Ok, so let me give a little background to this post... This weekend, I went out with a buddy of mine to J.W. Corbett for hunting. I have never been hunting and I unfortunately don't know anyone with private property that would let me hunt on. I live in florida and Corbett (WMA) is a swampy, marshlands area full of mosquitoes, banana spiders, water moccasins and other stuff. My buddy wanted to spot and stalk wild hogs. After all was said and done, we ended up hiking for around 11 miles trudging through thick palmetto areas and about 2-3 foot of water 80% of the time. Our clothes were soaked, we carried our bows, backpacks and lunches through the woods. I knew the whole time that this was NOT how we should have hunted. I just tagged along thinking my buddy would appreciate it. On top of everything else, the temperature was around 98-99 degrees and super humid from all the water. The trees down here in FL don't really give too much shade. I ended up overheating and dehydrating (even though I drank around 7 bottles of water in a period of 5 hours. I never hunted before and I wanted to go with my buddy because he said he knows the area pretty well. I was open to everything and needed someone to go with. I think his strategy is a little... "off" to say the least. I didn't want to be rude to him as hunting buddies are hard to come across down here, for me at least. I say all of that to say this: I'm no longer hiking through the woods to look for hogs. I also don't have a lot of money to spend on a nice climbing tree stand that I want... So... I want to build one. However, there are stipulations to this. Corbett does not allow any spikes, or things of the sort, to be screwed/drilled/or nailed into any trees. This is why I felt a self-climbing tree stand would be best for the occasion. However, it seems rather difficult to build something with wood to be able to self climb. I would prefer building a self-climber as it's much easier, but I am open to any other ideas. Please, please, feel free to share your ideas. I'm trying to get it built by this weekend so I can go this coming Saturday before archery season ends in JW Corbett.
Even if you built that I am sure that it would be rather unsafe and difficult to climb with. I would make sure that you are strapped to the tree 100% of the time so you don't get hurt! We need you this season on team 13 so no getting hurt falling from a tree! With that said I understand how it is to be with limited funds but if you really look around(Walmart, ****s Sport Goods, etc....) you can usually find some climbers at a very reasonable price. I got one from Walmart for $59 once. And if you can't find one at a retailer I would look on Craigs list and post in the "Wanted" section of this site under "Classifieds". Better off with something used then trying to build your own. Safety First!
And you don't necessarily need a climbing stand. A pair of climbing sticks and a hang on, or a lightweight ladder stand would satisfy your requirements. I know you're not one of these people, but I see a lot of individuals that don't take tree safety seriously enough. All it takes is one slip and you could be paralysed or even killed. Climbing a tree without a harness or sitting in a tree with an inadequate stand is not a good idea.
I agree with these guys. You could build your own stand and make it safe if you really really know what your doing. Personally I wouldnt try it.
I know this is not what you are going to want to hear but your best bet is to buy a climber. I have several welders but I know from experience that if I were to make one, I would have as much or more money in the materials than I would if I just purchased a store bought stand, not to mention the time I would have in fabrication. The tree stand market is competitive and if you look around you can find a well-made stand at a reasonable price. Some of the more expensive stands aren't made any better than some of the economy stands, they are just selling a name made through marketing. I don’t think the climber made out of wood would be safe. For one thing, if it were made sturdy enough it would be too heavy, and I wouldn’t trust the fasteners you would have to use. I wouldn’t want to be 20 ft. up in the air and the only thing between me and the ground would be a couple of 16 penny nails or a couple of wood screws. I have made a couple of climbers that were as sturdy as they come and very functional – but the metal was free and I had a lot of spare time on my hands. I live in a small town but know several people who have broken bones from falls from tree stands. These guys missed wages being out of work and it took time for them to heal. We had one guy from our town that died from a fall. A broken rig punctured a lung and some major blood vessels. It took him a while to die and he landed on a large mound of fire ants. He couldn’t move and it was a terrible way to go. He was found about eight hours after he fell and he was already dead. Don’t let this happen to you or one of your friends.
That is absolutely terrible Grits. But guess that is a great way of getting your point across. It's not worth the risk.
I am in central florida, hunting has not started here yet. In this hot weather a tree stand in only good until 9 am and in the evening. The only way to go after pigs otherwise is spot and stalk. I have seen the most pigs doing it this way. I have found by going against the wind, stay on the outside of palmettos until you find some real fresh sign, meaning scat and rootings. Then go against the wind into the palmettos to get them up. The other option is to find out if they are in there, throw a heavy stick in the palmettos about 5 - 10 yds. They will grunt if startled then you know where they are and they will be alert for a couple of minutes until they settle back down. This is when you do not make any noise until they settle down again. Also about 11 am - 1 pm hunt near some shallow water not more than 2 - 3 inches deep and maybe an island. The pigs will lay in a little water and wallow than move to higher ground to lay around and dry off. Good luck.
