well 0-2 this season, time to start getting ready for next

corey012778 · 01-04-2009, 10:54 PM

well my hunting season is done for this year.

missed 2, seen over 40 total, mainly driving back and forth from work. could have had one the last day if I was 50ft back on the trail. came up right across from me with my head turned and scanning the other side of an clearing. [:@] by the time I saw it was too late. it went in to some thick stuff and lost track of it before I could get the gun up.

oh well, time to get ready for next year. need some powder and bullets

going to set up a feeder and make an small food plot as soon as I find a spot to put it.

hopes for some land opening up in the next 6 months.

gee, last year if I did not get anything I would of gave up.

cayugad · 01-05-2009, 05:23 AM

Better luck next year

gregrn43 · 01-05-2009, 06:33 AM

x2

gleason.chapman · 01-05-2009, 06:35 AM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: corey012778

well my hunting season is done for this year.

missed 2, seen over 40 total, mainly driving back and forth from work. could have had one the last day if I was 50ft back on the trail. came up right across from me with my head turned and scanning the other side of an clearing. [:@] by the time I saw it was too late. it went in to some thick stuff and lost track of it before I could get the gun up.

oh well, time to get ready for next year. need some powder and bullets

going to set up a feeder and make an small food plot as soon as I find a spot to put it.

hopes for some land opening up in the next 6 months.

gee, last year if I did not get anything I would of gave up.

I am doing this to all my ladder stands, putting "wings" on them.
Chap

How to Improve a Cheap Ladder Stand[/b]

This is a picture of the "wings" when >>sitting<< in a ladder stand. Notice the extension of the foot area to the right and left of the ladder.

Assembly[/b]

Cut two pieces of 3/4" plywood 37" long x 7.5" wide, screw them together with about 15 dry wall screws, use 1.25" dry wall screws or deck screws. Drill 3 1/4" holes thru the wood. This piece goes between your ladder and the supports that hold your foot rest in place.

Cut two pieces of 3/4" plywood 37" long x 2.75 wide, screw them together with about 7 dry wall crews. Drill 3 1/4" holes thru the wood. This piece goes behind he supports that hold your foot rest in place.

Buy some green or black paint and mix 2 8 oz cups of sand in about 8 oz of paint. Paint the top of the wood. Use a disposable brush that you buy for a $1 at Walmart. This keeps you from slipping when it is freezing out and you get snow or freezing rain on the plywood. If you DON"™T do that, the stand is VERY slippery in the AM with dew on and you are risking falling.

Buy six 2.5" long 1/4" carriage bolts and 2" wide flat washers also use lock washer over the regular washers to make sure it does not come undone. Use these to fasten the wood to the foot rest of the stand. The carrage bolt head are on TOP, the nut is below the foot rest.

When your done you have about a 7.5" extension of your foot rest on each side of your $49 tree stand. This allows you to sit "œside saddle" and watch to your left with your left foot on the wing extending out 7.5" or sit "œside saddle" and watch to your right, with your right foot placed on the right wing. You can also stand and shoot behind you now, since you have your safety harness on and you can stand with one foot on 1 wing and the other foot on your foot rest. This gives you perfect shooting and allows you to use the tree to steady your shot.

I also take a 4"™ or 5 foot section of 3/8" trucker"™s rope and tie it above my head in the tree, in that way I have a hand hold when I turn around. I don"™t want to loose my balance when I step out on a wing.

Another safety thing I do is place 1"™ long sections of metal cut from discarded Stop signs at the join points of the two ladders. The ladder sections fit perfectly inside the stop sign metal. A friend of mine works for the State and they have piles of these that are broken off from accidents and wind.

Another thing I do to strengthen up tree stands is replace all the bolts after about 3 or 5 years in the field (I leave them up all year around) with stainless steel bolts and lock washers. Much safer.

That is the trick to extending a cheap Dcik"™s Comfort Zone or River"™s Edge 15"™ ladder stand into a better stand.

