ScentLok base layer

[g2outdoors]

UPDATE!!!

Tonight I was hunting from a lock-on stand. I know, I know - Benedict Arnold.

I had been standing for about an hour when I decided to sit back down. As I was slowly sitting, off to my left I saw a lone adult doe watching me.

She began to do the head-bob trying to get me to move again. Since I was frozen, she slowly circled downwind. Once down wind of me she began to relax when she couldn't wind me. She ate a few apples and was almost totally relaxed. I couldn't believe it. When she began to circle downwind I just knew it was all over. I was prepared for blowing and stomping that never came.

Now I don't want to be a premature scentlokulator so I won't say I'm 100% convinced just yet. However, that was a pretty compelling experience.

 

[John Eberhart]

G man

I put a new thread on the Deer Hunting section about Scent Control that you might find interesting

Pertaining to your question about the base, yes a coverall under a different exterior garment would work. Also if it's about cost, regular Scent Lok Baselayers have the exact same carbon liner liner as their suits so they could be wore as undergarments as well.

I used to wear Scent Lok garments under Rivers West exteriors (they were warmer) and never had any issues. However I took pristine care of my Rivers West and washed it in scent free detergent frequently and also used rubber or neoprene boots and a Scent Lok pack. There's no question that with a Scent Lok exterior suit that it takes a lot of the worry away as it controls everything below it.

 

[Waymore]

G man

I put a new thread on the Deer Hunting section about Scent Control that you might find interesting

Pertaining to your question about the base, yes a coverall under a different exterior garment would work. Also if it's about cost, regular Scent Lok Baselayers have the exact same carbon liner liner as their suits so they could be wore as undergarments as well.

I used to wear Scent Lok garments under Rivers West exteriors (they were warmer) and never had any issues. However I took pristine care of my Rivers West and washed it in scent free detergent frequently and also used rubber or neoprene boots and a Scent Lok pack. There's no question that with a Scent Lok exterior suit that it takes a lot of the worry away as it controls everything below it.

John,

With your relationship with Scentlok you should suggest them making some bibs. Wearing a saddle tends to expose your backside. I noticed Cabelas has some of their brand that is lined but I don't know if that is the new Carbon Alloy or not. By the way that Radar headcover looks reallt nice. Gonna have to pick one up. I also see Scentlok has some products in their Legacy Locker discounted. Looks like some good deals

 

[g2outdoors]

Re: RE: Re: ScentLok base layer

G man

I put a new thread on the Deer Hunting section about Scent Control that you might find interesting

Pertaining to your question about the base, yes a coverall under a different exterior garment would work. Also if it's about cost, regular Scent Lok Baselayers have the exact same carbon liner liner as their suits so they could be wore as undergarments as well.

I used to wear Scent Lok garments under Rivers West exteriors (they were warmer) and never had any issues. However I took pristine care of my Rivers West and washed it in scent free detergent frequently and also used rubber or neoprene boots and a Scent Lok pack. There's no question that with a Scent Lok exterior suit that it takes a lot of the worry away as it controls everything below it.

Thanks again for posting the scent control thread. I have 2 weeks of vacation the week of veterans day and thanksgiving. I'll have some more data/experience after that.

 

[Jimmy Wallhanger]

Is it suggested that I stand on a rubber mat strip naked and then put on my camo? Im not against that just want to be clear. What I have been doing is wearing my merino wool baselayer with a sweat suit over top that has been washed in scent free detergent once i get to my hunting area I strip down to my wool baselayer and put on my hunting gear.

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Re: RE: Re: ScentLok base layer

Is it suggested that I stand on a rubber mat strip naked and then put on my camo? Im not against that just want to be clear. What I have been doing is wearing my merino wool baselayer with a sweat suit over top that has been washed in scent free detergent once i get to my hunting area I strip down to my wool baselayer and put on my hunting gear.

What do you do with the sweatsuit?

 

[Jimmy Wallhanger]

Re: RE: Re: ScentLok base layer

Is it suggested that I stand on a rubber mat strip naked and then put on my camo? Im not against that just want to be clear. What I have been doing is wearing my merino wool baselayer with a sweat suit over top that has been washed in scent free detergent once i get to my hunting area I strip down to my wool baselayer and put on my hunting gear.

What do you do with the sweatsuit?

leave it in the tote after i take my camp out

 

[redsquirrel]

Is it suggested that I stand on a rubber mat strip naked and then put on my camo? Im not against that just want to be clear. What I have been doing is wearing my merino wool baselayer with a sweat suit over top that has been washed in scent free detergent once i get to my hunting area I strip down to my wool baselayer and put on my hunting gear.

