# Deer Hitch Hoist



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

my plan is to make something like in the picture. I was thinking of getting 2" nestable tubing from mcmaster-carr for the solid gray bottom piece. Then get 1 3/4" perforated tubing for the top piece so I can adjust height. 

According to mcmaster-carr site, the tubing is .105" thick. Does anyone think that is too thin? I saw on another web site they were using 3/16" (.1875) thick steel.

also, If you have any opinions/suggestions on the design, let me hear em. thanks.


----------



## yoda4x4 (May 11, 2004)

The only comment/question I have for you is this. What's the purpose of this hoist? If it's to help you load the bed of your truck, then I don't think this will work well for you. You'll need to add some sort of swiveling mechanism to do that. If it's just to hang a deer, I think it looks great.

David


----------



## JohnVH (Mar 5, 2010)

You can buy those at cabela's for $175 I think. We made one for hanging two animals at a time.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

it is just for hanging deer / skinning deer so i dont need it to swivel. i had not seen that one at cabelas, but just looked it up, its almost identical. id still rather make one.


----------



## JohnVH (Mar 5, 2010)

We made our double hanger for antelope hunting, but will use it for deer, great for skinning, boning, hanging, getting into the truck, they work great. Make sure you make it high enough, I see no need to make it adjustable.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

what about the nestable tubing with thickness of .105" ?


----------



## JohnVH (Mar 5, 2010)

I think ours is made out of 1/8" square tube. 1/4" would be enough to hold anything.


----------



## nhudson (Aug 4, 2008)

if you make it so it will swivel you can swing the deer onto your truck.just add a piece of round pipe near the bottom


----------



## simsacoma (Nov 16, 2010)

From NM, I made one several years ago before I saw a manufactured hanger. Used a 1 1/2 inch black iron pipe coupling which is welded to a trailer hitch at the spot where the ball would have been. I can attach two lengths of pipe with a 90 and a short extension from which to hang a pully. The pipe sections allow it to be disassembled in max of 3 foot sections. If welded well no brace is needed.


----------



## TexasArcher58 (Jul 31, 2010)

I made one identical to it. Better use 3/16"...... 




psumitch said:


> my plan is to make something like in the picture. I was thinking of getting 2" nestable tubing from mcmaster-carr for the solid gray bottom piece. Then get 1 3/4" perforated tubing for the top piece so I can adjust height.
> 
> According to mcmaster-carr site, the tubing is .105" thick. Does anyone think that is too thin? I saw on another web site they were using 3/16" (.1875) thick steel.
> 
> also, If you have any opinions/suggestions on the design, let me hear em. thanks.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

so you used a 2" x 2" piece with 3/16" thickness for the bottom piece, then i assume you had to use 1.5"x1.5" perforated top piece to slide into that since 1-3/4" wouldnt fit with 3/16 thickness. did that create a lot of slop and play between the 2 pieces requiring some shim material on the top piece or anything?


----------



## dustoffer (Jan 24, 2009)

Mine is made from square tubing, cut at the mid-point and a piece of round pipe welded in the bottom part. Top slides over the pipe and acts as the swivel point. It is also drilled and can be pinned to keep from swiveling. One thing ours does--the stinger that goes into the receiver--is long enough that it extends to the back so it will clear the lowered tailgate, and has a 45-degree angle to the right. This offset allows us to crank up a critter and swivel it into the truck bed. It is a much appreciated feature when you are hunting alone and shoot a 250 lb feral hog.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

im starting to like this idea, might as well add the swivel. i guess i dont need the height adjustable. i assume you put the crank mechanism on the top piece. how many inches of round tubing did you leave exposed for the top piece to slide onto? i modified my design a bit, moved the pulleys to the outside for clearance. the red piece is the round steel tubing welded to the bottom piece.












dustoffer said:


> Mine is made from square tubing, cut at the mid-point and a piece of round pipe welded in the bottom part. Top slides over the pipe and acts as the swivel point. It is also drilled and can be pinned to keep from swiveling. One thing ours does--the stinger that goes into the receiver--is long enough that it extends to the back so it will clear the lowered tailgate, and has a 45-degree angle to the right. This offset allows us to crank up a critter and swivel it into the truck bed. It is a much appreciated feature when you are hunting alone and shoot a 250 lb feral hog.


