I set mine so I can lean out and make a shot if I have to get around a tree or something. It took some time to get used to and learn to trust your gear. I can’t imagine sitting in my stand early in the morning when it’s dark without my harness.
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Let’s talk about tree stands
- Thread starter Atlantis
- Start date
Last couple sits I had just a rope around my waist/the tree. This morning was my first time trying out my harness, Muddy Ambush. Definitely a way more secure feeling, I ran the linemans belt behind me and snugged it up.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
what town are you in and how big of a piece? if theres pressure outside and it's relatively small id set up within shooting distance of where they were nice and early. theyll be back
Middleboro, its on the other side of 495 across from rocky gutter, abutting forbes swamp. There is some active logging going on in the vicinity but I am not sure how much pressure there is.
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Also regarding the harness; if you're worried about hanging there you can run a line from about head high(when you're in the stand) down to the ground. secure your harness to that with a prusik knot. Not only will you be able to lower yourself but you'll also be able to stay connected going up and down. And from what I've read that's when most falls happen.
Knob Creek
NES Member
Guy in Acushnet this week had his tree stand let go. He was hanging upside down for about an hour before he called 911.
Going out to practice my new climber this evening in hopes of using for the AM, I’m guessing it’s no different statistically. AKA, I should be in the practice of properly using/advancing the tether the entire time I’m climbing, and not rely on the climber itself.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
Hmm thats pretty big woods. Still though if thats where you've seen sign and there was a group of them I'd hunt it
If you wanna be a nerd
This. Whatever you do, get a good harness. A lot of hunters fall out of a tree stand and get crippled each year.
Hmm thats pretty big woods. Still though if thats where you've seen sign and there was a group of them I'd hunt it
If you wanna be a nerd
I’ve literally never used one before, it was delivered today, figured it would be better to shake it out this evening than at 5am in the middle of my target location lol. Pretty cool little setup, I think it’s better to go slow and smooth than taking bigger/longer steps up the tree. At least for me it seemed better.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
Slow climb, no need to rush. You probably want more than an hour of practice before setting up in the dark in the woods
Yup, in a perfect world, I’d have done alot of things different preparing for this season.
I have a good harness, a little pull saw, and I scouted the trees this morning so I know my entry route and where I’m going more or less.
I think I’m going to go for it and just take it slow and steady.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Being able to self rescue is very important and and everyone who is in a treestand should have a plan and try it to be sure that it is realistic and that they can physically execute it. I think a lot of treestand hunters might be surprised.
I used to carry two Cranston folding steps. They are compact and very very sharp. Trying to screw one into a tree while you are hanging in a harness is harder than you might think.
At the end of the day no deer is worth a human life or worth a hunter spending the rest of their life in a wheel chair.
Bob
Bigfudge16
NES Member
You're correct in that assumption in New England anyways. Saddle hunting is the new fad, ground blinds have been around forever.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Depends on the season. Archery for sure; the gun seasons not so much.
I never saw the need to lug one around during the gun seasons but archery for sure. I am a ground pounder now and have been one for any years now.
Bob
I'm running a LWCG 1.0 and 4 Tethrd ONE sticks. 13 pounds pack weight. I would put my setup pound-for-pound against most saddle-hunting rigs. My saddle setup, basically a platform, saddle, knee pads, and 4 full-length Beast sticks weighs as much as my LWCG 1.0 and 4 ONE sticks.
I MUCH prefer the stand. IMHO, it's far superior when you're in the tree - which is the whole point of being there. The saddle has the advantage of being lighter on the pack-in. But that's where the advantages end.
There are others, but in the interest of brevity... I've used both, and after having used both, I'm back in the Lone Wolf. The Cruzr just collected dust this season. It never even came out of the basement.
I had a climber.. I had a Viper. very comfortable... Lots of naps had in that thing. But it was super bulky, loud, heavy and limited me to straight limbless trees. Those types of trees seem to never be available when I tuck close into bedding. So that started collecting dust and I sold it a few years ago.
I've tried every setup looking to become more efficient. Spent more money than I care to admit. I have yet to find anything better than a good hang-on and set of sticks. Buy once cry once. Get the best gear you can afford, which IMHO, when it comes to treestands is the stuff from LWCG (Lone Wolf Custom Gear). For climbing sticks, I like the Tethrd ONE sticks. But get the Gen3 as the first 2 generations had safety issues. So be careful if buying used.... assuming you can even find them. Those 1-pound sticks are super hard to get and they're not cheap. But man, they are so worth it. But I'm serious when I say stay away from Gen1 and Gen2 if you go that route.
I MUCH prefer the stand. IMHO, it's far superior when you're in the tree - which is the whole point of being there. The saddle has the advantage of being lighter on the pack-in. But that's where the advantages end.
