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Climbing Bolts.....

B

Buckhorn70

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2014
Messages
1,007
I have a couple questions regarding Climbing bolts.....

1) anybody use them in Pine trees? I have a spot I want to fix up but it is polluted with Pine trees and my best tree option(s) is a Pine tree.

2) where are you guys buying your grade 8 bolts? I’m looking for a deal as I want to but quiet a few and need a deal.

3)looking for a pack that will hold 20 bolts.
 
1 You can use them in a pine but the sap will be a mess .

2 I get mine off of ebay or local hardware store ,just be sure there are true grade 8.

3.Any pack will work I like the surplus shovel tool pouch. Jmo Hang in there
 
I'm in the south and use bolts in a pine quite often. When I come down I just stick the bolts one by one into the ground. The dirt helps soak up the sap a bit. It's also good to clean them with mineral spirits from time to time. And also oil your drill bit often. Makes it drill easier. It's really not a problem
 
I haven't tried them in any pine so far because of the opinions about it on this site. I wouldn't let sap stop me from doing it, though. If there's a tree that I want to get into to kill a deer, sap ain't gonna stop me.
But I have heard drills don't function as well in soft trees, and more importantly, the holes tend to egg-out. I don't know about bolts and pine, but I thought I'd mention what I've heard.

I got grade 8 off Amazon. Decent deal.

I got a canvas pouch from an Army surplus. I really like it. The size is perfect and it holds a hand drill, too. The only downside to canvas is it takes a long time to dry. I constantly launder gear. It takes a while for that pouch to dry. But for $5, I should have bought a few so I could rotate them.
 
I have drilled pines in the past but prefer not to if there is a choice, sticky sap. I found that it’s better to drill the holes angled downward slightly. The softness of the pine causes the bolts to slightly “tear” the hole. It makes for a little more peace of mind, for me at least.
 
How early are you guys drilling your pre sets each year? If you drill mid summer do the holes tend to close up during the remainder of the growing season? Our NC season runs early September through January 1st. I live 4600 miles away and would love to drill pre sets during a summer visit if possible. If that doesn't work, I'll be hanging thousands of feet of paracord for SRT!
 
weekender21 said:
How early are you guys drilling your pre sets each year? If you drill mid summer do the holes tend to close up during the remainder of the growing season? Our NC season runs early September through January 1st. I live 4600 miles away and would love to drill pre sets during a summer visit if possible. If that doesn't work, I'll be hanging thousands of feet of paracord for SRT!
Click to expand...
I'd like to hear the answer, too. I just started doing bolts last fall.
But if I had to guess, I would say there are a lot of variables that influence how much, and how late in a season, a tree continues to grow. Tree species, weather, and the region has to come into play. Even sun exposure effects how fast a tree grows.
Just look at the rings of a tree stump...not every ring has the same width. Some years there are conditions that trees grow faster and longer.
Our area had an extremely wet summer and the leaves held onto trees weeks longer than normal. I assume the annular rings will be wider this year, growth was probably greater and longer. Will that effect pre drilled holes?
Probably back dating from the 1st normal frost FOR YOUR AREA would be a good rule of thumb.

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I would like to hear the answer also. I got bolts twards the end of the season. Only bolted one tree.
Bob
 
Growing season in the mountains of NC is generally April-October. I just don’t think drilling a pre set earlier than September would be logical in my area but I could be entirely wrong. Not sure how fast the holes close.


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Not sure if this applies or not, but a few years ago we drew licenses for Iowa. We drove out in mid March and hung several chain-on stands and screw-in steps. When we returned in November and wrapped up the hunt, we had A LOT of trouble getting stands and steps out of some species of trees. The cottonwood were the worst. I think the species of tree will have a lot to do with how early you can bore holes.
I have wondered about how well it would work to remove tight bolts with vice grips. Would they unscrew if we used vice grips on them? Might not be a perfect solution, but it might allow bolts to be removed. I doubt that could work after more than one season though. Not likely bolts that were in the tree for a couple few years will screw out.

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I had my bolts in a red oak for two weeks this past fall. I had to use a claw hammer to get them out and it wasn't easy.
 
Vice grips are a farmers favorite tool. Emergency hammer adjustable wrench vice prying tool and wire cutter They will work

Unscrew and turn and pull on it at the same time
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Most of my trees are hardwoods. Poplar, maple, oak, hickory etc.

Could I drill in July and use those holes in September?


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I start predrilling my trees the last week in September and don't have any problems with tree growth.

The end of this past season I noticed a bolt in a red oak tree that I hadn't hunted in three years. The first of this season I used vice grips to remove it. It surprised me how easy it came out after four years.
 
Ontariofarmer said:
Vice grips are a farmers favorite tool. Emergency hammer adjustable wrench vice prying tool and wire cutter They will work

Unscrew and turn and pull on it at the same time
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Click to expand...
The smallest vice grips they make are pretty tiny. Small, light, and will occasionally come in handy for something else. I plan to experiment with them this summer.
I also thought about rigging something like a small slide hammer for pulling tight bolts. I believe it would work, but it won't be as quiet and light as vice grips.
 
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