I've built a lot of deer stands over the decades; all most too many to count. In the early years it was a simple matter to pick-out an appropriate tree that could accommodate a home-built platform with a railing or a manufactured stand you could hang from the tree trunk. If you chose to construct something out of lumber that was harder and required near constant attention to repairs as trees move with the wind and those platforms eventually become unstable or dangerous without inspection and repair.
All of that ended with the arrival of the ash borer. Because mature ash trees, with their straight, strong and tall trunks are near ideal for mounting a deer stand; everything around here is dead or dying and not longer suitable for use.
So about ten years ago I commenced-upon a plan to gradually construct free-standing towers fashioned from pressure-treated lumber to replace those that had been in trees and to supplement four additional metal factory-built stands.
At last count, and including this stand, there have been added eight wooden towers supplementing three metal stands. The oldest metal stand was replaced by the newest wooden tower a couple weeks ago.
This location is a really hot spot as the existing stand enjoys views south and west of several hundred yards in length. So effective is the deer hunting here that this stand is named The Stand of Death. Lately, dark humor extends that term to anyone bold enough to hunt from a slowly deteriorating stand. Hunt from it at your own peril.
I purchased that metal tower 30 + years ago from Fleet Farm. It's rusty, corroded and pretty rickety. It is basically unsafe. Furthermore when you look at it you can see that it's difficult to enter and egress, especially in cold weather when you have to wear bulkier outerwear and heavy boots. And there's no space to stand-up (safely) and stretch. The replacement is gonna be luxurious.
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Having performed most of the preassembly work myself there is a certain amount of muscle memory and record-keeping to guide the purchase of hardware and lumber for the project. Nevertheless, every time we embark on this there is always a return trip to town for something that we missed or additional needed hardware. If you've ever constructed a deck you would understand the process. With the exception of concrete footings it's similar.
Most of the work begins under the lean-to on the barn; a handy place as it's protected from the elements, has power, storage space and a deck that allows sawdust and debris to disappear.
The latest iteration of tower stands features a 4X4 foot footprint fitted with rails bolted to the perimeter joists and the attachment of manufactured brackets that allow fitting the platform to four legs.
Most everything is preassembled along with additional parts cut, numbered and lettered for final assembly in the field. Ladder, legs and additional lumber in the pick-up truck. Base and tools in the mule.
The tower is then slowly winched into an upright position, positioned and leveled by hand by means of human muscle.
And then further braced, blocked, a ladder and additional guards against fall added to the upper deck.
This stand presently is furnished with a camo-painted cafeteria chair; however, a swiveling pedestal boat seat will eventually be permanently installed.
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