# Conduit ladder stands?



## zmax hunter (Aug 21, 2006)

it is cheaper and safer to just drop $90 and purchase a factory made unit, pull it out of the box, put it together, most all even come with a safety harness, some things can be made and you might save a little money but in the end, its just too much trouble.


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## zmax hunter (Aug 21, 2006)

http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=201870&page=33

It will take you some searching, and i dont know about actaul plans, but there are several home-made ladder stands in this thread, good luck, be safe


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## doug (Oct 10, 2002)

*ladder*

I don't know if you have a Dicks Sporting goods near you but they have a descent 15' ladder for 59.00


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## Hammer0419 (Nov 21, 2005)

zmax hunter said:


> it is cheaper and safer to just drop $90 and purchase a factory made unit, pull it out of the box, put it together, most all even come with a safety harness, some things can be made and you might save a little money but in the end, its just too much trouble.


EXACTLY! Over the years I have run miles of conduit and no way in heck would I consider it to support my life 20' up in a tree. Unless I had great skills, machines, and the correct material I wouldn't even consider it. And, as stated above you can get one better than you can make at a cheaper price.


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## Gary K (Nov 28, 2008)

doug said:


> I don't know if you have a Dicks Sporting goods near you but they have a descent 15' ladder for 59.00


+1. And for anyone planning to build stands for next year, be sure to check out the after-season sales first before spending money on materials...as the cost of a commercially made one can be significantly cheaper than what you pay for material for your own. Spend a couple dollars you save on some spray foam and/or undercoating spray to make the store bought stand even quieter, and maybe on some burlap or camo fabric to add a skirt.


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## bucksnortinted (Aug 24, 2006)

Menards has hunting equipment limited but the one here in muskegon has 16ft
and 20 ladders and the 16ft climbing sticks pretty reasonable
i have worked around conduit in the construction field its hard to get paint to stick to and personaly i don't think it would be to safe a boughten one would be the way to go

Ted


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## Huaco (Jul 7, 2006)

PLEASE... if not for anything else but to make your Life INsurance agent happy... DO NOT USE CONDUIT for a stand. Conduit is not in ANY way rated for structual use. The steel used in conduit fatigues very easily. Want to get an idea of how bad conduit is... take a piece and bend it over and then bend it back over on itself. More than likely it will show a crack at this point. Climbing a ladder constructed of conduit is a time bomb. Climb that ladder 10 times and it may be fine. What if the 11th time the top rung on a 15 foot ladder fatigues???


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## bucksnortinted (Aug 24, 2006)

*Do Not Use Conduit To Weak*

in my first post i said i didn't think it was safe,DON'T DO IT the more and more i thought about it i had to get back on here i have welded for a few years did fabricating and been around construction most of my life and conduit is flexible pipe that is not designed for what you want to do with it ,it is soft metal that does bend to easy and crack to easy with the stress from weight on it some is galvinized some is like a aluminized white metal,trying to save a dollar on this item is not the way to go,in the long run it is gonna take a lot of time and gonna be a pain in the hindend,especialy where the ladder goes together another weak spot,do yourself a favor and your family and go buy a TMA CERTIFIED TREE STAND they really do not cost that much,you can build your own if you wish but please do not use conduit use some good steel but it will still be cheaper and lighter and just better all the way around to go purchase one

Ted


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## MS Sportsman (Jan 30, 2009)

I don't know about all these other guys, but I have more conduit deer stands than I can count. Most are ladder and I have one four leg stand. A good wire welder and someone who knows how to use it and a good design and you are fine. I have some that are 15yrs old and still are fine they are galvanized so they don't rust you just need to clean the welds good and paint them so they don't rust and make sure water can't get in the pipes and freeze and bust them. As far as bends go I only make one bend on most of mine and some don't have any bends and I certainly don't bend em back and forth any metal will break if you do that.


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## Huaco (Jul 7, 2006)

MS Sportsman said:


> I don't know about all these other guys, but I have more conduit deer stands than I can count. Most are ladder and I have one four leg stand. A good wire welder and someone who knows how to use it and a good design and you are fine. I have some that are 15yrs old and still are fine they are galvanized so they don't rust you just need to clean the welds good and paint them so they don't rust and make sure water can't get in the pipes and freeze and bust them. As far as bends go I only make one bend on most of mine and some don't have any bends and I certainly don't bend em back and forth any metal will break if you do that.


