Overall, I've been really happy with it and am glad I had it. It made getting to and from the stands a lot quicker and quieter. I already had a flat rack on the back so I incorporated an ATV gun rack on the back of the rack for my recurve. Some expressed concern about "what if you crash and mess up your bow?" I generally just pushed my bow down into the rubber grips of the rack so if I tipped over the bow would pop out. I Only tipped over once and not enough to affect the bow.
My thought was, the quicker I could get to a stand, the less likely I was to have deer wind me and spook. I can park the truck farther way to eliminate noise, load up and cruise into my stand much quieter. I would put my bow and clothes bag on the rack, strap on my daypack and hit the road.
It all worked well except for one problem, obviously related to starting out with a cheap bike. When under a load, either going uphill or with added weight, the rear shift derailleur flexes and the rear chain clicks like it wants to shift gears. I either need a more robust derailleur or I've been thinking about just eliminating the 6 rear sprockets and just use one. I keep in on around the 4th sprocket all the time anyway. Thoughts???
I purchased the property in 2010. I built an interior bathroom with shower and commode. Found a used propane water heater and put in a kitchen sink. I planned to use the nearby well for water but by July of that year it was dry. I put a 120 gallon tank above the bathroom and installed an RV water pump. I haul water in my truck and use a 12volt transfer pump to fill the storage tank when I stay there.
There is no electricity, so I installed the solar bank and added 6 deep cycle batteries. Everything inside runs on 12vdc or propane. I also purchased a used propane furnace out of an RV. I use a coleman propane stove to cook.
I later added a half loft for sleeping. It's too large for the RV furnace to keep up when it gets really cold so sleeping upstairs is warmer. It's a little cool in the winter but good enough for a hunting cabin. It's dry and you can get warm if you stand next to the furnace.
I'm glad the former owner spent the money to rebuild the house. I never would have done that.
I met a woman in her 90's who lived in that house as a young girl. She didn't have very fond memories of her stay there. It was way too small for the family that lived there and she wanted to live in town. She was excited to tour it after the rebuild and I was excited to hear about the family that had lived there.
This property is in "Post Rock Country". Due to the absence of trees, houses and fence posts were quarried from limestone found throughout the area. My pasture still has fences made with limestone posts.
I've tried every different sprocket. The ones in the middle work the best but they still click when under a load.
