When we were asked to write a review of the Lone Wolf Alpha Sit & Climb we learned a very valuable lesson: You can read all the marketing hype you want but until the product is in the field you just never know! Such is the case with Alpine Archery's Soft Loc Quiver system site. Like the Lone Wolf Alpha Sit & Climb, we asked ourselves: How exciting can testing another climbing tree stand or testing a quiver "system" be? Yup, it holds arrows, yup it fits my bow. As it turned out, with both products we were dead wrong. The Alpha Sit & Climb got our vote as the most innovative product of 2001, and while it has been out for some time, had we tested the Alpine Archery Soft Loc Pro Dampener Quiver One Piece Quiver System (boy, that's a mouthful) in 2001 it would have scored so high on our list of tested products that it would have been a really hard decision. There's always 2002, and this product is firmly in the running.
Enough about us, let's talk about the product! System? A quiver system? What's that all about? Most of us are familiar with quivers enough to understand, it hangs off your back, your hip or your bow. Strap it on or bolt it on and forget about it! It holds arrows securely and, hopefully, safely, but be honest, how many of you give your quiver much thought? We didn't, but we do now. The Soft Loc is a system because it means that if you own more than one bow, as many of us do, swapping out the quiver doesn't mean using any tools and doesn't mean you have to switch camo patterns. Let me explain.
The Soft Loc one-piece quiver system is actually three (3) pieces. The polymer backed and rubber mounting bracket that attaches to the bow riser, the quiver rails that lock into this rubber bracket, and an interchangeable hood that protects your broad heads.
Installation took about 10 minutes and the mounting bracket comes with stand off spacers, should you decide you want riser clearance. We used a Parker Ultra-Lite 31, a Buckmasters G-2, a Mathews SQ2, a Golden Eagle SplitFire 32, and Alpine's own Sidewinder as our test bows. None required the stand off spacers and all installed in about the same amount of time. Unlike some OEM quivers that mandate a stand off spacer as a means of riser clearance, in all cases, the Soft Loc mounted nearly flat on the bows. We feel this is significant because the more secure the bracket, the less vibration inducing noise. We lacked a decibel meter for the test, but some of our shooters actually reported with the full Soft Loc system installed there was a decrease in noise. How can this be? If there was vibration traveling thorough the riser we felt the mounting bracket, which employs rubber slotted grippers to firmly hold the quiver rails, (see Picture) may have been responsible for dissipating energy (also known as vibration), which, of course, translates to noise. Totally unscientific, but we felt worth noting.
Beside the mounting bracket there is the quiver itself, which is essentially two high impact plastic rails with slotted rubber to receive your arrows, connected to a hood, which protects your broad heads or field points. The quiver comes in both a five arrow and a three-arrow configuration. How many of you actually ever needed five (5) arrows in your quiver in any hunting situation? Hmmm? We rest our case. We used a variety of arrow shaft diameters and, as expected, the aluminum tree trunks were a tight fit, but the thin shaft carbons, to our amazement, fit snugly. No problems, the tolerances of the rubber arrow slots seemed just fine. Alpine assures us the product was designed for mechanical or traditional broad heads with shaft sizes from 249ACC to 2413.
When you slide the arrows into position you'll also be pleased to note, Alpine has actually considered that some folks use mechanical broad heads, some use fixed blade, and some use their quiver for field points.
Regardless of what you put in this quiver, the removable high-density foam inserts inside the quiver hood accommodate whatever you shoot, even if you use all three types of arrowheads. The Soft Loc is reversible for right or left hand use and rotates up to 15 degrees, if you like your arrows tilted toward you.
The hood that covers your broad heads is also worthy of note. Since when did anyone make replaceable camo hoods that can match virtually any commercially available pattern? We're personally not real concerned about our camo patterns being synchronized but a lot of guys are. For those who are concerned that everything match, Alpine's got you covered with these replaceable quiver hoods. Name your pattern, and chances are out of six choices they'll have it, including black and MO Forest Floor. Now when you buy a new bow or switch your quiver over to another that you own, you can simply remove two small setscrews and, wha la! You'll match. We obviously get asked to test a lot of bows here at BowCountry.com, so set up and take down of equipment just goes with the territory as does getting the equipment in the field. Swapping quivers on and off a variety of bows was a breeze with the Soft Loc. This comes in real handy when transporting the bows, changing bows, and, as we found out, invaluable once you're in your tree and you want to lighten your bow! That's right! Imagine having the functionality of this incredible quiver system and being able to pop it off easily and quietly once you're safely in your tree stand! Alpine also offers the bow mounting bracket separate, just in case you actually want to fix mount to your favorite tree. We just hung ours on pruned branches. Some of our staff shooters left the Soft Loc on because that's how they practiced, but not this guy! By the way, for those who prefer not to take the quiver off the bow when shooting, or for those walking into their tree stand location, if you do shoot with a loaded quiver on your bow you will be amazed to learn that not a single Soft Loc loosened up over the 4 month trial, and none of our staff shooters complained of excess noise!
Lastly, it's important to note that since the quiver rails are round as is the rubber grippers on the mounting bracket, the ability to actually slide the entire quiver up and down to accommodate varying arrows lengths and create balance was a tremendous asset for positioning the quiver just so. Lots of archers who hunted with us, saw us at the test range, or emailed inquires, asked if the rubber mounting bracket was susceptible to cracking, expansion, or otherwise deteriorated during our tests. Honestly? No way! This rubber is so thick and so durable one of the Soft Locs in test rotation is at least two years old, has been repeatedly hunted in sub-zero conditions, and has basically been through hell and back. It still comes on and off the bow just as easy as the first day and close inspection reveals nothing. Rock solid and worthy of our total confidence!
There are multiple additional accessories offered by Alpine such as a mini flashlight and bracket which clips onto the quiver rail for $17.95. Another interesting variation of this system is a rotating hip quiver utilizing the same basic system for $29.95
At a manufacturers suggested retail price of around $35.00, we felt the Soft Loc system was competitively priced, and more than delivered on what the manufacturer claimed it was capable of.
We looked hard to find a weakness or an improvement to report, and our entire Staff Shooter team hunted with this product all season long. Much to our surprise, there were no improvements suggested and no complaints to report. None. As such, we bestow a perfect 5 star rating and highly recommend Alpine Archery's Soft Loc quiver system.
Our special thanks to Dustin Bomley, Vince Kite, and Bob Proctor of Alpine Archery site for sending multiple Soft Loc's and for donating an Alpine Sidewinder bow, which is in the process of being tested.
