have them on their trucks and sedans, they have worked more than not. But who knows about deer, we dont have that problem with deer here | ||
| Matthew Gibson (Mattgibson) Member Username: Mattgibson Post Number: 56 Registered: 06-2003 |
Hey guys, I DO HAVE the whislers installed on my vehicle. By the way, in the county in which I work, the average is about 1.5 deer collisions every day. My friends that I was talking about just happen to work with me. I just called for an ARB catalog. I liked the idea of the "wrap around" guards(?). I couldn't seem to get a lot of info on all the options avaible for my Disco on thier website. Going to search some more. | ||
| John Friederich (Jfriedlvcmcom) Member Username: Jfriedlvcmcom Post Number: 49 Registered: 02-2003 |
I've heard that any roof-rack will whistle loud enough to alert dear in a 3-county area of your presense. Much more effective than a little piece of plastic, plus if a train hits a deer and it lands on your roof - you are protected! (This is a very common occurance here in Nevada.) John F Las Vegas, NV | ||
| Jess Alvarez (Jester) Member Username: Jester Post Number: 213 Registered: 11-2002 |
John, LOL, Thats funny. Something tells me you should be more concerned about hookers and drunken gamblers hitting your bar and roof than a deer in Vegas. However, If you can get your roof rack to whistle "Bitch bettah have mah money", I am sure you can keep the hookers away. Not sure about the gamblers though. Cheers! Jess | ||
| James (Jimmyg) Senior Member Username: Jimmyg Post Number: 341 Registered: 10-2002 |
Watch out for Elk. I had some close calls in CO with them daily. Damn eyes don't reflect like dear and they outweigh deer three fold. Got the ARB non-airbag and feel a little better. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 74 Registered: 02-2003 |
Only problem with a non-airbag bull bar on an airbag equipped truck is that it's much more prone to blow your airbag in a minor collision. So, if you don't care about that or want to deactivate your SRS, go for it. Matthew, That's over 500 deer/vehicle collisions a year in your county. I wonder how many of these weren't using whistles? Using your first-hand knowledge, we have 2 who hit deer while using the whistle. How many folks do you know who have hit deer without using the whistle? It's funny that the people on this thread who are disparaging the whistle the most don't have any actual first hand experience using one, but have "heard tell' from some "mountain folk" or some other "authority" that they don't work. Admittedly, the whistles don't work 100% of the time, especially when you cross paths with a particularly young, stupid or sex-crazed deer or the "tame" deer that run amok in urban areas (particularly in those areas that ban hunting). Of course, when they do work, you wouldn't even know because most deer are wary enough to have run off over the hills and far away long before you get there -- at least they do in areas where the deer have been "educated" by hunters and expect to be shot at when they encounter humans. ---Norm | ||
| michael burt (Mikeyb) Senior Member Username: Mikeyb Post Number: 319 Registered: 03-2002 |
just an observation, but... there was a thread here (i think last calendar year) dealing with non-airbag bumpers (arb and others) on airbag trucks. after the dust settled, i can't say that it was decided firmly either way, but strong and interesting arguments were made that could support both sides. the side that non bag bumpers do set off the airbags prematurely and the side that the difference is mostly crap and that the crush cans that airbag bumpers use are a bigger source of problems than cures. by no means do i want to start that argument all over again, but parties that are interested would probably be well served to try a search and read the thread. i think a few people were convinced that they needed the airb mike | ||
| Jaime (Blueboy) Senior Member Username: Blueboy Post Number: 689 Registered: 02-2002 |
well Normie, I have tried the whistles on a vehicle and being a PE (professional engineer) feel pretty sure I installed them correctly. they don't fucking work. well at least on the deer in Western Pa in the Laurel Highlands. Now where you and your deer live, they could work although I seriously doubt it. And its total bullshit that the deer will run off because the area in being hunted. by the way Normie, do you hunt? or are you just blowing this hunting thing out your ass? Jaime | ||
| Carter Simcoe (Carter) Senior Member Username: Carter Post Number: 696 Registered: 04-2002 |
"when they do work, you wouldn't even know" Exactly, so stop telling us they work because you don't know either. | ||
| Chad Mayes (Cmayes) Member Username: Cmayes Post Number: 81 Registered: 04-2003 |
Just a thought... I haven't used the whistles before so I don't know if they work or not. When driving a vehicle with a siren-on the faster you're moving the easier it is to "over-drive" the siren, similar to headlights. If you've ever been in an emergency vehicle or had one approach rapidly from behind (say going down the freeway 65mph) you'll notice how the emergency vehicle can be almost on top of you before you hear it. I know the deer isn't in an insulated car traveling down the highway. Bud I'd just be curious how those little whistle things can project the sound sufficiently to warn a deer, especially on wooded/hilly/curvy roads. Just my 2-cents. | ||
| Erik Olson (Jon) Senior Member Username: Jon Post Number: 398 Registered: 02-2002 |
Chad, Very good point - some states have Code 3 restrictions on highways for speeds over 50 m.p.h. for exactly that reason. The only people who can hear the siren is the opposing traffic. I'm skeptical on the whistles ability to get out in front of the car. I feel much safer with my non-air ARB up front, and the winch, lights and all that other ***t. e | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 75 Registered: 02-2003 |