Chap

rafsob · 01-05-2009, 06:55 AM

Great idea Chap. I spent a few days in one of these stands and it drove me crazy trying to work a good position to the right or left. They are so restrictive. In the long run it is easier and cheaper to build your own landder stands. With some 2x4's and 1x4's we managed to build eight of them. They were very stable and this old man didn't feel unsafe at all. We ended up using regular wood, but I would have used treated lumber. If wepaid more then $20 a stand I would have been suprised.

These are the only photos I have, but they still give you the idea. They worked very well.

sproulman · 01-05-2009, 09:22 AM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: rafsob

Great idea Chap. I spent a few days in one of these stands and it drove me crazy trying to work a good position to the right or left. They are so restrictive. In the long run it is easier and cheaper to build your own landder stands. With some 2x4's and 1x4's we managed to build eight of them. They were very stable and this old man didn't feel unsafe at all. We ended up using regular wood, but I would have used treated lumber. If wepaid more then $20 a stand I would have been suprised.

These are the only photos I have, but they still give you the idea. They worked very well.

been there done that.

as cheap as comfort zone stands are today, 49 dollars,making stand is not way to go.

now, for on publicland,nice idea because no one will bother that stand

but, its heavy to carry in .

i built at DEER CART.

i guess you could call it a LADDERSTAND CART.

i used old wheelchair wheels and made it wider than ones you buy.

i think i spent around 20 dollars for conduit at lowes etc.

i put my comfort zone ladderstand on there and tie it down with a trailer strap.

off i go DEEP INTO WOODS.

that wood ones, you need 2 people to put it up and i bet its not more than 12 ft high, here in pa. you better be up 20 ft for archery.

you idea is great if you hunt same spot and have help to put it up,not going wayback in woods without trailand privateland is nice.

actually the treated lumber would have been a big mistake, it will WARP BADLY and twist, its awful today.[:@]

but, i would put a coat of paint on it so animals dont eat it, those porkys will chew it up.
also go a little farther and put a railing around your stand and get some of that camo material and make a WINDBREAKER around your waist,it will make sitting there much better and hide your more too.
dcnr makes you remove your stands here in pa.

if i bring in my stand i will take p[icture of it on my DEER/STAND CARTand see if chap can put it on here for me, i am kind of slow on how you do that

gleason.chapman · 01-05-2009, 06:07 PM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: rafsob

Great idea Chap. I spent a few days in one of these stands and it drove me crazy trying to work a good position to the right or left. They are so restrictive. In the long run it is easier and cheaper to build your own landder stands. With some 2x4's and 1x4's we managed to build eight of them. They were very stable and this old man didn't feel unsafe at all. We ended up using regular wood, but I would have used treated lumber. If wepaid more then $20 a stand I would have been suprised.

These are the only photos I have, but they still give you the idea. They worked very well.

These are nice stands. Especiallyif you can carry them in a truckto the place where you want to hunt. you can't beat the $20 price. Are they 14'tall or 12' tall? These are for rifle/MLer hunting only, since you can't stand. I guess you could stand on the top of the platform and use a Gorolla seat (very comfortable) to sit on, which is what I would do.
Chap

sproulman · 01-05-2009, 08:07 PM

some use there lock on or seat like that to get higher in their ladderstands,like 15 ft comfort zone then put your lock on higher and use limbs or treesteps to get to it.

i have idea for great ladderstand.

i want a telescoping one that is 4 sections with wheels built on bottom and motorcycle dry cell battery to power it.

it would work like a fire engines ladder that goes up in sections.

you would come to your tree with wheels on bottom section of ladder.

push a button and up goes your 4 sections of ladder to tree,then fold out your support and up and tie off top.

you would be set up in about 10 minutes or so.

this is idea i have and i am trying to work with a company to build it.

i know it will work.

corey012778 · 01-05-2009, 08:14 PM

had an chance to buy a portable back room stairs afew months ago. just did not have the cash for it. $100

rafsob · 01-06-2009, 06:36 AM

Hey Chap, the stands were made with 12' 2x4s. The stands were made and placed on my friends farm. They were made to be left in place. I do have a better stand than another friend placed on his farm. He ended upmaking 10 of them:

This was made so it can be moved to different locations. We ended upputting camo netting around it and it was a great stand. Plenty of room and a complete 360 hunting view.