- Weak side shots are a major PITA on a saddle. Not so in a stand
- Far less movement to get a shot off from a stand
- You can access and use your pants pockets in a stand. A saddle obstructs them
- You can add/remove layers in a stand in response to hot/cold. In a saddle even putting on a jacket is a PITA
- Saddles require straight limbless trees so you don't fall to the low side and so you can swing around. A good hang-on gets you into ANY tree, crooked, gnarly, and full of limbs. In fact, I look for those kinds of trees because of the additional cover they offer
- With a saddle the tree is in front of you and obstructs your view. You have 100% visibility in a stand
- With a saddle, you're tethered to the tree in front of you. This can interfere with shots at certain angles or moving the bow from one side to the other. A stand - tether is behind you
There are others, but in the interest of brevity... I've used both, and after having used both, I'm back in the Lone Wolf. The Cruzr just collected dust this season. It never even came out of the basement.
I had a climber.. I had a Viper. very comfortable... Lots of naps had in that thing. But it was super bulky, loud, heavy and limited me to straight limbless trees. Those types of trees seem to never be available when I tuck close into bedding. So that started collecting dust and I sold it a few years ago.
I've tried every setup looking to become more efficient. Spent more money than I care to admit. I have yet to find anything better than a good hang-on and set of sticks. Buy once cry once. Get the best gear you can afford, which IMHO, when it comes to treestands is the stuff from LWCG (Lone Wolf Custom Gear). For climbing sticks, I like the Tethrd ONE sticks. But get the Gen3 as the first 2 generations had safety issues. So be careful if buying used.... assuming you can even find them. Those 1-pound sticks are super hard to get and they're not cheap. But man, they are so worth it. But I'm serious when I say stay away from Gen1 and Gen2 if you go that route.
Mark from MA
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Spot on my feelings and your running the caddillac setup that's about as light as it gets.
Mark from MA
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You can lower yourself to the ground with a prusik knot if you can take your weight off it. If you can't, theres no way your going to repel with a prusik knot it will grab and hold and you will not be able to slide it under serious tension.
There are many ways to repel figure 8, caribiners, etc....but realistically the madrock, gri gri and a few others are the only rope gizmos that let you climb safely up, and repel or rescue down without taking weight off the line.
You called it. I Made all sorts of noise setting the climber up, wasn’t settled till like 6:30 (was aiming for 5:30), didn’t see anything and was debating calling it a day and heading to work at 9. My scouting was a little off and this tree turned out to not have the greatest visibility.
To my right, through some foliage, I saw a small deer with a clear shot. Looking back I’ll always wonder if there was anything bigger hidden from my view, but I told my mother in law id bring back straps to Christmas or at least try, so I took the shot that presented itself. I think I went into autopilot because I forgot to aim for lower 3rd and basically aimed center mass. Dropped it where it stood. Knicked the lungs and hit the spine.
Little button buck, but it’s my first deer ever so I’m happy with it. Going to process it tonight, weather is heading to high 40’s 50’s so I don’t think I can hang it long.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
That's awesome! Don't bother wondering what if, with one week left in the season of you have tags and an empty freezer you should take that shot.
Beautiful buck and congrats on your first! Don't expect every day in the woods to go so well but that kind of success is what gets us all hooked. Welcome to the club killer!
Bigfudge16
NES Member
NGL I'm jacked up for you bud. Love seeing new hunters getting into the game and being successful. You dress him on your own as well?
Thank you! It wasn’t my first day in the woods though so I definitely know what you mean. My first day in this location was a poncho under a hoodie raining all day haha. I’ll take a day like this anyday though!
I had the help of YouTube but yes, went better than I expected. I think the Buttout is sized for bigger deer, it did puncture a bit. And I still have to pull the bladder. Getting ready to skin and process now.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
Good on you for having the guts to do it on your own, it can be intimidating. Practice makes perfect, all you gotta do at the end of the day is get all that stuff out of there and hose it all out if you happen to make a mess of it and you'll keep getting cleaner and faster with practice
Those devices are not rated to arrest a fall. Keep that in mind. Keep that rope with ZERO slack. If you fall and rely on that thing to stop you, you could be in for a bad way. The mad rock, rope man, and gri-gri are ascenders/descenders. Not fall arrest devices.
Know your equipment, know what its intended purpose and use is, and stay in that lane. These devices are fine for ascending and descending up and down a rope. But when you are tethered to the tree in a stand, you're better off with a friction hitch of some kind, like a prusik with appropriately rated rope and cordage.
You can lower yourself with a prusik and self-rescue - assuming your main line is long enough. Grab the prusik knot where it wraps around your main line and slowly start to pull yourself up by it. This will gradually remove the weight applied to the cord that causes it to clamp on the main line and you'll start to slide down the main line. If you do it too fast, just let go and she clamps down tight again.
This is where I also feel like a hang-on and sticks safer. If you're in a tree and say your climber platform fails and falls, you have no easy way to descend. But with a hang-on and sticks - assuming the same, your stand fails and falls, you can grab your climbing sticks and climb down.
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Mesatchornug
NES Member
Unless you're talking about a different grigri, the one from Petzl, which is designed for belaying climbers is absolutely a fall rated device.
Bigfudge16
NES Member
I used to worry about this a lot when using climbers, the potential of losing the bottom half is very real especially when you're in muck boots. I always tied the second together with a length of paracord but it would still take some upper body strength to recover the bottom half if it did fall.
