Slappy

Wow...I've had plenty of stuff stollen out at one of my properties.  3 nice red gates, 2 game cameras, 1 turkey hen and kicked off trespassers...but that...that right there...is ABSOLUTELY INFURIATING!  :mad:   I would be calling the Game Warden as soon as possible and let them know about it.  

Hunting tomorrow night, friday morning, friday afternoon and friday night!  Wahoo!!     Remember fellas...THIS WEEKEND is Youth Hunt weekend and sadly...none of us are under the age of 16.  So we cannot hunt this weekend.  Maybe take your kid...or someone else's, and introduce them to the sport we love so much!  

Awesome!  You will feel like a fish out of water at first.  You will make lots of mistakes.  You will ask yourself many questions to which you don't know the answers to.  Make sure of two things: that you are legal, and you stay safe.  Don't take a step off the ground without a Safety harness!      I wrote a bit about how to start hunting that is stickied at the top of this forum.  That might help you answer some questions.  You will find MANY knowledgeable sportsman here so please don't hesitate to ask for our opinions on things! It will at least be worth the price you paid for it.   :up:   Keep us updated on your first hunt!!

I hope to get some tree stand pics this thursday/friday.  I have worked 7 days straight and have 3 more days of work before I can finally get off and go hunting!  

I'm not sure any one of us can give you a direct answer to your question because it's essentially a matter of personal preference. However, we might be able to help with the decision making process. To New Bow or not to New Bow: Probably the best decision to make would be to keep your bow. It's safe, functional and would save you money while you try to decide if you'll stick with bow hunting or not. Don't let marketing and IBO speeds convince you a new bow is the only option. That's how they make their money. :-) I'd like to say that would be the decision I would make, but I'm a gear nerd and sorta hate having obsolete equipment...even at the risk of buying up-to-date equipment...only to not use it until it becomes obsolete years later and then having to start the same decision making process all over when I decide to try and get back into using said equipment. LOL If you decide to get a new bow: There is plenty of online articles about "budget bows" or "bows under $500". In fact, I shoot a Bear Legion which ranked highly in the budget bow reviews at the time it was made...2012 I believe. You can also check Craigslist, lots of bows go for sale there and would save you some money. So, To Crossbow or not to Crossbow: I'd ask you this: What are your goals? And Is your body in decent enough shape? Goals: Me personally, I am not much of a "meat hunter" and I am also a bit of a purist (not to the point of using a recurve though, haha). I enjoy the art and skill required in using a compound bow. It is challenging and I like that. As for now, my body is holding up well enough to climb trees, remain stable, and build up my bow muscles. If/when things ache too much or I'm not safe, I will switch to crossbow. That's just me though. YMMV A crossbow takes a lot of the practice and guesswork out of using a normal bow. You can shoot further and will be more accurate resulting in better kills with less of the risk of wounding an animal. It's legal in TN and hey, it's easy! We all like easy right? If my goal was to get meat in the freezer, no doubt this would be the way I would go. So it just comes down to what you want to do. Clear as mud? Haha

Not much I can add that hasn't already been said. But I used to be management at a grocery store. Saw those EBT's come through all the time. The EBT buggies we either filled with the nastiest most unhealthy sugary food or top of the line protein such has lobsters and ribeyes. Hardly ever "normal" food. And yes, they would waddle out to their cars nicer than mine. One time I got called up to the front because a patron was pissed. She used her EBT card for $100+ dollars of groceries. She also used several coupons which as a tax payer, I really appreciated. I'm like finally, at least one person cares slightly. So why was she pissed?? Well, when She used her coupons, the state of TN requires tax to be paid on the amount saved and whatever this amount is cannot be paid by EBT. So she thought I was screwing her out of....wait for it.....like $0.45cents. I also saw owners of a restraunt come in buying those institutional sized containers of stuff....beans BBQ sauce, kings Hawaiian rolls etc...obviously for their restraunt and pay for all of it with EBT. Also, many have said that you cannot buy alcohol or tobacco with these cards. Well that is only partially true. These cards are partitioned where they can withdraw a certain amount of cash to then use on whatever they please. If EBT wasn't enough...there is also the TN WIC program that gives free food to expecting mothers and mothers with children and infant food. So all that expensive formula (which gets stollen quite frequently) baby food, diapers, all school lunch type stuff. All of that is under WIC. Then they can use their full EBT benefits on anything else.

I couldn't hunt today.  Went to go see MSU (my Alma Mater) whip Texas A&M only to have those dang Black Bears steal our thunder beating Alabama....but hey, what a great day for Mississippi!  Hopefully arrows will fly next weekend!  

You will have much greater peace of mind w/ the new harness!  

That's cool. Sounds like it's close to you. I have 2 properties that I hunt. One is 1.5hrs away and the other is 1.25 hrs away. So it's a bit of a commitment when I decide to go.

Ruger, how many stands do you hunt out of during a season? Is it the same stand you hunt each time you go out?

