Hunting on the cheap?

[JPH]

Let's face it, being a hunter is not easy on the old budget and it is getting worse. I could run down the litnay of things that are breaking our banks, but we all know what they are.[:@]
 
I would like to start a thread where we can share our best cost saving secrets with one another. I have a feeling I am going to need some help.
 
Here's one of mine:
 
Archery range finder at no extra cost!
1.Take your compact binoculars out to the archery range with you.
2.Put a dot of white paint on the frame of the binos, right next to the focus wheel.
3.Focus on an object at the exact point of your closest sight pin (in my case it is my red, 20 yd. pin).
4. Put a small dab of red paint on the wheel, across from the white dot.
5. Focus on an object at the exact point of your next pin (mine is the green, 30 yd. pin).
6. Put a small dab of green paint on the wheel, across from the white dot.
7. Once in the stand, you can focus on landmarks and identify what pin to use for a deer at that range.
 
Okay, your turn.

[Sailfish]

Wow thats creative for sure.
 
Is there a +/- factor with that method? Or is it pretty dead on?

[JPH]

ORIGINAL: Sailfish

Wow thats creative for sure.

Is there a +/- factor with that method? Or is it pretty dead on?

 
At those ranges, it is pretty much fool proof. I will pick a stump and bring it into perfect focus, then look to see how close it is to my dots. For example; if it is between the red and green, I know it is about 25 yds. away. I would use my red pin.

[adirondackhunter]

Saving money on equipment is easy: learn to estimate yardage,learn to imitate deer sounds,learn to read a maps,use a compass,pay attention to your surrondings when walking in the woods.Remember the sun rises in the east and it sets in the west( you can use this common sense so you don't walk in circles).Let me see i just saved on a range finder,gps ,some deer calls.You still might want a grunt call that can go farther than your personal grunt call.Depending on where you hunt learn to look at the peaks of mountains to go in a straight line or to know where you want to get back to the road.Not only are you saving money but you are carrying alot less weight.When i mention "you" i use it as a general  term it's not intended for anyone specific [:)]

[adirondackhunter]

P.S. Leave the atv home and walk, save on gas and get some good excerise[:D]

[Woods Walker]

ORIGINAL: adirondackhunter

P.S. Leave the atv home and walk, save on gas and get some good excerise[:D]

 
HERE, HERE!!!  Don't buy one in the first place!
 
I've never understood someone who's physically sound, and hunting in an area where you are rarely more than a 1/2 mile from a road or lane, having to use yet another expensive, polluting toy. 
 
If you are a waterfowl hunter who has large, bulky quantities of decoys and such to haul I can understand it. But really, for farmlot DEER hunting?
 
And I know of several guys who own them, and yet also spend $$$ going to a HEALTH CLUB so they can get more exercise!
 
WALK, for heaven's sake!! That's why the Good Lord gave you legs and feet!

[Woods Walker]

I wait until the hunting clothes start appearing on the close out racks at Gander Mt., Bass Pro's, and the like. I've scored on several Woolrich washable wool hunting shirts that normally sell for $65.00 for less than $20.00.
 
I will go cheap-o on just about everything hunt-wise EXCEPT for:
 
Optics of ANY kind.
 
Footgear (if your feet hurt you're finished!)
 
AMMO.....this would be gun OR bow. Afterall, the bullet/arrow is the only personal contact you have with your prey until you gut him.
 

[oneshot 1]

My wife makes my Camo.
 
oneshot

[Squirrelhawker]

Baking soda rather than expensive hunting deodorizers
 
I buy camo based on application and price instead of the latest trendy pattern. I also tend to buy uninsulated shells so I can layer with the weather and get more use out of a set.
 
Peroxide is the only blood trailing aid I might use, and rarely at that.
 
We butcher our own deer.
 
 

[JPH]

If you are not a believer in carbon lined clothing for scent control skip this one.
 
Army surplus chem. warfare suits are far cheaper than Scent Lok or simmilar commercial garments. They are becoming harder to find, but still show up in surplus stores and catalogues. i have warn them and found them to be as, if not more, effective. The only disadvantage is that they are not always easy to wear and can be very hot.
 
I finally found a thin, Scent Lok top and bottom on close-out and I now wear them as my top layer instead of the surplus stuff.