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EZ Kut Tree Bolts

Cool, I think you're really going to like this system.

Standing on them is barely any different than tree steps in my opinion. Though if you got standard external hex heads (which is all I can find anywhere), they are a smidge shorter and slightly less comfortable to stand on compared to the allen heads from treehopper. (but it's a very small difference)

The earliest I've prepped is mid-late summer and never had an issue. Those holes last all the way into the end of Winter bow.

I can't say with any certainty but I have a feeling if you prepped in the Spring (which I know a lot of people want to do) the holes would start to grow in a bit and would probably need to be cleaned out again prior to the season. I imagine trees grow the most in the Spring. (but I'm not a "treeologist" lol so that's just a guess)

They definitely grow in year to year though, which I don't mind.


I thought about getting tons of bolts and then taking out a certain number from each tree (say 8-10). That way I could carry only like 8-10 bolts with me all the time instead of 20+ (small weight savings). However, it somewhat defeats why I use bolts.

Some of the reasons I use them is because:
- I never leave anything in the woods for other hunters to see.
- If I don't plan on using a spot again, I never have to go back to retrieve "steps".
- I never have to worry about steps aging (rusting) or growing into the tree.
- I can leave a stand in a tree, pull all the bolts and it's pretty difficult for someone to get up to it (though I rarely use stands or leave them out)
- I can have an unlimited amount of spots but only need to own 20-30 bolts (depending on how high I need to go)
- If I suddenly come across amazing sign and my gut feeling says hunt it, I can quietly drill out a tree and hunt with less effort than tree steps (the hand drill is easier than any step I've ever used even EZY steps). (some methods may beat you up the tree initially in this case, but I'm carrying less with me and I can reuse the tree the rest of that season with basically zero effort.

To me they just make the most sense for the way I hunt.

The climbing rope technique and our idea of "webbing sticks" interest me the most for lands that you can't use these. For now I use LW mini sticks and strap on ameristeps, but there is certainly room for improvement with my "no screw" method. Luckily almost everywhere I hunt, I can use bolts.
 
This set up seems like a great idea. My one question is does anyone know what the long term effect on the trees these holes have? I am just wondering if this is going to cause them to be more open to disease, bugs, etc. I would hate to go on to a property I have permission to hunt and kill the trees I am hunting out of and upset the land owners....
 
Matty said:
Cool, I think you're really going to like this system.

Standing on them is barely any different than tree steps in my opinion. Though if you got standard external hex heads (which is all I can find anywhere), they are a smidge shorter and slightly less comfortable to stand on compared to the allen heads from treehopper. (but it's a very small difference)

The earliest I've prepped is mid-late summer and never had an issue. Those holes last all the way into the end of Winter bow.

I can't say with any certainty but I have a feeling if you prepped in the Spring (which I know a lot of people want to do) the holes would start to grow in a bit and would probably need to be cleaned out again prior to the season. I imagine trees grow the most in the Spring. (but I'm not a "treeologist" lol so that's just a guess)

They definitely grow in year to year though, which I don't mind.


I thought about getting tons of bolts and then taking out a certain number from each tree (say 8-10). That way I could carry only like 8-10 bolts with me all the time instead of 20+ (small weight savings). However, it somewhat defeats why I use bolts.

Some of the reasons I use them is because:
- I never leave anything in the woods for other hunters to see.
- If I don't plan on using a spot again, I never have to go back to retrieve "steps".
- I never have to worry about steps aging (rusting) or growing into the tree.
- I can leave a stand in a tree, pull all the bolts and it's pretty difficult for someone to get up to it (though I rarely use stands or leave them out)
- I can have an unlimited amount of spots but only need to own 20-30 bolts (depending on how high I need to go)
- If I suddenly come across amazing sign and my gut feeling says hunt it, I can quietly drill out a tree and hunt with less effort than tree steps (the hand drill is easier than any step I've ever used even EZY steps). (some methods may beat you up the tree initially in this case, but I'm carrying less with me and I can reuse the tree the rest of that season with basically zero effort.

To me they just make the most sense for the way I hunt.

The climbing rope technique and our idea of "webbing sticks" interest me the most for lands that you can't use these. For now I use LW mini sticks and strap on ameristeps, but there is certainly room for improvement with my "no screw" method. Luckily almost everywhere I hunt, I can use bolts.
Click to expand...

I was standing on my steps yesterday afternoon and I realized how thin the screw ins are, so I'm sure there won't be a problem with comfort for me.