----------



## oldschoolcj5 (Jun 8, 2009)

make sure you put some rebar loops or some kind of rings around your cable to make sure it doesn't jump off the rollers. I like the new design better


----------



## hunt1up (Sep 4, 2009)

Here is the one I posted in a thread awhile back. It is 1/8 tubing. Two pieces that pin together with hitch pins. It doesn't swing, as I designed it solely for skinning and quartering.


----------



## hutchies (Jun 8, 2005)

Use round tubing instead of square for the up and out posts and it will swivel around to load. I've seen them made like that and all they did was use a piece of rod inside the pipe to connect the 2 pieces together.


----------



## brash (Feb 21, 2009)

what would be a good height for this. two 4' pieces?


----------



## PredatorHTR (May 17, 2010)

Sportsman's guide has one on sale that swivels for $89. Look at that design. Thicker steal the heavier it will be. That one is almost identical that I was planning on building myself until my wife bought me one for father's day.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

i was thinking two 4' pieces, but since im going to put the winch on the top piece, i am going to have that piece a little longer than the bottom piece. plus, the bottom piece would have the round tube added on to it. so maybe the bottom piece would be about 3-3.5', and the top piece 4.5-5'. ill make sure the bottom piece it high enough so it can swivel into the bed. 

the only one i could see on sportsman's guide was 149, then add shipping + 25 more for large item.

any recommendations on where to buy 2"x2" with 1/8" inside diameter steel? a local place has a 24 footer for $127. (thats the smallest length they sell, of course i could make 2....)


----------



## dustyvarmint (Dec 22, 2005)

I want to make one of these, but soooo many projects and so little time.

Something else to consider - at the National Trappers' Association convention this year I saw a lot of similar devices or stand alone devices that had electric winches on them (Harbor Freight). Then, they rigged wide blade Vice-Grip clamps near the bottom or middle on each side. "Open" the back legs of the animal, clamp the skin flaps in and start winching. Very little knife work or "hunching" needed. Would this work for bigger game? I think so, but the clamps would definitely have to be near the bottom with the animal possibly lying on the ground. 

Glad they didn't have those in the late 80's - I would have been out of a job!

happy hunting, dv


----------



## TC-CountryBoy (Aug 30, 2004)

Just check around at a some welding shops, as 2x2 tubing is a pretty common item. Most will sell you what lengths you need if they have extra around.

TC


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

if i got a 2x2 with 0.12" gauge tube, that would leave 1.76" inside diameter. would a 1.75" round tube really fit in that or do i need to drop the round tube down to 1-5/8" ?


----------



## PredatorHTR (May 17, 2010)

24 foot for $127? I bought a 2x2 20 footer last year for right around $50! Steel has gone up!! 

here is the link for Sportsman's Guide hoist...

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/cb.aspx?a=681080


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

thanks for that link PredatorHTR, i ended up buying it. while i wanted to build it myself, you can't beat the cost of this. it was going to cost me about $100 for steel alone, and then i wouldve needed a winch, pulleys, and paint. Im not a sportsmanguide member but i found a free shipping coupon (SH398).


----------



## dustoffer (Jan 24, 2009)

Here's what my lift looks like--I think it has 10" of pipe sticking out above the lower square tubing. It could use about 18" more height as a big hog is too long to lift up over the tailgate using the winch alone. But, can get him high enough to grab the legs and drag him on in. Click the pic to enlarge.


----------



## SilentElk (Oct 6, 2004)

Hmmm... I really am beginning to like this DIY forum. ALOT.

Now, I can buy whatever I need for about anything but I very often find manufactured products lacking in their design. I need one of these next year. while hunting nebraska I kept getting deer and ran into this as an issue. However, I got lucky and kept getting them right before I was heading back anyways and stopped by the butcher so not an issue. BUT I forsee this as an isssue i nthe future. Going to look into these. It's got to be able to handle a good sized animal. Last deer I shot was a 2.5 yr buck that went meat and bone 150-152lbs which gives it a feild dress weight around 200.

Not even going to mess with this for an elk.


