[Plank Road Farm]

I sighted in my Savage 100 30-06 yesterday at 35 yds. zero.
Which will be about 1.3 inches high at 100 yds. and about 1 inch low at 200 yds. for a Federal Power-Shok 150 gr. soft point.

http://www.federalpremium.com/resources/ballistics_application.aspx

and

http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/remington_shoot_ballistics_software.asp

These are the two free software on ballistics that I used to determine what to sight my gun in at. I've really enjoyed playing around with the different options and it is neat to print out the trajectory charts.

I then scouted out my 85 acres for several good places to place a tree stand.

Does anybody have detail plans of your favorite homemade tree stand?

I call it a stand instead of a tree house!:)

I thinking a wood stand, platform, or house; not anything metal.

As I stated before in another post, this is the first year I've hunted for deer.

If I posted this in the wrong forum please move to the proper place.

TIA

[janobles14]

as a point of interest i would put a group on paper at 100 and 200 just to be sure. dont wanna get out there and realize it too late.

good luck on the hunts!

[bswiv]

Don't know what your property and it's trees look like so what I am going to suggest may not be practical.

I'd suggest using the few hours you would spend MAKING a stand or two and go to work making a few extra dollars to buy a climber of some sort. At minium buy a strap-on and some steps.

You will truly appreciate the ability to mave from one spot to another easily, especially after a buck busts you in the stand. He'll be looking up there from now on.

And more than that. If you have the oportunity to hunt multiple days in a row it is a really nice thing to be able to mave away from where you have deposited a lot of human scent despite your best efforts not to.

You will truly appreciate the flexability......and ultimately be more successful for it.

Finally don't discount groung blinds.....or stalking. They both work.

[schlockinz]

I'd go with something mroe portable, it will save you money in the long run (you'll realize that some of the platform stands only last a few years before you fall through one...)

If you're only rifle hunting, look at getting a tripod, this way you can place it wherever you have enough cover, and can look in multiple directions. I'd only suggest this though if you can see a couple hundred yeards in any direction. Otherwise, I'd just make a few ground blinds and hunt from them (I've killed more deer this way than any other)

[gotmoretools]

if you make it, make it comfortable! I would just buy one if possible. On my own property, I would have a ladder or lock on that is comfortable, very camouflage(put tree branches etc. on it and around it.) Get high! 30ft + if possible.

[scmerrill71]

if this is the first year for hunting, i`d say stick to the ground , then you can get a good idea of where to put the stand.where i hunt there isnt many tree stands that ppl put up... ive always hunterd from the ground and find it alot easier then having to go up and down a tree to move when the cold settles in ya. plus its a good exercise...seeings im a bit over wieght...lol.

[garza]

+1 on getting some groups @ 100 yards & 200 yards. ;)

[courtgreene]

all of those ideas are good, and climbers are great, but here are two options for actually making a treestand if that is what you want to do:
get 2x8's and build what ammounts to about a 5x3 foot deck (a mini version of the flooring of most houses) with a ply wood floor. test it BEFORE you elevate it to make sure it is not going to leave you on your back and looking up at it from beneath wondering how a you-sized hole got in there. gravity sucks.
off of the front of that deck using 2x4's build a ladder that goes as high as you want the stand, remembering that if you are going to transport it in a truck or something it has to fit in said truck
put the ladder against a tree and lift it up against that tree to where the ladder ends up on the opposite side of the stand from the tree. it looks like a lowercase "h" with the tall side of the "h" being the tree. it may help to use a rope to lift it but another person works best.
bolt the tree side to the tree and if the tree isn't wide enough you might need to brace the outside edges of the tree side with 2x4's or posts that you cut that run from the ground to the corners of the stand.

Option 2:
find three or four trees that make a triangle or square. using quality rope and logs that you cut, put a ladder of logs between two of those trees that go as high as you want your stand to be.
frame your stand with strong logs lashed onto the trees
using smaller logs, lash yourself a floor. HAND RAILS ARE A MUST BECAUSE THE FLOOR IS NOT FLAT

The first option, if you use treated wood, will last longer. I reccomend the second though, because it looks extremely natural... sometimes I have problems finding my stand because it looks like part of the trees. Also, wasps tend to nest under the first method but I'be never had problems with them doing that on the second. I hope that helps, but never underestimate the climbing stand.

