How do you control your scent?

J

jr8fish

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LAST EDITED ON Mar-21-13 AT 03:07PM (MST)[p]I am asking these questions from the stand point of mule deer/elk archery hunting.

A couple of questions:

Do you believe that scent lok type garments work (essentially carbon linings)?

Are scent lok type garments worth the price even if they do work? If buying new camo, is it worth the extra $ to buy scent lok type garments? Or is camo even worth the price at all, compared to just buying army surplus generic camo?

Are scent eliminating sprays effective?

What routine do yo go through come hunting time to eliminate odors?

What do you consider more important visual camouflage or scent camouflage?

What is your favorite brand of visual camo?

Any other comments dealing with camo and scent control that you care to enlighten me on?

In general I think scent control is important and from a street clothes point of view... my merino wool underwear stink far less than polyester underwear after a workout.... So maybe there is reason for scent lok type garments.
 
Scent-Lok gear works great if you wash it in the descenting wash products and dry it to re-charge the carbon according to mfg instructions. Bag it to keep the garments from odor contamination. Bag the cloths, backpack and boots when your not out hunting. Bath yourself in the descenting wash products or use the field bath cloths you can purchase at Cabela's prior to putting on the Scent-Lok gear. Use a full cover Scent-Lok hood and gloves and plenty of camo face paint where any skin is exposed. Spray everything you take in the field with Scent-Killer Spray. Wipe down your bow as well as your arrows with the descenting field bath cloths...Now your as scent-free as possible :) Some people do the descenting to a point then recontaminate their gear with camp odors or take food with them that have odors on their hunt...Then their busted and think the scent control didn't work.

No campfire smoke on cloths, food or coffee odors or snacks with odors when in the field. Unwrap all your snacks and put them in a small zip lock bag to keep the noise to a minimum. Place all your necessary gear, snacks in outside pockets of your backpack to make them easily accessable. That keeps the noise and movement level to a minimum. NO Velcro

We get elk or deer almost stepping on us every year so we know the scent control products and garments work. What gets us busted if we get busted is the slightest "MOVEMENT".

Learn to walk and stalk VERY SLOWLY and let your camo work for you. If you move to fast even in the scent-lok camo your busted

Camo best to choose based on your hunting terrain. We use Mossy Oak Break-Up type colors because we hunt mostly in dark timber.

You can purchase quality garments,gear and de-scenting products at Cablea's. Nothing in archery is cheep if you want the best bang for your buck check out their brand gear.

As I suggest to you in a prior post. Pick up the Book "Back Country Bowhunting" by Cameron Hanes it will answer most of your questions :)

That's all you get for a quarter :) BBQ time :)

))))------->
 
Keep it simple,
Pay attention to the wind, get yourself a talc bottle. don't waste your money on scent lock type clothes. I think Camo is important but not near as important as movement control. Keep the paterns simple like cabelas outfitter camo or ASAT they will blend better over a larger variance of terrain. I also think camo will help mask some of your movements.

so to recap,
1. play the wind
2. manage your movement
3. keep the camo simple

Richard
 
fish: Remember, Archery is not like rifle hunting. If you want to get up close and personal with your game animals. Learn to "think, act, stalk and hunt like a predator".

I also previously thought that the Scent-Lok gear was a waste of time and money until we see the results year after year when the combo of the gear and descenting when done propery changes the game :) Our group all uses the same procedure and gear with the same great results. We won't let anyone hunt with us that isn't geared up the same so they don't get us busted. We can walk into and out of bedding areas "in the dark" and get set up on a 10 day elk hunt with elk bedded down all around us and never disturb the game. The elk stay put undisturbed...No matter which way the wind is blowing...We call that good hunting techniques and scent control.:)

When you can get an elk or deer to feed to within 3 feet of you the RUSH can't be put into words...You need to experience it for yourself to understand the feeling..."Experience it" and know the price of the gear and descenting products is worth the time and money. :)

Good Hunting

))))------->
 
Wool. It doesn't carry scent. Synthetic products start stinking immediately. I don't care what scent killer product you use, it doesn't hide your breath. If nothing else, our breath smells like a meat eating predator. I remember some guy a while back writing about going on a special diet. No meat, for about two weeks before the hunts started. He claimed it made a huge difference. Sorry, I can't go without meat that long. I think the most important thing is to have the wind in your favor, or you are going to get busted. Period!
 
