With deer season only a couple of weeks away I want to do a review of some tools that would be useful for this upcoming season.  When I carry anything into the woods it has to be easy to use and meet the needs that hunters have.  Over the years I have seen a lot of devices that are almost useless.

The first tool that I will try is the Crossfire Extreme Sling.  This is a sling that can be used for guns or bows.  This sling has 10 positions for carrying any bow and 20 positions for carrying a long gun.  Each position is a different way of carrying the bow.  The reason for the sling is to carry your bow and still have your hands free for using a call or climbing a tree.

Some of the Crossfire Sling positions allow you to carry the bow like a backpack.  You can carry it off of one shoulder or both.  The most impressive position is the one that lets the hunter carry the bow and still can shoot it at the same time.  The hunter’s hands are free but the hunter can still easily grab the bow and shoot.

The sling would be great for hunters out west where there is a lot of moving around.  I think this would be great for cutting and running for turkeys.  I could also see this being used for small game hunting. The sling will hold your bow to your side or on your back. 

The sling will not be good in all hunting situations.  This sling will not work when backpacking a tree stand.  The bow will bang against the tree stand as you walk to the tree that you will be hunting from. This will scare away any wild life that is around.  The sling comes with a DVD that walks you through all the different ways to carry the bow or gun.  It takes some time to learn what all the different options that are available with this sling.  It takes an hour to get all the positions down.

The next tool that we will talk about is the Tree Talon.  This is a tool that can be lowered down from the tree stand and retrieve anything that was dropped.  I have dropped many things from my tree stand.  In most cases I will simply hunt without it.  This can be hard if you drop a glove on a cold day or the arrow quiver.

It can pick up anything as long as it can grab it on the ground.  The item has to weigh less then 35 pounds.  I can’t think of anything that I would have in the tree stand that would weigh 35 pounds. It can grab arrows, gloves, hats, etc.

I found it easy to use and in most cases it picks up the item on the first try.  I did have trouble when the ground was soft or had lots of ground clutter.  For the arm to close, the tree talon has a button on the bottom that releases the arm.   This button has to hit something hard to release the arm.  Over all it is a good item that lives up to its expectations.    

Both of these tools cost only $20.00.  They would be very useful for any hunter out there.   Both of these tools are necessary to be successful as a hunter.  They both fill a need that most of have as we hunt.  Unfortunately , there is no tool that will guarantee that you will get a deer or turkey.  They can only make your hunting experience easier.

Good luck,

Sean