All of my hunting clothing goes in air tight storage in the truck. I hunt as many days as I can after work, so I can't always shower before I hunt. Whether I do that or not though, my routine is always the same. I wear my crocs behind my truck and take off my street clothes. I take my hunting clothes directly out of the storage and put them on. Then I switch from my crocs to my rubber boots.

If it really cold out I will probably get lazy and wear my merino wool baselayers underneath my street clothes if I am coming directly from the shower at home. I do also wash all of my clothing in scent free detergent year round and I complain to my wife when she uses any scent on anything in the house year round lol.

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Nothing wrong with your approach. The biggest challenge for many is getting overheated. Its often advantageous to change closer to your kill tree.

 

[g2outdoors]

Nothing wrong with your approach. The biggest challenge for many is getting overheated. Its often advantageous to change closer to your kill tree.

Agree. That's one of the reasons I went back to carrying a full pack. I can't wear much on the walk in or I'm sweaty. All outer layers go in the pack and I get dressed at the tree.

 

[redsquirrel]

Good point guys, I did not add that if I need to layer, I walk in with minimal layers and put the rest on either just before I get to the tree or at the tree.

 

[Maustypsu]

Good point guys, I did not add that if I need to layer, I walk in with minimal layers and put the rest on either just before I get to the tree or at the tree.

This is the only reason I wear an inner layer of scent lok. First, clearly it can't hurt. So I'm not saying they are useless. But if you do the rest of the program properly you shouldn't need base layers of carbon when on stand. However, I walk in and then put on a lot of clothes vs what I walk wearing. But my whole walk in I'm leaving a trail of my scent.

Yes, I'm sure that having that layer also helps a bit when I'm on stand. But for me the value is in the walk.

 

[redsquirrel]

Good point guys, I did not add that if I need to layer, I walk in with minimal layers and put the rest on either just before I get to the tree or at the tree.

This is the only reason I wear an inner layer of scent lok. First, clearly it can't hurt. So I'm not saying they are useless. But if you do the rest of the program properly you shouldn't need base layers of carbon when on stand. However, I walk in and then put on a lot of clothes vs what I walk wearing. But my whole walk in I'm leaving a trail of my scent.

Yes, I'm sure that having that layer also helps a bit when I'm on stand. But for me the value is in the walk.

FYI, I don't use any heavy scentlok layers. All of my scentlok is uninsulated layers. I wear them during the early season while it is hot. When it gets colder I will put some layers on under them. When I need the start wearing heavier layers I pretty much use coveralls on top of this. My coveralls go from air tight storage in the truck to being put on by the tree, to coming off by the tree after the hunt, to being put in the air tight storage. If I have any question about serious contamination of the coveralls they go in the wash, but they usually get washed every 2-3 hunts regardless. The late season is the weakest part of my scent control routine because of this outer layer, but I have not noticed any difference from my early season hunts. I actually worry more during the early season because of sweat.

 

[Maustypsu]

FYI, I don't use any heavy scentlok layers. All of my scentlok is uninsulated layers. I wear them during the early season while it is hot. When it gets colder I will put some layers on under them. When I need the start wearing heavier layers I pretty much use coveralls on top of this. My coveralls go from air tight storage in the truck to being put on by the tree, to coming off by the tree after the hunt, to being put in the air tight storage. If I have any question about serious contamination of the coveralls they go in the wash, but they usually get washed every 2-3 hunts regardless. The late season is the weakest part of my scent control routine because of this outer layer, but I have not noticed any difference from my early season hunts. I actually worry more during the early season because of sweat.

Are your coveralls activated carbon? Mine are. I do exactly what you are saying. I don't consider that a weakness at all. If they are not carbon, then yeah... it's just a matter of making sure you don't contaminate them too badly.

Oh and I also put my coveralls back on when pumping gas. Because fossil fuels must be just like charcoal/carbon and help with scent control.

 

[d_rek]

Oh and I also put my coveralls back on when pumping gas. Because fossil fuels must be just like charcoal/carbon and help with scent control.

Now you're just being facetious... :mrgreen:

 

[g2outdoors]

Oh and I also put my coveralls back on when pumping gas. Because fossil fuels must be just like charcoal/carbon and help with scent control.

