Cuddeback's Cuddelink

[john volkman]

Cuddeback- Cuddelink Solar Solution


A couple of months ago we invested in 4 of the cuddeback/cuddelink cameras. So far we are pleased with the system with the exception of battery usage. This led us to exploring a solar option.


A call to Cuddeback customer service revealed that they do not currently have a solar solution for these cameras. We found a six volt solar charger at Cabellas. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabe...VCIRpCh2r5w-oEAQYAiABEgKq1_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds



The plug that goes into the bottom of the camera needs some engineering to fit. A dremel tool was used to shave off a bit of the rubber so it would fit the camera connection. No need to have batteries in the camera and not need to use a jump wire to complete the circuit inside the camera battery compartment. It is a plug and play solution once

Ed, Cuddeback will have a solar panel kit for the Cuddelink long range IR cams early next year, target retail is about $50 and that will include the panel, batteries and charger , in testing- this system is at two years without touching the batteries. The charger is to get batteries to initial full charge and then the solar panel will keep them powered up,
some very exciting stuff coming in 2018 for the cuddelink system.

 

[homegrownbucks]

Looks like cabelas has a new model that is an all in one unit for 200$, looks to be red glow

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cudd...VXbbACh21NgoxEAQYASABEgLNifD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[yoderjac]

Looks like cabelas has a new model that is an all in one unit for 200$, looks to be red glow

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cudd...VXbbACh21NgoxEAQYASABEgLNifD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Red Blob works well for some applications but poorly for others.

 

[Peplin Creek]

They also have blackflash model of that as well. I think I might pick a couple of the red flashes up for food sources. Black flash model for scrapes and stand sites. I do really enjoy the system. The transfer of images seem to work pretty flawlessly. It’s kept me out of certain areas of the property. Night time images on the dual flash are so so. Black flash, the distance isn’t as good. Red flash seems to work exactly like other cuddeback cameras and I haven’t noticed any deer being spooked from them. For some reason though on my old cuddeback’s the avoidance was less noticeable as well, so cuddeback might do things a tad different than others. Range and battery life were exactly what was advertised and hopping cameras works easily and the network repairs itself if one camera is turned off for a bit and then back on. When paired with their battery pack I am going on over 3 months with probably close to 1,000 pictures probably more on one camera and it hasn’t switched to the camera batteries yet. So I think if rigged correctly you could deploy this system for the hunting season and not have to worry about it for most of that season.

Bottom line, If your someone looking to run a lot of cameras in areas that are hard to check without spooking game... this system is for you and why I really like it. If you need full res images all the time, then it’s simply not going to work for you because the full res images are on the card and you would have to go to it to check anyway.

A lot of times companies in the industry advertised their product falsely, so far my experience as been exactly what cuddeback has promised and that’s all I could honestly ask for.

 

[john volkman]

there will be a several accessory flash modules available for the dual flash cam next year, a "super" ir which has considerable more illumination and a strobe white flash as well. (possibly also a super black flash)
They can be installed in existing dual flash cams. i tested the white flash this fall and loved it. i like to use shite flash on scrapes on field edges to get perfect images to check out detail on bucks.

 

[Peplin Creek]

there will be a several accessory flash modules available for the dual flash cam next year, a "super" ir which has considerable more illumination and a strobe white flash as well. (possibly also a super black flash)
They can be installed in existing dual flash cams. i tested the white flash this fall and loved it. i like to use shite flash on scrapes on field edges to get perfect images to check out detail on bucks.

How are you mounting those flash cameras on scrapes, I would be paranoid as all get out of spooking bucks that way? Super blackflash is intriguing though... next year needs to get here quick. Haha.

 

[yoderjac]

They also have blackflash model of that as well. I think I might pick a couple of the red flashes up for food sources. Black flash model for scrapes and stand sites. I do really enjoy the system. The transfer of images seem to work pretty flawlessly. It’s kept me out of certain areas of the property. Night time images on the dual flash are so so. Black flash, the distance isn’t as good. Red flash seems to work exactly like other cuddeback cameras and I haven’t noticed any deer being spooked from them. For some reason though on my old cuddeback’s the avoidance was less noticeable as well, so cuddeback might do things a tad different than others. Range and battery life were exactly what was advertised and hopping cameras works easily and the network repairs itself if one camera is turned off for a bit and then back on. When paired with their battery pack I am going on over 3 months with probably close to 1,000 pictures probably more on one camera and it hasn’t switched to the camera batteries yet. So I think if rigged correctly you could deploy this system for the hunting season and not have to worry about it for most of that season.

Bottom line, If your someone looking to run a lot of cameras in areas that are hard to check without spooking game... this system is for you and why I really like it. If you need full res images all the time, then it’s simply not going to work for you because the full res images are on the card and you would have to go to it to check anyway.

A lot of times companies in the industry advertised their product falsely, so far my experience as been exactly what cuddeback has promised and that’s all I could honestly ask for.

Good report! Keep us posted.