[interlock]

+1 for the 100 yard groups

[Double Naught Spy]

if this is the first year for hunting, i`d say stick to the ground , then you can get a good idea of where to put the stand.

This is especially true if you are building a tree stand in a tree. That is a lot of work if you then figure out you aren't where you need to be. Part of the reason I like the metal stands is that they are not custom to a given tree and can be moved, with a bit of hassle (but nothing like moving a custom built jobber) to another tree or even another property.

[moooose102]

Join Date: February 10, 2007
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 60 Deer Stand

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I sighted in my Savage 100 30-06 yesterday at 35 yds. zero.
Which will be about 1.3 inches high at 100 yds. and about 1 inch low at 200 yds. for a Federal Power-Shok 150 gr. soft point.


NEVER, NEVER, NEVER asume that just because you are spot on at one distance, think that you will be spot on at another because a chart says so! the only way to know for sure, is shoot at the distance you want to know about. i made that assumption many, many, many moons ago, when i first got my 300 win mag. the gun shot something like 8" higher that it was "suppoed to". my way of doing things are, shoot @ 50 yards to get a rough sight in. then, go out to 100 yards, and get it "pretty close". then, move out to how far you really expect to shoot at (the furthest), and sight it in as good as you possibly can. now, @ 400 yards, it is very unlikely you will be able to get 1" groups (if you can, get into competition shooting!) so do the best you can. then, check the rifle again @ shorter distances, so you know where the bullet will hit @ that distance. also, unless you expect your shots to be @ or close to 400 yards, do not sight in for dead zero @ 400 yards. sight dead on at the distance you realisticly expect to shoot. then verify other distances by shooting them. if you have nowhere to shoot longer distances, then you will have to "guestimate" by using balisitcs charts. but it is not an ideal situation. not at all. personally, i sight in dead on @ 200 yards with my 300 win mag. the chances of realisticly shooting something here in michigan any further than that is very slim. but i have had a couple of shots i could have tried at 4-500 yards. but i had no rest, and i knew the possibility of getting a decent hit were slim at best. so i let them go.

[Art Eatman]

Most of the non-magnum deer cartridges are pretty much similar: Two inches high at 100 yards is very close to dead on at 200, and roughly six inches low at 300. The stuff that's faster than a thutty-thutty, anyhow. And to me, an inch or two difference at 300 is just something to work out for mysef. Won't be off by much, anyhow. That notion even works for the lowly .223, according to a bunch of dead prairie dogs. :)

Tree stands? First off, it helps to know deer patterns and travel routes before getting into arboreal carpentry. IOW, pick the right tree as to location. :)

Never nail a board across a vee of limbs. Wind will tear one end loose as the branches move. I always nailed a cross piece on one limb, and had the supporting 2x4s wired to it, floating. The other ends were securely nailed to the other limb of the vee. A piece of 3/4" plywood makes an adequate floor.

I made a ten-foot ladder with a couple of lengths of 1" square tubing and foot-wide steps of half-inch rebar. Fairly light weight, and quite strong as long as the angle is fairly steep. I used the blue-flux high-strength brazing rod, the same stuff folks used on tube-frame race car chassis.

[jim in Anchorage]

Never nail a board across a vee of limbs. Wind will tear one end loose as the branches move.
I actually got away with that for years on twin oaks. Never had one pull out. Scary on a windy day though, watching one tree go this way and the other that way.

[Tom Held]

Just Google: "deer tree stands" and you'll find a huge base of information. You can even google : deer tree stand windows" and get detailed information. I'm building one right now on my farm in Golden Eagle, Illinois. I'm using four 20' 6x6s. The stand will be 17' high and the dimensions are 7'x7'x7' with a slightly sloped roof. Windows will be 16" by 60" on all sides. Joists are 2x8s and all of the plywood is 1" treated. I know this may seem like overkill but I'm tired of sitting in a metal tree stand at 5 AM in 5 degree temp like last year on opening day for four hours. Also, this "house" will not sway in the wind like some I've been in and it's big enough to take a grandkid along.

Maybe next year the open bar and the satellite dish will be added.

Tom

[schlockinz]

Remember to use double paned windows to keep your C footprint to a minimum ;)

[Plank Road Farm]

Thanks for all the comments.
Just to clarify my sighting in process a bit.
I did shoot at 100 yds. after zeroing at 35 yds.
And as the software predicted, it was right at 1.3 inches high.
It began raining so I didn't shoot at any further distances.
I agree with everyone that I need to shoot at 150 and 200 yds. just to be sure I know where the bullet will hit.
But since I've never shot a deer before, I'm going to stick to 100 yds. shots or less for the first one.

