Baiting
- Thread starter Cougar Jim
- Start date
well i spent 3 nights at my camp ttrying to seal the deal. friday night i got up to pee and decided to take a look out at the bait with the binos (very dark, and we cant use lights in MA
) and as i looked i saw a large yote heading towards the bait as i was reaching for my gun the bait alarm started going off, i think it scared him. this happen 2 more times friday night. nothing sat night ( was crazy windy maybe thats y) then last night the alarm went off again at 1030, no sunday hunting but i looked and didnt see anything anyway, i think one may of just passed in front of it quick.??
anyone had this problem? its on low and still seems pretty loud. i was thinking of wrapping it with paper towels or something to muffle it a bit. the bait is around 75 yds, but cant move it back more, if i do the alarm doesnt reach. any suggestions. i'm going back this weekend
anyone had this problem? its on low and still seems pretty loud. i was thinking of wrapping it with paper towels or something to muffle it a bit. the bait is around 75 yds, but cant move it back more, if i do the alarm doesnt reach. any suggestions. i'm going back this weekend
jkruger
New member
Thanks doubleUp, they are a good size here.Havent seen any more coyote tracks but there was a set of fox out there from last night. Quite healthy this season also.Last year a yote and a fox that i shot out back had mange .
deerslyr1, try some insulation or bubble wrap ,that might do the trick. Even a blanket could work.
deerslyr1, try some insulation or bubble wrap ,that might do the trick. Even a blanket could work.
DoubleUp
Well-known member
deerslyr1, there are some things you can do depending on the type of alarm you have. I don't have anything fancy just a $16 driveway alarm. I took it apart and made an external antenna out of #12guage solid copper wire (household electrical wire) on the sending unit and receiver. That gave me range out to 150 yds with no problem.
I also rigged one for 6mm06, but he needed to be able to control the volume like you do, so I disconnected his speaker and replaced it with a jack to fit headphones. Then he found an inline volume control for it. He can now change the volume in the earphones as loud or quiet as he wants and doesn't have to worry about the coyotes hearing it.
Without a light or night vision, I don't think moving your baitpile further is going to work well.
I also rigged one for 6mm06, but he needed to be able to control the volume like you do, so I disconnected his speaker and replaced it with a jack to fit headphones. Then he found an inline volume control for it. He can now change the volume in the earphones as loud or quiet as he wants and doesn't have to worry about the coyotes hearing it.
Without a light or night vision, I don't think moving your baitpile further is going to work well.
6mm06
Well-known member
Deerslyr1,
DoubleUp did a fine job on the the Driveway Patrol he modified for me. It works great with the antenna. He tested it to 150 yards as I recall and it worked. I've only used mine at 60 yards. Though I haven't had a coyote hit the bait while I was hunting, I did have a possum awake me when it passed in front of the sensor.
As he mentioned, I use a volume control device to adjust the volume up or down as needed. I found it on Ebay. DoubleUp wired up an earbud jack to the receiver. I then plugged in the volume control to the jack, then plugged in a set of headphones to the volume control (earbuds were annoying to keep in place) and now I can control the sound to a suitable and comfortable level. I can sit and snooze while in the chair at the shooting table, or relax on the bunk with the headphones on. When something hits the bait, it alerts me through the headphones. It's a pretty neat system. It works, and it's quiet.
DoubleUp also used a box to mount the transmitter in and made it easy to mount to a tree
or post by means of a buckle strap. He also added a bit of camo well. Maybe he can tell you
more about the box he used. He cut out an opening for the sensor. The unit is protected
from the weather fairly well except for the small opening where the sensor shows through.
Receiver showing earbud jack and antenna
Receiver showing headphones, volume control and antenna
Volume control device
Headphones - these are cheap and all that's needed.
As to moving your bait site further out, you will need to be able to see well and get on a target rather quickly. In my case, I am using infrared lights mounted at the bait site (up in a tree) and a night vision scope. At 60 yards I can see extremely well, even 100 yards would not be a problem for illumination. The 5X magnification of the night vision scope is great at the 60 yard range. I have considered moving my bait site to about 135 yards in order to get the coyotes further from the cabin to hopefully cut down on any chance of spooking them. Illumination won't be a problem (infrared lights again) but the limited 5X magnification would cause me to have to be much more precise with my aiming. I haven't moved the bait site yet but am considering doing that maybe next fall just to see how it works.
Hope this helps and gives you a good idea of how the unit looks and works.
Oh, one other thing some of you may find of interest is the Nite Site night vision scope. Seems we predator hunters are always looking for a better mouse trap. This unit is manufactured in the UK but can be shipped to the US. To my understanding, it costs somewhere around $945 US for the NS-200, not cheap but very interesting. The clip below shows the NS-50 (cheaper version and limited in range) in use on rabbits with an air rifle, but I am eyeing the NS-200 which has much greater range.
