enclosed deer stands
11-14-2014, 09:39 AM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 90
enclosed deer stands
Im getting up there in age and am starting to have trouble climbing into my tree stands and also I just dont feel as comfortable as I one did when hunting out of ladder and hang on stands. Anyways im looking for recomendations on enclosed deer stands. I would still like to be elevated some what. I hunt archery, rifle and blackpowder. I dont need anything large as I hunt by myself. So far everything I've looked at on line are to expensive. Does anyone have a good pattern for building affordable blinds? Thanks!
11-18-2014, 04:58 AM
#4
Fork Horn
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: GA
Posts: 357
at 52 I still use my climber a good bit but over the last year or so I have bought a few portable ground blinds and started hunting out of them as well..
It sure is nice crawl in one with my little propane heater and stay nice and toasty.. It is also easier to stay in the woods longer.. The wife and I will often get one together, I think the together time is very important..I buy blinds big enough you can set two of the folding camp chair side by side and still have room for gear and heater.
It sure is nice crawl in one with my little propane heater and stay nice and toasty.. It is also easier to stay in the woods longer.. The wife and I will often get one together, I think the together time is very important..I buy blinds big enough you can set two of the folding camp chair side by side and still have room for gear and heater.
12-02-2014, 05:08 AM
#5
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,926
When I hear an enclosed....
I think of a hunter who waits in one place...waits...waits...waits. And did you pick the right place...to wait...to wait.
For some that can work. Not for all.
Retirement comes to all of us...most football players retire by thirty....baseball players in the late thirties...some earlier.
I hear an enclosed deer stand and I think of ground blinds. If you can carry one, and change the location. Then your not limited to one spot...to wait...to wait.
For some that can work. Not for all.
Retirement comes to all of us...most football players retire by thirty....baseball players in the late thirties...some earlier.
I hear an enclosed deer stand and I think of ground blinds. If you can carry one, and change the location. Then your not limited to one spot...to wait...to wait.
Last edited by Valentine; 12-02-2014 at 05:14 AM.
12-02-2014, 10:38 AM
#6
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Allegan, MI
Posts: 8,019
Geez, the guy just asked a simple question and nobody has actually replied to what he asked! To the OP---Here is what I did for about $100 worth of lumber and some scrap metal I got at a job site that was going into a dumpster. I bought 5 sheets of plywood (3/8" or 1/2" are fine and they are normally 4'x8') and cut two of them at an angle for the top to go on so moisture drains off. 7' down to 6 1/2' or a little more is tall enough for most people. Mine were cut so the front is the taller side and the roof is sloped to the back allowing me to stand in it easily when I want to and the moisture runs off where I don't have a window because it's set to look out the way the deer travel 95% of the time. I left the widths at 4' and screwed 2"x2" lengths of wood to the edges of several of them so I could put all the pieces together for a solid connection. I did the same along the inside of the 4 pieces at the top so I could put the roof on and have wood to screw it to for a tight fit. I took a couple of 8' length 2"x6" boards and cut them to the proper length for floor supports and screwed a piece of plywood I cut from one sheet to them so it was good and solid. I cut the other piece of plywood for the back in two pieces so that the bottom piece was about 2' high and the entire width of the blind for easy access. The couple of leftover pieces were used to complete the roof.
For the windows I already had several real glass ones in frames from an old blind and the appropriate size holes were cut in the plywood to anchor them in at the height that I can comfortably sit on a swivel chair and shoot out of them. They are hinged at the bottom so I can drop them down by just turning a couple holders at the top near the corners. That way if I want to leave them up while I'm in it I can open them easily without much movement to alert a deer. You could make yours that way with glass or plastic, but I like glass that doesn't weather and get hard to see out of. Many blinds just use plastic sliders, but those IMHO are a pain in the rear unless you open them when you get in and leave them open. All the outer wood received a good coat of water sealant before I took everything out to where I put it all together.