Having shot the 30-06 for the first time, I would like suggestions on how to lessen the recoil.
I've read about something called the "limb saver" but don't know if there are other options.
Does anyone know of a detailed proceedure to accomplish this?
Will I have to cut the stock?
Or is this a gunsmith thing?
TIA

[Nicodemus38]

actually what you need to do is actually get some target shooting done from stand or platform thats at teh height you want to shoot at. untill you can accurately judge the angle of the shot from 15 feet high on a deer 100 yds away, you arent safe in a stand. to many morons dont take the time to comprehend angle.

[JimKirk]

30/06 recoil reduction..... 243 Winchester! Don't worry if you get the chance to shoot a deer ... you'll never feel the recoil! Remington and Federal both make reduced or lower recoil ammo for 30/06, other makers may also.

JK
http://www.chuckhawks.com/rem_managed_recoil.htm
http://www.chuckhawks.com/federal_low_recoil.htm

Looks like the Reminton would be the way to go, the Federal is nothing but a 30/30 bullet at 30/30 velocity.

[jbkebert]

I really really really want to discourage you from making a homemade stand. Sometimes they are expensive and cumbersome but buy a factory made stand tested by TMA. I have seen to many picts of failed wooden stands people put up. Not saying that I have never done it myself. Wood rots, trees grow, you can't control that buy something that has been designed and tested by trained idiots. Don't rely on guessing what will hold your rear off the ground. I went to a class held by the TMA last year. It was to certify hunter ed instructors to be certified treestand safety instuctors. So I guess take it from another trained idiot it's not worth your neck to save a few bucks.
Also buy the best safety harness you can afford. THe hunter safety system is more than worth the coin $140 I paid for the pro-series vest.

[MCgunner]

Most of the non-magnum deer cartridges are pretty much similar: Two inches high at 100 yards is very close to dead on at 200, and roughly six inches low at 300.

Yup, if it's a couple inches high at 100, good 'nuf. No need to shoot farther. Play with an exterior ballistics program enough and you'll figure that out. I used to set mine at 2.25 to 2.50" high at 100 (depending on caliber) for a 250 yard zero. That, for a flat shooting cartridge, will get you around a 300 yard point blank range.

On the subject of stands, I bought mine for 120 bucks at academy. It's a tripod. It and be moved and it's not stuck in a tree. That's a good thing, because I don't have many trees a stand could be built in and the few I have are on a big mot that I can't walk through it's so thick. I did have a stand built in a tree of wood, but a grass fire killed the tree. That's probably why I don't have any big trees, grass fires keeps 'em weeded out.

http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=products/outdoors/hunting/stands_tripod

[Tom Held]

Well, the guys who helped me build my little tree house are union carpenters. My home will blow down or rot before the deer stand goes. Treated 6x6s three feet in the ground in concrete should be good for at least 50 years. I've been in some of these commercial metal deer houses and I'm not very impressed. This one won't be moving around in a wind storm.

I've hunted in some super towers in southern Missouri that are 60' high with separate shooting stations at 20', 40', and the house on top. But that was a little uncomfortable for me. I didn't even like walking up the stairway to the top.

[jbkebert]

I've hunted in some super towers in southern Missouri that are 60' high with separate shooting stations at 20', 40', and the house on top. But that was a little uncomfortable for me. I didn't even like walking up the stairway to the top.

My gosh we use those around here to spot fires in distant fields. Why in the world would you need to be 60' up to hunt?

[Tom Held]

The owner has about 4,000 acres and probably 40 to 50 tree stands on the property. Some are just ladder stands and others 8x8 houses about 15 feet in the air. There are some large fields in the bottom land where you could take a 300 yard shot looking down into grain fields. But still too high for me.

[Arkel23]

Well, If I were you I would set a stand on the edge of a field surrounded by trees.

[qajaq59]

I thinking a wood stand, platform, or house; not anything metal. When I was teaching bow hunter safety classes for CT, about 15 years ago, we told everyone NOT to build wooden tree stands. The reason was that the year before someone had sabotaged several by cutting partially thru the wood. One hunter was busted up real bad when he fell. If you do use wood, look it over really well before you get on it.