I am interrested to find out what whitetail scents that different people prefer? I myself have used Tink,s #69 for a longtime with reasonable luck. Pre-rut I have had a couple of big boys come in using Wildlife Researches tarsal gland plus while hunting a scrape. The very best buck I have ever seen taken on a hunt was drawn right to a scent bomb covered in VS-1 by Border Crossing Labs. Would really like to hear what you prefer and how well it has produced for you?
I've used Tink's #69 also will good results for years. Lately I've been trying James Valley Scents "Lethal Weapon". Seems to be working as well as the Tink's.
Code Blue works great for me....
VS-1 is unbelievable.
Has anybody tried anise oil?
John
I really only use an attractant during the rut. My favorite used to be Sure-Kill Scrape Mate in the orange squeeze bottle. It's been hard to find in local shops. I see I can order it though.
John, SHHHHHHH!!! lol
Anise i've used for bears...it works for deer????LOL...... :biglaugh:
i take the first kills meta-tarsal glands and they go directly on my boots.
James Valley use to have a whitetail doe attractant that seemed to work. I also like the VS-1 and their Deer Herd in a Bottle but they aren't available locally and a bit pricey.
I have 2 bear baits set up now and was thinking of adding anise to the set up.
I seldom use attractants but I do keep and use the tarsal glands from deer I have taken. I even freeze them til the next year. Not as potent but seem to do the job. I might be way off track but I think that most deer know the smell of other family deer and are less likely to spook smelling them than a new strange deer smell. At least until rut time comes around. JMO
Drakkar Noir :biglaugh: Sorry its Friday.
You Bear hunters should try pure vanilla extract, imitation vanilla might work also but the scent is not as strong as the pure.
Bear hunters only need to carry SNICKERS Bars in their pockets LOL.Pete Rickards Old Indian Buck Lure.
For Bear I've had great luck with molasses or maple syrup mixed with peanut butter and smear it up in the trees. Also grease/fat dripping in a can over a sterno can. These scents would make me come running to them! LOL.
Hunter John throw some jelly donuts in your bait pile.Try anise on your fishing lures too.
i've been experimenting with the buck bombs a lot. i really like them and plan on using quite a few this season as well. i like how you can make a scent trail with them.
Aqua Velva
For store bought Pete Rickards super doe is the best I have used, but I like to shoot a doe in early Nov. and if I am careful and a little lucky I carefully remove her bladder and put the pee in a brown bottle and use that. Shawn
I have used alot of them and only a few work consistantly for me. Tinks#69 worked will until the deer in the area got use to it. I collect my own deer urine (separate bucks and does), tarsal glands, and the glands from between the toes. I have better results with my own concoctions. I do use apple cider on a regular basis because per unit it is cheaper than most other attractants. I do like a to utilize a drip bag when possible over a fresh or mock scrape.
corn and sweet feed
trails end #307...Great stuff all season.
What about Bowhunter's Setup? Anybody tried that? I've heard a couple of people around here say it works really well.
I collect urine from any deer I shoot or any I help someone else find , but the trick is not taking out the bladder and emptying into jar but get the bladder and squeeze the urine through the urinary tract . It can be messy but I learned from trapping fox that bladder urine has minimal smell whereas there are a lot of glands in the urinary tract that add to the "smell" quality . Maybe I just overdo things , Fred
I should also mention beaver castor if ya hunt where there are beaver, it works great! One word of caution only use an amount equal to a pin head. It is that strong! Shawn
I collect acorns and oak leaves and brew in a pot until a dark brown tea is created. Then I sift the broth into a container to filter out the crud. Pour some of the juice in a spray bottle then spray your clothes. It is a very sweet smelling aroma to deer and humans alike.
Barebow,
That sounds really interesting. How long have you used that method?
Landshark,
In the early 90s, I used the bowhunter's setup product when it was made and marketed locally here in Central Florida. I can tell you without a doubt that it worked as an attractant. If it is the same product that Muzzy is marketing now, then it is worth buying and trying. I plan on giving it a try to see if it is the same stuff.
Gregg
Thanks Gregg, I think I'll try it this year too.
Vanilla extract (Real is better)
And Shawn beat me to it, Beaver castor :thumbsup:
Tracy
T.J.,
I've only used the acorn/oakleaf tea for a couple years now and I like it a lot. It smells so good I don't mind spraying it on heavy. I even spray it on the ground where I hunt near oak trees, and it's a very natural and appealing scent to the deer. Also, that might help to keep them from zeroing in on me. I may try adding some dirt and ferns, etc. to the mix this year.
