New to Saddle hunting, Starting simple

[Schemeecho]

How's it going fellow saddle hunters? I'm going to go out on a limb. "no pun intended" I'm just a cheap hunter and don't want to spend $100's on a saddle. So I decided to start simple. I'm making a basic sit drag out of a bed sheet. Only difference is I'm not just using a looped ends with a girth hitch. I decided to sew in a continuous loop to hold my bridge. I don't have a sewing machine so I'm doing it by hand. I'm not worried about my stitching because I am using a back stich seam stitch. As well as a block stitching with an x in it. So I know it will hold my weight. Not to mention the fact that I will also be using a regular harness that came with my hang on stand. So for safety issues I will be secured to the tree with the harness on a tree tether. With two prusik knots, one for the harness and one for the sit drag. So if the sit drag fails then I will still be protected by the harness. So I'm sure it will perform Just like a sit drag. I just want to try it out to see if saddle hunting is a good fit for me. I hunt all public land so I have to do this as light as possible and contend with any legal issues with the game wardens. I'm looking for feedback on if this will be a viable way to make a sit drag. All comments welcome. Have a great day . I'll get a few photos up soon

 

[Scott F]

I think you have plenty of folks reading this but the "bed sheet" for a sit drag is perhaps a wee bit unfamiliar as a source of saddle material to most.

Go for it but understand that there is your saddle and there is the safety gear that accompanies it; sometimes they are the same thing, but not always.
If you DIY a sitdrag, be sure to always wear that other harness (or a rock climbing harness).

You may go cheap on some materials for your sitdrag - but please do not skimp on the safety parts. I recommend you use seatbelt material for the ring of your sitdrag and be sure that all of your ropes are climbing grade rated - Home Depot, Lowes, and Walmart are for buying other things, not rope for saddle hunting.

Use the Search bar above and you'll have more sitdrag posts to filter through than you probably care to read. It is a proven design, simple and safe when done right.

Trust me, I have exclusively hunted from DIY saddles since 2009 so I know it can be done, but I always error on the side of safety. Your 'bed sheet' sitdrag has me worried that we may never read your second message posted on this forum.

Good luck

 

[MattMan81]

I am concerned overing using a regular harness. I tried one with a sit drag for my daughter at ground level and it is not designed to work that way. The amount of slack you will have to have in the tie off is way to much in the event of a fall. Coming from your back will get in the way of hunting. More slack in that line means more force if you fall. Depending on your "tether" you will want to make sure you have enough rating as well as since most saddle gear is rated for positioning safety. Not fall arrest. Two different types of forces. I would suggest a rock climbing harness for back up. It is rated and designed for what your doing. Not to expensive on Amazon, moosejaw with cupons, or EWO.
Just my opinion. Be safe.

 

[RainingBlades]

When it comes to safety I’m not willing to skimp on cost. I don’t have the diy experience like many here but a hand stitched bed sheet seems like a strange concept.

 

[ImThere]

Wear a climbing harness to catch you if something fails.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Chimney7]

Read, read, and read some more. I like your idea of thinking outside the norm, I made my saddle out of my old sea bag. But do your research, learn the terms, learn the safety issues of making your own saddle. I made my own and ended up completely scrapping the first one in the interest of safety and remaking it. Also my advice is to learn about climbing, recovery and all that. Do you have a plan if you end up swaying from your harness way up in a tree? Don’t get discouraged from what I imagine is going to be everyone saying don’t do the bed sheet thing, learn from it , come up with a safe plan and have fun along the way.

 

[Schemeecho]

I think you have plenty of folks reading this but the "bed sheet" for a sit drag is perhaps a wee bit unfamiliar as a source of saddle material to most.

Go for it but understand that there is your saddle and there is the safety gear that accompanies it; sometimes they are the same thing, but not always.
If you DIY a sitdrag, be sure to always wear that other harness (or a rock climbing harness).

You may go cheap on some materials for your sitdrag - but please do not skimp on the safety parts. I recommend you use seatbelt material for the ring of your sitdrag and be sure that all of your ropes are climbing grade rated - Home Depot, Lowes, and Walmart are for buying other things, not rope for saddle hunting.

Use the Search bar above and you'll have more sitdrag posts to filter through than you probably care to read. It is a proven design, simple and safe when done right.

Trust me, I have exclusively hunted from DIY saddles since 2009 so I know it can be done, but I always error on the side of safety. Your 'bed sheet' sitdrag has me worried that we may never read your second message posted on this forum.

Good luck

Thanks for response Scott. keep in mind that I am thinking outside the box. The reason I chose the old bed sheet was mainly to see if it could be done. I am an auto technician and have access to things that are heavy like, Brake rotors for example. So, I did a test run on how much weight the bed sheet piece would hold. surprisingly, it held a lot of rotors stacked up on it. I weight about 170 and used enough rotors to simulate my weight. Also, I am very into bushcrafting and camping so I have used a bed sheet to make a hammock. Which I still use today and have for several years no with no flaws. I will post again for a better description of my design and thought process.

 

[Schemeecho]

I am concerned overing using a regular harness. I tried one with a sit drag for my daughter at ground level and it is not designed to work that way. The amount of slack you will have to have in the tie off is way to much in the event of a fall. Coming from your back will get in the way of hunting. More slack in that line means more force if you fall. Depending on your "tether" you will want to make sure you have enough rating as well as since most saddle gear is rated for positioning safety. Not fall arrest. Two different types of forces. I would suggest a rock climbing harness for back up. It is rated and designed for what your doing. Not to expensive on Amazon, moosejaw with cupons, or EWO.
Just my opinion. Be safe.

