Hi people.

Preparations for the roe seasons is well under way and I just finnished building my hunting tower/three stand, between two pines. I also cut down the bushes etc in two broad lanes on both sides. I hope I'm right with the place, I think it is directly over a well used path.

Gonna post some pictures as soon as it all done.

Have to get over to the range and take the shoting test, so I'm ready until .10 of august when buck season starts.

Anyone have any advise for shoting from a stand, it something like 4 meters over ground. Might get roe staight under me. Any angles to consider? I use a 308win, lapua mega 185grain. Sightet in 5 cm high on 100m.

Johan

Hi .308,

4 meters is a decent height for a highseat. Just make sure it is very stable. I once sat in a highseat with strong winds - impossible to get a clean shot!

Concerning the shooting angle: Just measure the distance between the center of your scope's objective and the center of your barrel.

That's obviously how much your rifle will shoot low at very close distances. We are talking about 5-10m here.

So if you have a roe right under your highseat - aim high to compensate for that low shot! It can be tricky sometimes. Because of the angle there often is not much to shoot at but the bulge of the rib cage or all the way through the spine. Since this will ruin the delicious tenderloins you dont want to be aiming TOO high...

All the best,

elwood.

Maybe I should just set up a target and test it. I plan on doing some shoting from the most imporant angles and distanses. As soon as I'm finnished. Going up to clear the last lane in the bushes today.

I think it's pretty stable, but with real wind the trees will sway!

Did you have some kind of support for the rifle, bench, sticks, etc?

Johan

As long as your shooting pratice does not permanently scare the deer, go for it! A German Hunting Magazine did a test last year. They placed a roe deer decoy only 2 meters away from a highstand and had some unsuspecting contestants take a shot at it. The result was devastating: 30% missed the roe deer completely, 40% would have wounded it and the rest managed to compensate for the close distance and took a fatal shot though through partly through the spine and the precious backstraps...

I never use any other support for my rifle than the rails of the highstand. Sometimes I wrap an insulating tube around the rail as to avoid any noise when placing the gun on it getting ready for the shot.

Good luck,

elwood.

Need to build a rail first. Plan on just having a simple rail and a garden chair to sit in.

Don't think it will scare any deer, it's very close to my home and I do quite a lot of shoting off the back portch.

Johan

don"t make the simple mistake that i did. i left my roe sack on the ground so i could climb more easily and quietly. a doe came trotting along, just in line to come across my front. rather than try to turn in the seat, i let her keep coming from my right(i"m right handed). she froze, sniffed,glared at my sack, and bolted. i"ve seen deer come out on the rides that i"ve walked into the stand from. they can come out grazing until they reach the spot where i walked past. then they become uneasy and just melt back into the trees.
if all goes well, you will have a huge advantage of already being in a good shooting position when the deer do appear.
good luck and good shooting.

I have two tree-stands myself (small plateu on four poles) and did clean up a path for easy and silent approach and shooting lanes as well this weekend.
I love tree-stands.. You get the view, harder for the animals to pick up your scent and you normally get to sit comfortable.. The last thing was always a problem earlier.. And that`s important for my patience on long hours.

My stands are 3 and 5 meters. Haven`t had problems with shooting straight down. I have a good view in most directions and will be able to take the shot earlier. But advice you to test. Normally you don`t need to compensate for angles in practical hunting, but at short distances and this steap angle I woul test it..
Good luck and good hunting! Looking forward to pics.
I might try to post some as well!

These are my stands. Quite comfortable and room for 2.


IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/Othello041990/Mir2.jpg[/IMG]

Holy cow Andre, these things look rather custom-made! Very nice and well camouflaged!

In Germany high-seats more or less all look the same. There is a new law saying that highstands should blend into the countryside as to not disturb the enjoyment of all the treehuggers while they are on their sunday morning walk, letting their dogs roam free, dropping litter all the way and making more noise than a herd of rabid elephants...

By the way, where in Belgium do you live? I regularly visit my cousin in Hannut (halfway between Liege and Brussels at the E40/A3) as well as a friend in Aachen. When in Aachen I always benefit from the lower fuel prices you have in Belgium...

CHeers,

elwood.

As a matter of fact, we're quite proud of our highseats and, true, a lot of work went in them. They're quite comfortable too, even during winter, thanks to the sliding windows to control draught (we might consider adding airco, though ). Note that the pics were made in winter time, come spring and summer and our stands become practically invisible.

Andre,

I notice you use a removable ladder for access in most cases..Is that to reduce your liability if Joe Public were to fall out of one of them?

Regards,

Pete

Sorry Elwood, I forgot to answer part of your Q. I live in the Southern part of Brussels, 1/2 H drive from my hunting lease. BTW, next time you are in Hannut, pay a visit to a nice gunstore, not far from there : Pletsers in Sint-Truiden, "Schuurhovenveld", A.Bewellaan, 4 (= industry zone). He's the Benelux Blaser importer and has 2 shooting ranges under the shop (100 m rifle + cine-shooting on game).

Pete, we bolted (camo) metallic ladders to our stands for the sake of facility as they don't rot. As for "tourists" trespassing on private ground, they get a ticket from our sworn in game warden (the prosecutor's office drops the charges most of the time but the offenders must be heard by local police anyway and we feel this helps as a deterrent).

Andre,

The situation is getting out of hand here in the UK. If a trespasser climbs into one of your stands and he either falls or is injured in some other way, you can be held liable in court.

I am not sure of the exact legal technicalities, but basically it seems that you are required to take "reasonable precautions" to protect people from their own stupidity.

At the very least, its recommended that you fit "Do Not Climb - Authorized Persons Only†signs to the seats. Fearing that is not enough, I know at least one place which is switching to removable ladder sections to demonstrate they have taken the required "reasonable precautions"..

On our ground in Thetford, I have been told that the FC are no longer erecting wooden highseats due in part to the potential liability issues and also because they no longer meet the relevant health and safety regulations...

It seems we are slowly being strangled by red tape and i think its only going to get worse..

Regards

Pete

Great stands Andrè! I might tune mine up a bit as well. They`re pretty standard.. Your`s really blend in.
Do you put in a lot of time on the path to the stand? I mean to make sure it doesn`t contain a lot of twigs and stuff..?

Most stands are accessible via grassland while a few others must be reached by cutting through the woods. Anyway, I always stalk slowly and quietly, watching ahead and, most importantly, keep away from and don't cross known deer trails. It also helps to be on the stand at the very least an hour before action time. One of my friends, lacking patience, doesn't abide by this rule and comes on late. He often blows his chances by bumping into deer already waiting in the edge of the bushes(sometimes longer than 1/2 h) in order to reassure themselves that all is clear in the open. Needless to say, he has the lowest tally of our group...

I like to be early out as well. But if I for one or another reason don`t get there very early I rather wait for it to reach shooting light. If I bump them, I might get the chance if it`s enough light. But best is to be there before they start movin`.. Thanks or your pics and advice Andrè..