 

[john volkman]

View attachment 15831

How are you mounting those flash cameras on scrapes, I would be paranoid as all get out of spooking bucks that way? Super blackflash is intriguing though... next year needs to get here quick. Haha.

i actually havent had issues spooking bucks with white flash, i have pics of bucks bedded next to a scrape getting flashed multiple nights, multiple times per night without an issue. i do mount them a bit higher and angle them towards the scrape. if you notice in one of these pics an apple falling from the tree triggered the cam, another deer walked up and ate the apple. Both of them were flashed and it never bothered them.

 

[yoderjac]

In my experience it is rare to actually spook a deer with a camera flash. Camera avoidance is common with all but true black flash, but for many applications that are not collecting data, this isn't really a problem. High mounting works well for point source setups like scrapes, but depending on PIR design, it can limit the trigger area significantly with other kinds of setups.

Thanks,
Jack

 

[john volkman]

View attachment 15833 View attachment 15833 here is some more white flash images , i had roughly 500 white flash images of this buck and he never avoided the camera in the same spot/scrape. I also had 100's of images of the same buck (who was obviously mature) on other cams, including Red IR, black flash etc. IMO Deer dont avoid particular flashes, they avoid the camera itself or a particular noise the camera is making. IR video mode is an exception, as i have had deer avoid a particular spot after IR video mode captured them. View attachment 15834 View attachment 15834

 

[Peplin Creek]

Those pictures certainly don’t lie. I just remembered when I used to run a flash camera over bait way back in the day, I watched a doe walk up to it, flash, and then jumped 10 ft back and then waited 10 minutes to muster up enough courage to go back. So I have always been a little hesitant from that point forward. I also assumed the industry went to IR because of flash avoidance from deer. Sounds like maybe my assumption was wrong.

 

[john volkman]

Those pictures certainly don’t lie. I just remembered when I used to run a flash camera over bait way back in the day, I watched a doe walk up to it, flash, and then jumped 10 ft back and then waited 10 minutes to muster up enough courage to go back. So I have always been a little hesitant from that point forward. I also assumed the industry went to IR because of flash avoidance from deer. Sounds like maybe my assumption was wrong.

Deer all have their own personalities so i dont want to paint it either way with a broad brush but in my experience the flash cams on scrapes have not hurt at all, i really like to have color night images of bucks to know exactly what they are.

 

[yoderjac]

Deer all have their own personalities so i dont want to paint it either way with a broad brush but in my experience the flash cams on scrapes have not hurt at all, i really like to have color night images of bucks to know exactly what they are.

You nailed it with all deer have there own personalities. However, mature bucks are much more risk averse than young deer, and mature female deer are often pushed into more risky choices because of their rearing responsibilities. I've got good data to show flash avoidance with red blob compared to black flash. The data shows that as a class, mature bucks avoid red blob much more than younger deer. For hunting type applications, this makes little difference, however for data driven applications, it can create a significant bias in the data.

Flash avoidance doesn't necessarily mean you won't get pictures of mature deer. As you say, some deer simply have personalities that are more aggressive and some more cautious. Camera avoidance often presents itself with a picture triggered by a doe or young buck and a mature buck is feeding in the background on the fringe of the red blob flash. You often need to scrub the picture to see it. When something concerning but not necessarily perceived as a threat is detected (like a red blob flash), mature bucks will often keep younger deer between itself and the concern.

True black flash is a statistical equalizer. (I say true black flash because many camera manufacturers call their flashes virtually invisible or black flash or whatever, but they have a wide range of detectability by deer). They sacrifice flash range over red blob (given all else is equal like the lens, image sensor, processing, and such), but any bias by age class becomes statistically insignificant.

Every game camera out there is a trade space compromise. The real key is finding one that fits you application well.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[john volkman]

In my experience, the older bucks are less likely to avoid cams regardless of flash especially during the rut and especially over a scrape. When the testosterone is elevated they seem to care much less about cameras, any flash etc. I have went as far as putting red, black and white flash on the same scrape line on different scrapes in close proximity to see if there is any usage differences and have found none. Keeping the camera scent free, and somewhat hidden helps some which tells me that the camera housing itself , human scent and the added disturbance by any human are much more critical than the flash.
Night Video is another story and there are particular deer personalties that dont tolerate it from my experience, the constant strobing of the flash i suspect is the issue with some deer.

 

[yoderjac]

In my experience, the older bucks are less likely to avoid cams regardless of flash especially during the rut and especially over a scrape. When the testosterone is elevated they seem to care much less about cameras, any flash etc. I have went as far as putting red, black and white flash on the same scrape line on different scrapes in close proximity to see if there is any usage differences and have found none. Keeping the camera scent free, and somewhat hidden helps some which tells me that the camera housing itself , human scent and the added disturbance by any human are much more critical than the flash.
Night Video is another story and there are particular deer personalties that dont tolerate it from my experience, the constant strobing of the flash i suspect is the issue with some deer.