This device will allow the use of a day-time scope and also allows greater magnification. For baiting purposes it might not be too bad, but might cause a bit of a problem if moving about the fields and woods since it has wires connected here and there and also a battery back to carry. I'm currently in contact with the company and inquiring more of the device to see how well it might work for my application. I don't have the funds to purchase this unit (yet) but it never hurts to keep a sharp eye out for something new that might work well.
Just thought you might like to see, and if anyone has experience with this scope or knowledge of it, please share it. Here is the YouTube link, and there are other clips on YouTube as well pertaining to this scope.
Company website:
http://www.nitesite.co.uk/products.html
dannyk
New member
Update, finally we are seeing some activity around the bait pile, this picture was taken about a hundred feet north of the pile by my trail camera, I have several other pictures taken at the bait site also by another trail camera. My partner and I have spent numerous hours in the blind and have only ravens to show for it, but in the last couple of days things have improved a lot.
double up / 6mm06,
thanks for the info...i currently have the exact same driveway patrol alarm, not sure what im gonna do [beeep]. we only have till 3/8/12 to hunt. so my thinking is next year i'm gonna get a better alarm or modify mine like you did and move the bait back....but last week they were hitting it evey night where it is 75 yds from the camp... on moon lit nights with snow i can easily see no problem through the scope , but on weekends like last week end i had trouble. 75 yds seemed like 200yds in the dark and had trouble getting on them. i could pick them out with binos but had troble with the scope. ideal situation would be a gen3 night scope and move the bait back but those scopes are huge$$$ not sure i want to dump that kind of money to try to help out the local deer population!
thanks for the info...i currently have the exact same driveway patrol alarm, not sure what im gonna do [beeep]. we only have till 3/8/12 to hunt. so my thinking is next year i'm gonna get a better alarm or modify mine like you did and move the bait back....but last week they were hitting it evey night where it is 75 yds from the camp... on moon lit nights with snow i can easily see no problem through the scope , but on weekends like last week end i had trouble. 75 yds seemed like 200yds in the dark and had trouble getting on them. i could pick them out with binos but had troble with the scope. ideal situation would be a gen3 night scope and move the bait back but those scopes are huge$$$ not sure i want to dump that kind of money to try to help out the local deer population!
6mm06, i just watched a bunch of utube clips on that nite vision....very neat. Will they ship to the us? Also seems like most the utube clips were at 30-50 yds i wounder how they will perform at 75-200 yds? if it worked good id be interested.... about 4x cheaper than a gen 3 scope.
6mm06
Well-known member
DannyK, You need to talk to DoubleUp about how to wire up the antenna. I don't have a clue how to. He did mine for me. It works great. I'm more satisfied with his modification to the Driveway Patrol than I am with the Spy Point that I purchased for a much higher cost.
Deerslyr1, Yes, they ship to the USA. I have been in correspondence with a guy from their company and he said no problem sending to the USA. The YouTube clips of the Nite Site were close range and the guy was using the NS-50 on an air rifle. The NS-50 is for closer ranges, but the NS-200 extends the range quite a bit, they say to 200 yards. I have my doubts about that, but I hope to find out soon since I have a friend in the UK who recently purchased the NS-200. He is in the process of testing it out and will get back with me about it. If I were to purchase one of these scopes, it would definitely be the NS-200.
As well, today I spoke (by letter) with the guy from the company in the UK, inquiring about if the monitor would be able to see with my light system. He said yes, and also said the illuminator on the monitor can be turned off and allow only my lights to provide the illumination, and of course the monitor would then only display the crosshair and what is seen through the scope. Doing that, I think longer range shooting would be relatively easy due to the brightness of the infrared lights I use and the ability to zoom up a day-time scope to something of more magnification, maybe 8X or 10X, or even more. The guy also said the company is currently working on a filter to place over the monitor to cut down on bright light being emitted back toward the shooter's face.
As well, just another thought and a cheaper way to go, you might want to consider a setup like I have - a Gen 1 ATN Spartan 410 (Sportsman's Guide club member price $539), and infrared lights like the ones I use - for under $100. That cost includes a remote control DC switch and all wiring necessary. You would need some sort of a 12-volt battery to power the lights. I started out using a small Cabela's gel cell 8 amp battery, and only turned it on when I needed it and then back off to conserve the battery. I have since begun using a trolling motor battery that has 160 reserve amp capacity. That battery will power the 5 lights all night and barely show sign of discharge. Those lights ( 5 of them ) illuminate so much at 60 yards that it's almost too bright. I probably could have got by with 4 lights. You would have no problem seeing well at your 75 yard mark and beyond. A coyote on the bait would be a dead dog. I watched a mouse the other night at the bait site, that's how good and bright the setup is.
