Tree Stands?

[czeslaw]

Hi all i am interested in purchusing a tree stand has anyone ever used one and if so whats the best way to errect them like how high up a tree should you place one? and any other interesting things to know.

[DavidJHardy]

i know that tree stand hunting is CHEATING.. imo

[robvic]

i know that tree stand hunting is CHEATING.. imo

You have a bow and arrow, and the rabbits and dear have nothing. You know theyre there, but they dont know your there. When you think of it, hunting of any kind isnt really all that fair is it, so to call a tree stand cheating is a bit hypocriticle IMO.:mad:

[robvic]

Hi all i am interested in purchusing a tree stand has anyone ever used one and if so whats the best way to errect them like how high up a tree should you place one? and any other interesting things to know.

Ive never used one, but stumbled across one while out bushwalking once. Pretty dodgy looking thing, at 130kg theres no way i would stand in one!!:eek::eek:
Just from reading this forum, i have noted that you have to stand dead still, sometimes for hours on end. Some people wear rubber gumboots out to there treestand, to prevent them leaving there scent. You need to practice shooting your bow directly down before using a treestand, like from a roof or something, because shooting on that angle is totally different than shooting horizontaly.
From memory, the one i found was about 3-4 metres high approx.
I hope this all helps you somehow. Most likely more helpful than david hardy's post.;)

[Dale Furze]

Mate, do a search. There is a heap of info on here about treestands.

If you need more info' than you can find, by all means ask. I have made 4 portable hanging stands and use one every year.

Dale.

[Clinglish]

I used a few different types at Toomba. I liked the ladder stand but most of them were pretty similer .IMO you need a good sized platform for your feet and armrests. The height up the tree depends on the terrain and on what you are hunting. Some animals are always checking above them for predaters but some don't.
DavidJhardy IMO your a tool.

[Mozza]

i know that tree stand hunting is CHEATING.. imo
You have obviously never used one, otherwise you would know how much work there is in taking an animal from one.
They are not my thing personally, but you need a whole lot of patience to sit still up in one for a whole day, let alone a week or more as well as scouting out a good place to put it.
Having said that, always make sure you are wearing a safety harness when putting it up and when sitting in it (they can be quite easy to fall asleep in)
The height depends on the type of country you are hunting, the idea is to put yourself out of the animals line of sight.
best of luck with it:)

[EcoMuse]

I was actually thinking of trying a tree stand on my pig property as the hogs seem to move THROUGH the property rather than live on it. Couple this with the fact that the ground is VERY noisey and a stand is starting to look attractive....wonder how hard it would be to hoist an eski up there with me ;)

[special]

Generaly the height is between 18-24'...mines at 20 feet....and made to shoot in a seated position.....never shot an animal from it,but its positioned in a spot frequented by does and younguns...hope to take a freezer youngun one day.
Treestands are the 'norm' in the US and definately are not considered as cheating(if they read your post Davidj..theyll prob swim out here!)...its prob too boring to sit there long..i ussualy go up and check the neighbouring orchards with binocs,before stalking on foot;)

[DavidJHardy]

i did say ''IMO'' so if you don't want to... you don't have to take it personally... the reason i said its cheating imo is cos i don't like the fact of standing up a tree for hours some times days on end i would much rather be on the ground stalking... so don't take it so personally and get offended.

[DavidJHardy]

You have obviously never used one, otherwise you would know how much work there is in taking an animal from one.
They are not my thing personally, but you need a whole lot of patience to sit still up in one for a whole day, let alone a week or more as well as scouting out a good place to put it.
Having said that, always make sure you are wearing a safety harness when putting it up and when sitting in it (they can be quite easy to fall asleep in)
The height depends on the type of country you are hunting, the idea is to put yourself out of the animals line of sight.
best of luck with it:)


that was more what i meant by saying they are cheating...

[shooter65]

How can hunting with a tree stand be cheating, First you have to have detailed knowledge of the area you hunt and in paticular the game you are hunting ie. were they feed and sleep and what trails they use to move around and what time they move, If you don't know this then you are wasting your time. It is no different than years ago people used to say you were cheating when you use sights to hunt.

I have just recieved my that i orderd from the states, it is a summit razor ss climbing stand. the most important thing to remember is to follow the instructions. And get yourself a good safty harnes and aways use it.

[DavidJHardy]

ok guys i take back what i said about CHEATING... but... IMO... i personally don't like the idea of sitting up a tree for a week and thats all i meant by saying cheating so no need to get your little nickers in a knot about what i said... after all it is a free country and we do have freedom of speech.