Trees do most of their growing from spring through summer. That is why when you look at the rings in the trunk when you cut it open you can look back over the years and tell how much they grew from year to year depending on the rains.

Thinking more about this.. if I prep trees in the spring and take care of shooting lanes, etc, and then come back in with the hand drill the first time to the tree, it should be a pretty quick job to widen the holes with the hand drill. Thoughts?
 
redsquirrel said:
I was standing on my steps yesterday afternoon and I realized how thin the screw ins are, so I'm sure there won't be a problem with comfort for me.

Trees do most of their growing from spring through summer. That is why when you look at the rings in the trunk when you cut it open you can look back over the years and tell how much they grew from year to year depending on the rains.

Thinking more about this.. if I prep trees in the spring and take care of shooting lanes, etc, and then come back in with the hand drill the first time to the tree, it should be a pretty quick job to widen the holes with the hand drill. Thoughts?
Click to expand...


Most steps are 3/8" rod. So they're the same there, the length isnt the same though. Approximately 2-1/4" of the 6" bolt goes into the tree, so you're left with about 3-3/4" to step on, give or take. Might sound small, but it's plenty.

The head is not included in the 6" so thats what makes the actual treehopper bolts just a smidge better. Their head is slightly longer making them close to 6-1/4" if memory serves and the head is rounded so it's easier on the foot. Rounding the standard heads on a grinder might help. Makes no difference for climbing up though....Im talking about platform comfort.

I dont know measurements of steps off hand but most ive used are a lil longer, some a lot longer. Oddly enough though, I actually trust the bolts more than steps and climbing up the tree is no different.

As for cleaning out the holes, it sounds like a really good idea to do it your way, it just ultimately depends on how much the trees grow. You may have to start from scratch with the holes. When I leave holes at the end of winter bow, they are fully open still. When I return at the middle/end of summer, they are almost always completely sealed up.

However, you could still do what you said....Get your trees trimmed early which is good (use the cordless and you'll fly up the tree with very little effort), then come back and check the holes at the end of summer before the season and see what the holes look like. Bring the cordless and zap out all the holes if you have to. Even if you have to start from scratch, big deal, you already know where the steps have to go, just zap out the holes.

If you want to wait for a hunt and use the hand drill, you can do that too. It's a little more work and you'll probably break a sweat in early season, but just arrive early and take your time. At least once they are cleaned out, they are good to go the rest of that season. So even if you give that spot a break for weeks or months, you just come back in, insert bolts and climb.

I personally just scout after the season closes, get an idea of where I want to be for next year and then wait till about August to go setup spots. I always try to trim as little as possible (but still have good shot opportunities) and I trim so it's difficult for deer/people to see cut stuff. Larger cuts are made flush with the ground and I smear them with mud/dirt or cover with leaves, I stab cut branches and saplings into the ground upright so it looks natural....etc. I also try to make smaller cuts up high with the pole saw to avoid removing complete saplings anyway. Stuff that you guys are probably doing too...I think John covers all that stuff in one of his books. When I read it I knew he was as crazy as me. lol

I have to laugh at how some people clear lanes...I think they use this method around their tree. lol

[youtube]dyWzk31p3lk[/youtube]
 
OMG that guy is nuts!

During some in season scouting this year I did find a guy who cut down a 6 inch diameter tree. And he did it to shoot to his corn pile.... I'm standing there thinking.. why didn't he move his corn pile 6 foot in either direction?? :roll:

Thanks for the good info Matt. I can see why you'd feel more comfortable climbing with the bolts, I assume it is because there is no bend in the metal. I'll see how I like them for the platform. I can always try tinkering if I want :D . I clear my trees like you as well. I try to make a minimal disturbance and keep it from being visible. I also usually try to hunt spots nobody will go! I guess I will just have to see how the holes on the trees I clear out fill in. Either way, having the tree picked out will be a bonus.
 
I'm thinking of combining these bolts with other methods to get "the best of" kinda thing :)

I would/can only use it on my land so I would actually put these in semi-permanently on some trees where I would still use a single climbing stick for the bottom with a climbing aid-loop to keep trespassing "maroons" (Bugs Bunny reference :mrgreen: ) offamachit AND use strap-on Ameristeps or LW Assasin as the platform.

This bolt-thing is inexpensive enough to allow you to do this. I've got at least three trees in mind for this and it most def seems to be the catza$$ for convenience.
 
