Tree stand suggestions?

Radke · 09-04-2003, 12:28 PM

Over the past couple years bowhunting, I've come across numerous places that look ideal for hanging a tree stand, and now I'm considering acquiring one. Can anyone suggest a good product to buy? While I'm fairly ignorant on the subject, I think I want a self-climbing variety, easy to transport and hang, with an emphasis on quietness, and I guess safety ought to be somewhere in the mix. The advertisements I've read seem to stress how quiet their brand is, and it only makes sense, you don't want to make a bunch of noise coming to full draw with an elk nearby. For those of you who hunt out of tree sands, is there any particular brand that you would suggest, or important factors that should be considered? Thanks!

greenbuttskunk · 09-04-2003, 02:47 PM

cabelas has a great one, it weighs about 11lbs I think, I love mine. It was about 60 bucks. Get 12 of the folding foot steps with the lags. They are light and fold down for convenience.

greenbuttskunk · 09-04-2003, 02:51 PM

I should have read the rest of the topic. Self climbing are not always practical, unless the tree is clean of branches, not always possible. They are heavier too. You may want to backpack into an area sometime. I used my cabelas last weekend, and only needed 8 steps, I used some sturdy branches also to get me safely up to about 22'. Make sure to put a safty belt around the tree and you too. You never know when you might loose your balance, or fall asleep in one.
Just my 2 cents!

Gus Orviston · 09-04-2003, 02:57 PM

I have wanted to do this as well, but getting set up seems to be the issue. :depressed: Do you set up the night before, leave it for weeks in advance, or pack it in and use the same. I guess the answer is YES to all, but I got hard time leaving my hardware in the woods for somebody to damage.

Tell me it's okay

and nobody will mess with it.

gus

feisty's wife · 09-04-2003, 04:27 PM

Hey Gus, I will set mine up a week or so in advance, set yours up so that it is not siluwetted{BEST I CAN DO} and fold it in , if it will....Buy a plastic covered cable and put a lock on that puppy, there aare theives out there...not worth the hassle of shooting some sob for stealing a syand.

Bait O' Eggs · 09-04-2003, 04:49 PM

Gus - we can build you a tree stand that slips in your truck hitch since you pretty much road hunt anyway. :tongue: About 5 feet of vertical and some crib bed rails ought to handle your needs.

Maybe one of those soft plastic chew protectors along the top. [img]graemlins/dork.gif[/img]

(god I crack myself up)

I know where several tree stands are that are permanent in place over some great locations. Never had the desire to sit in them, but I have left some presents on the stands for the owner when he wasnt around :grin: Rebar ladders tied to the tree, 4x8 platforms with chairs with netting around them. Finally met the owner one day, he told me about the presents somebody had been leaving him the last few years.

I just smiled and listened to his story, I figured Santa would return again

2LEYS · 09-04-2003, 06:28 PM

We are West of the rockies people!!! We don't use tree stands. Tree stands are for toothless nascar fans.

09-13-2003, 10:56 AM

I would have to sugest the tree lounge. I have one and it is extremly easy to climb with and when setting in it feels as though you are in your recliner at home. I would go to thier web site and check them out

GutshotApe · 09-13-2003, 12:03 PM

Here's an old permanent tree stand on the Willamette valley farm where I hunt. The blind has been there unused since the farmer died several yrs ago...and he didn't use it for some time before that.

The little platform is a foot stand...the seat is hidden behind the closest side shield. The ladder is rotten and the rope that used to hang from some spikes has rotted away. I have a replacement ladder and will get it in place ASAP...and have been cutting branches and blackberries away from the obvious shooting lanes. The roof looks a little rough but I'll probably leave it as is for this season. The blind overlooks an old roadway on the shooter's left & right and an open area under an alder/maple/cottonwood stand is to the front of the hunter...there is a fair amount of deer sign around there.

I'm going to try hunting from it next month.

stick flicker · 09-13-2003, 05:45 PM

Definitley put a lock on that sucker, I have lost the last two treestands I purchased to thieves

. I have had good sucess on Blacktails on stand.Last year I shot a PY blacktail at twenty yards out of a stand placed near some rubs. Good luck.