IMO, I don't like to use dominant buck urine because I believe it could backfire causing larger buck's who already have does' with them to move away to avoid competition. It may also cause smaller bucks and does' (not in heat), to avoid the area. The same with doe-n-heat scents, because I think does' that are not in heat may try to avoid those who are in order to keep bucks from harassing them. With a natural lure attractant scent, I feel the chances of having more deer come into bow range are better. If more does' and smaller bucks are in an area, then maybe the larger bucks feel more at ease to come there too. Besides, the acorn/oakleaf tea is free.
Shawn that's top secret info right there. That's why the Old Indian works good.
Barebow,
Thanks, I'll definatly try that this year. That sounds like a great combo to me.
the very best attractant for rut time that I've ever used is the urine and tarsal glands from a BUCK deer. I try to extract the urine and preserve the tarsal glands from every buck I possibly can with the 'rutting buck' being the best. a black/wet tarsal gland that smells to high heaven is worth more to me than 25 FREE gallons of any store bought scent. I've saw bucks come in to these scents doing all sorts of wild things. ears pinned back, hair all standing up on their backs and walking stiff legged like they're coming into the ring after the championship title. give this a try and you'll be sold just like I was more than 30 years ago plus, IT'S FREE.
X2 on the anise oil. I poured some out on my woodpile last year, and the deer were sniffin around there for days.
"Absence Of" works best for me
"Absence of"-probably best strategy of all.
I never had much luck with scents but the only one I ever used and ACTUALLY-without a doubt-the deer were responding to the scent-saw with my own two eyes-was Bob Kirschner's curiosity scent.
Two does came in from 200 yards (downwind) out with their noses in the air. Got to within 80 yards and picked me up-game over. :D
I have and still use home brew cover scent as it is what grows in my hunting areas. before that I used essence of fall as a cover and I guess it worked had it on when the does came in downwind. Bottom line on cover stuff is it is only meant to confuse em for a second. Nothing will totally cover ya up-not even scent lok.
The most effective deer attractant I've ever used was to doze off up in the stand with my longbow hanging on a hook. Works like a charm and it's free!
Seriously, I've never had success with deer scents/lures so consequently haven't used them for quite awhile now.
I wash my hunting clothes in baking soda only, hang dry, and try to keep myself clean before hunting. I see plenty of deer. Now shooting them, that's another matter...LOL!
another for Trails end #307
Kirshner makes some good stuff. His silver top is a good pre rut scent.
Like J-Dog, I had some curiosity on my boots as I walked into my stand a couple years back and later had a doe run across where I had freshened up my pads. It slid a good 2 foot to a stop at the trail I came in on. She wandered back and forth on it for a good 20 min. Never spooked, or followed the trail one way or another for very far, just hung around where I had freshed my boots. I won't say it pulled her in, but it did keep her there.
2 Parts Vanilla Extract 1 Part Anise Oil and fill the rest of a 2 ounce bottle with Distilled Water.
I try to go with no scent at all. Including my own. I think that, where I hunt, the more unchanged the situation is for the deer, the more relaxed they are. During rut I have used some scents and had some luck with them , but not really so much as to totally believe in them.
ChuckC
I've used them all. 3 years ago, I ran across something I've never seen before. Doe In Heat candles. Tried 'em and liked 'em. 2 years ago I found something different....oil based Doe In Heat scent and oil based buck tarsal scent. Had to try it because the price was right. $7 for 2 ounces. This stuff puts all those watered down lures to shame. It's potent! I use the roll up sticks at my deercam sets.
(http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e139/Fesstus/bucklurecandle.jpg)
Red Man Golden Blend. Apply in about a 3 foot radius from your stand.
Straight up doe pee. The esterous works for me on unpressured land, but on state land everyone uses it and the deer are almost spooked by it.
Trails End #307 for late season.
During gun season in no. Minnesota Trails end 307 seemed to work well(this would be in the rut)Haven't used sents much bowhunting-but last year I shot a buck off a mock scrape I made under my stand-that I had put a few squirts of #307 on, I think I will do the same this year but use a dripper bottle-durring the rut here in No. carolina-aint this deer stuff fun-45 years huntin these things and still lookin to figure em out!CAM :banghead:
If the snickers bar doesn't do it for bears, just carry a tuna sanwich in your pocket. That'll do it!!
I try to urinate in scrapes all year long while scouting etc. I also have added "wall hanger" to scrapes as well. Other then that. I prefer no scent added to my hunting spot.
my father said his brother used to pour some aftershave lotion on a rag and shoot alot of Does coming into to smell it... honestly no kidding he said it was some kind of curiousity thing but he never tried it.
Placenta from field mice