Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting What favorite tools for clearing trails, shooting lanes and preseason woods tuneup

My Echo schit the bed too. I just got a Milwaukee fuel battery deal. Mostly I just need to clean underbrush so it should be fine.

Specialized application. Thin blade scythe grass and thin weeds. Wide blade scythe for thick weeds and briars (no wood brush). Brush hook for wood brush, small tree limbs and trees.

Yep, got that covered.

Smart move, mister.

Usually a woods pal, made in Boyertown Pa. A jonsered chainsaw and an axe.

A lot of the terrain I hunt Whitetails in you can't get a tractor and mower on it, therefore labor intensive. Some of that terrain is so thick and brushy that deer will take the path of least resistance thru it and will use logging trails or farm machinery roads whenever they can. I have also, found that by setting up a tree stand on the perimeter, then cut out paths, it funnels deer to places where I can get a shot with a bow or gun.

True - the tractor is for the fire lanes that divide up the property - all else like to various areas or food plots or stands is done with machete mostly.

I'm using one of the 58cc brushcutters from amazon and a round chainsaw blade.

I like to stay back just a bit from the falling bugs as I cut the brush.

I took a chain saw to dad's old stand area and the deer skirted it into the thicker areas. I had the same conversation with a guy at work who spent a lot of time cutting shooting lanes. After a day of watching the deer go around those, he got his buck by setting up in the thicker stuff behind them. I've always been a proponent of just getting up higher in a tree stand and looking over the underbrush. The deer move through that kind of cover more slowly and naturally. In pressured woods, security is job one for a mature buck and if they make it past opening morning, they are in the thicker stuff where I've found them.

in the past i use and owned all those tools but now days to knock grass and brush down i use a J8 bombardier takes about 1 hour but i still gotta clean the tracks and that takes 2 hours.

Agreed - given the choice or opportunity - I'll go higher to gain perspective rather than clear brush.

Thanks for the advice! I just ordered an old Collins Brush Axe on EBay. Still looking for a good mid sized sickle that I can pack into the property

I appreciate the suggestion to minimize cutting - my project is primarily to open up better (less noisy) trail access to a stand and hopefully a better route to drag back to a road or better trail

Used to use the brush hog about middle summer (season starts Oct 1st) but to many stumps. Now I use the mini excavator. If I can't push the stump out, I'll dig it out.

I'll get trails down to dirt, and then spread clover on it. It's real thick after we had it logged and somehow the trails lead to and past various stands and blinds.

I get that. I'm the type to be in the stand a good 45 mins before you can see. Plenty of time for them to forget the noise they heard.

What about one of these? You can cut a lot of grass and thick weeds if sharp

Never seen one of those! I’ll look it up. Looks like just the ticket.

Used one all summer in 1969, no weed eaters then, called them yo-yo’s. Grass whip is what they are calling it. Tractor supply

I have one just like it. I would much rather use the Stihl.

Me too!