RE: Wooden tree stand ladder question.....
Better yet, get the cabinet screws instead of drywall screws. Dry wall screws really are not very hard or strong. All they need to do is hold up dry wall.
I recently got one of those sleep number mattresses and decided to build a frame for it, rather than pay 300 some bucks for a plastic platform! I basically built a waterbed type frame around it. Any way, when I was getting the screws the old man at the lumber yard told me to get cabinet screws instead, they are much stronger. They are designed to hold up a lot of weight unlike dry wall screws.
That being said I built my first two wooden ladder stands with dry wall screws and it worked just fine.
Nails may be faster and cheaper, but I doubt they are stronger. However I am sure they are strong enough. We assembled most of our blinds that are built with 2x4's and T11 siding with passload framing guns. There is NO give to these babies. The bases are 13 feet in the air and I have been in mine in 70 mile an hour winds with driving rain.
Paul