Originally Posted By: NightHiker
Originally Posted By: sparky
Originally Posted By: billym
Have you seen what the BSA offers as a whistle? The last time I was at a BSA store all they offered was a silver referee whistle with a pea which is not appropriate for the wilderness.


What is wrong with pea whistles?
They are not loud enough or what?


Nope, not by a long shot. But they are better than nothing.


By a long shot... If that kid had had a whistle, I think he would have been found a LOT sooner... He said that he heard the searchers but they did not hear his shouting...

The BIGEST problem with the metal whistles are that, in the winter, they can freeze to your lips! eek

There are some pea whistles that are just about as loud as I have ever heard... The Windstorm for example...

The problem is:
1. That the pea can be swallowed and choke someone(Not likely in my opinion, at least with a GOOD whistle).
2. That it stops the whistle from working when it is wet.(But that does not seem to be a problem with the Windstorm)
3. That, if wet, it can freeze inside the whistle.(I have no idea if that would effect the ability of the Windstorm to produce a whistle, but it would change the sound to a normal Storm whistle sound at the least)

There is a lot of debate on how well the sounds of different whistles carry, and of how well they can be NOTICED(which are totally different things...
Some people believe that the sound of a whistle with a pea is more UNNATURAL and so will be noticed more easily than that of a pea-less whistle, even though the pea-less whistle is actually louder...