Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting I am buildikng a ladder white tail deer stand???

How far apart do you place the rungs on your ladder deer stands?
I was considering 1",

You must have very flat feet.

One inch lol

I would go 1' vertical. I think 16" would be as narrow as you want. We have a tripod that was a ladder section that's probably 12" and can be a bit awkward and make you feel a little less stable climbing up or down.

Remember, it's not the going up that's hard...it's the coming down. 13-14in apart. powdr

Stair steps are 7-8" of rise for each step, ladders are one foot center of rung to center of rung, but the lean decreases thst a bit. Keep in mind, that fully clothed to stay warm, you will have much less movement available than that summer gutter project. Make it easier on you and more stable, space them closer to the 8" Mark. (It will be heavier) and don't forget the tensioners. A faulty ladder can get you killed.
Consider the telescoping ladders available for purchase now. They top out @12'

Haaaahaahahah

Paired with a hang on stand, it keeps folks out of your stand, who don't belong there.

All kidding aside, you can get safe and comfortable commercial stands for under $200. Why chance your life and mobility to a bubba special? All of them come with workable, if not convenient safety harnesses. The last two I bought were River's Edge, and they're uber comfortable and safe, with bench seats, shooting/safety rails, and heavy ratchet straps at the top and on the platform. Add a safety rope with a sliding knot for climbing and you're all set.

Last year, I used the two-man version, and have never been more comfortable in a tree. A big bonus is being able to rest my rifle on the seat next to me with the barrel on the shooting rest. Being able to have both hands free for glassing, eating and drinking, nature calls, and warming your hands in a pocket, all while having your rifle nearly in hand (not on a hook) is a tremendous advantage, making staying aloft all day easy.

BTW, my safety ropes have reflective material braided in which makes finding my stand in the dark easy. Even a tiny light lights them up like Christmas from a considerable distance.

you can get one for 50 bucks. but to answer your question, most i have seen are about 18".


thats inches.

I agree 100%-----Bob

1 foot would be fine. I’ve built several out of 1 inch pipe and unistrut. It helps being a welder plus getting material for free. Don’t build something that would get you hurt!!

It is my impression, you are building from wood. (I could be wrong). I build from steel, and weld my own. For ladders, I build with one riser, and alternating rungs on 10" centers. (Any higher makes climbing harder in full gear. ) I have several of these placed at fixed stands in 2 states. (I'll be at one of them in @30days. I'll see if I can remember to get pics then.

I have built several ladder stands out of wood. The wider you build the ladder, the more stable the stand will be. In my younger years, the rungs a foot apart worked. Now days, about 10 inches would be better. I haven't built one in a long time, as the price and availability of the metal ladder stands, makes building one out of wood pretty much obsolete.

The heck with building one, just buy one of these. This thing is the ticket. It's also safe. It's got a 24"x 30" platform and about 18' to the shooting rail. The seat folds up out of the way if you want to stand up.

https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/...5fnsufstpstxlxxxtsb/15fnsufstpstxlxxxtsb

Looks like a good one.

I put up two Ol' Man Bow Lite stands on public land near here; one in 2012 and one in 2014. Checked them out on Friday, and both are still solid. I'm a little surprised that no one has stolen them, even though they're cabled to the tree. They are tiny compared to my Rivers Edge stands and not especially comfortable, but they were cheap and well-made. They're also well-concealed from casual view.

You could buy that way cheaper than you could build one. Anything you build is going to be heavy.

Pappy, I can't believe they're still up too. Maybe there's still some honest people out there. I've got 2 ladder stands up on private land. I put this one together on the barn floor, loaded it into the truck, and my son and I went out and set it up. He carried the platform piece and I carried the ladder sections. We did it in one trip into the woods. We only had to carry it about 200 yards. Where the straps come down and hook to the middle of the ladder, there were just cinch straps. I took the ends off and replaced them with ratchet straps. It's tight as hell.

If you want a good ladder stand, there it is on sale at Dick's for $150.00.

If you wait for the end of season sales, it can be very worthwhile. I picked up three new stands for $30.00 each

They've paid for themselves so any further use I get will be gravy. Last year I hunted private land in VA and will again this year, but I plan to visit these a time ir two just to get a little "woods time" instead of watching a field. There's also the slight chance I'll see a bear there. I'd like to pull them down for maintenance, but without a truck that's tough to do.