Feeders.

As far as coons and other corn eaters go, it doesn't matter what feeder you use. One thing you will get is coon doing circus acts on your feeders.

If you are going to make your own, I see Walmart carrying batteries and parts often after the gun seasons for a cheap price.

I am partial to gravity feeders. Sure you go through more feed, but you don't have to worry about batteries dying on you, clogging, etc. I personally like On-time's buckeye feeders. I've been using the same ones now for 6-7 years and they are still going strong.

I've been feeding more this year since my neighbor found a place to buy corn for $6.75 a bag, but you have to use your own bags. Anywhere else it is $9-10 a bag. I am putting out another 450# Sunday for next weeks shotgun weekend.

Jesse said:

I gravity fed through a Moultrie feeder I converted a few years ago and it is just TOO expensive to feed like that. I have fed on the ground for years and it TOO is expensive, but I like knowing there is always food there for them. When it comes to feeders, I own two of these...

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Moultrie-Feeders-Pro-Hunter-Tripod-Feeder-With-Timer/5173108

Best value on the market IMO...

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The moultries are best value, but they make one that runs on 2 AA batteries. Saves you from buying 6volts and chargers. We had one that ran almost a whole year on the same lithium batteries...

I think this is the one. Guess it is 4 AA. $79.99
http://www.moultriefeeders.com/productdetail.aspx?id=mfh-at30b

I have two Moultrie ez fills and one Moutrie Prohunter. I have had no issues with them. I can load the ezfills from the ground I have to stand in the back of my UTV to fill the Prohunter.

They run on 6v battery and I get well in excess of 6 months on one battery.

6 programmable times and they through around 4-1/2 pds of corn on a 20 sec run time. I run 2 times per day and get around 20 days between fills.

Both are great values for dependable feeders.

I am picking up soybeans this week to start a 50/50 mix with the corn. Not 100% sure how the feeders will work with the beans but they should work OK.

Some of the ones the guys make around here are PVC feeders using 8" pvc. They put the "Y" about 3' off the ground to help keep the "other critters" away from the food. You can rack up quite a bit of money in those, but they last forever.

I think mine is a wildview, got it a tsc. It has allways worked well for me. it has i think 4 programable on times and you are able to set how llong it will run and how far it will throw the corn. It was less than $100. i have also played around with pvc like gern said, but i was filling it every couple days, timed feeders are the way to go. less corn use same amount of deer.

I use the EZ Fill, but never even put a battery in it any more. I removed the varmint guard (useless anyways) and just let the squirrels, coons, birds and deer help themselves. I fill it with 200 lbs of shelled corn and it usually lasts 8-10 weeks. Every time I check it there is plenty of corn around it.

I put a feeder out once in a spot I had just been dumping the corn on the ground. Had bucks coming to the pile on a regular basis at night. After the feeder was up and running never had a single buck come back to it for the month the feeder was there. Took the feeder out and they came back...

I occasionally get plastic 35 gallon drums from work, and have been wanting to build a few feeders with them. What would be the best electronic feeder to add to it? I've been looking at the moultrie stuff, but just don't know what is the better buy.

JD Boyd said:

I put a feeder out once in a spot I had just been dumping the corn on the ground. Had bucks coming to the pile on a regular basis at night. After the feeder was up and running never had a single buck come back to it for the month the feeder was there. Took the feeder out and they came back...

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I guess how well they adapt to a feeder will depend on the deer and location and I think it can vary even by location within the same farm.

Beentown, you can program run lengths of 0-20 secs for each of the 6 feed time settings on those Moultries.

I'll let you know how the beans work out, I would rather feed something that is more beneficial to the deer than corn.

I feed at 10 AM and 3 PM and there is never a kernel of corn left by morning. between the deer, turkeys, birds, and coons they clean it up. I have had great success using a Purina Deer Block at each feeder. There is always a snack available even if the corn from the feeder has been eaten. The bucks really seem to like the blocks.

I had one area on the farm where the bucks were not very receptive to a feeder being put up where they were used to finding food on the ground. However I have only found that in one location so far and it may not repeat if I put one back there again.

I put up a new feeder in November (date wrong in pic) in an area that I had never fed in any manner. The very first night I had a buck at the feeder. From the pics it took him almost 2 hrs to actually commit to come close enough to eat some corn. He then became a regular, even during daylight hrs. I had at least 8 different bucks on that feeder within a week, including the picture of the 10 that was mating the doe. It sure didn't take them long to accept that feeder in that area.

This was the first night in an area where I know these deer have never seen a feeder in their lives.