Hunting on the cheap?

[Squirrelhawker]

ORIGINAL: 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.

 
I have used them off and on for years. They're cheap and heavy duty. They are a little on the heavy side though. I actually bought them first as a cheap camo alternative. The pants actually make a passable pair of brushpants for rabbit hunting.

[ScootD]

One thing that will save you money on almost everything that you can use in the field is Sportsmansguide.com. They have a lot of good clothes, ammo, scent eliminators, cover scents, etc. Anything that you can think of that is a lot more expensive at a top end hunting store is a heck of a lot cheaper on this website. Also if you sign up for their catalouge (which is free) they will send you whichever one you want.
 
 
I just ordered a bunch of hunting clothes from this site and spent a reasonable amount of money on everything that I got was the essentials for hunting in any kind of weather. Just to let you know, I got a pair of Dickies coveralls, a Dickies coat, a pair of Dickies pants, a pack of 2 cotton long sleeved t-shirts, a 2 pack of cotton sweatshirts, and a hunter safety vest for when I am bow hunting. All of this stuff only cost me $164, and when I priced it at all the other places it would have cost me twice as much. That price also includes shipping.
 
 
I don't know if any of you can consider this a deal but for me getting all of my own hunting gear, I have been using my brother-in-laws fiancee's late fathers gear, so I decided it was time for my own stuff. The thing I found that was the best was the price for quality made clothing especially for hunting in cold weather. You never know when the weather could go from about 40 degrees to about 10 below. Anyway I just thought I would share that info with all of you. Now don't think I work for them or anything I was just letting everyone that doesn't know about this site that they have great deals on quality items.
 
 
Good luck and safe hunting to all!!!

[JPH]

Right on ScootD! I use several of those discount places. cheaperthandirt.com is one of my favorites as well. They seem to have a little better surplus selection than Sportsman's Guide, but I use them both.
 
And yes, getting your own gear is a big step! I don't know what it is, but there is something special about moving on from hand-me-downs. Makes you feel like you have more ownership, I guess.
 
But just wait, in a few years you'll cherrish those things that were given to you when first started. I still use some of that stuff b/c it makes me feel connected tothe past.

[Woods Walker]

ORIGINAL: JPH

Right on ScootD! I use several of those discount places. cheaperthandirt.com is one of my favorites as well. They seem to have a little better surplus selection than Sportsman's Guide, but I use them both.

And yes, getting your own gear is a big step! I don't know what it is, but there is something special about moving on from hand-me-downs. Makes you feel like you have more ownership, I guess.

But just wait, in a few years you'll cherrish those things that were given to you when first started. I still use some of that stuff b/c it makes me feel connected tothe past.

 
You've got that right!  15 years ago a very good old hunting friend I had who was 22 years my senior, died suddenly only one year into his retirement. He did get to spend an entire duck/deer season in his camp on the upper Mississippi like he'd dreamed about all his life.
 
Anyway, none of his children or his grandkids had any interest in hunting, so his widow asked all of us that hunted with him if we'd have a garage sale and get rid of all his stuff. Being primarily a duck/goose hunter, he had a LOT of stuff! (The guns were sold through a licensed gun dealer.)  I wound up with about a dozen of his things; ammo boxes, some old calls, shooting stool, and one of his Buck sheath knives. I still use many of these items, and I feel like old George is present whenever I go afield!

[Robert Rowland]

Put my wife in charge of your money.
 

[RNC]

I use to use SportsmanGuide alot, I live within 5 miles of their warehouse in S. St Paul MN. unfortunately it seems that the quality of the bulk of their merchandise has gone down alot in the last several years. For a long time we used a camo pattern called TimberGhost and the guide was about the only place that had it. Well when it was time to replace some of it when it got to small I went back to the guide, the price was about the same but the material was just about transparant.
 
Other then that I do whatever I can to try and keep the costs down. I wait for items to clearance out at the end of season, use used gear, use my 3d target as a decoy, try to replace my camo in a cycle so I dont get stuck buying all new stuff at one time. instead of getting a brand name scent control container I got a big plastic tub with a lid to  store my camo. I then take an old pair of nylons (wash them with my hunting clothes) and fill them with leaves/dirt/acorns and other natural material from the area I hunt and then throw the filled nylon in the container. I also put used Fresh Earth and White Oak Acorn secnt waffers in the container. 

[Goose]

Put my wife in charge of your money.

 
That always works aint it!!!

[Robert Rowland]

Sometimes I have to be a little sneaky. I just bought a new spotting scope and a ground blind that she doesn't know about yet. I had to use stipend money from work that she does'nt know about.

[kellory]

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.

This is an excellent idea. and one I will be employing this season.

[Dan Salmon]

I've moved away from camouflage altogether. Most of the time now I'm using drab earth tone colors.

I have also moved back to wool, synthetic wonder fibers have only seemed to stink quicker for me. I find myself searching army surplus online a lot now days.

The wool glove liners are worth every penny of the $3-$5 price per pair. Lots and lots of times I've wrung out the water in them, placed them back on and my hands were toasty warm.

Have also moved back to the old standards as far as rifle cartridges go. Have had my share of wizzums, but have moved back to the .30 WCF, .30-06 Springfield and the .35 Remington.

Will still pay top dollar for glass & boots like others have stated. Although I have found that I don't need the fancy insulated boots any longer due to the use of wool for the entire body. A warm body core goes a long way toward keeping the extremities toasty warn too.

As far as stands go, I've moved away from tree stands to home made ground blinds and still hunting. Blinds I make much like a ghille suit, roll up and clip to my pack and deploy wherever I may end up that particular day.

The one thing I am still searching for is a lightweight, adjustable, portable, comfortable, seat that will allow sitting tight up to the backs of trees. May end up trying to invent what I'm looking for this summer.