Anyone Tried John Eberhart's Scent Control Methods?

[Cfriend]

First, please only comment if you've actually tried his methods in full. I already know all the typical responses: he's lying, he's lucky, he hunts high, it's impossible etc. Those are all valid opinions just not what I'm looking for.

I have plenty of doubts about the validity of his ideas on scent control, but the fact is he's killed a lot of nice bucks and swears he pays no attention to the wind. Makes me wonder...

So has anyone ever tried his methods (and I mean the entire thing mask, gloves, boots etc.) and what were your results?

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[Btaylor]

I have not tried his methods but suspect there is a good measure of validity if applied to the appropriate scenario. The environment that I hunt when hunting public is simply not conducive to the method. Too much distance and too warm for much of the season to make it viable. If you have reasonably close, relatively easy access and temps that allow for not sweating like a hog, then it is very likely a beneficial system.

 

[Bearwhisky]

Doesnt he have a vehicle dedicated to traveling scent free? Thats next level. Cant imagine him going through all that trouble if there isnt some benefit.


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[lyingflatlander]

Yes, 35 years ago when nobody sat in a tree. Worked ok then. I believe John hunts 30 feet up in his saddle, I would think that’s extremely beneficial. I like most only hunt 20’ to 23’ feet high.

 

[Yoder]

I wondered if his scent control is so amazing, why does he sit 30 ft high? He is a really hard guy to like. Every time I watch his videos I just think he's really arrogant but you can't deny his results.

 

[Rich M]

Did he join the public land challenge last year and strike out?

 

[Yoder]

Did he join the public land challenge last year and strike out?

No. He wasn't allowed to hammer spikes in all the trees and pre plan his way in the year before using 10 cases of reflective tacks.

 

[dtrkyman]

I went through the ringer back in the day with scent, marginal at best. John being 30 feet up is likely more effective than his scent control!

Now though ozone is definitely effective, never believed it until I tried it. Managed whitetail land for some wealthy guys, we built an ozone room, machine running 24/7 during season, all used ozonics and rarely got busted, particularly in box blinds, guys would have deer 360 and get away with it.

I had two no doubt situations in a treestand where the ozonics saved my hide!

 

[Tourguide]

I have, I live in Michigan 50/50 public and private hunter, and have been reading his articles for 20 plus years. I found it made hunting more of a job and much less fun. Did it work, I'd say yes, I've killed a lot more deer than the guys I know who wear their camo to get gas in their truck, go to the bar, play with their dogs etc.. anymore I want to have fun and relax, I still seem to bag my share of "older" critters. I will say that if you can be successful hunting high pressure areas in Michigan, you will be surprised at your success in lower pressure states.

 

[*zap*]

No, I just stink...

 

[deertrout]

I used to use John's regimen, started shooting a lot more deer when I stopped and started focusing on woodsmanship, playing the wind and thermals, and using better entrance/exit routes. Aside from being more successful, hunting is also a lot more fun now.

 

[Long Cut]

No, I don’t have the patience or discipline to use John’s routine.

I will mention however, after ~10 years of beating my head against trees trying to hunt “light and variable” winds and routinely getting busted, I tried Ozonics.

I’ve had multiple occasions in treestands where my HR300 absolutely worked. Verified with milkweed the deer were in my scent.. they’d just look around for 30-60 seconds then resume doing their thing.

I’ll continue to use Ozone to treat my clothes and in the stand or blind. Everything else I could care less honestly

 

[Poser]

I went through a couple phase of this, including hunting 30 feet up, for several years of my (now defunct) whitetail career. I was also aquatinted with his (John E’s) son, Chris, for several years before he died. Even after I moved out west, coincidentally, Chris entered into a long distance relationship with a gal from Durango and would travel here from Germany regularly and we’d grab a beer or lunch.

Anyway, I enjoyed hunting much better not jumping through 47 hoops and getting naked in Public land parking lots at 2:30 in the morning. That being said, at least some of those tactics of sticking it out through thunderstorms, staying put until noon, etc we’re productive. He’s definitely a fanatical bowhunter. Personally, I like to have fun a bit more, be loose and intuitive.

 

[WCB]

Absolutely not. I have a life other than deer hunting and somehow find success every year on mature deer without being a scent control freak.

 

[eddielasvegas]

My take has always been in what's in the this LINK, but this guy speaks from real field experience.

Your money, your choice.


Eddie

 

[tgus59]

I use to follow a similar protocol, not all the way down to the 5 totes, but activated scent lok from head to toe, very disciplined with showers, wipes, making sure not to sweat etc. but I still couldn't reliably ignore the wind without getting busted.

Now I wash my clothes in scent free detergent, use the deodorant, try not to sweat, use only merino baselayers, gloves, and hats, and play the wind. I have had much better results. I'm not afraid to eat a snack, drink a cup of coffee, or pee out of the stand either.

Ditching the Scent Lok stuff in favor of better technical garments (First Lite, Sitka, Kuiu etc) has also been a game changer. Being warmer and more comfortable leads to more time in the stand, which has obvious benefits.

TL;DR
Playing the wind, putting in time in the stand, being a good hunter, and enjoying yourself are all more important factors to success than scent control.

 

[MallardSX2]

No. I don't live in a vacuum.

I just hunt the wind the best I can and enjoy myself.

 

[svivian]

You're going to have to spell it out more next time in your opening post OP or at least make it more engaging so people actually read.

 

[Hudsy]

I don’t follow his methods but I will say the scentlok gear I’ve had for years has held up better than anything I’ve had. That alone will make me continue buying their stuff.


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[RedSnow]

He is sponsored by Scentlok. He does talk about wind a lot in his set ups as well...