"If you hunt whitetails in the Midwest, chances are you have – or currently are – hunting from an elevated position, probably utilizing a tree stand from some manufacturer out there. If you have hunted for any amount of time with said tree stand, chances are you have probably heard the loud, annoying, and sometimes heartbreaking noises a tree stand can make in different weather conditions even with the most subtle movements and shifting of your weight. It always seems to happen when the woods are the quietest too, giving off an echo that seems to travel to every whitetails ears for miles. I’ve suffered from this one too many times myself, so I decided to do some research and experiment with different techniques in order to create a tree stand that was solid, and quiet." - See more at: Making Your Tree Stand Quiet | Tree Stand For Hunting Tips We'll see you back in the pines -Robert
some good tips. thanks for sharing. looks like you have a good site going on. my advice from my experience is to avoid the cheap $40 treestands all together. I take my passion very serious and when a couple years worth of work/planning/scouting comes down to that one moment, that one chance where tha monster makes one mistake, that one chance at a bruiser it WILL NOT be ruined by the squeak of a cheap piece of crap treestand! makes no sense, neither does the logic behind buying them either, yes it's tempting BUT you can buy a LW assault hang on stand, and a bunch of "s" hooks to keep in multiple trees. worth every penny if you take hunting serious. no squeak whatsoever in a LW. the assault weighs 11 pounds, your gear bag full of junk weighs more than that. it makes no sense to go the cheap route, you are the one who will end up paying the price for it. I guess hunting out of a cheap treestand is still hunting, it's like being a nascar driver showing up to the race in a go kart, it's still racing right?
also see tree stand silencing on the web. and check out Yakgrips to cover LW buckles. I opted for bike tubes instead of these to cut costs... I will let you know how these work. These are available at Cabellas. Cascade Creek Yakgrips® Comfort Kayak Grips : Cabela's Stealth Outdoors | The Treestand Silencing Store Ordered covers for my sticks and LW stands just yesterday. T
I'm sure there's a touch of sarcasm in the post above and mine will probably contain some as well. We get it you don't like cheap stands and LW is the only way to go. What I completely disagree with however is the idea that a stand that is affordable has to be cheap. There are some that fit both categories sure but there are a lot that are just plain affordable and well built. If we don't buy into the "spared no expense" line for treestands we: don't take hunting serious, are illogical & non-sensical, and it's questionable if we're even hunting? What about not using treestands at all? Non-sense I know. Unless perhaps LW puts out a dove bucket soon then I'm sure it will be a big thing. LW dove buckets can be pre-ordered now for $199, not to be confused with the standard green 5 gallon bucket with the spinny seat that can be had for $19. LW's are way better, the seat cushion is shaped like a wolfs arse (used arse in a sentence today...check and check). Lets face it we are not talking about building rockets. If LW fanboys priced out all the raw materials for any LW treestand I'm sure most wouldn't love what they discovered. Sadly you're also paying a very high price for marketing, engineering/design, plant equipment, high labor costs, etc. etc. You're getting raped but if you're cool with it I'm cool with it. There is a time and place for most styles of hunting. You want to be light and mobile then go for it, spend the money on the LW because the weight is about the only real advantage(but alas there are other quality light stands on the market for less $). Not saying LW aren't well made, they are. But if you hunt a large amount of acreage, maybe with a couple people, and you can tote 50 pounds farther than a jv cheerleader then save yourself some money and buy about 3 or 4 afforable stands & sticks. Something to be said for being able to sneak into a bunch of good spots and all you need is a bow, a backpack, & maybe a GPS. BTW I enjoyed the article been thinking about that foam spray I'm gonna have to test it out.
