deer stand advice

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jrbaker90

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I went deer hunting this afternoon for the first time with a stand and it was horrible. I didn't get 4 feet off the ground couldn't get my harness strap right or anything. So I am thinking about getting a new stand I was using a hang on with stick I thought it would be easier then my old climber I was completely wrong and now I'm looking for something else and been looking at another climber and I haven't really decided on one. I looked at the x stand sit and climb. Just wanting more info thanks
 
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Dude...please re-type that entire message. I'd like to help...but I can't understand your post.
 
I shot my buck yesterday from the ground (while still hunting).
Laid down by my treestand today, on other side of log. Saw 2 bucks and 3 does.
The bucks........4 pt and a 100" 8 pt.
40-50 yards. Coulda smoked them easy.

Leaves were dry and warm. Was well reclined on hill with log for headrest.
Deer never knew I was there, and they came from down wind.

No cover scents, Scentlok or sprays.
Just unscented wash and camo stored in rubber tub (with a walnut or two thrown in).

Love tree stand hunting, esp for bow. But proly kill half my deer from the ground in gun.
 
Have you thought about trying a HSS Lifeline? Not sure what was going on with your harness. More info would be very helpful.
 
I used my harness in my yard and the stand and had no problems with it but I think I was frustrated and tired from it all. I think a climber would be a better way
 
Not too sound mean , but it sounds like you need some more practice or youtube or someone to help you .
 
I will look into one when I get a new stand. One of my problems was with the ratchet strap for my climbing sticks it Tangle up I think the whole idea with the hang on stand and the climbing stick wasn't what I thought it would be.
 
I use this type of setup on a regular basis. If you get in a hurry you will screw it up. For situations where I need to put up and take down the stand immediately I prefer a climber or even a very short ladder stand. Noise and sweat from fighting a lock on is not conducive to good hunting.
 
I never liked climbers. I'll take a natural stand (sitting on a suitable limb) first, though I occasionally borrow my son's ladder stands; he usually places them well. I prefer 'stump sitting' and still hunting, I've got most of my deer that way, rather than out of tree stands.
 
In the next few months -- assuming I can get a deer tag in my new state (for now) -- I'm planning to hunt deer for the first time in decades.

From reading various threads, including his one, my hypothesis is that I'm going to be part of the stump sitting, still hunting, and/or slow stalking/tracking (at times) crowd. (I see the latter as learning about the local deer while walking easily, like a hike with a rifle during which time I don't necessarily expect to take one. For me, getting the deer is not necessarily my top goal, so much as being out there and learning about that place. Yeah, I know: biologists and ecologists can be weird, and I'm more backpacker/hiker/naturalist than hunter.)

Now for hog hunting, which I'll probably do first, I'm thinking stand -- at least until I learn more about local hogs: their ecology, behavior, etc.

So this is a useful thread for me. I'm reading terms that I never heard of (have never studied stands before). Thanks for the education.
 
So were you trying to set up your stick stand the morning of the hunt? I always set up my ladder stands before the season started. If I'm going to a spot where I don't already have a stand in place I would grab the climber for sure. Really, I think hunting out of a good climber is better than a permanent stand in most ways. I usually started out the season hitting different areas with my climber until I got a few deer in the freezer, or got lazy... Then I'd start using my ladder stands. If you're more comfortable with a climber I'd just ditch the stick stand and go back to that.
 
I always try to get my stand in place before the hunt, that way (as someone said above) you don't get exhausted and sweaty and stinky before the hunt. I prefer a lean-to to a lock-on, but will use a climber if I have to. The climber also goes in place prior to the hunt, clean off limbs, etc... This is not really possible if you're hunting on public land though. I think a lock-on is more trouble than it is worth, especially for one hunt. JMO.
 
I used climbers for years and found them a pain to lug around and they confine you to trees with no limbs which will get you spotted by the deer if you aren't super high. I now prefer to use a few lone wolf climbing sticks with a millennium lock on. The lock on weighs 11 pounds and is super comfortable. It is very easy to set up even in the dark and quiet. I can put up four sticks and the stand within ten minutes quietly in the dark and can use trees that have a lot of cover. You hunt the spot, not the tree. A lock on allows you to use any tree. If you insist on a climber do yourself a favor and get a lightweight summit stand. They are super comfortable and sturdy. I hunt public land and carry my stand in every day and I prefer the Millenium for this. I attach it to the back of an old army rucksack with the ruck straps and it rides on there like a champ. Good luck.
 
BudgetBucks, can you offer the name/model of your stand, please?

And what are "lone wolf climbing sticks"? Something you purchase or make? Link?

And finally, for anyone, I'm not finding references to "lock on" climbing stands. When I search that term, I find "hang on". Is that the same? Specifically, does "lock on" mean clamps on securely for safety, or locks onto the tree to prevent theft? Or both?

Have just started (over the last couple of days) to look a bit more into this, watching a couple of videos -- slowly (lots going on, and this isn't at the top of my priority list).
 
I prefer stick and hang-on stands. flexible for position in any tree, quiet, safe and stable. But I always put them up and hunt them later same day or different day. I've never gone in in the dark and tried to do all that and hunt daybreak.
 
Lock on and hang on are the same thing. They are not climbers but are locked in place using straps.
There are plenty of affordable and light lock ons. If I were hunting public land I would go in early on an afternoon, find a tree and hang my stand for an afternoon hunt, and then come back and hunt it in the morning before pulling it out.
 
I hunt strictly pubic land I thought about hanging a stand up in the morning and leave it up all day then that after noon get it down the federal land I hunt alot I can't leave any hunting equipment over night so I am stuck. The climber I had felt pretty stable but it weight like 30 ib and I walk in over a mile in and time so I wanting something lighting I like the x stand sit and climb
 
AStone, google lone wolf tree stand you'll find the climbing sticks there. They work great on trees that aren't straight and so do their stands. Good stuff
 
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