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Treestands in the Off-Season

rrr

Senior Member
5,065
0
Leave 'em hang? Take 'em down? Depends?

Advice?

My hang-on stand and sticks are still in the woods. I will be home in a couple of weeks and will probably take it down, but it's locked on and in guarded woods. Still though...gotta protect the investment, right?

Thoughts?

I sure do wish I had a good tree in the yard that I could put it up in the summer, our big tree got blown over this year....that would be sweet 'cause it was right by where I put my bag....thoughts to think about that.
 

Mike

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
15,840
223
Up Nort
I took my ladder stands down last year and used rust inhibitor where it needed it and touched up paint. They're staying up until it needs it again.
 

Gern186

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
10,171
201
NW Ohio Tundra
I take all mine down. The squirrels and the weather are real hard on stands if you leave them up, and your straps will grow right into the tree if you leave them up. The worst thing that can happen and WILL happen is that another hunter will come along and try to claim your tree as theirs, even though you might have been hunting that tree for many years.....

I had a place where I hunted the same tree for 15 years in a row and shot several bucks out of and a jackass came along and decided he was going to put a stand in that tree. Well, he put the stand up knowing that I had hunted this little fencerow for many years, but the landowner did give him permission to hunt. I said fugg it, if you have to be that way I don't want to share a little 1/4 mile long fencerow with another guy and I haven't hunted it since then. There are pro's and cons to this situation, just use your best judgement. If you are sharing the property with other guys then I would at least let them know where you hunt at and that you will be putting your stand back up in the same place if you take it down.
 

formerbowhunter1023

Now Posts as Jesse..
0
0
SE Ohio
I've done both in the past, but this year I will be taking everything down so I can inventory what I have and sell some of my stuff. I'm gravitating towards sticks and Millennium brackets, so I'll probably sell a lot of my stands to buy stuff for the new set-ups. I never leave a stand up for more than two seasons and I always do a safety check on stands I do leave up somewhere around mid-August. That's a great time to check shooting lanes as well. I have a couple of trees that I hunt on an annual basis as well and I tend to pull the stand every other year...
 

rgecko23

*Supporting Member*
7,466
0
Massillon, Ohio
I am taking all mine down as well. Going to probaky try and sell my big ladder stand since I never use it. I am going to seriously look at my property and put my stands in better locations. I know they say it takes 5 yrs to really learn a property and I think I have it pegged now.
 

moundhill

Senior Member
Supporting Member
5,327
103
Hebbardsville..
We'll be taking all of ours down, we have some better spots in store next year and plan on putting some stands up in those spots..plus, theres a pretty good chance that if i dont take down our stands, they'll get stolen.
 

DJK Frank 16

Senior Member
Supporting Member
9,358
133
Hardin County
I take all of mine down except two of my ladder stands that we hunt out of every year. Those stands are more for my dad and brother who only get out a few times a year. My LW/Sticks go in and out with me every trip. In my area tree stands wouldn't last the off season without getting stolen so the majority of the guys I hunt with pull all of their equipment as well.
 

RedCloud

Super Moderator
Super Mod
17,381
193
North Central Ohio
I pull all my stands every year while shed hunting just so they don't get stolen and to do safety checks on all the cables and chains. I only have one left out in the woods and I already took the ladder sticks off that tree during gun season ( damn newbies to the property that was strictly gun hunters was sitting in my damn stands) just to make it harder for somebody to snatch it. If it warms up this weekend like they said it was I will be back out there pulling the stand. (need to check my cam and toss out some corn and minerals as well ) :D.
 

rrr

Senior Member
5,065
0
Thanks for the advice guys. Sounds like the general rule is to pull it and I probably will...
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
Take them down. Not only does it prevent theft, it also prevents weakening of the stand by rust, strap rot, and squirrel damage. It only takes a couple minutes to drop a stand and rehang it the next season..

Personally I don't pre-hang stands. I have my muddy sticks that I take in and out with me every time. And all my stands are in a pile at the house. I will pack one in, hang it, hunt it, and pack my sticks out leaving the stand.... I may come back and hunt it some here and there. But if i want to hunt another spot i pack in another stand. Leave it and hunt it later... I feel this not only lets me be mobile. but very flexible to changing patterns. Once it gets a bit warmer here in few weeks i will go pull them all.