Alukban,

You won't need to use a stick to keep maroons out of your trees. Why carry a climbing stick when you can carry just 6 or so bolts (lighter, smaller). They don't screw in and out, they just push in and pull out. Takes a second to install each one. Pull the bottom 6 (or more or less) and carry them in and out all the time.

Ameristeps are comfy, and I imagine the assassin is as comfy or moreso than my home made version, so I can see still using them as your platform, I just hate carrying them in and setting them up when I can just pop in bolts.

Just so you guys know too, I just tested some 2x4 "pedals" that I made. They slide on the bolt and are AMAZING compared to just standard bolts and still way better than my "fuel line" covered bolts *which I also just tested! The rubber hose makes a small difference, you can tell it's a little better than uncovered bolts, but the "pedals" are the best thing I've felt yet. Only thing is, they do rotate like a bike pedal, which is awesome for comfort when changing lean angle, but might be scary 20+ feet up... They don't spin around easily but they do rotate.

I haven't tested them at height yet, so maybe that swivel action will be "crap your pants scary". Super simple to make tho....I'll try to add a picture.

I bounced my fat ass on all four of them really hard... No splitting, which I was concerned about. Even if they did split, the bolt is still there, would just give you a scare.

Red, yeah some people are just scratch your head stupid aren't they? lol

And yeah, the bends are part of it. The other is that if you don't get the base of the step fully against the tree, (which sometimes is tough because of tree angle or shape) you're actually leveraging against where it screws in and could tear it out of the tree. (not that it's likely, but it's possible) I've also bought some steps that were so cheaply made I couldn't believe how easily the screw portion bent.
 
You can see a regular treehopper bolt, hose covered bolts and wooden pedal bolts.

Before you try this, please understand I JUST threw these together and only tried them at ground level, but they seem to have a ton of promise. So in case you want to mess around with them, here's what I did.

VERY SIMPLE to make the wooden pedals:

- I inserted a bolt into a tree as I usually do and marked it around with a sharpie.
- I then measured from the front of the bolt head to the sharpie mark. (it was a little under 3-3/4" to the shortest measurement)
- I cut a 45* at the end of a 2x4 on a chop saw. (I also straight cut the sharp end off a bit)
- From the center of that cut side I measured back 3-3/4 and made a straight cut, I completely took away the line to leave a little extra room for differing angles or thick bark.

- Next I marked the center for where the hole needed to go.
- Drilled out a 3/8" hole using the bit that comes with the KREG joinery kit. (pretty similar to the auger bits used for the tree bolts but long

Done. Insert bolt. Insert into tree. Stand in comfort.

I threw these together really fast just as a test...I will probably countersink the bolt heads...and I might even try making these out of plastic.
 

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Matty, excellent idea with the wood blocks. They look like bicycle peddles.
 
Thanks Mike.

Bike pedals were kind of the inspiration and first plan for this. I just wasn't sure how to take apart a bike pedal to remove the shaft and bearings. Finally found a video on youtube and it's easy as pie.

Now I just have to steal some bikes from the kids down the street. lol JUST KIDDING I'll steal them from some other neighborhood. (kidding again of course) :lol:

My next "unknown" is the inside diameter of the pedal. It seems the threads used are 9/16" -20tpi but not sure if the shaft diameter is the same. I guess I won't know the ID of the pedal frame until I get some and take them apart. Once that's done, the next task will be figuring out how to fill any gap for a snug fit on the bolt. My initial thinking is rubber hose, and possibly epoxy, but we'll see.

Now that I know it has promise, it's probably worth buying a set of pedals to tinker with.
 
Matty,

They look especially good for the platform, what type of plastic were you thinking of making them out of? I really like the whole tree hopper bolt system makes a lot of sense to me especially on public ground where you want to be a ghost and leave no trace behind for others to follow. Thanks keep us posted!

Roger
 
Roger I'm honestly not sure.

My friend said he could probably make them out of plastic that he uses at work, similar to the plastic used in Ameristeps. That's about as far as we got so far. lol

The easier way might just be to modify bike pedals, especially if the plastic he has isn't readily available to others that want to do this. So I'll look into both routes.

If for some reason neither pans out, the wood is actually not bad. Doesn't squeak or make noise, didn't split, fits snug, pretty lightweight. I could most certainly live with wood versions. The comfort level is off the charts compared to everything else. Id even say better than my homemade platform. Because these swivel to match the angle of your foot. Some maneuvers around the tree may be more difficult though, I have to spend more time with them.


