Scent control products
11-15-2010, 03:24 AM
#1
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Colorado
Posts: 200
Scent control products
I used to be skeptical about these, but after what happened last week I'm convinced they work.
For the first time I took scent control seriously, always having done a half-azzed job of it in the past. I figured hunting with the wind in my face was always the best plan (and it still is), but "any little thing helps." I just didn't believe in it much.
This time I decided to go all-out. I washed my clothes in the scent control detergent, dried them without a dryer sheet, stored them in a scent-free plastic bag, etc. I didn't even put on my hunting clothes in the morning. After showering with their scent-control soap and using their scent-control deoderant, put on street clothes and packed the plastic bag of clothes into my truck. I drove to the hunting spot and then put on my hunting clothes. Then I sprayed myself down with the scent-killer spray.
I put a little estrous doe urine on my boots and hiked in to my hunting spot. I got set up just inside the wood line from a clearing and put a little doe urine on the ground nearby.
After a few hours, I heard, then saw three does moving towards me through the clearing (we were not allowed to shoot does that day, otherwise I would have!). I froze still, knowing that if I spooked them I would lose a chance at any bucks that might be following.
So I sat frozen. They kept coming closer and closer, finally spotting me when they were about 20 yards away. They froze a few seconds, staring at me. When I didn't move, the crept a little closer, then paused to stare at me some more. Closer still, then another pause.
Finally, the youngest of the bunch got excited and started running DIRECTLY TOWARDS ME! It was exciting -- I knew she would break off at the last second because deer are prey animals. They are not aggressive, especially does. So I just kept sitting frozen still.
Yep, she broke off at the last second -- She had gotten so close I could have jumped out of my chair and poked her with my rifle!
The other two came to within about 10 yards, then calmly walked off into the woods.
An hour later a buck pranced to within about 20 yards and I whacked him with my .270
So after all this I'm convinced the scent control products worked. I have never gotten so close to deer without spooking them. In addition, the estrous doe urine must have worked, too. I'm going to keep using both!
For the first time I took scent control seriously, always having done a half-azzed job of it in the past. I figured hunting with the wind in my face was always the best plan (and it still is), but "any little thing helps." I just didn't believe in it much.
This time I decided to go all-out. I washed my clothes in the scent control detergent, dried them without a dryer sheet, stored them in a scent-free plastic bag, etc. I didn't even put on my hunting clothes in the morning. After showering with their scent-control soap and using their scent-control deoderant, put on street clothes and packed the plastic bag of clothes into my truck. I drove to the hunting spot and then put on my hunting clothes. Then I sprayed myself down with the scent-killer spray.
I put a little estrous doe urine on my boots and hiked in to my hunting spot. I got set up just inside the wood line from a clearing and put a little doe urine on the ground nearby.
After a few hours, I heard, then saw three does moving towards me through the clearing (we were not allowed to shoot does that day, otherwise I would have!). I froze still, knowing that if I spooked them I would lose a chance at any bucks that might be following.
So I sat frozen. They kept coming closer and closer, finally spotting me when they were about 20 yards away. They froze a few seconds, staring at me. When I didn't move, the crept a little closer, then paused to stare at me some more. Closer still, then another pause.
Finally, the youngest of the bunch got excited and started running DIRECTLY TOWARDS ME! It was exciting -- I knew she would break off at the last second because deer are prey animals. They are not aggressive, especially does. So I just kept sitting frozen still.
Yep, she broke off at the last second -- She had gotten so close I could have jumped out of my chair and poked her with my rifle!
The other two came to within about 10 yards, then calmly walked off into the woods.
An hour later a buck pranced to within about 20 yards and I whacked him with my .270
So after all this I'm convinced the scent control products worked. I have never gotten so close to deer without spooking them. In addition, the estrous doe urine must have worked, too. I'm going to keep using both!
11-15-2010, 05:26 AM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Virginia
Posts: 1,473
I believe in reasonable scent control (i.e. not going out into the woods smelling like hell, hanging your clothing outside to dry, just basic stuff), but not “all-out.” Even when you’ve gone thru the rigors of “de-scenting” yourself and your clothing, you still sweat. Your skin still flakes off. You still touch your clothing with your human hands. Your gun, bow, calls and other gear and any oils, etc on them don’t smell like nature. When your nose runs, what do you do, pull out a scent-free hankie out of a scent-free (and noise-free, I’m sure) plastic bag, wipe your nose and put it back in the bag? Dude, when my nose runs in the cold, I wipe it with my glove if it doesn’t get to my facemask first. And I believe my snot doesn’t smell like deer snot.
The point is that you are going to smell like something that doesn’t belong there, no matter what you do. The two buddies I went hunting with this weekend went “all out” with the scent control products, down to the toothpaste, deodorant, body talc (I guess to de-scent your sweat??), etc, etc, etc. I killed two deer (and had many very close to me); they didn’t kill any.
The point is that you are going to smell like something that doesn’t belong there, no matter what you do. The two buddies I went hunting with this weekend went “all out” with the scent control products, down to the toothpaste, deodorant, body talc (I guess to de-scent your sweat??), etc, etc, etc. I killed two deer (and had many very close to me); they didn’t kill any.
11-15-2010, 08:53 AM
#3
Fork Horn
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 141
This morning made a believer out of me as well. I don't go all out with the soap/deoderant/detergent deal, but this morning was the first time I used scent killer spray. At one point, I had 8 deer all within 20 yards of me, 5 of which were downwind and one was a mature buck. Also, they were standing on the very trail that I walked to get to my stand. I've had some problems before of being winded from this stand, but today none of the deer ever noticed me. Two does walked within 5 feet of the base of my ladder stand. Needless to say I will be spraying down every time from now on.
11-15-2010, 09:26 AM
#4
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Kansas
Posts: 190
well my buddy just killed a 10 pointer at 15 yards with his .308 after a weekend of drinking beer staying in a old house that was built with the timber that it sits on not to mention his grandpa lives in the house by himself doesnt take showers but MAYBE once a year and has a wood burning stove to heat the place. we didnt take showers the whole weekend. i know i smelled like like rotten farts and im sure he did to. our clothes stunk because the house did so to me sometimes you can get busted but when the rut is on the rut is on and the damn deer dont care about you in the woods