The limitation of the Gen 1 Spartan is that of resolution and brightness without a bright light source. Using the scope for calling purposes would not work as well, but at a bait site at a known distance, and with the infrared lights mentioned, the Spartan is all you would ever need. The illuminator that comes with the scope is insufficient for much beyond 40 yards. But with the infrared lights I think 100 yard shots and beyond is reasonable, with the only limitation being the 5X magnification and being able to get a crosshair on a coyote. For shooting at a bait site, the Spartan and light system is all you would need.
There is one other infrared light I recently found on Ebay that I am interested in. It has 140 LEDs and costs around $50. The lights I use have 48 LEDs each. I'm thinking two of these 140 LED lights would offer a great deal of illumination at my want-to range of 135 yards. That may be something I will try later on.
I am in the process of putting together a video clip for YouTube that explains how to go about setting up the light system, and also shows some actual video footage taken at my 60 yard sight and at other locations as well. Once I get it finished and uploaded, I'll attach a link on this post.
DoubleUp
Well-known member
The Driveway alarm is easy to modify. Just take the screws out which hold the front and back together. Then carefully work them apart. They use hot glue to hold the antenna wire in place and it may be sticking the two pieces together a little. Once you have it apart, you will see the antenna wire, it is white. It will run up over the inside top of both the sender unit and receiving unit. Work it loose from the hot glue holding it being careful to not break the wire.
I took the wire from off the top and drilled a small hole out the side of the units where the antenna wire originates.
I then soldered it to an 18 inch piece of 12 guage solid wire. I just stripped off about half inch of the insulation on the 12 guage wire from the bottom for the solder job. After soldering I used some heat shrink to cover the solder and bare wire.
While you have the unit apart, if you want to install a way to use the earphones and external volume control, you will see the red and black wires going to the speaker. Just cut them close to the speaker. I removed the speaker on 6mm06's unit and drilled about a 1/4 inch hole for the wires to go through. I then soldered a female 3.5mm plug to the wires so that he could plug in his volume control and headphones.
Then just put the unit back together and use wiring ties to hold the antennas to each unit and keep them vertical. I used the black 12 guage wire on the outside unit and the white wire on the inside unit, but it really wouldn't make any difference other than visibility.
I also bought one of those Sterilite containers with the snap lid from Walmart. I think it is the quart size. I used that to make a box to protect the outside unit. I mounted it to a board and put a strap between the plastic housing and the board for mounting to a post or tree. I then cutout the front of the housing enough for the sensor to read and put a hole in the top of the container just large enough for the antenna to come through.
The top screw which holds the housing to the board is also used as the mounting screw for the sending unit, so it needs to be placed so that it can do double duty. I put a second screw in the bottom of the housing to hold it to the board. Then I drilled (4) 1/4" holes at the front bottom of the container to let any rainwater get out and camoed the lid and container before putting the sending unit in it. If you go back and look at 6mm06's pictures it might make more sense now.
If that doesn't do it for you, send me a PM and I'll take one apart and make some step by step pictures. I hope this helps you out.
I took the wire from off the top and drilled a small hole out the side of the units where the antenna wire originates.
I then soldered it to an 18 inch piece of 12 guage solid wire. I just stripped off about half inch of the insulation on the 12 guage wire from the bottom for the solder job. After soldering I used some heat shrink to cover the solder and bare wire.
While you have the unit apart, if you want to install a way to use the earphones and external volume control, you will see the red and black wires going to the speaker. Just cut them close to the speaker. I removed the speaker on 6mm06's unit and drilled about a 1/4 inch hole for the wires to go through. I then soldered a female 3.5mm plug to the wires so that he could plug in his volume control and headphones.
Then just put the unit back together and use wiring ties to hold the antennas to each unit and keep them vertical. I used the black 12 guage wire on the outside unit and the white wire on the inside unit, but it really wouldn't make any difference other than visibility.
I also bought one of those Sterilite containers with the snap lid from Walmart. I think it is the quart size. I used that to make a box to protect the outside unit. I mounted it to a board and put a strap between the plastic housing and the board for mounting to a post or tree. I then cutout the front of the housing enough for the sensor to read and put a hole in the top of the container just large enough for the antenna to come through.
The top screw which holds the housing to the board is also used as the mounting screw for the sending unit, so it needs to be placed so that it can do double duty. I put a second screw in the bottom of the housing to hold it to the board. Then I drilled (4) 1/4" holes at the front bottom of the container to let any rainwater get out and camoed the lid and container before putting the sending unit in it. If you go back and look at 6mm06's pictures it might make more sense now.
If that doesn't do it for you, send me a PM and I'll take one apart and make some step by step pictures. I hope this helps you out.
