Falling out of treestands
 

We've all heard statistics about the number of hunters injured from falling out of treestands, but has anyone ever broken it down into homemade vs. manufactured treestands? I'm just wondering what % of the hunters that fall out of their stands fall out of them because they are homemade wooden stands that are poorly built and/or poorly maintained.

I've used homemade stands built by friends before and evenwhen they werewell-built and maintained, I never felt very safe getting in and out of them or when hunting from them. I can only imagine what a poorly built/maintained stand would be like.

FYI: Last year I bought a climbing treestand with safety harness and I've never felt safer in a tree.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Out of my hutning group, we only fall out of homemade stands......lol

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

i was thinkin the same thing myself becuase if you use the harness properly it shouldnt happen.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I fell out of my climber fall 2005 when i was going down after the hunt. i always wear my vest when up in treestand but never while going up or down. Big mistake bottom wasn't securely dug in tree as my weight shifted while moving hand climber away i went 22 feet. Landed on my left side. I broke collar bone 2 places, shoulder blade, fractured 3 ribs, fractured Glenoid cavity (concave bone shoulder ball sits in) displaced 3 vertabrae in cervical portion of neck had a cervical laminoplasty to relieve pressure on spinal cord. cell phone smashed on fall had to walk about 1/2 mile out. Great stand, stupid error Use your belt going up and down would have save me about 6 months of pure hell!!! Not to mention I nearly orphaned my children and financially we won't even go there BE SAFE
100% usage

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I fell last year hanging a hang on stand....now Cougs uses a linemans belt everytime. As far as homemade treestands they can be very safe and effective if done right. Of course like anything else, you do it at your own risk. I'd be willing to bet that the MAJORITY of hunting related injuries are user error and self inflicted injuries.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I feel much safer in stands I build, mostly because they are bigger (I like to stretch out my feet).
The most recent one I built is 2x8s between three trees with 2x4 decking across. The 2x8s are secured with 4" lag bolts (stainless steel), 4" wood screws and 4" nails. The decking is secured with deck screws, the whole thing is stained to protect the wood, and there are safety rails (poles that I cut making shooting lanes).
Another stand that I built only uses 2 trees, it was wobbly if you got near the edges, so I ran airplane cable from eyebolts on the corners of the stand up to lag bolts in the trees.

The only saftey concerns that I have ever had was home-made ladders, now I keep my eyes out for any TV tower that I can get my hands on, lash it to the tree with airplane cable and I'm fine.
Much safer than teetering on a tiny steel platform chained to a tree trunk.

Obviously my stands are different than home-made climbers or other portables, but I can stand up and stretch, sit down cross legged, basically get comfortable so my muscles don't seize up. I'll get pics of one the next time I'm at the farm (maybe this weekend).

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Well let me just say I fell 20 feet. Its not a fun thing. I wasnt sure I could make it out of the woods. But I did. I have a broken back that I have lived with since 1992. I fell from a hang on stand. I fell while I was coming down from the tree. My back will never get better. If I elected to have the surgery I have a 70% chance to walk again, but a 30% chance to be in a wheel chair. I elect to suffer with the pain instead of the odds they have given me. Safety is a must. I learned the hard way. I just keep on going cause Im never sure from one time to the next if I will be paralyzed. I mean I still use my climber and frequently. I also use a homemade ladder stand that is very safe. I will never use a hang on stand again. Especially with the screw in steps. Im definetly against the hang ons and screw in steps. Im just happy to be able to enjoy one of the things I truely love to do in life. Lifes to short be safe...

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

though ive never fallen from a tree stand, I have a climber that i bought last fall. the first real time i used it hunting i didnt feel the least bit safe. I think it was user error thou as I made some adjustments later and felt safer but still not 100%. Both times I used the safety harness that came w/it.

I do have a homemade stand thats been in the same tree now for 8 yrs. I meant last yr to replace it, but never got a round tuit. I still used it but felt a little apprehensive. With this stand ive never used a harness. This year it will get replaced. Guranteed.

If I use the climber again this yr, Im switching harnesses and tie in methods.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Intresting question and one I will throw around. I teach Hunter Safety Ed here in IL and we are really getting on stand safety these days. I'll see what comes back as far as stats go from any official source.

I would definately guess quite a bit are from poorly maintained wooden stands and poorly designed and/or constructed homemade stands. Far too many guys (dummies) think............"Ah, I nailed that thing together with a ton of 16-penny nails and used wolmanized lumber!" (Hint: They still rot out and the nails loosen.

Steel construction for the tubular ladders I make in my shop and welded. My rungs are fitted into the ladder tube before welded in a slot I cut on the milling machine - then welded. I use plywood for the platforms and they are replaced well before they need it. I have a bunch of spares on hand all the time and they all get new hardware when replaced.