I HUNT HOGS IN CALI A LOT......WAY TOO MUCH. I GET IN CLOSE TO LARGE GROUPS QUITE OFTEN. WITHOUT SPENDING A BUNCH OF $$$ ON SPECIAL CLOTHING I SPRAY DOWN WITH DEAD DOWN WIND & AND CARRY A SMALL BOTTLE WITH ME WHILE HIKING. I REALLY DONT HAVE TIME TO WATCH SWIRLING WIND CURRENTS EITHER.....I SPRAY DOWN....AND IT REALLY WORKS. THE PROOF IN IN THE PUDDIN !!!!!.....BUT MORE & MORE WITH A CAMERA !!!!!.......YD.
 
If you believe in scent control clothing then I have an ocean front property in AZ to sell you!
Play the wind as best you can! Camo isn't as important as the manufacturers want you to believe. I've been within a few yards of elk/deer in jeans and a white T-shirt countless times. Move slow and play the wind...Save your scent lock money for gas and or hunting gear that works!


Traditional >>>------->
 
More human scent comes out of your nose and mouth when you breath. If you don't control that (by watching your wind) then you can forget about wasting your money on scent control clothing. Most camo is a waste of time also. Animals spot movement, which you can't camouflage unless you stay hidden. You'll never read about either of these two things because camo companies pay for a lot of advertising.
 
You mean to tell me sent free soap works at controlling bacteria? Who would have thought but thats as far as i will go with scent loc crap. The carbon is over priced junk. The camo is some of the worst

Now if you want some real clothing that controls your scent better look no further than wool its simply the best. Wools not so bad at the quiet game either. Bow hunters choice!

Polyester is probably the worst for NOT controlling your scent but hey sitka uses it.

Preditor or asat gets my vote for good blending camo.
 
As said, it's all about the wind...When your Archery season starts in August, you're going to sweat...Now Trestand is a 'ill' different, but still you're going to sweat the minute you move...



'Ike'
 
Wind is the key! Buy a $5 windicator and use it often. Camouflage just breaks up your outline! If you skyline yourself, deer will easily see you. My favorite camo is Realtree Max-1
 
+1 on the wind. I have tried it all, clothing, spray, even the damn deodorant, and even with that, when you play the wind wrong you are walking away frustrated. If you are hunting in a bubble with little or no wind go for the gimmicks, if not, just be smart. I still use some spray in the obvious spots (pits, boots) but don't rely on it. I don't think camo is crazy important but it does help you blend in, I love the Kings Desert Shadow for hunting the sagebrush country here in NV. They have other patterns and I really like the quality of the gear for the price which is very affordable.
 
I use several different types of camo depending on terrain. I use the scent away detergent, dryer sheets , deodorant, and I spray down good in the field. I agree to play the wind to your advantage, get a bottle of breeze squeeze. Most of this is available at Walmart and is pretty inexpensive. Using this makes you more effective especially when the wind swirls on you. Practice controlling your breathing while moving slow and learn about foot placement as far as how loud some things are versus others . Mule deer have great eyes, and great hearing but they mostly rely on their nose. In 2010 I made a 300 yard stalk on a 170" deer and a few other bucks he was with in sage flats with the wind blowing directly at them while they were standing up feeding. I made a 50 yard shot and ended his game. Just my expierence. Good luck out there!

"THERES MORE TO LIFE THAN HUNTING,
BUT HOW FUN WOULD THAT BE"
 
YOU DON'T CONTROL YOUR SCENT!!! I don't care what advice anyone gives you or any other people say works for them. All that scent lock gear and scent (elk piss etc) is worthless. You can mask your scent a little with some female elk piss but unless you are driving a quad to within a few hundred yards of a stand and then not sweating while walking in, or walking a flat dirt road in cool temperatures you are going to sweat while hiking, breath while hiking/sitting, and probably pass gas on occassion. Scent eliminating sprays are effective for about the first 5 minutes of your hike or while you are hunting but once you start sweating and breathing its game over. They do make your cloths smell better at camp so you don't have to smell yourself!!

