UV Killer

[Squirrelhawker]

ORIGINAL: drdaven

As it relates to the UV reflection, I would agree that I have rarely had a deer "pick me off" when not moving, but turkeys and geese on the other hand.

I once had a small flock of Toms bust me from 60 yards when I was sitting in a treestand.  The funny thing was, I did not have a license and I saw them coming from well over a 100 yards.  I am sitting stone solid but when they hit an opening, they busted me.  I had no foreground cover but had a cluster of large trunked trees to my back.  Same trail, this time deer, never even batted an eyelash.

I bought some of the UV Killer, applied it and a week later had an entire flock of birds literally all around my stand.  Not so much as a putt.

Coincidence, I think not!  Same time, same year, same untreated camo but this time goose hunting.  Early season, opening day (dumb birds), well scouted field.  First group coming in, start to set their landing gear down only to flare at 100 yardsish.   My partner accuses me of moving, but I hadn't.  The next week, wiser birds, similiar setup, birds came right to the decoys, game over.

I am sold!  At least with the birds UV vision.

 
I hear you. But we also have to consider that a birds eye and visual acuity is much different from a ruminants just in terms of ability to pick out sharpness, contrast, color and most sensitive: depth perception. Your getting busted may not have anything to do with the infrared spectrum. Birds are entirely visual creatures. No real sense of smell, and hearing varies among species. It was most likely the set-up,  your camo color, type of background,etc. I have not used any infrared killer in over a decade and while sitting atop a tripod stand on the edge of some brush, literally right out in the open, I not only had a flock of turkey loaf around for an hour around me, but some of them bedded and dozed practically under the stand. Naturally turkey opens this saturday. [8|]

[drdaven]

Squirrel,

I would agree with you in that it could have been the set up.  Only problem is, I have been at this for quite awhile.  Usually pretty particular with our set ups and concealment.  Would like to think that we didn't screw up THAT bad.  However, the camo was new camo and after applying the UV Killer the problems were resolved. 

I would have to agree with many of the posts with regards to manufacturers labeling their products susceptibility to UV enhanced materials used.  Also, the detergents.  Those that are not labeled specifically for UV killing....do they use dye enhancers??  Would be nice to know for sure before purchasing.

[Squirrelhawker]

ORIGINAL: drdaven

Squirrel,

I would agree with you in that it could have been the set up.  Only problem is, I have been at this for quite awhile.  Usually pretty particular with our set ups and concealment.  Would like to think that we didn't screw up THAT bad.  However, the camo was new camo and after applying the UV Killer the problems were resolved. 

I would have to agree with many of the posts with regards to manufacturers labeling their products susceptibility to UV enhanced materials used.  Also, the detergents.  Those that are not labeled specifically for UV killing....do they use dye enhancers??  Would be nice to know for sure before purchasing.

 
Not sure. I guess with me it is a moot point anyway, since I stopped using the products long ago and at the same time stopped using any detergent to wash camos in at all. My usual routine is a pound or two of baking soda in the washer on the longest setting, then air drying.

[buckhunter21]

ORIGINAL: ranwin33

That would be true, but most over the counter commercial laundry detergents, scent free or otherwise, do have UV enhancers and brightners in them.  I wouldn't mind getting a list of those that don't if you have one.

 
Are you talking just regular laundry detergents, or ones that are made for washing hunting clothes in?  I believe mine is hunter's specialties and it says right on the container 'contains no uv brighteners.' 

[buckhunter21]

...I should also add that it also takes out the UV brighteners in the clothing as well.

[shaman]

If you want the real skinny on all this UV-suppressant stuff, you can go to my weblog

The shaman's weblog

and do a search on keywords like "atsko" "UV-Killer"  "elephant repellent" "useless" and so on.  I had several posts last Fall , all the way into December.  I can't fully express my feelings about this product in this venue, but the weblog has it all. 

Let me know if the links to the pictures are not working-- I took a lot during the tests.

As to the whole idea of this being a washing ritual, my answer is yes. Sure, go ahead. Have a ball! As the guy who runs around here with an antler headdress and a rattle, who am I to poke fun.  I just think you can get the practical side of it done with baking soda and some common sense.  UV-suppression on its face is goofy. 

ooops.  Gotta go.  OT just came up the road and wants to chat.

[shaman]

OT showed up to chat.  I thought we were going to lose OT over the summer.  His lungs are going, and he's just not getting around like he used to.  He turned 79 a few weeks ago.  I hadn't seen him in a while.  He missed turkey season this year-- most of the time he was in the hospital.  However, I'm glad to see him doing as well as he's ever been. 

If you're around reading my stuff, you'll know I write a lot about OT, the old turkey hunter that runs the mower shop as well as OD, the old deer hunter that lives up the road.  They're all part of the same clan somehow, and I know they're all vaguely related to my wife, KYHillChick, but then most of Kentucky is in one way or another.

OT was showing up for his letter of permission to hunt grouse. 

What was I saying?  Oh yeah, this UV-suppression hooey.  Look, I've been walking around during deer season for decades in an alleged UV-Radioactive poncho and hat.  Out of all those tests that Atsko had me do, one thing is sure: if you put my hunter orange poncho under a black light, it's bright enough to read a book off of.  On the other hand, I've had big bucks come in that were completely oblivious to me.  If they can't see a 4X6 piece of eye-sore bright hunter orange they're not going to worry about a little bit of alleged glow or a little streak of zinc-oxide in your Mossy Oak pattern.  As to the general glow induced by detergents, all I can say is that at the normal times we see deer, dusk and dawn there is no UV bouncing around to reflect.  When UV IS around, midday and thereabouts, the deer are normally holed up.  Furthermore, let's say you're down on the ground and wearing your alleged UV- infested camo and you're stalking deer-- the worse case scenario.  What makes your glow any different from a bit of dappled sunlight if these deer can see UV so much better?

Let's just say we take some of y'all's  idea that it it's just safe to go ahead and do it.  What if I started buying booths at outdoor shows and started telling you that deer could sense your telepathic thoughts and that you needed an aluminum foil coated baseball cap to shield your thoughts  from scaring the deer.  Would you pay $14.99 just to be safe?    What if I paid for advertising and endorsements on TV?  At what point would you buy the hat?  This isn't something you can necessarily prove.  All they've shown is that deer might have sensitivity to the UV range-- not that it particularly affects hunting.  Remember too that the dyes and all that are fluorescing in the VISIBLE range, not the UV range, otherwise you wouldn't be seeing the dang glow.    Some things are like that: you hit them with one wavelength and they  fluoresce in another.  This right there might be  a hint that something is up.  All their pictures, all their tests all there marketing is supposed to show glowing, but it's glowing YOU can see.

When somebody comes back with REAL experimental data that shows that UV-inhibition actually improves hunting success, I'll be the first to repent.  So far it's all been supposition, and extrapolation, and . . . and . . . elephant repellent.  In the meanwhile, I'll be in my day-glo orange clown suit . You'll know where to find me: look for the orange glow on the horizon.

[shadow]

Its been a year, and I haven't used the uv killer on any of my hunting clothes, including a new set I bought this summer and used on my first hunt of the season.
 
Come to think of it maybe thats the reason I didn't shoot a deer. Well maybe not....it was because I was sitting in a tree with alot of background cover to hide me. As well as being scent free. Even though the deer looked in my direction they didn't spot me.  I just didn't want to take a shot. Oh well, so much for the my clothes glowing.
 
I'm in the tree of this photo.