How to Build a Tower Stand

Because most states allow hunting from an elevated stand, building a tower stand is a great idea to give yourself an advantage. Hunting from a tower stand gives you a better view of your hunting area and makes your movements less noticeable. A tower stand is also less susceptible to mice and other critters.

Things You'll Need

  • 4-by-4 treated lumber poles or cedar poles
  • 2-by-6 treated lumber
  • 2-by-4 treated lumber
  • Deck boards
  • Ladder
  • Screw gun
  • 3 1/2-inch wood screws
  • Tape measure
  • Chop saw
  • 1/2-inch lag bolts
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Instructions

    • 1

      Use a post hole digger to dig four holes. The spacing of these holes is dependent on the size of the tower stand you are building. It is best to space the poles so that the stand is larger than the dimensions of the hunting blind that you will later build on top of it. You should have at least 2 feet around the entire blind, when complete. So, if your blind is going to be 6 feet by 6 feet, your poles should be 10 feet apart.

    • 2

      Place poles in the holes and back fill with some of the dirt to hold them in place. Make the poles from 4-by-4 treated lumber, at the height at which you wish to have your tower stand. Alternatively, you can use cedar poles. You can often obtain cedar poles at greater lengths than the treated lumber, for a higher stand.

    • 3

      Measure, with a tape measure, from the ground to the point on your poles that will be the height of the stand. Secure a 2-by-6 piece of treated lumber across two of the poles with 3 1/2-inch wood screws. This piece should be the length of the span between the poles, with very little, if any, overhang so it does not interfere with the pieces you will be putting across the other spans. Use a level to get the poles and the 2-by-6 square. This is easiest if you have someone to help hold them in place. Ideally, your upright poles will be taller than the height of the stand, so that you have a few feet of pole above where you are mounting the 2-by-6 spans.

    • 4

      Repeat the process of mounting the 2-by-6 outer pieces of the stand floor across the spans of the other poles so that you have a square, outer frame for the base. You can temporarily screw a 2-by-4 at a 45-degree angle across perpendicular 2-by-6 pieces to keep them square while you are securing the other ones. If you do this, mount them across the top of the 2-by-6 pieces, so they will not be in your way. When you are confident the outer frame is square, secure it to the poles with 1/2-inch lag bolts (the wood screws you used originally can be left in place).

    • 5

      Use a chop saw to cut 2-by-6 beams to a length that will fit between the front and rear outer pieces of the stand. Secure these between the front and rear pieces with the wood screws, to complete the frame of the stand base. Place these pieces on no more than 16-inch centers.

    • 6

      Secure 2-by-4 pieces on angles from one pole to another, between the ground level and the stand base. This cross-bracing will stabilize the stand. The greater the angle these cross braces are put on, the more stabilizing they will be.

    • 7

      Mount deck boards across the frame base, securing them to the outer 2-by-6 pieces and the cross pieces (the ones at 16-inch centers). Your platform will now be complete and stable, and you can continue building the blind. You will have a couple of feet around the blind to do work and for regular maintenance and repairs to the blind. The parts of the poles that extend above the stand base can be used as corner pieces for a railing.