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Bolts vs SRT for Presets on Private

S

STL

New Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2021
Messages
34
For those that have used both, which presets do you prefer of pre drilled holes for bolts or pre set paracord loop for SRT?

Main considerations are time and ease of prepping and time and ease of ascending.

I have a one stick and rappel set up so I’d likely just climb to set the paracord for SRT if there’s not an easy limb to hit with a throw ball. I’d use a cordless drill for the bolts.

Thanks!
 
I've never done SRT, but I have a hard time imagining climbing is quicker or quieter than using bolts you've left in the tree. But, if you're only pre-drilling and not leaving the bolts inserted, I could see SRT being quieter since you wouldn't have metal clinking around while you climb. I can't speak to the ease of SRT, but climbing up preset bolts is about as easy as it gets--only thing I've tried that's easier is climbing into a permanent ladder stand.
 
TNbowhunter said:
I've never done SRT, but I have a hard time imagining climbing is quicker or quieter than using bolts you've left in the tree. But, if you're only pre-drilling and not leaving the bolts inserted, I could see SRT being quieter since you wouldn't have metal clinking around while you climb. I can't speak to the ease of SRT, but climbing up preset bolts is about as easy as it gets--only thing I've tried that's easier is climbing into a permanent ladder stand.
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Thanks man. How many trees do you typically leave set up? If I go bolts, it may be worth it to leave those couple really key spots ready to go.
 
Take for what it’s worth this will be my first season using bolts, I’m an Arborist by trade however so this isn’t my first rodeo, bolts kick ass plain and simple, when I bought this stuff I thought for sure it was a joke and I would have it on the classifieds fast.... wrong... hanging on by one arm trying to drill a hole by hand up in the air is gonna suck, well I was dead wrong, it’s simple, I used screw ins my whole life until I found saddlehunter and started buying all this new fancy stuff, and the transition to bolts for me was perfect. I had plans of making a bunch of presets as well with my little Milwaukee drill but to be honest after playing with the tree hopper drill all summer I have changed my mind and I’m just gonna set up my trees as I go, I cover a lot of ground, if I had one or two pieces of private I probably would do some presets with grade 8s, once I get some definite proven trees after a few years I will load them up ahead of season, but for now I will drill as I go, granted I don’t hunt many mornings either, my walks are long and deep and usually I get to my spots by noon and hunt till dark. 14 bolts, drill, and pouch 2.5 lbs90B4ECD5-85B1-4EB0-A582-6F060B652781.jpeg
 
Topdog said:
Take for what it’s worth this will be my first season using bolts, I’m an Arborist by trade however so this isn’t my first rodeo, bolts kick ass plain and simple, when I bought this stuff I thought for sure it was a joke and I would have it on the classifieds fast.... wrong... hanging on by one arm trying to drill a hole by hand up in the air is gonna suck, well I was dead wrong, it’s simple, I used screw ins my whole life until I found saddlehunter and started buying all this new fancy stuff, and the transition to bolts for me was perfect. I had plans of making a bunch of presets as well with my little Milwaukee drill but to be honest after playing with the tree hopper drill all summer I have changed my mind and I’m just gonna set up my trees as I go, I cover a lot of ground, if I had one or two pieces of private I probably would do some presets with grade 8s, once I get some definite proven trees after a few years I will load them up ahead of season, but for now I will drill as I go, granted I don’t hunt many mornings either, my walks are long and deep and usually I get to my spots by noon and hunt till dark. 14 bolts, drill, and pouch 2.5 lbsView attachment 50751
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Nice pouch. Home made??
 
Flyerzfan10 said:
Nice pouch. Home made??
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Maxpedition EDC pocket organizer, another member here who I can’t remember posted his system with the same pouch in a thread and it looked slick so I copied him, he was right it is slick, Amazon has them or shop around there all over I believe!
 
