Measurements of angular distributions and of the angular dependence of the energy loss of 4-, 6-, and 9-keV protons transmitted through thin Cu and Ag polycrystalline foils are presented. By means of standard multiple-scattering model calculations it is found that a V (r) ∝ r −2.8 potential leads to significantly better fits of the angular distributions than the standard Thomas Fermi, Lenz-Jensen, or Ziegler-Biersack-Littmark potentials. A theoretical model for the angular dependence of the energy loss based on considering geometric effects on a frictional inelastic energy loss plus an angular-dependent elastic contribution and the effects of foil roughness reproduces the experimental data. This agrees with previous results in Au and Al, therefore extending the applicability of the model to other metallic elements.