I think that's the problem, there will always be something newer, lighter, faster, etc. People get caught up in the annual cycle of purging and buying to try to gain an edge on deer. People kill deer sitting on a tree stump or a 5 gallon bucket. One might argue that the 5 gallon bucket is more mobile than a tree stand/saddle and they're <$5 at a hardware store. I'm guilty of it. I should be spending more time scouting public areas and trying to gain permission on private spots. Also traveling out of state if that's what it takes to get on deer. All the fancy gadgets won't make a difference if you're not in an area that holds deer.
I cant imagine carrying a 5gal bucket all the way to some of the spots I hunt. (Someone left one on a finger ridge though and it helped me navigate some thick fog, thanks).
My post was of course tongue and cheek, but I know there are folks who turn over gear every year. I don't look down on that, but its not always necessary.
I have taken nice deer stump hunting. Before I was of legal hunting age, my father would take me and my brothers on some of his hunts and we would stand the whole time with our backs to trees in the freezing cold. I reflect on that and know my successes have roots in those hunts where we suffered and saw nothing, just as much as when we saw the rare buck and the singular chance we put eyes on a world class deer.
But, sometimes the fancy gadgets make all the difference as well.
For those who don't have the ability to make the time to scout better, hunt more, travel to better areas...if you have the means to do so, spending to tip the odds isn't something to necessarily frown upon. It can add to the anticipation and fun of those few hunts you carve out each season, and fiscally may be less painful than pushing limits at work and at home.
I've many years where I've no hunting expenses, and some where I splurge. Some of the gear I've purchased I've found revolutionary and some just felt luxurious and economics were in my favor at the time.
To each there own, I suppose. I'm glad to have succeeded from log loungers to tree loungers.
I sometimes think, wouldn't it be cool to get a deer using this new contraption...and when I do, it makes it feel like money well spent, when in reality I may have done just as well without....or maybe not.