Paracord and a couple carabiners serve the purpose. It may be old school but its less expensive and works. Definitely thumbs up on the Harbour Freight "budget" purchase.
I just had to tinker with this idea. Picked up 2 HF leashes today (one to disassemble and one as a spare/control) and 50ft of 350lb "thin" paracord (my local super "stuff"-mart had it). Remove the body screws and pry open the case, then the reel inside the leash is easy to slide off the spindle that holds its coil-spring. It's also easy to put back, even though sliding it off the split spindle of the case will send the coil springing out of sight inside the middle of the reel. I removed the 24-ish ft of dog leash cord and replaced it with the thin paracord (about the same thickness), and it works like a charm. I was able to carefully wind about 42 feet on the reel, but 33 would be plenty and not need careful winding. How to put the reel and steel coil spring back: wind the cord around the reel first. There's an inner plastic cover in the center of the "up" side of the reel that pops out pretty easily; just pop it off while the reel is still outside the case. You'll see the steel coil inside - DON'T pull it out. Use needle-nose pliers to guide the bent end of the steel coil between the spindle halves as you lower the reel down onto the case body. You don't have to pre-tension anything, just slide it on. Snap the inner cover back in place. I thought about 3D-printing a new case to avoid the holes, but I may just throw some camo duct-tape over them/around the case and slip it inside a pouch like you did. Great discovery on the HF dog leash, thanks for sharing!
Awesome. Thanks for sharing. I had tried to put paracord in my Allen CO gear hoist one time but the reel was just way to small. Interesting to hear of your experience with the HF leash.
Great video, I've been using my Doyle's with a flat strap for more than 10 years but I have a son and a nephew that the dog leash would be perfect for. Thanks.
The doyls gear hoist is available in webbing version I believe. I have also seen a summit hoist that had retractable webbing but it appears to have been discontinued
Yes it’s holding up fine. I do think if I was to buy another one, I would look for webbing rather than rope. I had a hard time finding one long enough. Recently I talked to a guy who bought a webbing retractable leash from Amazon that was long enough.
HSS has a cheap 1 that is ribbon rope. it was loud until I put stealth strip on it. now it is G2G. it's also 30ft ( I hunt high) and the smallest 1 I have found.
I stopped hoisting anything this past season, I attach my bow to my pack and when I arrive at my stand I climb up with my pack on, super easy, no pack or bow on the ground and making any extra noise.
Early season Saddle hunting I only go at most 15 feet so I use paracord that I figure eight. Late season I change to climber or set stands and I use a webbing hand crank retriever. Yes would be nice if it would retrieve itself but way easier to lift even heavy pack with strap.
Thanks for sharing what works for you. Even at 15’ I really enjoy the retractable gear hoists. If you like a webbing hoist then the doyls gear hoist was a retractable webbing option.
I would throw out the HSS, it's not auto retracting, but it has a handle to hoist up. I used to use the Allen one, but it ended up breaking on me. Good idea with the dog leash, never thought of that :)
Thanks for the info. For now, I'll stick with my para cord. I just got a new Horn Hunter G2 backpack and it's got all kinds of room and storage but the bad thing about that is you can fill it up with all kinds of doo dads, next thing you know, your pack is 30 lbs.
Haha, I know that feeling. The more space I have the more things I find to carry with me, especially because I carry camera gear. My pack already weighs 30 lbs but that counts 10 lbs of camera equipment.
Doyles ... FLAT strap hoist ... I have been using one for probably 15 years or so. Never tangles, always self retracts, the flat strap is easy to grab and pull up even heavy gear.
Great options! Myself, I use the Doyle's Gear Hoist with the webbing. It's somewhat heavy and a bit expensive but it works great. I like the idea of the dog leash though. I had an Allen hoist but the thin line is also hard on the fingers when you're lowering your gear. Unfortunately that didn't create much of a problem since the hoist broke the second time I used it! ;^( Thanks for sharing!!
Do you think 25 foot of Oplux 8mm rope would fit in that small pouch by custom gear modification? I want a dump pouch for rope but I want one that’s smaller.
I’m not sure. It might, but it would probably be tight. I have 35ft of 9mm in a tethrd dump pouch, but that’s a lot bigger than the CGM gear pouch. You could reach out to Jerry at CGM and ask him to sew you something just the size you need.
