gonhntn Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Hey guys and gals I got the ok from my wife to purchase a scouting camera. My probem is that there are soooo many to choose from. I need something that is of good quality and user friendly. Any advice would would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bowhunter4life Report post Posted July 13, 2006 we own 5 moultee cams from wallmart. over a year of use with good success.mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coues7 Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Hey guys and gals I got the ok from my wife to purchase a scouting camera. My probem is that there are soooo many to choose from. I need something that is of good quality and user friendly. Any advice would would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, If I were you buy the very best that you can afford. You will be dissapointed with the moultries....Ask Little Bear, Bowsniper, Treestandman, Josh Epperson, Runningbird, j-rod or anyone else who seriously uses trailcams. No offense bowhunter4life, but those Moultries from Wally world SUCK and SUCK HARD!!!! You will miss game, get only meteocre picture or the things won't consistenly work. The best thing is to build your own! You can do so for about $215 if you have the right equipment and are mechanically inclined. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bowhunter4life Report post Posted July 13, 2006 I think we have close to 3000 pictures of all types of critters from hawks swooping down catching quail. to coues,mule,elk,bear ,turkey, foxes, coons, yots. and much more. maybe we have been lucky, over the 4th of july we had 200-230 pictures in a 3 day period between 2 cams I had set it in 5 minute time frames and appears its catches all amimal coming through. I've seen bowsnipers in action, I do agree that is allot higher quality,on the flip side it is more comfort to leave a $130 set up compared to twice that amount. with all the ya whos out there.don't you make them and sell them?mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azhuntnut Report post Posted July 13, 2006 I already have a couple Moultries and just ordered another one from Cabelas. It is a pretty good deal. Here is a pic from a January hunt. David http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/template...ilcam&noImage=0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DesertBull Report post Posted July 13, 2006 I am not hanging a $200 bill on tree here in AZ. Not on public land anyway. Already had two $130 cameras stolen. I could care less about picture quality, I just want to see whats out there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TREESTANDMAN Report post Posted July 13, 2006 I tend to agree a lot more w/ Coues7 on this one. I've gone through 3 $100 digital moultries from walmart and returned all 3. I tend to think there are some good ones and bad ones out there based on what I've read about them. If you go onto a diehard homebrew camera website you will see all kinds of complaints about them. I had a buddy that lucked out and purched one that actually worked ok. I don't like them because #1 they do not come w/ a lock or cable so if someone were to find it, it would take no effort to steal it, or take the memory card. With a homebrew or good quality trail camera the housing is a heavy duty pelican case w/ 2 U-bolds w/ a good python lock going through the 2 U-bolts. Unless the thief has a chainsaw or heavy duty bolt cutters w/ him he probably wont try to steal your camera. Why tempt them? #2 For pictures that are far away the picture quality is so poor you cannot zoom in on a rack for instance and see any detail. #3 Very slow shutter speed- An animal practically has to stop and move around in front of the camera before it finally takes a picture. The previous post about hawks swooping down to catch quail is not as it seems. I guarantee you the sensor picked up movment and then 4 seconds later happend to take the picture as a hawk was swooping down for a quail. No camera on earth is that fast. #4 I think you have a 50% chance of purchasing one that actually works. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azhuntnut Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Here is a post I made on another board about theft. I have yet to get one stolen. I even had a guy in one pic that was walking around. David I drill two holes in the bottom and insert a U shaped bolt into the holes and put the nuts on the inside with washers. I paint my locking cables green and black and use good locks on the cable and the camera box. I even stuff some branches around mine and in between the cable. Sometimes I walk right past my own camera. David Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TAM Report post Posted July 13, 2006 I had a moultrie and it only took pictures in the daytime. It would take a few pictures at night, but never as many as it should have. I know for a fact that it was not working properly at night because I put another camera right next to it that was taking pic's at night and the moultrie was not. I also agree with the others here that the security features are less than ideal. Go to www.pixcontroller.com and see how you can build a quality digital camera for under $200. I built two for about $180 each. If you buy a less expensive camera you could build one for less. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
runningbird Report post Posted July 13, 2006 pm coues7 and let him set you up with a high quality easy to use cam. it may cost a little more but you won't regret it. I have had mine for about a year and a half and couldn't be happier. mark Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coues7 Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Just for the record....I am not criticizing anyones method of using trailcams.....whether it be the brand or the setup. I'm simply stating my opinion. I have really layed off the camera building for selling because I don't have time. So I'm not promoting my cams. I would recommend that anyone simply build or buy the best they can afford and feel comfortable leaving in the field. I 3D camo all my cams and as a few of you that use them know.....they literally disappear when strapped to a tree. For those of you using them.....don't be stupid with placement. Do be the guy who rides his quad to right to where you leave your cam.....cause if you got there someone else can to. LOCK your cams up....it won't stop theives but it will keep the honest guy honest. As TAM stated you can build a camera, if your lucky for $180, but most likely around $200-$215. You will need a few tools and a mechanically inclined mind but you will walk away knowing your setup inside and out and not have the attitude "well it's only $99 if it gets stolen". Again these are just my opinions and I am not in anyway trying to sell you my units. Anyone that has my units is happy but they are not for everyone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TREESTANDMAN Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Azhuntnut, Good idea there. The only downside w/ doing that to a moultrie is the moultrie quality of plastic is not very heavy duty and the u-bolts could be pulled easily. But I agree that may help keep "an honest guy honest". Also going along w/ Azhuntnuts idea, don't forget to put plenty of waterproofing around the u-bolts both on the inside and the outside. I use "amazing goop". Otherwise The inside of your camera will be filled w/ water when you go to switch the card. If you can find one that actually works, for the price, the Moultrie is a good deal in my opinion. I'm done trying to find one that works. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TAM Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Not to beat a dead horse, but being someone that has had a couple cameras stolen, take the advise posted above and don't leave your cameras where other people will find them. I don't care how big your chain and pad lock are, or how camoflauge the unit is, if someone finds your camera and wants it bad enough they will take it, and if they can't take it they will destroy it while trying to take it. The sad part about the whole security issue is that for the most part it's other hunters that are stealing our cameras. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
couesarcher Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Does anybody know what is up with the website? Everytime I try and perform a search and I keep getting an error meassage that the site is experiencing problems. I know we've had this same subject before (how to build a trail camera), I remember reading it. I would be interested in building my own. I was going to search history on this site, there have been numerous posts on how to build, which cameras work best etc... I did look at the web site pixcontroller.com and want to comparewith what they had to the different posts here. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks Terry Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coues7 Report post Posted July 13, 2006 Does anybody know what is up with the website? Everytime I try and perform a search and I keep getting an error meassage that the site is experiencing problems. I know we've had this same subject before (how to build a trail camera), I remember reading it. I would be interested in building my own. I was going to search history on this site, there have been numerous posts on how to build, which cameras work best etc... I did look at the web site pixcontroller.com and want to comparewith what they had to the different posts here. Terry, This is not the place to learn how to build cams.....this is for learning about coues....BUT I WOULD RECOMMEND www.hagshouse.com and www.realdealhuntingchat.invisionzone.com I use only hagshouse boards.....in my opinion they are the best. All the people I previously mentined use these boards.....they are the best around. They have a great layout and are dependable beyond belief. These boards as well as pixcontroller's boards all run on a 9V battery for 6 months. NO MOUTRIE IN THE WORLD WILL TOUCH THAT! Your hardest part is going to be finding a fast camera. The Sony P41 and Olympus D380 are the best and fastest around.....both of which are no longer being manufactured or sold new from stores. good luck scott Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
