End of year project

[trampledbyturtles]

Season wrapped up here a week ago so I went ahead and pulled a good number of my lock ons and all my life lines.

Most have been in the woods going on 12 plus years without coming out and getting looked over. Gunna be a Dad soon and safety is on the mind. Thinking about doing some modifications.

Anyone ever replace the cables holding the platforms up to chain? Just think it would be more solid in the long run.

Plan to replace a handful of ratchet straps. Also would like to replace alot of the step straps if anyone knows a good source?

The seats are constantly chewed on by squirrels so any suggestions for a long term fix would also be appreciated.

I seem to add about a stand a year.
Looking into adding a few millennium m150 this spring.
Have a lone wolf I use for mobile sits and will be picking up a saddle this spring. But it seems like it would not work in most of my setups. Theres something about not having to mess with setting up when going in for the kill that I prefer on the home farm.

If anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears.

 

[Bill]

You may not like my suggestion Dad.

Sell those to a young guy with a signed hold harmless contract and start using ladder stands.

 

[b116757]

You may not like my suggestion Dad.

Sell those to a young guy with a signed hold harmless contract and start using ladder stands.

Still to dangerous for me. I pretty much just use ground blinds anymore.

 

[Mortenson]

Also not the answer you're looking for, but I only hunt on the ground these days because of my family. I think a lot of guys are probably safe about things, but I cringe at what I used to do. I don't really want to see my kids going up in trees when they are of age. But I've turned real conservative. I think you're doing the right thing by addressing the safety of your stands and rebuilding parts that need it. Just stay focused on it!

I'd like a few good ladder stands again but right now the challenge of ground hunting is fun.

 

[trampledbyturtles]

Ha Bill, not likely.

Still remember climbing trees in my tennis shoes and having to use a hand saw to trim my shooting lanes.

Gunna be awhile till I hang up the lockons and extendable pole saw.

Although funny you mention, I shot my first ever buck out of a ladder stand this year. Thing had been in place in a dead cottonwood for a few years. No life line or vest. Of course the buck came through where I least expected. Had no shot so had to maneuver to stand on the top platform where u sit, then had to get on the tiptoes to clear a branch just so I could shoot him 5 yards straight below.

Fun experience, but definitely felt way less safe in the ladder.

 

[H20fwler]

I’m a ladder stand guy too.

I love the Millennium 110, very very comfortable quiet rock solid built like a tank and squirrels don’t bother the seats.

Going to be a grandfather this spring, next ones I put up will be Millennium 220’s.

 

[Tree Spud]

I also have moved away from hang ons ... not the agile Ninja tree climber I used to be

I now use ladder stand with double rail sides. Several i have the seat is at 24' to shooting rail so you can get that height above a deer's line of sight.

Safety is key to enjoying the sport long term.

 

[Peeps]

I also have been making the switch to ladder stands. Put up 2 of the Big Game Hunter HD 1.5 this year and loved them. Very comfortable and much safer than climbing up sticks and into a hang on. Just ordered 2 more and talked the guys on our lease into each getting 1 now every year to eventually replace all our hang ons.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Im still a hang on and climber guy. Something about a ladder I don’t like. I like to be up hidden in a tree and I personally don’t feel I can do that very well in a ladder.
Life line seems to be a pretty good insurance policy though I don’t love climbing up and down with one. You are constantly having to take a hand off to slide the knot

 

[Bill]

Im still a hang on and climber guy. Something about a ladder I don’t like. I like to be up hidden in a tree and I personally don’t feel I can do that very well in a ladder.
Life line seems to be a pretty good insurance policy though I don’t love climbing up and down with one. You are constantly having to take a hand off to slide the knot

Trust me you can kill a booner out of a ladder stand. just need the highest one you can get.
We frankinstanded one and its 30' tall. Nothing sees you in that thing.

It's a huge stand that was discontinued because of the size, weight and cost. I think you could pull an engine using the stand to hook a chain hoist to.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Trust me you can kill a booner out of a ladder stand. just need the highest one you can get.
We frankinstanded one and its 30' tall. Nothing sees you in that thing.

It's a huge stand that was discontinued because of the size, weight and cost. I think you could pull an engine using the stand to hook a chain hoist to.

Oh I have zero doubt you can. But it’s a personal thing, I don’t feel concealed in one and they are generally too low for my comfort level. Since I only bow hunt, my stand placement is everything. If I rifle hunted, I would literally only hunt out of one I bet. I don’t love hanging or even climbing hang ons but it’s my necessary evil.

 

[g squared 23]

I sat in a pretty short ladder stand this evening that I’ve killed several bucks out of and only been busted once when a deer caught me relieving myself. But lots of deer have passed by and I dont ever get busted. Looking at the stand, I have great backcover from every angle. So that’s just as important as the height.


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[H20fwler]

Trust me you can kill a booner out of a ladder stand. just need the highest one you can get.
We frankinstanded one and its 30' tall. Nothing sees you in that thing.

It's a huge stand that was discontinued because of the size, weight and cost. I think you could pull an engine using the stand to hook a chain hoist to.

I had a frankenstand awhile back, I think it was some kind of Big Dog or other menards stand that was kind of sturdy. I added two extra ladder sections to it xtra braces and steel conduit along each side of ladder rails. I’m thinking it was at 25’-26’.
Still was a spooky one to be up in, I always wore my spider harness in that one. Platform and seat were plenty small, to small for my comfort zone.

Replaced it with a 110, I think those are like 21’ at bottom of platform, but plenty of room.
I still try to play the wind as much as I can even though ours are all tall.
This past week was our first deer gun, I saw over 100 deer sitting in them.
Most were crazy close and just walking by feeding/laying/scratching…being relaxed deer.

Deer get used to seeing anything, they walk within a few feet from our deer hut and never think twice about it..even nice bucks and old does.

 

[ghilliehunter]

I absolutely hear where trampled is coming from. When I first started hunting you screwed one step in a tree trunk, climbed from limb to limb, placed a hang on stand and hunted with no harness or safety line. Very lucky to have never fallen. Had a friend who's hang on cables broke, he fell and ruptured his spleen, puntured a lung and shattered his leg, had to be lifelined. As time has gone by I've used climbers, then to ladder stands to blinds and hunting on the ground. I've killed some real nice bucks from 15 foot ladder stands with a bow. Just need some back cover.
All with a bow, 15 foot ladder stand.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

I like getting up well out of the line of sight. Hanging some of those ladder stands is a huge pain in the butt.