@@TheBudgetSportsman I reached out to him earlier. He had a bag just rite for what I need. Paid for it and he’s shipping out tomorrow. Great guy. Thanks.
That’s a fair deal I believe. My friend bought one in the fall for around $350 new I believe. It came with accessories but not arrows or a case. So I think it is a decent deal but not the “deal of the century.” One thing to check or ask is what the arrows are. For a normal man with a 27-30” draw and shooting 60-70 lbs you will want to make sure that the arrows have a spine of 300-400 (the spine stiffness.) you would also want to make sure they will be long enough for you. If they were kids arrows, they could be too short and too weak of a spine. Just something to check.
That dog leash has enough power to pick a bow up off the ground and up to you 20 feet into a tree? And does it allow for you to lower the bow also? Sorry i dont have a dog never messed with a dog leash.
No, it would not pull up the bow on its own. You would pull up the rope with the bow and then the dog leash would retract the rope as you pull it out so that there are no tangles. Same thing going down. You would lower the rope and as you lower the dog leash would just feed rope out. As you climb down, the rope would automatically retract so by the time you get down there won’t be a tangled mess.
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Thanks…Have you seen the little collapsible spool Amsteel Guy sells for a few dollars.?
I’ve seen a few pictures of it recently but haven’t spent much time looking at it and haven’t had it in my hands b
Thinking outside the box. Love it. I already lug WAY too much gear to the wood…I’ll have to live with my paracord 😁
Ah but you don’t know what you’re missing.
Paracord and a couple carabiners serve the purpose. It may be old school but its less expensive and works. Definitely thumbs up on the Harbour Freight "budget" purchase.
That definitely works and I did that for years but for me the retracting hoist is so much nicer and it’s hard to go wrong for $6
I just had to tinker with this idea. Picked up 2 HF leashes today (one to disassemble and one as a spare/control) and 50ft of 350lb "thin" paracord (my local super "stuff"-mart had it).
Remove the body screws and pry open the case, then the reel inside the leash is easy to slide off the spindle that holds its coil-spring. It's also easy to put back, even though sliding it off the split spindle of the case will send the coil springing out of sight inside the middle of the reel.
I removed the 24-ish ft of dog leash cord and replaced it with the thin paracord (about the same thickness), and it works like a charm. I was able to carefully wind about 42 feet on the reel, but 33 would be plenty and not need careful winding.
How to put the reel and steel coil spring back: wind the cord around the reel first. There's an inner plastic cover in the center of the "up" side of the reel that pops out pretty easily; just pop it off while the reel is still outside the case. You'll see the steel coil inside - DON'T pull it out. Use needle-nose pliers to guide the bent end of the steel coil between the spindle halves as you lower the reel down onto the case body. You don't have to pre-tension anything, just slide it on. Snap the inner cover back in place.
I thought about 3D-printing a new case to avoid the holes, but I may just throw some camo duct-tape over them/around the case and slip it inside a pouch like you did.
Great discovery on the HF dog leash, thanks for sharing!
Awesome. Thanks for sharing. I had tried to put paracord in my Allen CO gear hoist one time but the reel was just way to small. Interesting to hear of your experience with the HF leash.
Great video, I've been using my Doyle's with a flat strap for more than 10 years but I have a son and a nephew that the dog leash would be perfect for. Thanks.
Thanks! Glad you found it useful.
I still use the hawk rope. I like it the best. Good review.
Not a bad choice at all.
Firstly… That’s brilliant! Second… thank God for a virtuous wife!!!
Yes indeed!
Great video!
Thanks.
That's a good idea I'll be getting me one
Nice!
Sweet ideas! I love to see the retractable idea but with webbing.
The doyls gear hoist is available in webbing version I believe. I have also seen a summit hoist that had retractable webbing but it appears to have been discontinued
Good idea. That said 550 cord tied to my saddle works best for me. Simple, lite weight and if I need cordage while out in the woods I have it.
I love that saddle hunting is so personal and we are all different and find different things work better for different people.
Is the dog leash still holding up alright?? I’m thinking about doing the exact same thing you did but worried about harbor freight quality
Yes it’s holding up fine. I do think if I was to buy another one, I would look for webbing rather than rope. I had a hard time finding one long enough. Recently I talked to a guy who bought a webbing retractable leash from Amazon that was long enough.
Nice gear hoist 👍
Thanks 👍
HSS has a cheap 1 that is ribbon rope. it was loud until I put stealth strip on it. now it is G2G. it's also 30ft ( I hunt high) and the smallest 1 I have found.