I would tend to agree with that over those specific conditions. The avoidance study was done with no point source attractants and across a wide time frame that included well more than the rut. The data was not analyzed over individual time periods but the entire year across multiple years. Point source attractants can overcome camera avoidance. Whether it is bait or a scrape during the rut the same holds. I also agree that flash is not the primary issue. The biggest in my experience is human intrusion checking the cameras. The study was done with fixed position wireless cameras that visited on rare occasions and had been in place for years. The red blob and black flash (same form factor) were rotated between fixed positions from year to year. One big factor influence camera avoidance related to camera design is noise. The mechanical filters play a big role in that. The cameras we used were a dual lens design that had no noise. So, all of those other factors that are generally more influential than flash avoidance were eliminated.

Again, for most applications flash avoidance is not a real issue. However, when collecting data to support management decisions with unbaited surveys, flash avoidance can have a significant impact on sex/age class bias in the data.

One reason night video has an impact is, as you say more persistent. However, the bigger factor in our anecdotal experience is that we video, you can actually see the reaction of deer. On that note, one other thing tried during the study period was to place a black flash camera in video mode and a red blob camera out aimed at the same target area. The black flash was closer but in a different direction from the deer's perspective. While this was not used in the statistical study, it clearly showed deer's reaction and avoidance of red blob. I wish I still had some of those videos around but they took up a lot of space. They were pretty interesting.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Turtlesprings]

My mature bucks avoid the red blob like a plague. One shot and gone. Blackflash for my trails, scrapes, and hunting spots. Red blob for fields and data catching.

 

[yoderjac]

My mature bucks avoid the red blob like a plague. One shot and gone. Blackflash for my trails, scrapes, and hunting spots. Red blob for fields and data catching.

It is not really gone, but with many with many mature bucks, they don't trigger the camera again. I found that I'd get one good picture with red blob and maybe two with most mature bucks. After that, I would not see them anymore. At one point, I started scrubbing some pictures of young deer and found those mature bucks that you could hardly make out even after scrubbing in the fringe of the flash. They were just keeping their distance. Red blob hung high angled down seems to have less impact. It may be because it is out of their normal vision path or they perceive it as less threat from above.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[g squared 23]

I'll agree with truly mature deer avoiding the red flash. They are just so paranoid that they avoid that camera location forever. Most of the young dumb ones (and some laid back mature deer) will walk by over and over without giving it a thought

 

[Brian C]

Two weeks ago I took the leap and ordered a 4 camera system with the dual flash cameras. I was somewhat worried about the cameras and the system. One week later I had the cameras in hand and had to set them up that night. I followed all of the instructions and found good locations with proper signal. I did not dive deep into my property as I am still on the quest for a buck, but was able to set all four cameras up. My furthest camera is roughly 3/8 of a mile from the base camera and was at 38 connection. After two days I couldn't wait any longer and went and pulled the main card. First impression, this system is awesome. I will have to wait and see on battery life and how to extend it so I can leave 90% of the property undisturbed through the summer and hunting season. I have plans to add a home unit, when released, and at least two more cameras. With a home unit and 2-3 more cameras I should be able to monitor most of the farm and only have to pull in the lane to check the pics.
I will also add that through this thread, I have learned a lot about types of flash. I didn't see the need for black flash in the past. I set two of the cameras to black flash and two to red blob. The blob cameras showed that almost every deer that walked by during the night turned and looked at the camera, some walked up to the camera and touched it. The 2 set to black flash showed that not one deer looked at the camera, not one even paused. These cameras were set on trails and the deer, both bucks and does acted natural and did not change their habits. I am now sold on the black flash.

 

[Peplin Creek]

Two weeks ago I took the leap and ordered a 4 camera system with the dual flash cameras. I was somewhat worried about the cameras and the system. One week later I had the cameras in hand and had to set them up that night. I followed all of the instructions and found good locations with proper signal. I did not dive deep into my property as I am still on the quest for a buck, but was able to set all four cameras up. My furthest camera is roughly 3/8 of a mile from the base camera and was at 38 connection. After two days I couldn't wait any longer and went and pulled the main card. First impression, this system is awesome. I will have to wait and see on battery life and how to extend it so I can leave 90% of the property undisturbed through the summer and hunting season. I have plans to add a home unit, when released, and at least two more cameras. With a home unit and 2-3 more cameras I should be able to monitor most of the farm and only have to pull in the lane to check the pics.
I will also add that through this thread, I have learned a lot about types of flash. I didn't see the need for black flash in the past. I set two of the cameras to black flash and two to red blob. The blob cameras showed that almost every deer that walked by during the night turned and looked at the camera, some walked up to the camera and touched it. The 2 set to black flash showed that not one deer looked at the camera, not one even paused. These cameras were set on trails and the deer, both bucks and does acted natural and did not change their habits. I am now sold on the black flash.

I do like the system a lot too. I do like the black flash specifically for trails and scrapes. I am going to get a cuddelink long range it normal ir and put if over a food plot.

Also with regards to battery life, cuddeback does make a battery pack that works nicely with the cameras and if your watching trails with them, i am sure you could get months out of it that way. I have on mine.