I made a number of trips back to where I wanted to set it up with all the pieces. The only one that was heavy was the floor and that could have been assembled on site if I had a further distance to go, but it was only about 1/2 mile from my cabin and not that bad of a haul. I also took a couple of 8' long 4"x4" treated posts and cut them in half to lay on the ground and the blind was then put together on site with a battery operated screw gun and it sits on those treated pieces. Not too long after that I came across a bunch of steel scrap pieces that were in a dumpster where a pole building was being built. I took those up north to my cabin with some tin snips and took those out to the blind, measured and cut each piece to fit and screwed them on the sides. I had already cover the top with a light piece of aluminum I had available to protect the roof and let moisture run off easily. Everything was then spray painted a couple shades of green to camo it and make it blend in with the vegetation. Here is a picture of the finished blind and it should last a couple lifetimes and then some!
For the windows I already had several real glass ones in frames from an old blind and the appropriate size holes were cut in the plywood to anchor them in at the height that I can comfortably sit on a swivel chair and shoot out of them. They are hinged at the bottom so I can drop them down by just turning a couple holders at the top near the corners. That way if I want to leave them up while I'm in it I can open them easily without much movement to alert a deer. You could make yours that way with glass or plastic, but I like glass that doesn't weather and get hard to see out of. Many blinds just use plastic sliders, but those IMHO are a pain in the rear unless you open them when you get in and leave them open. All the outer wood received a good coat of water sealant before I took everything out to where I put it all together.
I made a number of trips back to where I wanted to set it up with all the pieces. The only one that was heavy was the floor and that could have been assembled on site if I had a further distance to go, but it was only about 1/2 mile from my cabin and not that bad of a haul. I also took a couple of 8' long 4"x4" treated posts and cut them in half to lay on the ground and the blind was then put together on site with a battery operated screw gun and it sits on those treated pieces. Not too long after that I came across a bunch of steel scrap pieces that were in a dumpster where a pole building was being built. I took those up north to my cabin with some tin snips and took those out to the blind, measured and cut each piece to fit and screwed them on the sides. I had already cover the top with a light piece of aluminum I had available to protect the roof and let moisture run off easily. Everything was then spray painted a couple shades of green to camo it and make it blend in with the vegetation. Here is a picture of the finished blind and it should last a couple lifetimes and then some!
Last edited by Topgun 3006; 06-09-2015 at 07:27 PM.
12-02-2014, 03:03 PM
#7
Fork Horn
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: GA
Posts: 357
I think of a hunter who waits in one place...waits...waits...waits. And did you pick the right place...to wait...to wait.
For some that can work. Not for all.
Retirement comes to all of us...most football players retire by thirty....baseball players in the late thirties...some earlier.
I hear an enclosed deer stand and I think of ground blinds. If you can carry one, and change the location. Then your not limited to one spot...to wait...to wait.
For some that can work. Not for all.
Retirement comes to all of us...most football players retire by thirty....baseball players in the late thirties...some earlier.
I hear an enclosed deer stand and I think of ground blinds. If you can carry one, and change the location. Then your not limited to one spot...to wait...to wait.
12-02-2014, 03:04 PM
#8
Fork Horn
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: GA
Posts: 357
12-02-2014, 03:11 PM
#9
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Allegan, MI
Posts: 8,019
I also have a cheap popup that I can put up anywhere I see signs of a decent buck, as well as at least 8 or 9 ladder stands when the weather isn't too bad. That blind in the picture is only for use when the weather really gets nasty and real cold. 
12-15-2014, 06:01 PM
#10
Spike
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 7
The ones we use are 4x4 posts (up to roof), 2x6 for floors, 2x4 railing, plywood sides, corrugated metal or plastic sheets for roof (on angle). IMHO, the more cover you can give it, the better. They are a better option for rifle hunting than shotgun and BP, unless you're putting out a little enticement. LOL... and, that likely depends on your situation - my son killed 4 deer on Sat. at 73-105 yds. out of boxes.
As for comfort, it's tough to beat hay bales if you don't need the elevation.
As for comfort, it's tough to beat hay bales if you don't need the elevation.