My foot doesn't leave the ground if I'm not hooked up to my HSS Lifeline that allows me to be attached to the tree from bottom to top. I've fallen a significant distance (not hunting related) before and I have NO desire to fall again! Well, free fall was kinda cool, but hitting the pavement and all the repairs I needed were not so fun.

Do y'all have any idea how long it took me until I could tell the difference between a squirrel and a deer?! Years! Those little communists have elevated my heart levels to near shiney-rock-Ruger levels....only to have it plummet once realizing that Boone and Crocket was just a tree rat. I'm just trying to get MY revenge. LOL

Nothing for me either fellas.  Allthough I did have fun messing w/ a squirrel a few branches over.  He never saw me, then I would make a little movement.  Then the squirrel would have a panic attack, but still wasn't sure if what he thought he saw he actually saw or maybe just off his meds again...then when he calmed down, I'd move a little and then he'd go back into full freakout mode, but then I was still again and well....hes probably not going to sleep well tonight.  

I had 1 doe and 2 fawn at 100 yards. They came straight at me to 55 yards. Ate clover for a while. Came in at 40 yards. Then went right and exited field. Haha. Thought I was about to have an extra set of back straps. But hey, I got 10 mIns left...why am I posting?! Ok...back to what I came out here to do...

May try some fawn bleeting later on if it looks slow. I used it once last year when I had a doe far off. It worked great. Anyone blind call with a fawn bleet? Any tips?

Whew! Sweatin my nards off!! Stupid bee for some reason has an interest in me. All will be well though when the deer decide to come out. So far I have seen one squirrel. Oh and I almost squished a turkey driving in. Sure is pretty out here.

I couldn't go out this morning because the wife and I were busy with the joining of our church processes...but I'm packing up now and going to enjoy a couple hours of an evening hunt!  We shall see! 

Thanks Ruger!  I'm sorry its my ugly mug you have to see and not some super model...but hey, even if I was some super model, you'd only be getting excited about the deer stand anyways! LOL!!     The first 2 pictures are of a stand that I placed fairly close to a bedding area so it should produce some deer.   In the last stand pic, I am SUPER excited about.  It sits overlooking a 4 acre clover field.  The deer tend to enter the field to the right and the left of that stand and should result in some fantastic bow hunting!     It worked out fine....but I am not very proud of what I decided to do in order to install that last deer stand.  In my past, I have had serious illness as well as several surgeries to fix broken bones and torn cartilage (not completely hunting related)...so needless to say, I have an ABUNDANCE of caution to not cause myself more harm.  BUT deadlines and deer season can cause a man to go far past his comfort zone and if you look at that last pic, you can see 3 massive branches just above the seat of that tree stand.  Well those branches needed to be removed in order to sit in the seat.     I have a Stihl, telescoping pole saw that couldn't even come close to those branches.  So the only option was for me to cut those branches WHILE IN THE STAND.  Yikes!!  Its hard to tell, but those were very thick branches, and the extended VERY far into the field (in an effort to out-compete other trees to get the sunlight).  So I knew I needed to cut the branches down, but that it would require 2 cuts for each branch.  The first cut would take off 90% of the branch, the 2nd cut would be right up against the trunk of the tree so I can lean back against the tree truck and still be able to hunt/draw my bow back.  Well, I decided I would use a chainsaw to make the first cuts of each branch.     Again, I am still kicking myself for doing it, although it turned out ok.  My heart was at wedding night levels for like 30 minutes, but I successfully cut the branches, then had to finish them off w/ a hand saw.     So, the stand is now perfect, and will offer many, many years of great hunting! Thanks be to God for not calling me home just yet.... :)

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Acorns havnt started falling in my neck of the woods yet. I remember the exact weekend they started falling last year because we didn't see JACK SQUAT hunting the fields that regularly produce deer. Haha. We didn't have any oak tree stands then though. Now we have a few, so hopefully we get to see some deer.

haha, true.  When I started hunting, my dad told me the first buck I kill, he will have it mounted.  Took me 3 years before I got a shot at a buck.  He ended up being a 2.5 year old 8pt with a 16" spread.  Not a bruiser, but one well worth being proud of!  That was 17 years ago! Yikes!!!!!   I tried to take a 4pt but got "Buck Fever" and couldn't squeeze the trigger.  Then, the same day I got my 8 point, I had a shot at a 4pt but decided to wait for something bigger.  Didn't realize I would only have to wait a few more hours, but I am, to this day, very proud of that deer.  

I bet that spike has some sort of injury on the right side of its body.  A lot of people will blame antler deformations on genetics and while that is true in some circumstances, most of the time antler deformations are due to injury.  If its not a permanent injury, then next year his antlers will mirror each other.  

LOL Ruger.    :up:   I went to my farm this past weekend.  Saw a total of about 35 doe, and 4 bucks.  2 of the bucks were yearling spike/4 pts.  The other 2 looks like 2.5y/o 8 points.  I've yet to see a bruiser anywhere but on camera.  

