I was getting ready for rifle season and found these. Probably from the early 1980’s or so. The cedar still smells exactly like cedar but the corn smells like moonshine lol.

Does it taste like moonshine?

Not sure what will end up getting me, but death by mudbutt is not the way I'm going out.

I hear ya, I just had food poisoning from a gas station sandwich, never want it again.

....death by mudbutt....that's funny..

Burnham Bro's in one of their books wrote about Cedar as a cover scent, they would just peel the leaves of Cedar tree's, crush them in their hands and rub it all over. Worked then and works now.

My uncle used a mixture of King Edward cigar smoke and Carling Black Label. He was not without habits, but he was thrifty.

Back in 1963 I build my mother an old fashion cedar chest to store her homemade quilts and stuff. When she passed I got it to store my hunting gear in it. I noticed it did not smell as much as I remembered so I lightly sanded it before I stored my stuff in it. I "still" hunt a lot with gun and bow and am very aware of scent so every year about two weeks before season starts I pull out all my gear and lightly re-sand it to get the max benefit of it. Two years ago I had a doe and fawn walk within 10 feet of me and never knew I was there. For those who might be interested I was in McCoy's yesterday looking for some wood and noticed they had some aromatic cedar stock that smelled pretty good. You might try getting some, sanding it a little and put it in some kind of storage system with your hunting stuff. Let me know how it works if you do.

Pretty neat , I remember how bad they stunk

I do the same thing. My brother built a cedar chest for me, just for that reason. I've had such success with it, now all the guys in the camp have one.

I used to pick cedar berries and smear them over my tiger stripe camo while still hunting. With the wind in my face and the sun at my back, I had deer walk within 10 0r 12 feet of me.

I love all the old bits of "history."

But I've never had any luck using cover or attraction scents. I've found that playing the wind and knowing how thermals work has paid many more dividends for me over the years (especially keeping money in my wallet).

Cool find.
When I was varmint hunting a lot it seemed like any cover scent made them more spooky. A diesel soaked rag worked best.

I use the Huntstand app and play the wind religiously. I used it two weeks ago and had four does bedded at about 60 yards for two hours and a 5x4 off and on for 45 minutes. None of them even knew I was there. I have some fresh earth wafers that would have to cover your scent when you clip to your hat but I don’t use them. I prefer to just play the wind and not use any cover scent but my blind location is close enough to where I live that if the wind isn’t right, I don’t go.

And oh yeah - I also have a bottle of that corn scent. I think I’ve had it in a drawer since the 1970’s. I don’t think I would try it though.

I agree. If you play the wind and thermals, it’s not much of a concern how you wash/store/spray your clothes. Cool find, nonetheless.

Funniest thing. I used to carry a pee bottle because I believed human urine spooked deer. I no longer believe that but now that I’m 72, I still carry it out of fear I may get pinned down in the blind by a critter for longer than I can hold back 😊

My hunting partner is beyond anal about scent. He uses Unscented toothpaste, deodorant, soap and shampoo. I refuse to get sucked in on that. Told him I’m not buying it. His response is always “how do you know how many deer you didn’t see?” Can’t answer that. I will tell you that he is the one that taught me to follow the wind or stay home. I do buy in to that. Over the last 5 years, I have collected more and bigger bucks than he has (and that could obviously be luck). With the crossbow, he has buried me in terms of quantity and quality. Makes sense if you want to go to all that bother.

Ever wonder how they managed to almost drive deer to extinction without all of the foo-foo stuff and camo and using black powder ammo?

Don't know.

I look at the pictures from the 50s, 60s and 70s. Hunters have pictures with deer and they are not wearing camo from head to foot like they do here now.

While I prefer to hunt with the sun at my back and the wind in my face, have found that is not always possible so I am using scents more than ever with good success. I used Cedar Oil from Burnham Brothers for years when rattling whitetails and guiding elk hunters in NM. I know the recipe for this product and it is not pure cedar oil...Pure cedar oil doesn't have a strong aroma.
When calling coyotes, I am using Predator's Death Grip with really good success by spraying around the caller and just downwind of where I am sitting. Seems to not only cover my scent, I think that it acts as an attractant as well.
Adios,
Gary

Another really good attractant when rattling whitetails is to cut the metatarsal glands from a rutting buck. Be sure to wear disposable gloves and place in a plastic bag. I place them on bushes or limbs just downwind of where I am sitting. The scent of another buck will make a dominant, territorial buck think that another buck is invading his domain and ads to the realism of the situation.
Adios,
Gary

Cool find.