Completely agree. I also wear mine when I go into Kentucky Fried Chicken after a hunt. I feel like chickens are a super non-threatening smell to deer so the more I fit in with what makes deer comfortable, the better off I am.

 

[redsquirrel]

Are your coveralls activated carbon?

No they're not.

 

[Maustypsu]

Are your coveralls activated carbon?

No they're not.

I see, that's a difference. My outer layer is always scent lok. I have water proof bibs and jacket in MT050 with scent lok. And countless non-rain out fits for most temps. And when it is too cold, I just layer up and go with rain gear as my outer layer. So to me it's all about keeping the scent inside my outerlayer when I get to the stand. I used to not care what I wore in but now I focus on having a layer of carbon on my outside walking in for when I brush against trees, brush, etc.

But it sounds like your system is tight and you posted more buck picks this season (dead) than I did... so it must be doing something for you!

 

[redsquirrel]

Are your coveralls activated carbon?

No they're not.

I see, that's a difference. My outer layer is always scent lok. I have water proof bibs and jacket in MT050 with scent lok. And countless non-rain out fits for most temps. And when it is too cold, I just layer up and go with rain gear as my outer layer. So to me it's all about keeping the scent inside my outerlayer when I get to the stand. I used to not care what I wore in but now I focus on having a layer of carbon on my outside walking in for when I brush against trees, brush, etc.

But it sounds like your system is tight and you posted more buck picks this season (dead) than I did... so it must be doing something for you!

LOL! Yeah, you know me by now, I keep my system tight! I know that having scentlok on the outer layer would be the best, BUT, the cold weather scentlok stuff can get expensive. I feel that if I pay attention to detail with my gear that goes over my scentlok I can get away with it, and I do. As you know I am a firm believer in scentlok and don't go in the woods without it. When I hunt so much during the early season, it gets hot. There are some days that I just can't help sweating. Combine that with trudging through swamps and catbriars and my scentlok takes a beating. I know how you are supposed to wash scentlok but when it gets that sweaty that often I need to wash it much more than is recommended. So I buy the lightweight stuff for a reasonable price when it goes on sale, rotate through a couple suits throughout the year, and then retire them at the end of the year because I don't trust them anymore. I'm not the expert on this stuff but this method has been working very well for me. All of my other stuff, whether it is outer layers, rain gear, backpacks or hand muffs and is not scentlok is stored in air tight storage and routinely washed, even after every hunt if I feel it is necessary.

 

[g2outdoors]

I started this thread last summer as I was researching ScentLok.

I went all in this season with the ScentLok. I didn't hunt a single time without a full containment suit (Savanna Coveralls), ScentLok gloves, ScentLok head covering with face mask, and clean knee high rubber boots. The suit, and all non-ScentLok outer layers, was stored in an air tight container with one of ScentLok's web adsorbers attached to the lid of the tote. All my camo, saddle, back pack and accessories were stored in air tight containers as well, each with a ScentLok web adsorber.

These items were never taken out of their containers except to be washed in Scent free detergent or to be worn into the field. They went straight from the dryer to the tote, and from the tote to my pack to be carried in the woods.

I got dressed in the field after turning off my vehicle. All extra layers were carried into the woods in my pack (which was washed in scent free detergent and stored in an air tight container) to keep them from getting sweaty. I would layer up at the bottom of my tree and place them back in my pack after the hunt for the walk out. There was pretty much no way my stuff could have been contaminated except from smells that were already in the air in my hunting area.

The outer layers never touched my skin. They were always layered on top of my ScentLok Savanna suit and carried in and out of the woods. I washed my outer layers and pack after every 4-6 hunts.

My Results

I definitely noticed a difference. I had multiple instances of deer being dead down wind and not spooking. On multiple occasions the deer knew I was there and did the head-bob-of-death trying to get me to move. They'd circle down wind and try like hell to figure out what I was. They never winded me and eventually moved away. When this happened pre-ScentLok, I would have been winded and the stomping, snorting and blowing would have followed.

I am a firm believer that ScentLok works if you follow a strict regiment of scent management.

I also found out that it's really not a big deal to go through this process. Once you have your system in place, it doesn't feel like a hassle at all. If anything I really enjoyed the extra effort because I really believed that it was making a difference.

I'm going to continue this scent management routing and look for some ways to improve my system for next season. I think I'll probably add a few more ScentLok outer layers just for fun, but I'm not convinced I really need them.

For the money, a full containment lightweight suit like the Savanna Coveralls can't be beat. You can wear it by itself in the early season and all season long just by adjusting your outer layers.