All the gear and scent in the world does not cover up the scent of your breath, gas you may have, or sweat pouring off your skin while you hike.

THE WIND IS THE BEST AND ONLY REAL SCENT CONTROL NO MATTER WHAT ANY YAHOOS TRY TO TELL YOU ON HERE.

In 2 of the last three years on the dedicated hunter (general units) I've taken bucks that score 185 & 194 for the two deer I could harvest in the three year program. Believe me, I've blown a bunch of stocks on the same quality and even bigger deer in that time frame because the wind switched on me. Scent block or scent block camo has nothing to do with it. Its the wind direction and you better make sure to have it in your favor during your stock. If it switches on you and blows at your back, then stop and back out of there becuase I'll guarantee you the buck will wind you and blow out hard before you get in shooting distance no matter how much money you have spent on scent and scent cammo.

I guess the moral of the story is to save yourself a bunch of money and just buy some decent camo (DON'T BUY ANY LIGHT SAGE BRUSH COLORED CAMO BECAUSE YOU LIGHT UP ON THE HILL LIKE A CHRISTMAS TREE WEARING THAT LIGHTER COLOR IN THE EARLY MORNING AND LATE EVENING WHEN THERE IS MINIMAL LIGHT). A lot of this scent block camo and scent is just marketing by the idiots trying to get people to by a product.

As for CAMO, I've found a little darker camo with some green is the best. As I mentioned don't buy light sage brush camo, it sucks.

You better off to buy more pairs or cheaper but decent cammo and change your cloths more often then to spend and arm and a leg on expensive sweat block cammo. believe me after a few days on the hill without a shower your arm pits and the rest of your body smell pretty bad no matter what cammo you own.

Good luck, and if your new at archery hunting just remember its all about the wind, patience, and persistance. Don't rush anything!

Also, one other word of advice. When your archery hunting you will have more success starting out if you set up in front of a tree, bush, or brush and use them as your back drop rather than setting up behind them and trying to move around to get your shot once the buck is in range. It took a few years for me to figure this out because you may be hidden better behind the bush but getting a good shooting lane or shot opportunity is 50 times harder from that position.

Hey this is just my advice but I probably don't know crap!!
 
LAST EDITED ON Jun-11-13 AT 02:13PM (MST)[p]This picture was of last years hunt and we never wear cammo. Like everyone says the wind is more important and to add we smelled like mules because we road in for two days. If anyone ever rode in on mules or horses know what I'm talking about. Check your wind my friend.
23722012-11-30_12-10-06_383.jpg
 
I keep my hunting clothes in a Tupperware so it doesn't smell like the stir-fry onions I made the week before, but that is about it.

As far as camo goes, I like the macro patterns. But I mix & match brands and patterns. I don't think it matters much.

The only other scent control I do is sometimes stick a piece of sagebrush in my camo bin before the season. It seems to help as a cover-scent.

Still, if you are upwind the animals will smell you. If you are downwind, you have a chance. Nothing else really matters.

Grizzly

PS. Tristate, please be an adult and respect my wishes that you do not respond to any of my posts. I, in turn, will do you the courtesy of not responding to any of yours. I simply do not wish to converse with you.
 
>Will Gear in the movie Jeremiah
>Johnson said it best."Keep your
>nose into the wind Pilgrim"
>

Best movie ever!!
 
Scent lock has been proven that it does not work. Do some research and you will find many tests that prove it only a gimmick. I don't understand the people that think it works.
 
