Homebrew Cover Scents

[Welby]

Does anyone out there make their own cover scents or attractants?

I have made some by boiling leaves, twigs and bark but was wondering if anyone had a better method for making cover scents than that.

[bowhunter6701]

First i need to know if you hunt near livestock. ###Then if you do go to the nearest pasture(that is currently holding livestock) find the biggest pile of "Scat" and dance in it....it sounds crazy but the deer in your area are used to the smell and may just take you for a escaped animal..... good luck

[Ponscm]

I don't "brew" any scents, but I will gather a few armfuls of local weeds and grasses and put it in a big garbage bag with my hunting clothes a few days prior to the hunt. ###Also, make sure when you wash your clothes, you use an unscented detergent.

[Duke]

If you hunt near cedars or pines cut off a few branches and put them in with your clothing for a few days.

[Duke]

Here is another scent killer.
Buy a 32 fluid ounce bottle of peroxide. ###Pour this into a bowl or large jar. ###Mix about 1/4 cup of baking soda in it. ###Put about 1 ounce of unscented shampoo (Scent-a way). You can buy it at Wal-Mart. But I don't think the brand is important. Stir the mixture up until all the baking soda dissolves. Leave it set for about 3 days until it stops foaming. Put it in a spray bottle and you are ready to go.

[Coal30]

what i use for attractant & Cover up Is

Apple Cover scent & Attractant
take 5 apple cut in half ###put in blander
and water and grind you can add less water for thicker cover scent

[Bwht4x4]

Here you go guys, this is how you make a good cover-up scent:
First take some plant material from the area you plan on hunting, the leaves of the plant works best and choose something that is really smelly (good or bad smelling, up to you). ###I've used sagebrush with great results. ###Now dry these until they are super dry and brittle. ###Next take all the dried leaves and grind them up, a coffee grinder works great. ###Next take ground leaves and place in a mason jar (needs to be a glass jar w/ a lid). ###Next pour in an amount of everclear that is equal to twice as much as the ground leaves. ###What is everclear you guys ask. ###Well it's the alcohol that you can buy in Mexico that is 198 proof, which makes it almost pure alcohol. ###I guess you could use a legal alcohol which is readily available, but it has to have a very high proof rating. ###What happens is the alcohol dissolves many of the oils and other compounds that gives plants their smell and suspendends it within the alcohol. ###Let the closed jar sit in a dark cool place for a few weeks to a month. ###When finished take a coffee filter and filter out the particulates from the liquid. ###This leaves you with a werid looking fluid that when it's applied to clothing or whatever will evaporate quickly leaving behind the smell of the plant that it was extracted from. ###Any questions?

[Welby]

Bwht4x4,

Would denatured alcohol work as well? ###How about rubbing alcohol? ###Just curious....

Thanks for the recipe. ###I will def give it a try.

[Ray]

I usually hang my gear over a 6ft ladder and build a small, very smokey fire under it - green pine and cedar branches work well. ###Smoke it up for 30 min or so. ###Store the gear in a paper bag with a big handfull of ashes. ###Works pretty well. ###Repeat after washing or the when the scent dissipates enough that you can't smell your clothes. ###Another good trick is to wipe yourself down with a cloth soaked in baking soda water. ###This is very good in hot weather when you're likely to break a sweat getting into your stand - wear as little of your gear as possible while getting up the tree, rub down after climbing, then put on your camo.

[Zeke]

Welby,

I use regular rubbing alcohol. The area where I hunt is loaded with cedars so I get a jar and strip some cedar needles to fill it then pour the alky over it. Let it sit as stated above and it makes a great cover scent. Cheaper than buying it!!!

[FLBowhunter]

I picked a few Persimmons from the area I hunt and rubbed them on the trees near my stand, the whole area smelled like persimmons.

[Bowfever]

I have found that using just regular old "cheap" vodka works wonderfully... Much better than rubbing alcohol, and not the smell of the rubbing alcohol. I leave a jar with my "special" mixture going year round. I have not tried it yet but I want to make another jar with apples or corn or some other food item that the deer are used to, don't know if it will work but what the hey... The cedar bows stuffed in the jar with the vodka works like a charm.

[Don]

Duke, I have a question about your scent killer. Does the peroxide bleach out your clothes?

[PowDuck]

I've used the peroxide/baking soda homebrew. It works well on scent control. It won't bleach out your clothes but did discolor my wool felt hat. It also leaves a pretty large white residue behind when it dries (at least on plastic parts.) Remember; you're not soaking your clothes in it, you're spraying a mist on them.

I like the alcohol and leaves thing. May have to give that a try.

[Passthru]

Walk up to the nearest cedar tree,break off a few branches and beat and rub them all over your clothes pretty good.youll smell like a cedar tree. or you could just try petting a neighborhood skunk http://www.jesseshunting.com/forums/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smiley-biggrin-aqua.gif

[larebow]

100% pure pine spirits.aka Turpentine but it has to be all natural.
No chemicals Urine from a kill and a couple drops of sodium benzoate per 8oz.Over half of your human scent comes from your breath providing your body and clothes are scent free.So chew on a pine needle.I&#39;ve chewed cloves with out scaring critters.They also make pills for people with a cholostamy bag(spelling?)They are designed to de-scent from the inside and keep odor down.Take hard wood coals from your campfire and rub your stinky parts activated charcoal.

[Hoggin Hank]

I live in Central Texas so there is a LOT of cedar around here. Iget the cedar berries off of the trees and boil them on the stove for a while and then I use one of those potato smashers and smash all of the berries and then boil for a while longer. I then let it cool and strain it a few times to get out all of the particles and then add it to a spray bottle with some non-chlorinated water and presto&#39;....Also with that I wash all my hunting clothes with scent-safe soap AND when I dry them I use an old sock(you know those lonely single sox that lost their mate along time ago and are floating around your sock drawer) I put the sock on my armm and hand and them get a few good handfuls of cedar foliage(mostly the green stuff, not any branches if possible)and tthen I pull the sock back off of my hand while still holding all the foliage in my hand. I then have a sock full of cedar foliage and I just tie the end in a KNOT and now I have a CEDAR DRIER SHEET that when used with your hunting clothes after they are washed will get that cedar smell so much into your clothes tthat even after you wash then a few more times the smell will stay in them. I also always keep my hunting clothes in one of those GREEN SCENT bags that cabella&#39;s sells. This is what I have been doing now for the last 10 years and I Bow hunt and I have had deer walk up to my bow when I&#39;m in a ground blind and knock my dern aroow of of the rest..Thats pretty close to the wildlife if you ask me..I hope you find something that works..I have used the peroxide stuff as well and it works very good as well..

[Welby]

You know, we need to find some chemists among ourselves and assign them to this project.

[RSB]

What about pure gum terpentine? http://www.jesseshunting.com/forums/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smiley-bag-on-head.gif