Mello-Yello · 09-13-2003, 08:59 PM

I would really like to dabble into hunting from tree stands. Problem is, I can't stand to sit still. I'm constantly thinking I should be somewhere else, that the trail/location I chose isn't 'right', and if I sit still for too long, I start to doze off...

We have a great rut hunt here on the S. coast, and it sure seems like a tree stand would be the way to go, as it's the one time of year that the 'big' bucks are moving a lot during daylight hours. I have a decent stand, and am considering trying a little rattling too.

Any of you guys done much rattling? I had some friends up in WA that had some great success with it, especially on those cold, clear Nov. mornings.

M-Y

glowball · 09-13-2003, 11:59 PM

Obviously someone doesn't know the secret of killing big blacktails from a treestand. Oh well close minded people usually lose out on all the good stuff.

I have a summit viper that I bought new on ebay(got a good deal) and I am pretty happy with it. It weighs around 20lbs and is really quiet. Very stable as well. I wouldn't want to pack it a long ways but it does pack well.

Tilla · 09-15-2003, 09:29 AM

A climbing treestand, although heavy (20-24 lbs)can be used as a climber and as one you haul up with a rope using steps. Make sure you get a decent harness. Where I hunt the success has dropped because treestand use is up and no one is pushing the animals around.

Two of my opportunities were blown because I was on the ground in the middle of the trail. I have selected the tree for next year. a few of us use API Grand Slam's.

Rauly · 09-15-2003, 10:48 AM

I would check out Ole Man Tree stands. IMHO They are probably the best out there and you will pay for them also.

Rauly

Leatherneck · 09-17-2003, 02:56 AM

When I was stationed at Camp Lejeune, NC I hunted whitetails on base from a tree stand. What a great way to hunt deer. They never look up and its hard for the deer to smell you. I had a climber stand. With these type of stands you can't have tree limbs in the way of your climb unless you bring a saw. Scout to avoid that situation. Wear your harness like others have mentioned and bring a pee bottle. This will save you from climbing back down the tree and making noise not to mention leaving a nasty smell around your stand. I killed many whitetails from my stand. I'm suprised more people don't hunt blacktail from treestands, it really will put you into the deer.

Radke · 09-17-2003, 06:01 AM

In the last post the comment about bringing a pee bottle reminded me of a study done a few years back on the reaction of deer & elk to different types of urine. Basically what the study found is that with human urine, the animals were not deterred, more curious than anything. The only real reaction they saw was when it was the urine from a predator. I then read a story from a guy who had taken better than 10 P&Y whitetail. He made a comment that when he had to relive himself, he just did a point and shoot from his treestand. Similar to the study, he said he has seen deer walk to where he let fly and sniffed a bit then when on their way.

SlamminKokes · 09-17-2003, 01:43 PM

I have a TreeLounge im willing to sell. Used it only 1 year, too damn comfortable for me, kept falling asleep and once i snored, scared all the elk away!?

I believe this is the safest stand on the market. Comes with the adjusting wedge thing to allow you to change the angle you want to recline in!

reeldick · 09-17-2003, 01:59 PM

My bow hunting friends and I have shot many deer out of portable tree stands. Deer seldom look up unless you are really noisy. We have found also that you don't need to be moe than six or eight feet off the ground. You can easily reach seven feet to attach your tree stand and use three screw-in steps to get into the stand. Works fine.
We only leave our stands overnight when they are on our own property. It's also safer at seven or eight feet than 20' to 30' in the air.

Killertraylor · 09-17-2003, 02:50 PM

We use the redneck type - find a good tree you can climb and nail a 2x6 across a few branches for a seat as high up as you can get. We killed two elk out of one on the coast last year that was 100 feet up! :shocked: I got 1/2 way up it one day and decided it wasn't for me when you had to hold onto the tree and shimmy around to the other side to get to the next branch. No elk is worth falling out of a tree for! In the coast range there are lots of good climbable trees with low branches, but not so many on the east side.

By the way, I hate NASCAR!

float2ber · 09-19-2003, 07:59 AM

Treelounge is the best. Comfortable, safe, self-climbing. Also has wheels for game cart conversion.