[czeslaw]

sounds like i have started some sort of conflict. The reasonn i want to use it is the terrain i hunt in is very thick and almost impossible to move without making noise and i am after samber they are so nervous in my area because of hound hunting that happens in my area there are still good numbers of good stags between 20-28in cruising around i have seen them but have never gotten with in range of a bow. if i were using a rifle it wouldnt be a problem but thats no challenge is it. i haave a spot chosen that i know they come to bed up in during the day it is near on impossible to stalk on foot though so i plan going in before sun and waiting till they come past to bed. thanks for some of the feedback though

[Antarcher]

There is a whole scince involved in using tree stands. As has been stated above, just because you bang one up a tree doesn't mean you are going to shoot anything. There are so many variables it is not funny. Just ask 98% of the millions of bowhunters in the states how much goes in to placing a tree stand, as they all do it over there. They usually place several around their properties for different wind conditions, phases of rut, how they get in and out of an area without disturbing the game and different feed available at different times of the year. I have never hunted from one, bar climbing one at Mick Baker's for 15 minutes, but I would never discount them as a hunting tool or say it makes all that much more easy. Any animal that you get into bow range on is hard to come by. Whether it be stalked by foot or by fine placement of a stand, it all takes time and effort in order to watch and match an animals habits in order to shoot it.

[lemmiwinks]

I think a treestand would be a great idea in some scenarios, boring but better than sitting around camp. Obviously its easier to hunt most animals out of them 98% of yanks dont just climb trees for the sake of it and the only animals that would worry about them are the ones like rabbits who get monstered from the air. As for a lot of work in setting them up well lets see ummmm water rubs wallows food game trails gee that took some working out. As for ripping a guy cause he doesnt like them I think that is poor, he has a view and thats up to him. We all have likes and dislikes and if we air them then fine I dont like some of the crap on here like everyone else but its supposed to be a free country and I am going to grab a beer.

[Clinglish]

In a large number of public hunting grounds the bowhunters are restricted to treestands for safety as shotgunners hunt the same areas. Treestands are effective if placed in the right spot and there is definately a lot of knowledge of game and area before putting it up the nearest tree.
The beauty of a free country is that Davidjhardy can express his opinion. I suspect it is like most opinions that are formed with minimum experience or knowledge of the fact's. I know thats how I form some of mine.

[ozarcher]

I suspect it is like most opinions that are formed, with minimum experience or knowledge of the fact's.

I think this sums it up.

[Dale Furze]

I cheat quite often. I spend many hours out in the bush, just looking for areas to make hunting easy, whilst hunting. Looking at the ground for good game trails, studying rub trees to determine how recently the deer gouged them, finding the now very few wallows in the high country due to the drought, this is just to set up my game cameras. Then I go back and set them up.

Then, between 2-4 weeks later I hunt that area again. I check my cameras for regular sightings of deer. If a camera has regular pictures of deer I may then wish to set up a stand. Great, now find a suitable tree! Most grow at an angle, have a bend or are simply not large enough to support my 95kg. some are simply too far away to be practical. No sense sitting off a sh'ot wallow if your shot is going to be 70m!

Woo hoo, I've found a suitable tree. Now I trudge back to the car and grab my stand, harness and foot peg bag, all weighing around 15kg. If I'm lucky, my suitable spot will be within around 300m of my car (I mostly hunt fringe farm areas), sometimes it has been 1km. away.

When I eventually get back to the tree I throw on a harness and put on my peg bag. I put the first three pegs in the tree while standing on the ground, then I start to climb and put more pegs in until I am about 6m up.

I drag up my strap on stand with the lifting rope that is tied to my peg bag and attach it to the tree at the right angle for the shot I hope to take. Then I take the tentative first step onto it to see if it is set up right:confused:. When all is safe I climb down and grab up my gear and leave the area for a day or two. This process usually takes about an hour to set up.

Now the easy part comes, I get my bow and harness and sit up there for up to 4 hours, all the while anticipating the deer that I had seen on the camera will come strolling in totally unawares to my presence. Yeah right, they just come strolling in every ten minutes! Not!


My mates usually come with me when I set up my stand, they all think I am a meat head and can't understand why I go to all the trouble. When I'm sitting there I have great anticipations, I can see a long way and hear everything. It is amazing the things you see and hear while sitting above everything else. Even if I don't get to shot at anything, I have a pleasant time sitting there taking it all in.

Some may call it cheating or lazy hunting, I call it a different way of hunting and after my explanation you may also think this.

Here is one of my Fallow stands.