Topdog said:
Take for what it’s worth this will be my first season using bolts, I’m an Arborist by trade however so this isn’t my first rodeo, bolts kick ass plain and simple, when I bought this stuff I thought for sure it was a joke and I would have it on the classifieds fast.... wrong... hanging on by one arm trying to drill a hole by hand up in the air is gonna suck, well I was dead wrong, it’s simple, I used screw ins my whole life until I found saddlehunter and started buying all this new fancy stuff, and the transition to bolts for me was perfect. I had plans of making a bunch of presets as well with my little Milwaukee drill but to be honest after playing with the tree hopper drill all summer I have changed my mind and I’m just gonna set up my trees as I go, I cover a lot of ground, if I had one or two pieces of private I probably would do some presets with grade 8s, once I get some definite proven trees after a few years I will load them up ahead of season, but for now I will drill as I go, granted I don’t hunt many mornings either, my walks are long and deep and usually I get to my spots by noon and hunt till dark. 14 bolts, drill, and pouch 2.5 lbsView attachment 50751
Click to expand...

Great feedback and really nice set up. Thank you. Maxpedition makes good stuff. I’m a little surprised I don’t see it more on this page. A little pricey but very modular and well made.
 
STL said:
Thanks man. How many trees do you typically leave set up? If I go bolts, it may be worth it to leave those couple really key spots ready to go.
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I leave very few set up fully because my best spots mostly have tree stands my dad hangs since he's a tree stand hunter, and on my permission property I've hunted with other hunters, I didn't want to clue them in on where I hunt. That said, whenever I find new go-to spots at my family farm, I'll likely leave my bolts in place there. As cheap as you can get grade 8 bolts online, you can leave presets for something like $10-15 per tree, which is awesome.
 
TNbowhunter said:
I leave very few set up fully because my best spots mostly have tree stands my dad hangs since he's a tree stand hunter, and on my permission property I've hunted with other hunters, I didn't want to clue them in on where I hunt. That said, whenever I find new go-to spots at my family farm, I'll likely leave my bolts in place there. As cheap as you can get grade 8 bolts online, you can leave presets for something like $10-15 per tree, which is awesome.
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Yeah $10-$15 per set is really nice. I guess I need to find me a drill and some bolts! Lol
 
I've been off the site for a couple years. Can someone explain this new bolt method being referred to here?
 
AustinL911 said:
I've been off the site for a couple years. Can someone explain this new bolt method being referred to here?
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Drill a hole, place a grade 8 bolt, use as steps to advance, and repeat. Tree hopper makes a hand drill or you can use a hand drill for pre sets. It’s not legal on all public land, so check regs. There’s videos on YouTube as well.
 
AustinL911 said:
I've been off the site for a couple years. Can someone explain this new bolt method being referred to here?
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If you’re familiar with using screw-in steps, it’s just like that conceptually except you’re drilling holes into the tree and sliding sturdy hex-head (or similar) bolts in there instead of screwing the step in.
 
TNbowhunter said:
If you’re familiar with using screw-in steps, it’s just like that conceptually except you’re drilling holes into the tree and sliding sturdy hex-head (or similar) bolts in there instead of screwing the step in.
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Ah, I was thinking it would be something more complicated than that.
 
Anyone else get worried about making the tree susceptible to disease by poking a bunch of deep holes in it?

I also do some light maple sugaring so I tend to worry about that a bit.
 
AustinL911 said:
Anyone else get worried about making the tree susceptible to disease by poking a bunch of deep holes in it?

I also do some light maple sugaring so I tend to worry about that a bit.
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That’s a concern of mine too. I don’t want to kill trees. For what it’s worth, I have an arborist friend who told me that as long as the tree is healthy, it should recover just fine. That seems to be consistent with others’ experiences here that have used bolts long term. That said, he also told me that other than limb cutting generally best practice in the arborist world not to puncture the bark on any tree you don’t want to take down. The private I have access to this year doesn’tdo any stand improvement or harvesting. If given a choice, I’ll pick a less ‘desirable’ tree to drill than say a picturesque oak. I’m generally not too worried about it for my situation though.
 
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AustinL911 said:
Anyone else get worried about making the tree susceptible to disease by poking a bunch of deep holes in it?

I also do some light maple sugaring so I tend to worry about that a bit.
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This is the reason why I stick with screw in steps. I keep them in the tree and back them out a turn every year which never leaves exposed holes. That is what allows moisture to get in which leads to disease and rot.
 
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