Sled Blind advice

[redmondandmelvin]

Any one got any suggestions on the best way to cover up a sled (sits 4-5 guys) out in the middle of a bean field. It goes with out saying that it will stand out but just curious how some of you deal with covering it up. I have been looking at buying grass or some other sort of blind material as a base layer and then using natural cover on top of that but I have to do three of them and it will get expensive quick as most of the grass matts are only 4x4 or so. Any advice or pics would be appreciated.

[get'n_green]

To start out brushing a sled blind on a budget, the best thing you can buy is chicken wire... make sure you have enough to cover the entire sled blind... 5 or 6 guys in a sled blind out in the middle of a bean field is asking to get "picked off" by the fowl so you have to cover it SUPER WELL... I wouldn't get too carried away with buying material to brush up your blind, when the most natural thing is the actual brush your hunting in itself... make sure your cover the top and the back of the blind to get rid of the unwanted shadows... keep in mind that you don't want to just brush up the blind itself, but the area around the blind... you want it to look as natural as possible... not just one big blob out in the middle of a field... stick to what mother nature GIVES you and purchase yourself some chicken wire... hope this helps!

[ScottyLee]

sein net, rock basket material (looks like chain link) or chicken wire; or something of that matter... i use johnson grass on mine. start at the bottom and weave it through, working your way up.. it holds up pretty well since most of the grass blades end up woven and not just tied or tagged on the blind. i've tried using lots of different stuff but as far as natural vegetation i like the johnson grass. yeah it looks kinda weird in a bean field (my situation as well) but its worked up until this point.

[redmondandmelvin]

Ya the use of natural vegetation to blend in is petty tough when your in the middle of a 150+ acre field. we threw something together on opening day (and it worked) but want to do a thourough job this year well ahead of time.

[get'n_green]

Have you entertained the though of pulling the sled blind to the edge of one side of the field? You could dig out the spot a little bit to create a lower profile for your sled blind... Being on the bank you could cover it with fast grass and natural bank veg... Just food for thought...

[levi127]

I built one last year that was 10 feet long by 5 feet wide. It was project but worked perfect when the birds were in the area.
It set about 1-1.5 feet above water level, big enough to hold 4 people easily and able to spin around in the chairs with a dog in it also. Had 3 open flaps on the front and 2 on the back to be able to shoot both sides if needed.
Used thick wire instead of OSB like alot advised. Took camo netting and through over it, then used the avery mats. Best stuff used was trees and brush off the side of the woods. It made it not look perfect sitting out there. Like a brush pile. When birds would flare we would go get more brush. Shadows will be your worst enemy if birds are working.
I will see if I can find the photos of it again and show. I believe I still have all the plans I used to make it

[levi127]

This is when we 1st put it in and figured out everything the hard way.
Not enough cover on it, not enough water so had to move it to deeper water and how to brush it up. I will try and find the photo after it was completely covered up and stuff after we moved it

[redmondandmelvin]

Have you entertained the though of pulling the sled blind to the edge of one side of the field? You could dig out the spot a little bit to create a lower profile for your sled blind... Being on the bank you could cover it with fast grass and natural bank veg... Just food for thought...

problem is the birds lite in the middle of the field and we are talking a big field here. The blind worked last year but i feel we flared a large # of birds. Auctually last year I borrowed a set of scaffolds from one of my masons and we made blinds with it but we have sleds this year.

Levi thats about what ours looked like last year but it was tough to hunt more than 2-3 guys in. Thanks for the pic!

The scaffolds auctually worked great and could be moved easily but were hard to keep brush on them and we had to re work them almost every morning.

[get'n_green]

roger that.... i agree with levi the small trees stuck in the mud to natural it up all around it and maybe some fast grass all around your blind... on a budget is tough... however, with a lot of elbow grease you can get her looking really good!

[redmondandmelvin]

Elaborate on the shadows. Wouldn't a proper blind create a shadow with in it to conceal you?

[levi127]

Thats why you dont want it in a perfect square or image in the middle of the field.
Shadows also I am meaning by movement inside the blind. Our biggest problem was getting it roughed up enough so you couldnt see through it from all angles. As the year went on it basically became to where you couldnt get in the dang thing we had so much stuff on it. Also when someone was in it we would go across the field and have them move around in there, when the sun was right you would see the person then a shadow on the back side.

[get'n_green]

you want to set your blind up where the sun is in your favor... whether that be at your back or quartering in your favor... the top and back side is most important because like levi said... as soon as the sun hits your face, you might as well flash a reflection at the ducks because they will pick you... you do not want to bring any unwanted attention to a blob in the middle of water... when you brush it up very good and be a drill sergent on making your buddies BE STILL and keep their faces out of the sky you will have a better hunting experience... essentially you want the inside of your sled to be sunlightless (if that's a word ha)... maybe shadow was the wrong word to chose... the message is basically don't bring any unwanted attention to your already intruiging situation (to the ducks) in your sled blind...

Sidenote: I appologize for sidetracking away from your original post topic of blind brushing material, you can find fast grass on the sides of catfish ponds for brush, small trees to shove in mud, cat-tails, etc...

[7ducks]

x

[Wingman]

Concrete form wire is easier to brush than chicken wire in my opinion.

[Blackduck]

Use less water and pull the sled to the side somewhere.

We had ours in the middle of the field where we didn't want the birds to go. We called it a "flare" because the birds would flare off of it and swing to where we were hiding. Currently we have our sled in the middle of a ditch where it functions like a pit. Water on both sides and birds don't pick up when they fly over.


Hard as hell to adequately hide one in a big body of water like that. Ive seen some remarkably crappy blinds built in the rice fields of arkie. Some of those guys might have some tips.