# My Bale Blind



## dwtrees (Mar 5, 2012)

Hi all,

Just thought I would share with you, My first attempt at building a bale blind.

I started the project by buying some pressure treated 2 X 4s and making a 4 X 8 floor. Put the crossmembers of the floor 16" on center so it is a good solid base. I deceided on the 4 X 8 size so two people can sit in it very comfortably and still have some room for the small heater and cooler for pop & lunches. The next step was getting some 16 foot long cattle panel from a friend for $5.00 each. Ended up using 3 of them to make the frame. I also used some conduit to make the door end frame and one frame work in the middle to support the 2 pieces that made up the sides. I made the windows out of conduit also. (Conduit was left over from the addition at work so it was free). Here is some photos of the frame after I got done welding it all together.

















As you can see the panels are bent and some straightening was needed but what can you say, they were $5.00 for a reason. I priced out some new straight ones and they are $30.00 each. After I had attached the first end piece (opposite end from the door) I realized I wouldnt need to bend a piece of conduit to support that end as the panel pieces I welded in made it plenty ridgid. I then hauled it over to my friends house where we put the pipes on the bottom to tow it around and wrapped it in black plastic.

























We then proceeded to staple some hay bale net wrap on the bottom of one side and layed out a piece 18 foot long and two pieces wide. Threw the hay on top of the netting and then rolled the blind over the netting and hay. Stapled the other side and by cracky from the side it looked just like an oversized hay bale. Then came our dilema. How to get the hay to stay in place on the ends. We tried a couple of different ideas and by then it was dark out. So we turned the tractor lights on one end of the blind and the pickup lights on the other. We ended up running the bale net wrap horizontal around the blind, stapled the bottom to the frame work and put some hay behind the netting. Didn't look too bad after all so we hauled it a mile down the road to put it in the alphalfa field the deer have been coming to for years. As you can see in the last photo, the hay didn't stay in place for the move to the field. Going to see how it works this season and then we will have to do some modification to the ends to keep the hay in place.









Looking for any ideas to keep the hay in place on the ends. Or maybe after deer season is over, I will replace the plastic covering on the ends with some thin plywood or something like that. Then maybe attach some premade hay or straw mats.


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## knapper (Feb 5, 2010)

good looking job, it looks like a lot of hours went into it. Hope it works for you.


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## youngdon (Mar 10, 2010)

Way cool. You did a really nice job on that.


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

I've always liked the idea of a hay-bale blind, but had no idea how complicated the construction could be. I'm guessing yours is far superior to anything on the market today.

I guess a flip top would have been too difficult but those things would be great for crow hunting with an upward opening.


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## hassell (Feb 9, 2010)

Great job, when the season is over and you haul it home throw a couple heat lamps in it in the spring and use it for starting your garden plants.


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## prairiewolf (Feb 19, 2012)

Great job on the blind !


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## azpredatorhunter (Jul 24, 2012)

Nice DW... Cut two holes in the floor and you have a camouflage ice fishing shanty...


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## jimmy shutt (Jun 2, 2013)

very cool!!!


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## 220swift (Mar 2, 2011)

great DIY project DW!


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## dwtrees (Mar 5, 2012)

Thanks guys. As far as time into the project, I probably have 15 to 20 hours total to build it. I already have some modifications in mind for the next one that is going to be built next summer. Need to add a gun rack to the inside and some small rifle rests under the windows. Also need to change the window frames to fit better. And goind to put windows on both sides so it can be used in more locations.


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## prairiewolf (Feb 19, 2012)

WHAT !!!! no wet bar, I remember how you got your name "dwtrees" lol


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## dwtrees (Mar 5, 2012)

Good point. Might have to put that under the fold up cot on one side.


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## prairiewolf (Feb 19, 2012)

forget the cot and get that guy that built that bench for Mike to make you one, lol


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## dwtrees (Mar 5, 2012)

:roflmao: :roflmao:


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## finstr (Jan 6, 2013)

Great job! I could see a use for this in many places but the darn farmers pull the bales off the field immediately here and cover them in white plastic!


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## wilson.1968 (Aug 20, 2015)

chicken wire could be used to hold the hay down. a guy that builds them close by uses it over the hay seems to work pretty good. iv been wanting to build on of these for a while now. yours looks good, nice write up

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## dwtrees (Mar 5, 2012)

Update on the bale blind. NOTE to self, STAKE THE DANG THING DOWN. We had som 60+ mph winds this last week and I found out that bale blinds do in fact fly. The blind made it over 3 barbed wire fences and came to rest next to the quanset on the properrty I had it sitting on. The only damage to the blind was some torn bale netting, lots of the hay moved around, the door got bent some, and the hay came off the ends. Structuraly, there was no damage to the frame other than it is not as round as it used to be in the middle. It did get the top middle part pushed down a couple of inches. I think it can be straightend with out too much problem if we wanted to. I didn't have the camera with while out deer hunting but I will post a photo later of the damage done. Now to get it drug out from the side of the quanset and get placed for the muzzleloader deer season.


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Glad you weren't in the "clothes dryer" when the switch was turned on, DW.


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## hassell (Feb 9, 2010)

Good one Glen, we had part of the wind here as well. Good luck on the move.


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## Larry (Dec 2, 2010)

Holy crap....I just hope a you don't fall asleep and get scooped up for cattle feed! That thing looks real nice!

Just proves what my wife said when I was building all those duck blinds..."Boys never grow up! Your forts just get more complicated!"

Remember...coyotes can't fly

Larry


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## youngdon (Mar 10, 2010)

Geez Trees. Glen covered my thoughts. On the other hand you could move your spot by walking the hamster cage.


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