I was curious about the ScentLok stuff for awhile but was hesitant because of the price and the effort it took to make the system "work". But I was still curious...........that was up until I shared a motel room with a buddy that was using it. He lathered, he sprayed, got dressed, sprayed again then hopped in the truck......I admit I couldn't smell him a bit until he casually lifted a cheek off the seat and proceeded to let one rip that sounded like a cross between a buck grunt and a raccoon growl. Within seconds this wretched stench of Vienna sausages, gas station hotdogs and pickled eggs left my nostril violated and sullied and I then knew.............ScentLok does NOT contain human odors.

Damn hard to "Forget the Wind" when you can taste it on the back of your tongue.
 
+1 on the wind and then wool. I grew up tree stand hunting for whitetails in the midwest and as an adolescent thought I needed the latest and greatest in scent technology and got the scentlok gear. I felt I had closer encounters with deer when I wore the stuff (i.e. could drop an acorn on a deer right below me) but it very well could have been placebo effect or I was just getting better at hunting and staying still in the stand. Maybe it works for tree stand hunting with minimal movement but I could not see it working out here in the west with spot and stalk and LOTS of sweating.

Its pretty simple...we produce odors like everything else in this world and deer our very good at detecting just about every odor and go on high alert on foreign odors. Odor is caused by bacteria as well as a host of other things, so if you can get something to reduce the bacteria then you will not smell AS bad. Recently, on hiking trips I have noticed that my merino wool tops don't stink as bad as my other tops when worn and sweated in for several days and I'm going to start using them for my hunts. Again, its simple, wool is a natural deodorizer so it reduces (note: not eliminate) odor so that you might have a better chance if the wind swirls on you but if you don't play the wind then you will need to do your stalk in a lifesize ziplock bag and it better be a really quick stalk...again, simple.
 
Dead down wind seems to work for me. Had 5 deer, 3 were bucks 2 real nice ones come within 15 yards of me, wind blowin directly at them. The do came around the weeds and saw me. Weeds were too tall to get a shot off without spookin em! Tomorrow, one of the bucks is gonna take a dirt nap:)
 
GOOD ARTICLE!

I know this sounds silly but I fill my boots/shoes up with dirt everyday upon arriving back at camp. It does a fine job at absorbing the moisture and my human nose can no longer smell odor coming from my shoes.

I have stopped buying scent shield and similar products. I wash my clothes in vinegar then again in baking soda then I hang them out to dry. My human nose confirms I have eliminated scent from my clothing. As I run out of clean clothes, I will have a wash basin (5 gallon bucket) full of baking soda water. I will soak my clothes in that, scrub, then hang to dry.

As for my body, I will shower as often as feasible, using baking soda in lieu of scent shield products. I will make a paste from baking soda and rub on my body similarly to using the scent shield gel that I used to use.

I figure if its all snake oil, I may as well make my own snake oil. Saves me a mint of money.

At the end of the day, it really is all about wind, noise, and movement control. Wearing blaze orange and blue jeans, I've been nose to nose with mule deer does on a couple occasions and within feet on many more occasions.

good topic. I enjoyed reading each take. I always like to incorporate new useful tips.

Thanks!
 
I personally decided a while back that who cares about your scent. A few years back I was very worried about it and did everything that I could do. No matter what I tried doing, the deer/elk/whatever smelt me... So I basically decided to do nothing and not care about it and see if it really made a difference... And I really haven't. Its all about playing the wind. If the wind is good, you'll be ok. If the wind isnt, i dont care if you have on a 1000$ scent killer whatever, the animal is going to smell you... thats my 2 cents ha
 
I have never bought expensive scent free clothing and as a western hunter I never believed in scent control until I hunted whitetails. In the west you cant keep your self from sweating because we hike around and move alot but I can tell you I will not enter the whitetail woods without washing my camo in scent free soap and spraying down with scent killer before I hit the stand. I tried it for about 3 days without and I quickly learned it helps A LOT. It doesnt eliminate all scent but it does help. I have hunted whitetails about 7 years in a row now and I will not get in the stand unless I have clean washed clothes, showered with scent free soap and sprayed with scent killer. I will shower before the morning hunt and again before the evening hunt. Unfortunately out west there is little we can do unless we are treestand/ ground blind hunting.

Jason Yates
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