The platforms are fitted with seatbelts for gun hunting otherwise we use harnesses for bow season and standing.

Onemistake I see alot of guys makeis that with wooden platforms they make them flat and level. Putting a bit of a noticeable pitch on them sheds the water and the plywood won't seperate as soon.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Haven't fallen out of one, but I did have to jump out of one. Using a certain climber for the first time. Coming down the bottom half didn't dig into the tree and slid all the way to the ground. I usually tie the two pieces together, but had forgotten.

I didn't have my phone and God only knows how long it would have been before someone noticed I was missing. I was about 1/2 way down, around 14ft or so....So I just jumped out. Didn't break anything just tingled my feet a little. I was very lucky Espically considering i am not a small guy 240lbs and could have easily broken something.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I did take a fall comming down from a stand that I built thatI was hanging. ButI didntfall from the stand. I had a spiked fold upscrew in treestep give out on me causing me to go down. As I was falling I reached for another step to grab on to and almost lost my ring finger when i grabbed on to it and one of the spikes wedged between my ring and finger. My wedding band possible saved my life. But since that day I no longer where my ring when hanging stands.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Has anybody fallen with a safety harness on? I'm curious as to how you would get down. I bought a new harness and it has a web cutter attached to the chest strap. I can just see myself being saved from a nasty fall...hanging by my harness...I grab the tree...get settled...cut the strap that just saved my life...and then fall.:( So I guess we just bear hug the tree and slide down after we cut the strap. Do we try to climb up and slide the tree strap down just in case we loose our grip it can save us from another fall? I looked at the Tree Safety website and they don't have anything about getting down. I would think that would be a good video to post there. Does anyone know of a video that shows how to get down?

Happy and Safe Hunting
Reid

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

IFEEL THE OTHER DAY TAKING A STAND DOWN FROM A OLD SPOT.I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN IT DOWN LAST YEAR BUT OPPS.IM OK BUT ITS THE RISK'S WE GO THRU TO DO WHAT WE DO.I DO USE A BELT WHEN IM UP BUT I CANT FIGURE HOW TO USE IT CLIMBING A PINE.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

Yea, pine bark can be tricky. I remember climbing them with my homemade climber. I would jump up and down and wiggle back and forth to make sure the blade cut it deep and the teeth grabbed good. The trick (as I see it) is to have the tree belt tight enough to grap if you fall but loose enough so you can slide it up as you climb. I would suggest practicing to get the right tension. Stand at the base of a pine tree and connect the tree belt up as high as you can. Then drop....you will see if the belt grabs and you will also see what it will feel like to hang there. You might even set the base of your stand up or use a ladder so you can get a little higher. Just make sure you have somebody there to help you if you need it.

Happy and Safe Hunting
Reid

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I hung treestands for years without using a safety belt. Not very smart. Finally, after being prodded by my hunting buddies to use a safety belt, I purchased a nylon web safety belt from Bass Pro. The 4th time I used it, I fell 20 feet. I had hung a stand at the top of a 20 ft. ladder and was trying to cut a small limb that was hitting me in the back of the head while standing on the stand. I had one foot on the top rung of the ladder and the other one on the stand platform. I hit the limb with my small axe and as I drew back to hit it again, I just kept going until the ground got in the way. The safety belt had broken on the back side of the tree as clean as if it had been cut with a razor. I was very fortunate. After laying there for 10 or 15 minutes I was able to get up and walk a mile to my truck and go the hospital in Flagstaff. The point of all this is that you should be very careful in your choice of safety belts. I now use a lineman's belt given to me by a retired telephone lineman. I am sure it will never break and I use it religiously. And yes, I did contact Bass Pro and tell them about my incident and suggest that they remove this particular belt from their sales. Their response was to ask me to send the belt to them so they could examine it. I still have it as well as a back that gets stiff and sore with the slightest provocation. But, I am still hunting and still using tree stands.

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

My other half fell out of a HM ladder stand years ago.. I wear a safety harness.:D

RE: Falling out of treestands
 

I would guesstimate that statistics show majority of victims were using homemade stands as opposed to commercial stands. The technology alone isn't a good comparison, however I am sure their are homemade stands out there built like fort knox.

Overall I think user error is the most common cause of hunters falling out of treestands. I make sure I use my belt going up, while in tree, and coming down. I feel terrible for you guys who are enduring injuries from falls. I did fall once climing up some steps of an old homemade tree stand set up. It should have been taken down long before that.

I hit the ground hard and quick. I was probably fifteen feet up. Shook me up pretty good. Obvioulsy I wasn't wearing my belt then. Since then I do.