I have done all that in the past and now with age and wisdom I would recommend commercially built ones. I have 3 ladder stands that I bought last year on sale for $74.99. Rivers Edge 15' deluxe. We harvested 4deer out of these stands last year.I also bought 4 hang ons on sale at Cabelas for $50 each that we are very happy with.I also have nice Summits; climbers and hangons. I like lots of stands on my deer deer hunting places as I can hunt the wind this way and also never overhunt a stand. Save yourself a lot of aggravation and protect your safety and just buy commercial ones.