How to Make Homemade Tree Stands

You can use your homemade tree stand for hunting or for wildlife photography.

Whether you want to use a tree stand for hunting deer or for nature photography, the visibility and stealth offered by a tree stand can give you a much higher rate of success. A small tree stand can accommodate a place to sit, an arm or gun rest, and protection from light rain, making extended stays in the woods much more pleasant. Fortunately, a homemade tree stand doesn’t have to cost a lot of money or time. You can build a tree stand yourself with scrap materials in an afternoon or two.

Things You'll Need

• Half-inch plywood
• 2-by-4 studs
• All-weather screws
• Cordless drill
• Circular saw
• Measuring tape
• Staple gun
• Tarp
• Hammer
• Nails
• Stool

Instructions

1. Select a location for your tree stand that offers views of both clear and thicket areas. Wildlife will often stay close to dense brush for protection. Look for a clump of three trees growing close together, with the trunks no more than four feet apart at a point 12 to 15 feet above the ground.

2. Cut lengths of 2-by-4s to span the distance between two adjacent trunks using a circular saw. Screw the studs into the trunks every 18 inches with the cordless drill to make a ladder. When you have reached the desired platform height (no more than 20 feet off the ground), measure the distances between the three trunks. Measure the distances again at a point approximately 3 feet higher (at the railing level).

3. Cut three lengths of 2-by-4 to span the distances between the inside edges of the tree trunks at the platform level. Cut a plywood platform to fit the resulting shape, which should be a rough triangle. Cut three lengths of 2-by-4 to correspond to the tree-trunk distances at the railing level.

4. Screw the platform frame 2-by-4s to the interior edges of the trunks at the desired platform height to form a triangular frame. Screw the plywood platform to the frame. Screw the railings into place above the platform to form another triangle.

5. Staple a tarp above the tree stand, pulling the tarp tight while stapling to prevent water accumulation. Install a stool for sitting, and hammer a few nails into the trunks to serve as clothing hooks.

Tips & Warnings

• Install your tree stand at least a month before you intend to use it, to give wildlife time to adjust to the new addition to the landscape.

• Always exercise caution when operating power tools.

References

• How To Build A Tree Stand: Home-made Tree Stand