----------



## allensfoto (Nov 19, 2010)

hutchies said:


> Use round tubing instead of square for the up and out posts and it will swivel around to load. I've seen them made like that and all they did was use a piece of rod inside the pipe to connect the 2 pieces together.


good to see another okie .. how do you join that oklahoma outdoors site ? 
thanks


----------



## allensfoto (Nov 19, 2010)

psumitch said:


> i was thinking two 4' pieces, but since im going to put the winch on the top piece, i am going to have that piece a little longer than the bottom piece. plus, the bottom piece would have the round tube added on to it. so maybe the bottom piece would be about 3-3.5', and the top piece 4.5-5'. ill make sure the bottom piece it high enough so it can swivel into the bed.
> 
> the only one i could see on sportsman's guide was 149, then add shipping + 25 more for large item.
> 
> any recommendations on where to buy 2"x2" with 1/8" inside diameter steel? a local place has a 24 footer for $127. (thats the smallest length they sell, of course i could make 2....)


craigslist,, local pape,, or local welding shops ..


----------



## stackman (Feb 4, 2007)

yes, an it works well


----------



## stackman (Feb 4, 2007)

that is the one in sportsman guide


----------



## dustyvarmint (Dec 22, 2005)

psumitch said:


> thanks for that link PredatorHTR, i ended up buying it. while i wanted to build it myself, you can't beat the cost of this. it was going to cost me about $100 for steel alone, and then i wouldve needed a winch, pulleys, and paint. Im not a sportsmanguide member but i found a free shipping coupon (SH398).


psumitch, I hope you'll let us know how the Sportsman's Guide product turns out.

happy hunting, dv


----------



## Sideways (Feb 13, 2006)

I would be interested in hearing how the Sportsmans Guide hoist works as well


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

its scheduled to be delivered tomorrow, i will post pics and a review once i get it.


----------



## psumitch (Feb 10, 2010)

well for those that have followed you get to witness the biggest buck our family has ever killed hanging from my new deer hoist. My cousin shot it, we scored it at 140 3/8. That's a gigantic PA whitetail. 

We didnt need to put the blocks of wood underneath, but they were available so we did to support it a little better.









back to the hoist, the instructions were adequate, they simply showed a diagram of how to connect everything. The frame starts out as a 2x2 but then each piece after that gets a little smaller. The gambrel it came with is heavy duty. We had one issue, where the round tube fit into the 2x2 round opening (for swivel), it didnt go far enough down for the holes to line up perfectly, so we had to drill it out a bit. After that it went smooth although Im still not sure I weaved the cable through the winch right. It came with a thrust bearing to put where it swivels, which is an excellent idea I hadnt thought of for making one myself. Another 1 foot of overall height would be ideal for when you get down around the neck. Overall, I am pleased with it and it worked out well for keeping us in the garage to skin. I'll have to try it in the field sometime on my truck to load a deer by myself.


----------



## dustyvarmint (Dec 22, 2005)

Thanks for taking the time to write this up. I was worried that the materials might not be heavy enough.

happy hunting, dv


----------



## Sideways (Feb 13, 2006)

First off congratulations to the hunter that took that brute! 
Secondly, thanks for the update on the hoist. 
It sounds and looks like it will do the job and for the price I could not build one (well maybe if I did not have to redo everything 2 or 3 times :icon_pirat 
Thanks again


----------



## Dthbyhoyt (Dec 4, 2004)

psumitch said:


> well for those that have followed you get to witness the biggest buck our family has ever killed hanging from my new deer hoist. My cousin shot it, we scored it at 140 3/8. That's a gigantic PA whitetail.
> 
> We didnt need to put the blocks of wood underneath, but they were available so we did to support it a little better.
> 
> ...


Was just given one of those last week , still in the box ...


----------



## mav_rc (Oct 7, 2002)

dustoffer said:


> Mine is made from square tubing, cut at the mid-point and a piece of round pipe welded in the bottom part. Top slides over the pipe and acts as the swivel point. It is also drilled and can be pinned to keep from swiveling. One thing ours does--the stinger that goes into the receiver--is long enough that it extends to the back so it will clear the lowered tailgate, and has a 45-degree angle to the right. This offset allows us to crank up a critter and swivel it into the truck bed. It is a much appreciated feature when you are hunting alone and shoot a 250 lb feral hog.


Just like mine


----------



## mav_rc (Oct 7, 2002)

Forgot to mention that i added an attachment for pulling the hide off with head up.also i can let the tailgate down and use as table.


----------