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/DAZOOL/Treestand2.jpg

Cheers. Dale.

[Luke]

:P

Love that pic Dale.

[special]

Sweet Dale!...does it have a seat for old buggers like me?

[Dale Furze]

Yep! Even when sitting down I get wind blown up me quoit though :o.

I alternate between sitting and standing when my back gets sore. I should have made the seat a little longer. It is a canvas fold out style, much like a cross leg camp chair.

This year I added a swivel video camera mount by using the top of a camera tripod. It mounts near my right leg and is easily adjustable.

Dale.

[woody]

i did say ''IMO'' so if you don't want to... you don't have to take it personally... the reason i said its cheating imo is cos i don't like the fact of standing up a tree for hours some times days on end i would much rather be on the ground stalking... so don't take it so personally and get offended.

David,
Calling some onea cheat, is a pretty personal remark, and I think those that hunt from tree stands would find it offensive.

Just because a particular form of hunting is not personally your cup of tea is no excuse to be putting other hunters down.

Tree stand hunting is an art form, first there is the scouting out the best place for it, then there is the patience factor, then there is the adrenalin rush as the game feeds slowly into range.

Doing everything right, one shot only, it not as easy as those who have never experienced it,often think.

For what its worth, taking a stand up in a tree is one of the best stands to use when fox whistling. And lots of us do it.

[ozzyshane]

Hey Dale can u put up a pic of your home made stands

Last year i hunted bear from a bloody tree stand for 16 arrvos straight i nearly lost my mind you could move at all as the bears look up in the trees to look for you before they come into feed to much fun one of the hardest hunts ive done.
Thnaks shane

ps tree saddle do a search

[NormGunston]

Gorilla Silverback does the job. Very handy when things are crunchy underfoot. Bloody heavy but the materials and workmanship is top notch. Comfortable enough. Got it from Cabela's... before shipping rates went up with them.
Dale, dawn- with birds chorusing feet away and the first sun shining on the leaves is blissful enough, ay!

[Simon_R]

Reading everyones posts about tree stand hunting has definitely changed my mind about it. Didn't realise the skill involved. I don't know if I could sit in a tree for a long period, but then again I have always thought I may have A.D.D :P. Definitely worth trying if you have the patience.

[DavidJHardy]

i do admit that i have little knowledge of tree stands and all i had was an opinion. but since reading this thread i have heard things about tree stand hunting i didn't know and have now researched further and see why its not cheating...
and clinglish thats right about opinions.

[DavidJHardy]

David,
Calling some onea cheat, is a pretty personal remark, and I think those that hunt from tree stands would find it offensive.

Just because a particular form of hunting is not personally your cup of tea is no excuse to be putting other hunters down.

Tree stand hunting is an art form, first there is the scouting out the best place for it, then there is the patience factor, then there is the adrenalin rush as the game feeds slowly into range.

Doing everything right, one shot only, it not as easy as those who have never experienced it,often think.

For what its worth, taking a stand up in a tree is one of the best stands to use when fox whistling. And lots of us do it.


woody your right there i'm sorry to all bowhunters that may have taken offense i just didn't think before i opened my fat arse mouth.

[Antarcher]

No worries Dave and this is what the site is all about. Everyone can voice their opinion, but it is also important to learn from guys who are quite experienced, such as Dale's post. I don't think anyone actually took offence, but some just wanted to educate. I personally do not have the patience to sit in a stand, though I would never discount it because one day I may just have to when I travel or become not as mobile as I am today.

[TOWER*2007]

I made my own climbing tree stand years ago out of old school desk frames and a canvas seat. It wasnt that hard to make. I generally try to get a tree that can get me up around 20ft and prefer to shoot a bit away from it rather than straight down.

I have shot quite a few pigs from it and i have also spent many hours seeing nothing and got a sore arse doing so. Its certainly not as easy as it looks and unless your scent is well masked youd be suprised how many animals will still detect you.

[Dale Furze]

Here ya go Shane, cost about $60 and a days stuffing around. I could have saved myself the time and just bought one for a bit o' extra coin but I like to make things. The other three are near on carbon copies.

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/DAZOOL/PICT2736.jpg

For those who are thinking of smart comments I'll save you the time............. Yes it is supposed to be mounted higher in the tree.;)

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/DAZOOL/PICT2732.jpg

Dale.

[hunt or be hunted]

dale, thats a great effort, especially with the camera mount.

top job.

dan.

[special]

Thats a nice stand Dale...sure beats my old tractor seat:P

http://i307.photobucket.com/albums/nn301/special4444/familyandmore221.jpg