John Eberharts Scent Control

[Islandshooter]

So scent control minimizes the amount of scent the deer smell? Does that mean smaller people have a natural advantage?

I broke off a stick one time and tried to throw it in a big hole about 12yds from my tree. It landed on the edge, not in the hole. Minutes later a buck comes in and everything is going fine as he walks towards the pinch that hole created. He gets within feet of that stick and wheels out like he was kicked in the rump. He didnt smell 6'2" human, he smelled a little bit of human on a 10" stick. Hmmm wonder why he didn't think I was further away?

When I was first bow hunting, I shot underneath a doe. She jumped but didn't blow or run. The other doe with her eventually got to the arrow (I'm crosswind) and it was like an electric shock when she smelled human on the arrow!!

 

[kenn1320]

When I was first bow hunting, I shot underneath a doe. She jumped but didn't blow or run. The other doe with her eventually got to the arrow (I'm crosswind) and it was like an electric shock when she smelled human on the arrow!!

Right, I had same reaction to a stick I handed and threw down. It was small amount of scent, why didn't the deer think I was further away?

 

[Bwhana]

I converted from a scent freak to play the wind guy just last year. Everything works some of the time. I first want to give full props to John E. for the effort and diligence it takes to do what he does. 99% of the so called scent control hunters say they follow the principles, but only do them partially, so when they are successful, it is not the scent control that really worked in their case. You cannot do it partially, it is all or nothing. It is a lot of work to do it right, which brings me to the reason I quit and moved to the play the wind side of the fence.

The scent control freak mode worked to a t in my midwest hunts - all of them. I have had many deer less than 3 yds away downwind on the ground with a ghillie up north. But here in the south, I never get by with what works for me up there. The deer here are truly a different breed and if you only follow scent control and do not play the wind, you will lose every time. You could argue that it is coincidence, but for my 40+ years, it has played true 100%. I just quit the scent control here since it is such an effort and I still have to play the wind, not worth the time when it didn't help.

Keep debating. It makes for fun reading and the scent control product sales keep people employed somewhere!

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[Kurt]

Ozone is the game changer. If they work as well as I think they do or....will as time goes on. But, I know.....repeat KNOW that a deer upwind will not smell me and I've learned that watching my entrance also is big. We cannot say 100 percent about anything else yet. If you use woodsmanship like great hunters of old as well as new technology....i.e. scentlok and ozone we should be able to be better at harvesting animals. Let's not get carried away....its about having fun.....ain't it?

It is most definitely about having fun.

 

[Country]

I follow his regimen pretty darn closely and play the wind and I have been busted several times and I’m pretty certain it was by being winded.


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Double "like"

 

[Nick Grider]

N

Food for thought. Officers tell me they tried putting drugs in containers or wrapping it, then into containers. Nothing works because the scent is always falling and contaminates the outside of the container. That being said humans are constantly shedding scent. You are contaminating your clothes on the outside just putting them on and walking to your stand unless your head and face are covered and you somehow held your breath.

Officers also test these products when they hit the market just to make sure that they don’t work. It’s a real concern for them.

 

[ImThere]

Please forgive the overreach of especially for John......you are correct in that all need respect. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

It’s all good man I was just saying that everybody needs shown respect here At saddle Hunter that’s what this site is known for


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[Nutterbuster]

N


Officers also test these products when they hit the market just to make sure that they don’t work. It’s a real concern for them.

But if they did work, why would law enforcement admit it? Would they acknowledge that a K9 couldn't sniff out your dope? Seems disingenuous. History has shown that authorities will maintain the effectiveness of their tactics until definitively and publicly proved otherwise.

 

[GCTerpfan]

But if they did work, why would law enforcement admit it? Would they acknowledge that a K9 couldn't sniff out your dope? Seems disingenuous. History has shown that authorities will maintain the effectiveness of their tactics until definitively and publicly proved otherwise.

Probably not. I saw someone above reference the Meat Eater podcast and them talking about the police tests. That poster said the meat eater crew said the tests showed the products didn't work. That's not exactly true and is misrepresenting what they said. (Not that I put a lot of faith in the studies or the meat eater crews interpretation of them, I just wanted to clarify the record) Rinella said that some of the test showed that the products delayed the dogs ability to find the product for 30-40 seconds. Rinella viewed this as a positive, his point was 30-40 seconds is an eternity when trying to get a shot at a deer. It very easily could be the difference between you getting a shot off and the deer busting out of there before you do.

 

[Allegheny Tom]

Probably not. I saw someone above reference the Meat Eater podcast and them talking about the police tests. That poster said the meat eater crew said the tests showed the products didn't work. That's not exactly true and is misrepresenting what they said. (Not that I put a lot of faith in the studies or the meat eater crews interpretation of them, I just wanted to clarify the record) Rinella said that some of the test showed that the products delayed the dogs ability to find the product for 30-40 seconds. Rinella viewed this as a positive, his point was 30-40 seconds is an eternity when trying to get a shot at a deer. It very easily could be the difference between you getting a shot off and the deer busting out of there before you do.

^^^^This.
Whether something "works" or not is relative. If it works for only 10 seconds or for only 1 deer or 1 encounter, it can mean the difference between a full freezer and head on the wall or stories and tag soup.

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[redsquirrel]

^^^^This.
Whether something "works" or not is relative. If it works for only 10 seconds or for only 1 deer or 1 encounter, it can mean the difference between a full freezer and head on the wall or stories and tag soup.

