Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Wooden Ladder Stands

When I started out deer hunting, store-bought treestands were a new thing. Safety straps were nearly non-existent. I spent the first decade or so of my hunting career risking my life on old rickety stands or just climbing in a tree where it suited me and standing on a limb. I never fell, but between the old stuff and the early kit-built climbers, I did manage some rather fast decents.

Somewhere along the way I got some sense and started buying all-metal treestands. By the time I got my current property in 2001, I had sworn off all homebrew solutions. Lately, I've been rethinking this. My first recent experiment was this tower blind I built last year:



It's a 5X7 platform, 8 feet high, open to the sky with a rail all the way around. I used 4X4 treated posts and 1X6 decking. My reasoning was this: I built a new meatpole in 2008 out of treated 4X4-- think a big swingset for fuzzy windchimes. It's going great at age 10-- no sign of rot. Sooner or later, it'll start showing it's age, and that will be the time to start looking for age in anything else I build. I'm almost 60. If I build anything that lasts 20 years, I'll be probably hunting off the ground by the time it starts getting rickety.

This year, I'm thinking of a 10 foot buddy-sized ladder stand. Roomy, easy to climb into, with a shooting rail. I figure I'll make the legs out of 2X4 with 2X4 rungs.

I'm interested in your thoughts and experiences.

Pressure treated ladders work well and last a long time. One caveat though... USE NAILS to attach the steps to the rails. Screws will break at times and the added stress induced by swelling of the wood from the weather makes them a threat long after they go into use.

nails will also pull out and work loose. I like a combination of nails and screws. Each has an advantage over the other. miles

I like the portable stands. They're much safer and you can buy nearly anything you're looking for now. I used to build them and enjoy the hell out of it. But they're just not practical where I hunt any more. One trip in with a store bought ladder stand. Multiple trips for wood tools and equipment the old way...no thanks.

I too used to love to build wooden stands... it is CHEAPER, safer and much less weight to buy a prefab ladder or nice tower stand.

I build my wood ladder stands with all treated material 10' 2x4s, 1x4 rungs and 1/2" plywood seats.with deck screws applied. Last count there about 16 stands scattered about.

I like their portability and place them to match whitetail deer movement due to habitat changes and seasonal crops.



With that said, I do have a metal ladder stand attached to my favorite location.

shaman
you need to back that up in the woods, put a ROOF on it so you are not easily seen and put something along the back edge to break up your outline

When I first started hunting the property I've hunted for the last 25+ years we always built stands out of wood, built them in the shop and not in the woods. They lasted a reasonable time but once manufactured metal stands became available we converted to these. To obtain enough for an 800 ac. property we would go to the sporting goods stores at the end of the season and offer to buy all of their display models. Most places gave us very favorable pricing to take them down and sometimes we were able to buy remaining inventory as they did not want to store them till the next season. We also purchased deer scent, calls etc. the same way buying whatever was left over inventory at season end.

I kind of left things open to change, and did the bare minimum to get this up last year before season, thinking I could modify as needed. What I've found is that even in 100% hunter orange, the deer pretty much ignore me. The burlap is backed by landscape cloth, so it's opaque. What they see is a bit of my head sticking out and the barrel of the gun over the burlap. I originally left it open to whatever was needed, but now I'm thinking this may be all I need. Yes, it does not cover me when it rains, but I have plenty of spots to go when that happens.

One other thing: The way you're seeing the blind is the least likely way for the deer to view it. I've only got 30 yards or so of pasture in front of the blind, but the view stretches out the sides 150 yards in one direction and 180 yards in another. I didn't even put burlap across the ingress at the ladder. My one bust to date: a doe came up to the bottom of the ladder and looked straight up at me.

That's a good idea. I built this one out of a combination of deck screws and nails, but I hadn't thought of mixing them in that way.

I am careful to put both nails and screws in the rungs on wooden ladders. I have had a nailed one pull off with me. Not one that I built, but I was almost to the top and the nails pulled out of soft pine. miles

Nails or screws into trees or wood scare me a whole bunch because the moisture from the wood rusts the steel through and guys keep using the same stands year after year. Oh not that I haven't had some near falls from a tree limb breaking too, but my cardinal rule is to never move a hand or foot until the other three are on another limb. I guess that I'm more of a minimalist when it comes to tree stands. I always carry a cushion and at least 50' of camo rope in my pack. If I find a good stand location I'll climb the tree, usually a spruce, until I find a nice heavy set of same height limbs and weave 50' of that camo rope back and forth between them to form a seat. Put the cushion on that and you have a nearly invisible seat for what, maybe $3.00 invested if you don't want to take the rope down.

Consider ripping 5/4x6 treated decking, in half, for use as rungs. These are usually higher quality wood. Whole pieces make great platforms. I have some older stands going on 20 years that are holding up well. I believe these save some weight with no sacrifice to strength.

Every winter I swear I'm going to build a lifeguard stand type "chair", and every summer I don't.

+1 it is way too visible, at least have the front off the field edge,

Believe it or not, I put a trail camera on that thing the day I finished erecting it and had deer out feeding next to it that night. It's looking up and down a narrow pasture. I could have taken a really nice 8 pointer from there last November, but my buck tag was already filled and I had to shoot the doe next to him.

Normally the deer come out about 70-150 yards away and work their way towards me. Of course, these are the same deer that walk out in front of me when I'm sitting on the back of the house and spend their evenings loafing about the pasture treating me like I'm part of the woodwork.

My apologies, it is hard to see the effect of a stand without actually looking at it and sitting in it. Photos don't always work.

I;ve built wooden ones. And have one 12' tower stand built as well.

However, in recent years... I wait until tree stands go on sale after Christmas and I've bought a double 12' ladder stand each year for under $100.

You can't beat that deal IMO

-Jake

We have a number of stands built like what you show in your picture. Two changes in ours.

First we have a roof on ours. I know that is wimpy but I love it when it starts raining.

Secondly we use extension ladders that are braced and anchored. They have been there
for many years with no maintenance except for a regular check to make sure nothing has
changed. So far they are like the day they were put there.

I’m a metal guy, it lighter and stronger. I built the metal for these stands in the early eighties. You can get 20 feet in the air with metal.