If I’m not mistaken the HSS has a reel not an auto retractable cord.
I stopped hoisting anything this past season, I attach my bow to my pack and when I arrive at my stand I climb up with my pack on, super easy, no pack or bow on the ground and making any extra noise.
Glad you found something that works for you !
Early season Saddle hunting I only go at most 15 feet so I use paracord that I figure eight. Late season I change to climber or set stands and I use a webbing hand crank retriever. Yes would be nice if it would retrieve itself but way easier to lift even heavy pack with strap.
Thanks for sharing what works for you. Even at 15’ I really enjoy the retractable gear hoists.
If you like a webbing hoist then the doyls gear hoist was a retractable webbing option.
I’ve got a retractable one with a strap. Had it 20 years. Much better than all those. Won’t cut into your hand lowering you bow.
I would throw out the HSS, it's not auto retracting, but it has a handle to hoist up. I used to use the Allen one, but it ended up breaking on me. Good idea with the dog leash, never thought of that :)
Thanks for the info. For now, I'll stick with my para cord. I just got a new Horn Hunter G2 backpack and it's got all kinds of room and storage but the bad thing about that is you can fill it up with all kinds of doo dads, next thing you know, your pack is 30 lbs.
Haha, I know that feeling. The more space I have the more things I find to carry with me, especially because I carry camera gear. My pack already weighs 30 lbs but that counts 10 lbs of camera equipment.
Doyles ... FLAT strap hoist ... I have been using one for probably 15 years or so. Never tangles, always self retracts, the flat strap is easy to grab and pull up even heavy gear.
Always heard good things about the Doyle’s. I was just looking for a cheapskate option. 😆
@@TheBudgetSportsman buy once ... cry once ... words that I live by ...
@@NewDayOutdoors maybe you missed the name of my channel 🤣
@@TheBudgetSportsman LOL.
Great options! Myself, I use the Doyle's Gear Hoist with the webbing. It's somewhat heavy and a bit expensive but it works great. I like the idea of the dog leash though. I had an Allen hoist but the thin line is also hard on the fingers when you're lowering your gear. Unfortunately that didn't create much of a problem since the hoist broke the second time I used it! ;^( Thanks for sharing!!
Wow. I used the Allen gear hoist for almost two full seasons with no issues other than the thin line. The dog leash is definitely thicker.
Hope you bought three of them. That’s the rule for Harbor Freight purchases.
Do you think 25 foot of Oplux 8mm rope would fit in that small pouch by custom gear modification? I want a dump pouch for rope but I want one that’s smaller.
I’m not sure. It might, but it would probably be tight. I have 35ft of 9mm in a tethrd dump pouch, but that’s a lot bigger than the CGM gear pouch. You could reach out to Jerry at CGM and ask him to sew you something just the size you need.
@@TheBudgetSportsman I reached out to him earlier. He had a bag just rite for what I need. Paid for it and he’s shipping out tomorrow. Great guy. Thanks.
Awesome! Jerry is top notch.
If I were to find a Infinite Edge Pro bow with case, 5 arrows and accessories for $299, is that a good deal?
That’s a fair deal I believe. My friend bought one in the fall for around $350 new I believe. It came with accessories but not arrows or a case.
So I think it is a decent deal but not the “deal of the century.”
One thing to check or ask is what the arrows are. For a normal man with a 27-30” draw and shooting 60-70 lbs you will want to make sure that the arrows have a spine of 300-400 (the spine stiffness.) you would also want to make sure they will be long enough for you. If they were kids arrows, they could be too short and too weak of a spine. Just something to check.
That dog leash has enough power to pick a bow up off the ground and up to you 20 feet into a tree? And does it allow for you to lower the bow also? Sorry i dont have a dog never messed with a dog leash.
No, it would not pull up the bow on its own. You would pull up the rope with the bow and then the dog leash would retract the rope as you pull it out so that there are no tangles. Same thing going down. You would lower the rope and as you lower the dog leash would just feed rope out. As you climb down, the rope would automatically retract so by the time you get down there won’t be a tangled mess.
Howdy. How did you cut the plastic? My first attempt was a fail and I let the spring uncoil lol
I used a hacksaw. You just have to make sure you cut on the outside of the screws that hood everything together.
The best bow hoist ever made, is a retractable dog leash. Period
I agree.