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I fully believe this. I've had 2 bucks that I can think of off the top of my head on hot sweaty days that figured out something was going on while they were almost under my tree. They only bounced off 10-20 yards and stopped to try to figure out what they had detected. Both of them took an arrow to the lungs before they could figure it out.

As I've said before, these are my experiences and it is all anecdotal. My scent control system works for me and I don't care how anyone else hunts.

 

[Adrena123]

Whether you believe in carbon technology or not , i highly suggest trying the savanna coverall by scentlok. Besides the comfort and mobility. The built in waist belt and hooded face mask are great features. It really makes me feel like a NINJA. I mean who doesn't want to feel like a BADDASS NINJA!?!?!

 

[Nick Grider]

Probably not. I saw someone above reference the Meat Eater podcast and them talking about the police tests. That poster said the meat eater crew said the tests showed the products didn't work. That's not exactly true and is misrepresenting what they said. (Not that I put a lot of faith in the studies or the meat eater crews interpretation of them, I just wanted to clarify the record) Rinella said that some of the test showed that the products delayed the dogs ability to find the product for 30-40 seconds. Rinella viewed this as a positive, his point was 30-40 seconds is an eternity when trying to get a shot at a deer. It very easily could be the difference between you getting a shot off and the deer busting out of there before you do.

In the same tests, some dogs found them faster than without the products. The K-9 units said it depended on the dog.

 

[Allegheny Tom]

In the same tests, some dogs found them faster than without the products. The K-9 units said it depended on the dog.

I don't doubt that one bit. That's why painting deer behavior with too broad of a brush is a mistake. For me, just because 8 out of 10 deer react adversely to a given level of odor doesn't stop me from preparing for the other 2 out of 10.
Something else...analyzing K9 behavior when they detect, whatever it is they are trained for, is as much in the hands of the handler as the dog. The dog's reaction is often highly subtle. It takes a trained handler to interpret it. How often does that happen with deer? Just because a deer's reaction isn't foot stomping, snorting, or full blown panic, doesn't mean they didn't detect us. Reactions are sometimes no more than an ear twitch or the slightest flair of the tail. A lot of hunters have no idea what they've just witnessed, but the other deer know exactly what they saw another deer do.
My best hope is no reaction. My next best hope is a reaction that's mild enough to give me time for the shot.

 

[Kurt]

I’ve been using ozone this year and it has shown considerable proof. I live in central WV where everybody hunts. I’ve noticed different areas of deer you just can’t get away with a drop of human odor. I noticed in these areas the mature deer key off on where your rubber boots hit the ground. What is the answer for that?( other than a good entry)

I don't think there is an answer for that. Luck maybe. We don't control where the deer always come from. I read an article on patterning deer that said " at best on any given deer we only hope to narrow down their behavior and travel patterns. I agree. I know one thing for certain, nothing in nature is certain except death. I'm an odds guy. I'm just looking for a little advantage. Pee in a bottle, elevated hunting position, my attempts at scent control, playing the wind, access routes, crepuscular hunting patterns, that kind of stuff, and of course reading ,and talking to other folks with hunting experience. Oh, and a ton of luck. IMO

 

[Nutterbuster]

I Oh, and a ton of luck. IMO

Amen! I'll take being a lucky bastard hunting prime land with lots of big deer on it over being a "hardcore" public-lander any day.

60 seconds scrolling through my Facebook feed reminds me that the key to killing big deer is living and hunting where big deer are.

 

[kenn1320]

Amen! I'll take being a lucky bastard hunting prime land with lots of big deer on it over being a "hardcore" public-lander any day.

60 seconds scrolling through my Facebook feed reminds me that the key to killing big deer is living and hunting where big deer are.

The land is not created equal, preach it brother. I grew up hunting the thumb of MI and if you didnt get your deer by 9am Nov 16(second day of gun for you non residents) you werent going to see one, let alone get one. There was always the hail marry hope of familys driving deer on Thanksgiving day that might push one to your wood lot(and hope they didnt trespass and drive your woods. Its crazy to hear friends in other parts of MI saying they see deer all gun season, even small bucks. We always wondered why the season was 2wks long. lol

 

[Kurt]

Right, I had same reaction to a stick I handed and threw down. It was small amount of scent, why didn't the deer think I was further away?

I think it has to do more about concentrations. The stick had a high concentration, ie, freshly handled. Scent concentrations diminish over time, therefore are less concentrated. I think deer know how fresh scent is by its concentration on a molecular level. If you wear a shirt one day it will have a certain amount of scent, wear it two days in a row( you get my drift). If you wash that shirt properly we're right back to square one. Now if you just hung that shirt out to air out, over time the scent that you initially deposited on that shirt would dissipate and at some time it would again be scent free.

 

[kenn1320]

I think it has to do more about concentrations. The stick had a high concentration, ie, freshly handled. Scent concentrations diminish over time, therefore are less concentrated. I think deer know how fresh scent is by its concentration on a molecular level. If you wear a shirt one day it will have a certain amount of scent, wear it two days in a row( you get my drift). If you wash that shirt properly we're right back to square one. Now if you just hung that shirt out to air out, over time the scent that you initially deposited on that shirt would dissipate and at some time it would again be scent free.

Thanks Kurt, my post was an actual situation that happened, but my comment was making light of the common theme that scent lok suits only allow a little amount of scent to leak, so deer think your further away. I agree, my dog can smell 2 tracks and know which is older. Deer can smell where we have been or touched and know if its immediate danger, or old.

 

[Mnfisher]

I used to be huge into scent control, but was busted time and time again. If a deer is down wind of you, with or without Scent control, you're getting busted 99 out of 100 times, in my expeince