I hunt predominately out of stands that cost $50 or less...I'm a terrible hunter and don't take this seriously....I mean there are times I've been known to spend $65 and get stick/ladder steps with the stand. However, I've seen the light and desire to up my game some and may be ordering some XOP treestands...same, well essentially exactly the same as LW but cheaper, still not cheap but cheaper. Perhaps I'm finally starting to take this all more serious...can't wait till this is a 365 day a year thing for me :D In all seriousness though good article and I will admit more attention has to be done to ensure a quiet stand with my cheapos than a LW or XOP or the like but still haven't had a stand cost me a buck.
Tust me when I say I understand that this is an awesome stand : Wide Flip-Top Climber ?Combo? - Lone Wolf Stands I'm just not paying $500 bucks for it. $500!! gthoh
...cool beans for bringing up a 5 month old thread, or did it take you that long to come up with a comeback? I know 5 months ago and still reading it now i come across as a ******, but it's from my experience and I stand by it. I HAVE been busted by a cheap treestand's mesh foot platform making noise. Could/should I have worded it differently? most likely. Maybe if I make a website my opinion would have more value.
We have plenty of the cheaper Guide Gear style stands and if you take the time to put them together right and even add nylon washers where needed they can be just as quiet as any other stand. Extra ratchet straps top and bottom of a hang on stand is my key to making them more sturdy and as a result quieter.
I'm so confused by this statement, if a dig at me please...anyone in their right mind would never say a cheap stand is better than a lone wolf, or XOP or millenium or various others...shoot even Big Game stands are better than some of the guide gear stuff I've bought and still do....however that said I truly do believe if you use washers (rubber if possible) and always have some ratchet straps on them (we use 2) there have been VERY few times where the stand made any kind of noise and saved me a ton of cash. I personally can't justify the price of the more expensive stands for my style of hunting. I depend on very quick and swift entries and exits and even with the quick connect and disconnect brackets it's still more time than I want...but that is all me and my personal thoughts, DOESN'T MEAN I'M RIGHT OR WRONG for someone else. One thing is for sure the more money you spend the lighter, the quieter potential you have for sure...
Ty the website comment was a joke.......LOL!!!! No offense intended to anyone, it was a post I made 5 months ago That I regret now, because I came across like a total ***. The OP was new to the site preaching/posting info every few days directing us to his website. I found it annoying. He hasn't been active on the site since May.
I have quite a few cheap hang ons. Field and stream brand. They arent that bad. I also have a lone wolf (no idea what model, its 5 years old) and while it is nice, ill never pay that price again. The field and stream stands are quiet as can be. I check the washers yearly and keep them indoors all off season
Lol..I just realized how old this thread was now that you pointed it out SS. ftr I didn't revive it just saw it on the first page and commented after tkarrow. So yeah...it's tkarrows fault! It's all gravy SS, I come off as a prick almost every time I type something, usually not on purpose. I used to want to change but have since given up. I know LW makes a great stand I just can't justify the $ but I get that others can. I still think LW should make a commercial with the old guy from the original Jurrassic Park...the "Spared no Expense" guy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2GHXKYKKi4
Wow! A disagreement on an internet site that was resolved by men...we are not in AT land anymore Toto. The original post was about making stands quieter from a poster who came on here trying to round up some visits to his website. There were some good suggestions there for hunters who have no idea how to make some of those improvements. I am on both sides of the tree stand issue when it comes to price and quality. I have a Millenium stand that would make a wonderful anchor for my boat. Expensive and heavy as hell, but I thought it would be the most comfortable stand in the World....wrong. Love my 'ol Lone Wolf stand/sticks, but I actually use my Big Game stand and sticks much more often even though it is probably twice the weight. That seat on the LW hurts my bony ARSE (there's another one for ya!). I would like to check out the XOP seats as they look like they would be a vast improvement from the LW seat cushions.
Just stumbled onto this thread. Here is how I have quieted treestands with welds regardless of price: replace the rubber coating in step one with either one coat of rough textures roll on bed liner or 2 coats of spray on bed liner. The Rivah Blog: Hunting Public Land Part 2 of 2: Treestand Selection.