So, Jaime, are you saying that you have first hand experience hitting a deer while using the whistle? Is that your proof that they don't work? Gee, I have a lot of first hand experience of NOT hitting any deer (or even seeing any) while using the whistle for seven or eight years. But I have had a fair number of near misses with deer and other animals when not using it. So, using deductive reasoning, that proves that the whistles work. If the deer in W. PA don't try to evade hunters, either you have a herd of very stupid and/or sensory-challenged deer or (more likely) hunters there don't warrant fear. Do I hunt? Well sure, doesn't everybody? I mean, what's the point of even going into the woods if you don't kill something? Anyway, go ahead and drive without the whistles and see if I care. Just don't come crying to me after you end up with a thrashing buck in your lap at 60 mph. In fact, I'd prefer that you didn't use one because I'd like to differentiate the sound of my vehicle from the rest of yours. Like big fish that don't get that way by making a habit of sucking on fish hooks, most deer don't make a habit of running into roads to investigate unusual sounds. Of course, if they're used to hearing thousands of vehicles without whistles, they might not be so cautious. ---Norm | ||
| michael burt (Mikeyb) Senior Member Username: Mikeyb Post Number: 323 Registered: 03-2002 |
this dog don't hunt. my grocery store is already full of food. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 77 Registered: 02-2003 |
Over running your siren on a land vehicle? Hmmmm. That doesn't "sound" right. Please explain how you can out run the sound of your siren without breaking the sound barrier, which I believe is still @ 750 mph, whether you're driving with a siren or not. ---Norm | ||
| Erik Olson (Jon) Senior Member Username: Jon Post Number: 399 Registered: 02-2002 |
Norm, I'm not certain of the physics involved, and the sound barrier comment is just lame. Ever had a B2 fly overhead? You cannot hear them until they're right on top of you. Does that mean they're going faster than sound? No. Frequency and wave can have dynamics at speed that wouldn't otherwise seem plausible. Same reason you can put a subwoofer virtually anywhere in a room and "hear" it quite easily, while a high range horn (not bouncing off any surfaces) and pointed away from you would be difficult to hear at any volume. You cannot hear a siren coming up behind you at speed - it's a fact. The arguments above are just taking that and applying it to $8 whistles - which you also cannot hear when approaching from behind at speed. | ||
| Erik Olson (Jon) Senior Member Username: Jon Post Number: 400 Registered: 02-2002 |
400 | ||
| Joey (Joey4420) Member Username: Joey4420 Post Number: 98 Registered: 04-2003 |
Hmmm Maybe I should just ask someone who can do a scientific study.... http://www.advance.uconn.edu/02111812.htm | ||
| Joey (Joey4420) Member Username: Joey4420 Post Number: 99 Registered: 04-2003 |
I guess I should point you to the electronic version of the deer whistler as well. http://www.deer-whistle.com/ Interesting info off of their own web site.... Q. IF I INSTALL THE HORNET ON MY VEHICLE WILL I NEVER HIT A DEER? A. The Hornet is not a magical device, although it is a highly effective deterrent against deer/vehicle collisions. We estimate, using The Hornet along with driver awareness, will reduce your risk of a deer/vehicle accident by more than 70%. Q. WHY IS THE HORNET BETTER THAN AIR-ACTIVATED DEER WHISTLES? A. The Hornet is electronically operated, not air-flow activated, so it does not rely on wind speed and is effective at any vehicle speed. Typical deer whistles require vehicle speeds of 30-50 miles per hour before they are effective. The range of The Hornet's sonic wave is 3 to 5 times greater than deer whistles, Because The Hornet is electronic, it is not affected by debris, rain and snow that can block a deer whistle and, unknown to the driver, preventing it from working. The Hornet turns on and off, so you know that it is working. Also if you are driving with an air activated deer whistle and have a 20 mph tail wind you must add 20 to the above noted required speed to get them to work at all. | ||
| Norm Orschnorschki (Norm) Member Username: Norm Post Number: 79 Registered: 02-2003 |
OK, so just for the sake of argument, let's say that it is absolutely 100% impossible for a deer to hear a deer whistle (or even a siren) from behind while moving (even though deer can turn their large ears directionally to amplify sound far beyond the capabilities of a human ear). So you'd have to assume a scenario where a deer would be running down the highway at say 30 mph or more for an extended distance in order for it not to hear you coming up behind with a deer whistle. That probably happens in one in several hundred thousand deer/vehicle encounters -- like a deer is going to be trucking along the highway at top speed in front of you for several hundred yards and not give either you or the deer time to react. I'd venture to say that most deer/vehicle collisions occur when the deer is crossing the road in front of a moving vehicle. I don't know, maybe I have a superior deer whistle (it's actually two mounted together that give off two different frequencies which produces an audible ocililation at speed). The thing is, even if it prevented me from getting tangled up with a deer or a big dog one single time, it would be worth the $2.98 I spent for it at Wal Mart seven years ago. I ride on back roads in an area where there are a lot of deer and even more dogs running loose that tend to dash across the road in front of vehicles at the worst possible moment -- I haven't had any problem with either since I stuck the whistles on the front fender of my bike. If it doesn't work, that's one hell of a coincidence. ---Norm |