Whitetail Deer have up to 297 million olfactory receptors compared to humans with just 5 million and dogs with 220 million. Whitetail deer's sense of smell is nearly 1/3 greater than that of a canine or dog.

Hunt the wind. Or do whatever makes you happy.

That’s a cool find, I use crushed cedar berries and branches then rub clothes with it. Also try to keep wind in my face.

^^^^^

This.

The notion that you can 'Cover' your scent is pure nonsense. Deer, Hog and most Canines can pick out (differentiate) a scent particle at a rate of a few PPM (parts per million). Get clean and stay clean (as much as circumstance permits). Use the wind and thermals (don't forget thermals) to your advantage.

The vast majority of folks hunting Deer are doing so from a distance, with a high powered rifle, often times from an elevated position and in some cases...a box blind of some sort. They are playing a completely different game than a bow-hunter who is chasing the same quarry. So opinions on the need to control your scent will vary.

Walking in and out of your hunting spot or walking about the property while hunting you are leaving scent behind....PERIOD. There is no question that animals come across this scent at some point and notice it. Now....HOW they react to that depends very much on the animal itself and the conditions where you hunt (hunting pressure). Some animals some places are used to it, others will not tolerate it (especially as hunting pressure increases).

I have 50 years of traditional bow-hunting under my belt, meaning that I spend a lot more time looking at and observing animals than I do sending an arrow their way.

In time, you learn a thing or two about how animals react (or not) to human scent, cover scents and attractants.

With respect to human scent I believe it is always best to get clean and leave as little scent behind as possible. It is my belief that animals (with any fear of humans) interpret the scent they encounter in one of two ways.

1. Strong scent= Human is presently nearby or has recently passed by.
2. Weak scent= Human is at distance or has passed by much earlier.

So.....IF you are not clean and emitting a strong odor/scent you are sure to get the attention of your quarry if they pass over your scent or get it in the wind/thermal.

That doesn't mean they will blow out the area (for any number of reasons) but they will surely know/think you are close by.

IF you are NOT leaving much scent... the opposite is generally true. They will still detect the scent but normally won't be on high alert when they do.

Cover scents (if not a type normally encountered, or overwhelmingly strong) also gets their attention as something out of place. Not to mention it is impossible to 'cover' your scent anyway.

Attractants have their place: At the right time, place and conditions....but the average hunter uses them poorly.

Get clean, stay clean, be quiet, be still. The less you do to change things in the wild...the more game you will see.

I am of the opinion that most of the scent cover products are designed for hunters more than for the animals.

I try to do as much as possible to neutralize scent without buying products. Use fragrance free detergent when washing all hunting gear. Hang outer clothing up in the sunshine for a day or two prior to a hunt. Shower with water only. Swish with hydrogen peroxide after brushing teeth. I like the cedar chest idea mentioned above. May look into something like that.

In the field, I will step in some cow manure or scat to cover the bottom of my boots. Preferably noting too fresh. I'll also rub down with cedar branches. Even tie some into the loops of my jacket if I am not sitting in a stand. This helps break up profile as well as cover scent.

Not saying scent products don't work. I have and will continue to use several different covers. But I think some of the most important things you can do are absolutely free. And as stated, if you don't hunt the wind then pretty much none of it will matter.

Growing up in South America (where slash and burn agriculture is still the norm in the areas we used to hunt), we used to put our hunting clothes over wood smoke since deer, capybaras and agoutis are used to the smell and it doesn't alarm them. And by hunting clothes I mean jeans and canvas pants and surplus camo, none of the fancy [censored] we have available now! Y'all should have seen the whitetail down there, they make a Hill Country buck look like a Saskatchewan buck!