Remind me not to go hunting in your stands! LOL...

Still don't trust my life to conduit.


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## 1mitch4 (Aug 30, 2005)

I have built 8 hang-ons out of conduit! My own design and I've got $60 in all 8! I know everyone will say not to hunt out of one, but I have the engineering background and they are great stands!


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## bowhunterjac (Aug 13, 2009)

1mitch4 said:


> I have built 8 hang-ons out of conduit! My own design and I've got $60 in all 8! I know everyone will say not to hunt out of one, but I have the engineering background and they are great stands!


Do ya have the plans on here for us to try....??


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## 1mitch4 (Aug 30, 2005)

Just used my own judgement. I'll post some pics of them tomorrow if I find a good one. I am fine tuning them right now!


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## bowhunterjac (Aug 13, 2009)

1mitch4 said:


> Just used my own judgement. I'll post some pics of them tomorrow if I find a good one. I am fine tuning them right now!


Good deal. I had made a few like this years ago... but don't recall who I did it. They were kind of tough to use though, the support was an arm that pivoted underneath. Was tough to set up in the tree. I just left them behind after a season or two. I wonder if they are still there....lol


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## Reloader7RM (Jan 25, 2006)

*Conduit stands....*

I know a guy that has some ladder stands made of conduit. For the rails/ladder, it is two pieces of 3/4" on both sides with small pieces welded about every couple feet. They are pretty light and he's never had any trouble. I've seen some skid duck blinds made from conduit as well, they had expanded metal floors and were elevated above the ground about 14" to stay above the water in flooded rice fields. Very light, easy to slide behind an atv, and they'd hold 4 hunters with ease.

I agree it's not very strong material, the only thing I've used it for on lock-ons was for a shooting rail. I've just used square tubing for my homemade stands, but they are very heavy and it cost as much in materials as it would have for me to just buy a cheap stand, not to mention the time involved in building them. I built two climbers about 6years ago and I've just bought stands ever since as they weren't cheap and they are real heavy. I'd rather build a ladder stand from treated wood than conduit.

have a good one,

7rm


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## QuickReflex (Jul 28, 2008)

I posted some a couple months back I dont know how to link it , search DIY ladders. They are plenty strong , I have built & used conduit for several things from swampbuggy rigging to tree stands to airboat rigging. If braced & welded properly it is very strong not to mention galv. so it wont rust.

Make your bends using a conduit bender,I use 1" for the legs with 1/2" bridge
3/4" rungs @ 15" on center. These ladders are in use now . Im 6'3" 325# & they dont move , they only have 1 ratchet strap @ the top & are very solid.
I would & do trust them ALOT more that the store bought CHINA junk they sell for 60.00 at dicks or any where else. I bought 4 stands last season 2 singles & 2 buddys went out this year to check the straps & they were all so rusted I removed them from service , Pure 100% china Junk.

Conuits fine for stands most on here thats saying otherwise wouldnt know how to build a stand with any material. Any material will fatige if bent back & forth especially that paper thin box tubing used on the elcheapo stands. & have you noticed the welds they do 1/2 way or just top & bottom but they say it allows the material to flex, Thats alot of BS. In a ladder stand you dont need flex you need rigidity & strength , no Flex.


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## cthornton (Dec 18, 2005)

Can you weld conduit with an arc welder? Any certain way to do it?


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## QuickReflex (Jul 28, 2008)

cthornton said:


> Can you weld conduit with an arc welder? Any certain way to do it?


Brase or Mig would be the best or you could Tig but thats time consuming.

I dont think most could weld it with an arc. I say most, because Im sure someone would love to prove me wrong. It has happened before.

I mig weld all mine now , However I have brased a many in the past.


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## cthornton (Dec 18, 2005)

Is just emt conduit like you can get at lowes for electrical wiring? My dad has a flux core gasless wire welder, would that work? Is there a way to make them in sections to make it easier to carry?


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## 1mitch4 (Aug 30, 2005)

Built all of mine with fluxcore welder. Easy and don't have to drag the bottle of gas around. Welds aren't as clean, but it done the trick. Going to get some out tomorrow to get them ready. I'll post pics then!


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## cthornton (Dec 18, 2005)

sounds good if you have any plans you would share I'd appreciate it.


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