I was wondering if any of you guys make your own stands. I have built a few wooden ones, but I am going to try my luck at metal. The way I look at it, it is cheaper for me to build my own, and if they get stolen, who cares. Besides, I don' t have to money to buy any.

Never built my own but I did buy an Ameristep for $40, you can' t get any cheaper than that for a decent stand with a comfortable seat.

Unless you work someehere or have access to scrape metal i think it is cheaper just to buy one. My ladder stand was only $70. PLus its probably safer. The treestands on the market have been certified by the TSA

I made a ladder stand at work about 2 weeks ago, I just copied my ladder stand that I got at Cabelas. I made it out of aluminum that I bought thru work, I cut all of the peices to length and drew up all of the directions and then took it to a welding shop and had them aluminum weld the platform and the seat pieces, and then I bolted all of the sections together. My cost to build it was around $50, and you can buy one from cabelas for I think $65, So with my labor I didnt really save much. But it turned out as good as the one I bought or better. I think that I will do another one but I will just bolt everything together and not have it welded, that will save me $20.

I built my own climbing stand. I built the way I want it so that I have more room to move around. Aluminum is not cheap. Both stands costed around $80 each. IMO, if you' re buying the $100 range stands, it' s better to buy at the store. But if you' re buying the $250+ stands, building your own is much cheaper. Just make sure the stand can hold your weight.

Built around 20 strapon stands and 10 ladder stands. Heres a pic of one of the strapon stands. Made them out of thin wall conduit and cost about 20 bucks each.



we test these stand by straping them to a tree at the base and my buddy and I jump up and down on it, roughly somewhere around 500lbs of force hitting the stand.

i bet thats not a pretty sight!

I build my own stands. I use 1" square (16 guage) tubing for the base, 2" square tubing for the seat post, expandable steel for better traction on the base, a couple of lengths of heavy chain to attach the seat post to the base (if I make it a folder) a couple of spikes in the base to dig into the tree...I use scrap steel, and being a welder by trade, I throw a couple of beads here and there to hold it all together. My stands are always made from steel, so they are anchors, but very stable and cheap to build. Usually I have about 10 to 20 bucks in them.

I was going to try my hand at making one after the season is over. I' d like to build a steel stand to put in my yard for practicing. I was concerned over the cost though. I don' t have regular access to scrap metal.

I' ve made a couple ladder stands of treated lumber - They are HEAVY and you really need a winch to put them up safely. The seat is wood and slides in a track depending on whether you want to face the tree or not. My seat is actually two boards, then I can bring my young son hunting and we can face each other.

The platform is " V-notched" and 2 heavy duty ratchet straps hold it in place. The stand is very sturdy for nevous hunters - and with a shooting rest in Gun Season is an Excellent stand. For bowhunting - its really good - just not as portable or hidden - as I would prefer for bow