6mm06, are those infarred visable by the naked eye? ( no lights in ma, but night vision is ok) i am strongly concidering just biting the bullet next year and getting a gen3 night vision for next year, maybe something like what high tech redneck has http://www.hightechredneckincorporated.c...p/nvnss1975.htm
problem i see with my bait sight is it is in a field that is 200yds x 80yds currently 75 yds from the camp. i would rather have it back 125 yds or so. but issue is the yotes tend to circle and walk by the bait often, sometimes they are in the field but dont actually go to the bait....
i've been keeping a eye on ebay and craigs list for gen3 stuff used but it doesnt come up often.
double up, that seems easy enough to do to the antenna, i may try that and put the reciever in the bedroom or kitchen that way less chance of them hearing it... thx!
problem i see with my bait sight is it is in a field that is 200yds x 80yds currently 75 yds from the camp. i would rather have it back 125 yds or so. but issue is the yotes tend to circle and walk by the bait often, sometimes they are in the field but dont actually go to the bait....
i've been keeping a eye on ebay and craigs list for gen3 stuff used but it doesnt come up often.
double up, that seems easy enough to do to the antenna, i may try that and put the reciever in the bedroom or kitchen that way less chance of them hearing it... thx!
6mm06
Well-known member
Deerslyr1,
The infrared lights are only visible if you are standing up close and looking directly into them. Then they only give off a very faint red glow, nothing bright or shiny but more of a dull red and very subdued. There is no illumination cast upon the ground that the eye can see, but the scope or Sony camera sees very well.
In order for me to see if the lights are on, I either have to look through the scope, camera or walk up to them and look directly up at them. Even from the side a bit I can't see the glow.
Too bad you can't use lights because these would turn a much cheaper Gen 1 scope into a real piece of hunting equipment. But, as you say, if the yotes are off the bait and somewhere else in the field, you would not be able to see them unless you use a better illuminator than the one that comes with the scope.
One final thing about illuminators, laser is much better. I purchased a $350 Luna laser illuminator and it works pretty darn good, even with the Gen 1. I know a guy in Illinois who purchased the Luna illuminator and uses it with a Pulsar digital Recon 550 monocular. He said he can see very well at 200 to 300 yards. We are thinking the digital Recon is more like a good Gen 2.
I'm like you, I would love to have a good Gen 3 scope, but they are expensive for sure.
The infrared lights are only visible if you are standing up close and looking directly into them. Then they only give off a very faint red glow, nothing bright or shiny but more of a dull red and very subdued. There is no illumination cast upon the ground that the eye can see, but the scope or Sony camera sees very well.
In order for me to see if the lights are on, I either have to look through the scope, camera or walk up to them and look directly up at them. Even from the side a bit I can't see the glow.
Too bad you can't use lights because these would turn a much cheaper Gen 1 scope into a real piece of hunting equipment. But, as you say, if the yotes are off the bait and somewhere else in the field, you would not be able to see them unless you use a better illuminator than the one that comes with the scope.
One final thing about illuminators, laser is much better. I purchased a $350 Luna laser illuminator and it works pretty darn good, even with the Gen 1. I know a guy in Illinois who purchased the Luna illuminator and uses it with a Pulsar digital Recon 550 monocular. He said he can see very well at 200 to 300 yards. We are thinking the digital Recon is more like a good Gen 2.
I'm like you, I would love to have a good Gen 3 scope, but they are expensive for sure.
does the luna laser light up? or is unable to see from the naked eye?
heres a day pic to give you a idea on the bait site from the camp, there is nothing else around it all woods and my food plot/field.
the few trees can make it a bit tough too
another summer pic from the camp
and this guy has been showing up lately too more and more.
heres a day pic to give you a idea on the bait site from the camp, there is nothing else around it all woods and my food plot/field.
the few trees can make it a bit tough too
another summer pic from the camp
and this guy has been showing up lately too more and more.
6mm06
Well-known member
Deerslyr1, that's a good looking site.
Like Sami said, it's only visible to night vision equipment. You can put your hand in front of it and see the red, but there is no light cast outward that the eye can see. I think a coyote might be able to see the laser (a guess) if he is looking directly into it, but from the side he should not be able to see it.
Earlier in the season I had a coyote stop and look in my direction at the cabin. He was only about 30 yards or so. He left quickly and I didn't get a shot, but I keep thinking he saw the illuminator since he stopped and stared in my direction. But then, he may have just been curious or maybe even heard me.
The Luna illuminator is a good one.
6mm06
Well-known member
I finally got around to posting the 7-minute video clip of my night vision / infrared light setup at the bait site. Here is the YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzfRFiTeLQY&feature=youtu.be
The Virginian
New member
David,
Excellent video and very informative. I'm currently working on some thing close to your set up as well. Thanks for taking the time make this video and post it.
Eric
Excellent video and very informative. I'm currently working on some thing close to your set up as well. Thanks for taking the time make this video and post it.
Eric