And yea the bolt system is great for being a ghost. Bolt holes are nearly impossible to see.
 
Matt-- Not sure if this would really be cost effective or not because the amount of material you need to make the mold isn't cheap, but once you have the mold it should last a while. Anyway, you could use this mold/resin to make custom "pedals" and you could make the hole the exact diameter you would need. This stuff is make for rock climbing holds so I trust it to hold me. I have been looking at it for making custom strap on steps, just haven't been able to finish that project yet lol.
http://www.makehandholds.com/index.cfm
 
ADKMtnTrapper said:
This set up seems like a great idea. My one question is does anyone know what the long term effect on the trees these holes have? I am just wondering if this is going to cause them to be more open to disease, bugs, etc. I would hate to go on to a property I have permission to hunt and kill the trees I am hunting out of and upset the land owners....
Click to expand...


Sorry I missed this.

I think this is my 5th year using the bolts and because I don't want to kill trees either, I have kept somewhat of an eye on it. So far I haven't seen the bolts kill any trees.

Of course any time you open up a tree down to the cambium (or something like that) layer....It's a little more vulnerable to disease and bugs. Tree steps, climbing spikes, some stands, etc all do the same thing. They penetrate the bark and leave the tree somewhat vulnerable. Even a Maple Sugar Tap could kill a tree the same way. Hell just nailing a sign on a tree can kill it.

Back about 15 years or so I did end up having a black cherry die after I put tree steps in. Took them out after a year and the tree was fine...Next year I came back to it and it was already dying/dead. BUT, I've used other black cherries for a few years in a row with no problems. They seal up every year just like the rest. Just unfortunate for that tree.

Sometimes, especially if I think I'll never use that tree again, I will jam sticks into the holes when I'm done for the year, filling the entire small hole so that the tree is at least somewhat protected. I have no idea if it helps or if it possibly is even bad for the tree. I just assume that it helps because you're plugging that vulnerable spot. Most of the time I don't do that though.


Red, I had seen you talking about that stuff. My friend also makes stuff with molds and pours plastics (fishing lures mostly). I'll probably exhaust other methods first, but I do like that I can completely build from the ground up with that stuff.
 
Matty said:
Red, I had seen you talking about that stuff. My friend also makes stuff with molds and pours plastics (fishing lures mostly). I'll probably exhaust other methods first, but I do like that I can completely build from the ground up with that stuff.
Click to expand...

Hopefully I'll be able to try it out and let everyone know how it works!
 
I wonder if a bit of putty would seal the holes you want long enough for the tree to heal


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Loving the "Pedal" thing.
Have you weighed the 2x4 pedals?

If you use Bike pedals they are going to cost at least $6 each.
They will have reflectors on them too.

An interesting thing with them though is that they would extend farther out than the bolt but it could cause the Bolts to bend.
 
I know. Being cheap and poor I'm waiting to see a bike getting thrown away so I can pilfer it for the pedals. lol Then I have two free pedals to mess with, break, cut drill, set fire to and destroy. If it works, I'll probably buy decent pedals.

I'm thinking the reflectors are just glued in place or aren't attached all that solidly, can probably pry those little suckers right off. If not, I'll cover the reflector so I don't accidentally blind any squirrels. lol

Sorry, haven't weighed the wood pedals, not sure where my small scale is, but a bolt is slightly heavier than the wood judging by feel. But it's so close I have no idea.

I'm thinking you could get away with two of these for the steps you stand on the most, and then just use the regular bolts for all the other platform steps. As long as you have the direction you want to face figured out, you really only need two. You can even 180 from that position and still be on the blocks.

I did think about the bolts bending since the pedal adds leverage to your weight. The wood steps are a tad longer than the bolts too though and didn't seem to have any effect. I bounced like crazy on them. Could probably even sacrifice a bolt and block/pedal to test with a winch or tow strap and the big ol' diesel truck. Just hope I don't tear the tree out of the ground. lol

I need to go hunting so I can put the wood blocks to the test.
 
Ive got a pick of the pedals I use somewhere on the forum. Just take a pair of bolt cutters and go thru the center of it. The bolt will fall out both ends. The tree hopper bolt fits them perfectly.

Ive got trees Ive drilled for years without any issue. Only one I ever killed was a small Cottonwood. The forest will make more.
 
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