Some of you may remember me being back and forth between a Muddy Outdoors Hunter Lock-On stand and the Millennium Monster Lock-On Stand.  So being curious and indecisive has led me to purchase both stands and to find out which one I enjoy the most...and likely buy more of.     Just like guns, or sleeping bags, or cars...if you want to "get" something, you have to "give" something.  You will see my comparisons below.      Let me first start off with a little bonus review of Safety Harnesses:   Muddy Safeguard Harness vs Hunter Safety System Harness: Clear Winner is the Muddy Harness      Let me tell you just straight up, if you are in the market for a new harness, get the Muddy, hands down.  It is the best value, best design, and so light weight that you forget you are wearing it.   The lineman's belt on the Muddy is SO much more user friendly than the lineman's belt on the Hunter Safety System.  Also, my cousin who helped me install the stands, he has the HSS Harness, asked me if he put it on property.  Upon inspection, he had one of his leg harnesses flipped inside out and he didn't know.  There is no way you can make that mistake w/ the Muddy Safeguard Harness.  So take my word for it, color me impressed with the Muddy, thats what you need to buy.     Tree Stands   Weight:  Muddy     It is very light weight at 14lbs vs the Monster at 19.5lbs.  Now 5.5lbs doesn't seem like a whole lot when you are on the ground, but when you are dangling up in a tree it seems quite heavy.  However, I found both stands to be quite manageable...and I'm not exactly strong either.   Ease of Assembly: Monster.      The monster came mostly assembled but some of the tolerances were very tight which made it difficult to do by yourself.  The Muddy had lots of screws, washers and nuts and came completely disassembled.  So while I gave the "ease" of assembly award to the Monster, neither are difficult at all, the Muddy will just take a few extra minutes.  The instructions from both manufacturers were a little cryptic, diagrams were not clear about what washer or what screw to use necessarily, but you figure it out well enough.       Ease of Installation:  Monster.      The Monster comes with this one bracket that you hang up first, prior to lifting the stand off the ground and up the tree.  The back of the Monster has this "blade" that slides into the bracket that you just installed, making it SUPER easy and quick.  Remember how this stand is heavier?  Well with this design, you don't have to hang on to it very long.  Another big advantage of this bracket system is the ability to buy more brackets.  They are only like $25 and you can hang them in multiple trees, making it even more simple to move the stand around.  Once you have the Monster installed into the bracket, there is an additional ratchet strap that secures the lower platform firmly to the tree making the base fairly solid.  If I had one complaint about the Monster, its that the base is shakier than the Muddy.  However, with the strap installed nice and tight, I never felt unsteady or unsafe, so its really not a big deal.      The Muddy requires to ratchet straps to secure the stand to the tree.  It can be quite cumbersome to hold up the stand with one hand and to somehow, throw the ratchet strap behind the tree, catch it, and secure it to the stand.  Now, with practice, I don't really see it as that big of a deal.  This was my first time installing lock on stands, so it was all new to me and I learned a few little tricks after getting up there and actually installing them.  One thing that was nice though was since I was having to hold the stand up longer, I was glad it only weighed 14 lbs.  So that helps Ease of Adjustability: Muddy.      Adjustability is a big reason why I have chosen these two stands.  They less expensive stands don't offer adjustability. .  Both manufacturers recommend adjusting before you climb up the tree, but just how realistic is that all the time?  Once you are up there, if you need to adjust the platform or the seat, I found the Muddy to be much easier to adjust due to the design and minimal weight.     Comfort: Monster.    I don't think you can look at the pictures of these two stands and have a hard time figuring out which one is more comfortable.  The sling style seat with the back brace of the Monster is what I would consider "all-day comfort".   The Muddy was quite comfortable as well and in fact, I never found it uncomfortable, it actually surprised me.  The padding is very thick and wide, but if you were going to have a sitting contest between these two stands, the Monster would win.     Hunt-ability: Muddy      While there is a direct correlation between stand comfort and seeing deer, I have chosen the Muddy as being the most huntable for this reason: Size.  The Monster....is huge. Your silhouette/profile is nearly twice what it is w/ the Muddy.  The good news is that both seats fold up allowing the hunter to scoot back to the tree, but you are going to be much less concealed standing up and shooting from the Monster as you would the Muddy.        Accessories: Monster      Both stands include a foot rest which is really nice, but the Monster includes a set of backpack straps, already installed on the stand.  You can get backpack straps for the Muddy but you will have to buy separately.  The Monster is about $50 more than the Muddy though, so I wouldn't let the backpack straps sway you from making one decision or the other.       So which stand will I buy more of?  I have no idea!  Both are top tier tree stands and I am looking forward to logging my hours in each one.  Hopefully after a few down deer, I will have a better idea of what I will by next.     Hope these reviews help you make your own decision!             

I am much later than I prefer, but this weekend I plan on hanging my new Muddy and Millennium Lock-On tree stands!  I have a few spots picked out and I plan on using a backpack blower to make a clean trail for entry/exit.  I know that sounds kinda crazy, BUT, in my experience, it doesn't affect deer patterns if done soon enough.  Having a clean path allows perfect silence walking to stand, and even more importantly, perfect silence walking away from stand.   It also helps reduce your scent signature.  In fact, I've even seen deer use the trail I made! LOL So we will see!