4sevens Titanium Whistle. Initial Review.

S

Scott Free

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Sep 15, 1999
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For Christmas last year, a friend gave me a 4sevens gift voucher for $20. Anyone who knows me knows that I really don't need another flashlight, so the voucher has been sitting there all this time. Just recently, though, 4sevens introduced a tiny titanium whistle for exactly $20, and even though I really don't need yet another whistle, the 100 decibel claim combined with it's tiny size won we over. It's slightly less than 2" x .25" x 25". I was doubtful of the advertised claim of 100 decibels out of something so tiny. The 4sevens whistle arrived today, and now that I have it, and without a meter, I don't have a way to verify that it truly puts out 100 decibels. All I can do is test it against my other whistles. So far, I've only checked it against my current keychain whistle, an ACR safety whistle. The 4sevens whistle is slightly higher pitched and just slightly less loud than the ACR. The 4sevens whistle is so much smaller, though, and is better suited to keychain carry. The ACR is now gone. The 4sevens is definitely a keeper!
 
I'd like to see a pic if its not too much trouble, just to get an idea of the scale. I own a zillion Quark and other lights, but didn't know about the whistle. I carry a Fox 40 micro whistle with my other toys. Actually used it tonight to signal Mrs. Powernoodle and the boys while we were hiking. Extremely loud. But I might be into switching the 4sevens flavor if its smaller but still plenty loud.

Edit: I see that 4sevens just added an alleged 120 db "flat titanium whistle" which is on pre-order.

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Fox 40 micro.
 
Here you go.

With military, hds rotary, and iTP A3
 

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Kadinh— thank you much for providing the pic. I would have done it, Powernoodle, but it would have been A LOT of trouble. As in— I would have had to go learn how to do that. :)

Let me assure you, though— it is definitely plenty loud and it is MUCH MUCH smaller than the Fox Micro. (I have a Fox Micro.) I promise—you'll be plenty happy with the reduced size.

One thing I like about my other whistles is that they are either orange or yellow. My keys are easy to find. The thing I don't like about my other whistles is that they are either orange or yellow. I like to clip my keys to a belt loop. Orange and yellow draw attention to my keys and it just doesn't look good when you're dressed for civilization. The 4sevens whistle is all but invisible on the keyring. And if it matters, it's actually kinda handsome. The black 4sevens logo in the website pics isn't really black. It's actually a very shiny reflective silver. In the website pic, the logo must be reflecting something black (or they've changed things since the pics.) In any case, the logo on mine is very tasteful and looks good against the dull matte of titanium. In person, you really only see the logo if you hold it just right.

To sum it up— More than plenty loud. WAY smaller than a Fox Micro. Handsome. Titanium. You like. Promise.
 
powernoodle said:
Actually used it tonight to signal Mrs. Powernoodle and the boys while we were hiking.
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I missed the part about "hiking" the first time around. Now that I have, I should say that if I were going to the big woods, I'd take a louder and lower pitched whistle. Why not? That doesn't mean that the 4sevens titanium whistle is not a seriously loud whistle.
 
Next to caly 3. It's almost the same size as the wire clip.
 

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Is this 100% metal? I purchased an aluminum whistle at about that size and when I needed to use it, it failed. Apparently the all metal survival whistle had a plastic insert that got pushed out riding in my pocket with keys. I wouldn't want to spend money on another pos like that one.
 
It is not all metal. The reed is delrin. 4sevens assures that it will not come loose, but the assurance, obviously, has not been tested. I would hope that 4seven would be using a good epoxy.
 
The instrument to measure the output of a whistle is called a Sound Pressure Level Meter. Radio Shack sells a perfectly-adequate one for about $50 (it's not the most durable thing, but with a little care, it will be fine).

You can get perfectly-adequate SPL Meter apps for smart phones in the $5 range. I use one from Studio Six Digital. I found that, right "out-of-the-box" it was within a few dB of out very-expensive Faber Acoustics (generally considered the "gold-standard" in the industry) unit at work. The problem will be that a smart phone app tops out at about 100dB due to limitations on the phone's own microphone. This can be solved using distance and a touch of math.

Two questions must be answered: First, at what distance do manufacturers measure the loudness of a whistle? Second, is it flat, A-, or C-weighted (there are other weightings, but inexpensive meters generally do only A and C)? C-weighting alters the reading to better reflect the effects of long-term exposure; it's mostly used for occupational exposure and would not be appropriate for a whistle. But A-weighting adjusts for the typical response of the human ear; it probably results in a higher reading for something like a whistle, so I suspect that manufactures take advantage of it.
 
Wow that was quick! I just got his e-newsletter about the whistle a couple days ago and was planning to order one. Thanks for the quick review and pics guys; I'll definitely be ordering a few of these.
 
Does anyone know if this is a limited time offer? Don't want to miss out, but may have to wait a bit.
 
I ordered 2, they'll be here tomorrow. Kinda sad about the delrin insert though, I was plannin' on flamin' mine.
 
Bowman1911 said:
I ordered 2, they'll be here tomorrow. Kinda sad about the delrin insert though, I was plannin' on flamin' mine.
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You could always anodize it, I dont want to jack the thread but I'm going to write up a thorough how to soon, email me for details if youre interested. No Harsh chemicals or fancy equipment for Ti.
 
Bowman1911 said:
Kinda sad about the delrin insert though...
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I'm the guy that said the reed was delrin. I was operating on (faulty) memory. It probably doesn't make a difference, but the reed is actually nylon.

I'd be afraid to flame it for fear of damaging the reed or the adhesive that holds it in place.
 
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