MattMAn
I understand your concern. So let me clarify a few things . Yes I am using a regular harness. its just one that comes with a tree stand when you buy it. So Its a simple but affective design. On the sides above the leg straps I have clipped D rings around them to use as a place for me to clip in my Line mans rope. Then I saw where a lot of people were doing a 1 stick climbing method. so I had to figure out a way for me to hang from the tree and not use the rear portion of the harness where you would normally clip in your lanyard. So what I did was, there are two chest strap son the front of the harness. I placed a small rope bridge there that allows me to use my tether to the front of my harness. So now i was able to hang with a lower line in the front giving me the access to hang and climb with one stick. The tether is my lifeline and keeps me attached to the tree at all times. This is even used when climbing the tree as well as my line mans rope. I made a quick sit drag before this design and it works fine . I tested it while still having my feet on the ground. Ok, so with my main tether attached to a lower position on my harness, which I us a prusik like a lot of people do. What I did was add a second prusik above the first one. This allows me to tie in my bridge for the sit drag. I only have to move my main prusik a few inches to be able to take the pressure off of the harness and sit comfortably in the sit drag or lean with adjusting the prusik for the sit drag. you will see what i mean when I take a few pictures and post them.

 

[Schemeecho]

When it comes to safety I’m not willing to skimp on cost. I don’t have the diy experience like many here but a hand stitched bed sheet seems like a strange concept.

RainingBlades, Thanks for the concern but here is what I know. I hand stitch because I dont own a sewing machine. What I have done Is use the same stitching as on any climbing harness or tree harness. I researched what type of stitching is needed to support weight. I looked up the formula for how many stitches and style of stitch per square combined with the right type of sewing thread. The out come would be the same. The only difference is the amount of time it takes to do the sewing.

 

[Schemeecho]

Wear a climbing harness to catch you if something fails.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I always wear my harness without question

 

[Schemeecho]

Read, read, and read some more. I like your idea of thinking outside the norm, I made my saddle out of my old sea bag. But do your research, learn the terms, learn the safety issues of making your own saddle. I made my own and ended up completely scrapping the first one in the interest of safety and remaking it. Also my advice is to learn about climbing, recovery and all that. Do you have a plan if you end up swaying from your harness way up in a tree? Don’t get discouraged from what I imagine is going to be everyone saying don’t do the bed sheet thing, learn from it , come up with a safe plan and have fun along the way.

Chimney7, Thanks for the words of encouragement. I dont get discouraged easily . everything I do is a learning experience. Keep in mind Im not doing an actual saddle but more of a hybrid. The harness will always keep my attached to the tree. And the sig drag is used in its simplest for, a seat and nothing more. My safety will never be put on the sit drag to keep me secure. Its attached to the same tether that my harness is. So if the sit drag fails the most i will fall is only about 3 inches. to either side of the platform I'll be standing on. Which is DIY as well. I always have a back up plan and a plan for the back up. Since I only climb with one stick Im hanging from the tree all the way up. But, Just incase my step slips and falls. its attached to my belt with about 3 feet of paracord. that way if I have to retrieve it. I can very easily and quickly. I have no doubt that what I am doing will work just fine. Like I said in the beginning, "I am cheap and dont want to fork out the cash to just buy a saddle untill I decide if saddle hunting is for me."

 

[Bigterp]

I’m not knocking your ingenuity, but do a quick search for diy fleece saddle & back all these up w/ a RCH not a tree stand harness (different animal) can all be done on the cheap

 

[Schemeecho]

Ok, so I have gotten a good bit of feedback so far. I think it's time I explained in detail how I'm setting things up.
So first lets talk about my safety.
My harness I"m using is the one that came with my lock on stand when I bought it. It's nothing special, just you're basic Harness. A lanyard attachment at the back. With two leg straps and two chest straps. Yes I did modify my harness to help me get the angles I need so I can comfortably hang from the tree. So if you picture the front of my harness you would see that I have tied in a rope bridge just above my leg straps. This allows me to clip in a
carabiner in the front which goes to my main tether. Basically allowing me to use a full harness like a rock climbing harness. If either type of harness was to fail anyone would be screwed and fall. In the event of a slip or fall or a climbing stick falling I have it on a 3 foot retrieval rope attached to me for that just incase moment. Any time I am working on setting something up I also have a line mans belt securing me to the tree as well. So Im attached to the tree in two different way at all times. So, as far as climbing the tree and being safe, I'm covered there just like normal.

Now about the sit drag style seat. It is what it is just a seat. the only difference is it is attached to the same tether that is securing me to the tree in case of a fall . All I have to do to make using my seat comfortable is lower my prusik for my harness about 3 to 4 inches. . And if the seat fail the I only fall 3 to 4 inches. Which makes for an easy recover back onto the platform. Now about the material for the sheet. Yes its a bed sheet. Will it hold my weight? Absolutely, if you can make a hammock from one, then why not a seat? The seat itself has already proven to hold my weight. I know it works just fine. I will take a few pictures tomorrow so y'all can see how it works so far.

 

[Schemeecho]

I’m not knocking your ingenuity, but do a quick search for diy fleece saddle & back all these up w/ a RCH not a tree stand harness (different animal) can all be done on the cheap

I looked up the diy fleeceand thats what led me to where i am at this point. . I did find a nice RCH for cheap but thats for next season since this season only has a few more weeks left. and I can only hunt every other saturday . That leaves me one more hunting day since season ends January first.

 

[Bigterp]

I looked up the diy fleeceand thats what led me to where i am at this point. . I did find a nice RCH for cheap but thats for next season since this season only has a few more weeks left. and I can only hunt every other saturday . That leaves me one more hunting day since season ends January first.

Sounds like your on the right track just stay safe.