Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

Deer Hoist

mole

Active Member
With all the knowledge on this site, does anyone have any good ideas for a hoist in my shop. I finally got electricity run and now I need to configure a hoist for deer. If you have pictures, I'm a visual learner /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

The shop rafters are 10' on center and I was thinking about running a beam (2x6's) screwed together the length of 2-3 rafters and using that as a support for the hoist. Will that be too much weight for the rafters? Then I would like to have a boat winch of some sort of pulley system to raise and lower the deer.

Any ideas or suggestions and pictures help me a lot /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

mole
 
My buddy built one kinda like this one game hoist but it instead of the lock on it, he put a hand crank winch (like a boat winch) on it. Very easy to use, and pretty cheap to make as well.
 
I got tired of always trying to hang deer in my shed by myself. I mounted a $19 boat winch from Wal-Mart to a 6x6 pole in my machine shed. I then moved out about 15 feet and threw a chain over a rafter and attached a pulley, ran about 15 foot of rope through it and attached it to the strap hook on the boat winch. It is great for skinning as its easy to crank them up as needed. Also comes in handy for lifting other things around the shop from time to time. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif
 
I had one in my shop that was a ratcheting hoist..took two of us to pull them up (we're woosies). I re-located in my corn crib and hook the rope up to my hitch, drive forward and it raises the biggest of deer. I also utilized my quad's winch and it worked fine as well. Just easier with the pickup because the deer is already in it in the first place.
 
So if I run 2x6's screwed together perpendicular to the rafters (span 2/3), will the rafters be able to support the weight? /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/confused.gif

mole
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: mole</div><div class="ubbcode-body">So if I run 2x6's screwed together perpendicular to the rafters (span 2/3), will the rafters be able to support the weight? /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/confused.gif

mole
</div></div>

My rafters are 2 x 6's on 10 foot centers. Doesn't phase them a bit. I only shoot small deer though just to be safe. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif
 
I use a boat winch too. Just mounted a pully with a rope through it and I crank 'em up myself. Piece of cake.

I was lucky... I found two boat winches at a garage sale for $1 each and they were practially new.
 
I put a 10' treated 4x4 across 4 rafters on 24' centers and hooked 2 cheap come-alongs to it between different rafter sets. Some times we also use extra hooks that just fit over the 2x4 rafter to hang extra deer. We have has 4 hanging at the same time with this setup. My brother-in-law made hooks and gambles from rebar that work great.
 
I shoot little deer that don't need any mechanical devices to lift, that's what I suggest.
J/K /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif
 
I do the same with the boat winch. I run the rope through eye bolts to the reinforced rafter. No need for the pully system though, I just put the 18 volt dewalt on the winch (the nut on the other side of the handle)and away it goes. You just have to watch out for the handle going around, it spins really fast!
 
Ditto on the boat winch. I just put up another one yesteday in my shop. The beauty of the boat winch is that its so easy to adjust the height as you go from the hind quarters to the fronts, etc, no bending over to work. Your rafters will hold a couple deer no problem.

Give me a call or stop by and check it out, they work slick.
 
I had the boat winch at one time. I have now got a chain hoist it is a 1 ton model and cost me 30 bucks at the farm and home store. I then wrapped a chain around the rafter and just left a little extra where I can hook my hoist in to it. This is alot easier than the boat winch. You can lift anything with very little effort.
 
Sounds crazy ,,but I used to put deer down way out in the Nat Forest where I used to live. Got tired og hauling them,so started taking hide off and quartering up meat right in the firld. Just gut out ,,then take hide back and meat off one side, then flip over do the other side. Never have to lift. I take the meat out in plastic bags. Left over carcase much easier to move then with meat off.
 
Top Bottom