Texas Hunting Forum

Trail camera opinions

Posted By: bobwhitepointer

Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:10 PM

Looking to get my first trail camera and was looking for opinions. What brands have worked well and what brands to stay away from. Thanks
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:19 PM

All have issues and you can find any brand that someone has had some kinda success with. I have had good luck with Primos, SpyPoint and Bushnell in the past 3 yrs. Here is a link I use to find in the field reviews.
http://www.chasingame.com/
Posted By: Stompy

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:31 PM

I've got a Moultrie and a couple of Browning game cams,,both brands have worked well for me.
Posted By: SouthWestIron

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:36 PM

Moultrie here as well. They work really good.
Posted By: EddieWalker

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:38 PM

I've had issues with some of the brands already listed and for the last five or six years have only bought Stealthcam. One of the things I really like about them is that I have it powered by the same 12 volt battery that runs my feeder that is kept charged by a solar panel on the side of the feeder.

I also have a few others that are strictly battery powered and the batteries last months. I replace the chip with an 8 GB card every month and there are over a thousand pictures to go through. Nice having it working all the time so I know what's going on out there.

Eddie
Posted By: Western

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:55 PM

Here is a great site for tech reviews and decent deals
http://www.trailcampro.com/

I have The Browning Strike Force and don't think you can touch it for the $$. Compare it's features to higher priced units and it is a great deal. Buy from them and get a 8gb SD card and free extended warranty. I have had several brands, some higher priced and this one blows them away IMO.

Avoid the Dark Ops model, nighttime photos suck for a hunting situation, I have one of those as well and it would be best for a security situation like a shop door.

A few of the Moultrie models are good and have been proven by hundreds of positive reviews, but pay attention the the model years, specs can change even in the same model class from year to year
Posted By: SniperRAB

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 02:59 PM

Originally Posted By: stxranchman
All have issues and you can find any brand that someone has had some kinda success with. I have had good luck with Primos, SpyPoint and Bushnell in the past 3 yrs. Here is a link I use to find in the field reviews.
http://www.chasingame.com/


So true...
I am close to not even messing with them any longer STX, hell they work 30% and a butt whip to maintain..
Posted By: txshntr

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 03:02 PM

All seem to be hit and miss. I typically run around 10 or a so a year and have seen good and bad. There are only a couple that I won't by again.

As was said, Moultrie depends on the model, but some of their models are great. The M80 and I believe the old IR45. The older Primos are still my favorite, but didn't have much luck with the new ones. I had two Bushnells that were great but those were the only two I have had.

I won't by another stealthcam or Wildgame Innovations. There are two others that I won't by again, but can't remember the name, just know what they look like.

Good luck to you up
Posted By: Western

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 03:15 PM

Originally Posted By: txshntr
All seem to be hit and miss. I typically run around 10 or a so a year and have seen good and bad. There are only a couple that I won't by again.

As was said, Moultrie depends on the model, but some of their models are great. The M80 and I believe the old IR45. The older Primos are still my favorite, but didn't have much luck with the new ones. I had two Bushnells that were great but those were the only two I have had.

I won't by another stealthcam or Wildgame Innovations. There are two others that I won't by again, but can't remember the name, just know what they look like.

Good luck to you up


IIRC Moultrie down graded their lens camera quality in the M880, there where recommendations I read, when I was looking, that said to avoid 2014 models iirc. Could have been the 13 models.

Ditto on the Wildgame Innovations, I had 2 and my neighbor had 2, 3 died the 1st summer, the 4th lasted about 14 months. Pure garbage from what I have experienced.
Posted By: tlk

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 03:43 PM

We now run 25 cameras on our lease - it is a load to keep up with. I bring them to my office in the off season and then have to test each one to make sure it is still working. We have a mixture of different brands - overall Moultrie has been good for the price. Some Primos are ok and some Bushnell. Stay away from Cuddieback for sure. Stealth cams used to be very difficult to program so we quit using them. They may have improved since.

All in all they are a crap shoot - I think the heat in August-September are very hard on them all
Posted By: SniperRAB

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 04:01 PM

Originally Posted By: tlk
We now run 25 cameras on our lease - it is a load to keep up with. I bring them to my office in the off season and then have to test each one to make sure it is still working. We have a mixture of different brands - overall Moultrie has been good for the price. Some Primos are ok and some Bushnell. Stay away from Cuddieback for sure. Stealth cams used to be very difficult to program so we quit using them. They may have improved since.

All in all they are a crap shoot - I think the heat in August-September are very hard on them all


No Sir...the Stealth Cams are awesome but your correct they are a Booger to set, I just hand it to my Wife roflmao
Posted By: passthru

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/12/15 05:01 PM

Stay away from Wild Game Innovations.
Posted By: bobwhitepointer

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/13/15 12:04 PM

Thanks for the info guys.
Posted By: LittleD

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/14/15 01:44 AM

Moultrie 880 is my best Cam I have. I have some older Primos that are okay But I did have to go through 6 or 7 of them to get a couple good ones. I bought a Wildgame Blade 8x Last year and had no problems so far.
Posted By: 30378

Re: Trail camera opinions - 05/14/15 02:53 AM

I have 3 different models of Moultrie cameras that have been just fantastic. The oldest has been out 5 years and has asked for noting but batteries and knock off a little dust.
Posted By: twitch528

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/15/15 03:01 PM

Wilgame innovations is a joke and their customer service is 10x worse
Posted By: Txhillbilly

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/15/15 11:25 PM

Over the years I've used Moultrie,Bushnell,and some cheaper brands with a bunch of problems or very short battery life. I've been using 4 Browning trail cameras for 3 years,and haven't had any problems with them. Maybe I just got lucky,but my money will be on Browning trail cams!
Posted By: TheCloudX

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/17/15 05:03 AM

Covert is an excellent brand. Great battery life and clear pictures. Customer Service is fantastic as well. I haven't used a cam in about a year or so, but am going to get a new one. Pretty much only looking at the Coverts because of the quality of my last one.
Posted By: rickym

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/17/15 01:09 PM

Originally Posted By: Western
Here is a great site for tech reviews and decent deals
http://www.trailcampro.com/

I have The Browning Strike Force and don't think you can touch it for the $$. Compare it's features to higher priced units and it is a great deal. Buy from them and get a 8gb SD card and free extended warranty. I have had several brands, some higher priced and this one blows them away IMO.



Another vote for the strike force. Especially if you get one that doesn't need the update.
Posted By: Tru2lifetaxidermy

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/17/15 01:56 PM

Cover 3G is great and you don't have to go out and disturb anything or pull cards....each pics goes right to your phone...
Posted By: aeb

Re: Trail camera opinions - 08/18/15 03:12 AM

Originally Posted By: rickym
Originally Posted By: Western
Here is a great site for tech reviews and decent deals
http://www.trailcampro.com/

I have The Browning Strike Force and don't think you can touch it for the $$. Compare it's features to higher priced units and it is a great deal. Buy from them and get a 8gb SD card and free extended warranty. I have had several brands, some higher priced and this one blows them away IMO.



Another vote for the strike force. Especially if you get one that doesn't need the update.


I have seven of these from TCP now in service. All have been updated with the latest software and am very pleased..
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