A structure built for the purpose of concealment during hunting, better known as a “hunting blind have been used for hundreds of years. Native Americans are known to have created the first form of a hunting blind by digging into the ground in an area known for wildlife and animals they would hunt for food. Once the ditch was deep enough they would lay here covering themselves with leaves, sticks and bush until an animal walked close enough to allow them to ambush the animal.
Hunting Blinds have come a long way since these times, now with the hunting market providing a wide range of different types of blind to choose from.
But what is the best hunting blind? What is the type of hunting blind you need for perhaps pigeon shooting? Or If I am going deer hunting, what hunting blind should I use? Today we will go through some of the most popular hunting blinds on the market and show you which one you need for your type of hunting and environment.
The spring steel pop up blind, better known as a pop up blind or the doghouse blind. For decades this hunting blind has been the most popular on the market offering durability, cover from the elements and a full range of features perfectly suited to the modern hunter. There is a reason what this has been the best hunting blind year on year.
One of the main reasons this pop up hunting blind is so popular is because of its ease of transport. It is lightweight and even one of the larger pop up hides will fold into an easy to carry flat circle (like a large pizza). Not all hunters have the option of being able to leave a fixed blind in a feel throughout the duration of the hunting season, and also why would you always want to be in one place. Your prey is mobile and so should you be.
The spring steel blinds remain one of the most budget friendly hunting hides on the market. Whilst they still come packed with features their cost remains much lower than a hub or fixed blind.
Whilst not all dog house blinds are waterproof the higher quality ones from reputable hunting stores are. Always check the description of any hunting blind being sold by a hunting store before purchasing. You do not want your hunting gear getting soaked after a small shower of rain!
Having to allow an extra 30 minutes to 1 hour during your hunting session to set up your hunting hide is a thing of the past! Doghouse blinds are pop up, meaning they will be assembled and ready to peg down in a matter of seconds. Your hunting spot for the day will be set up literally in minutes because of these pop up hunting blinds. But be careful! they will pop up as soon as you get the hide out of the bag so be prepared!
It can also be confusing sometimes when trying to fold away the hunting blind. So be sure to read our article: How to fold a hunting blind
One of the great things about hunting blinds is the custom openings that have been implemented purely for allowing a gun barrel to be placed and positioned outside of the hide allowing you to aim at your prey whilst you remain out of sight.
And not only do hunting blinds have designed openings created for your rifle or shotgun, we now have the advanced technology of shoot through scrim netting. This is a type of netting placed on any gun opening on the hide that is covered in a camouflage pattern matching the hide camouflage. Meaning your gun barrel is much more different to detected by any passing deer, rabbit or animal that you are hunting.
Looking through your Scope can be difficult in broad daylight and being in a hide in the daytime can sometimes cast a shadow of a person if the hide is a low quality hide. The best quality hunting blinds will have a blackout layer underneath the camouflage exterior of the hide meaning not only is a much easier to look through your scope your prey will also not be spooked by any outline of shadows or see any movement from within the hunting hide.
The average size of a spring steel pop up hunting blind is:
Whilst there are ones on the market that can cater for three or four hunters we are discussing the most common ones today.
The average weight of a dog house blind is 5 kgs
There is an ever-growing market of pop up hunting blinds available and it is always improving. As with everything, hunting blinds are improving all of the time. New features, new types of camouflage, new tricks to attract the prey towards the hide whilst remaining undetected.
But the biggest variety of any standard pop up hunting blind is the camouflage pattern on the exterior and getting this right is extremely important if you are to be successful in your hunting season.
What type of camouflage do you need? This really depends on many factors. What type of environment are you hunting in? Is it a leafy green woodland or a brown wooded area without the cover of leaves? Take time to make sure the hunting blind you are choosing matches your hunting area. As you do not want the camouflage of your hide to stick out against its surroundings.
Secondly, we have the Hub Blind also known as a ground blind, A more robust, costly, heavier and spacious type of hunting blind. On average a hub blind is designed to cater for three hunters and their hunting equipment.
Whilst it is not “pop up” it does have an easy to assemble mechanism where there is a pulley handle on each side of the hub blind and a quick pull of each one will put your hub blind into shape. Whilst not as quick as the pop up blind this is certainly quicker than the original assembly method of old hunting blinds where you had to add each pole to each section of the blind.
The hub blind is fastly becoming one of the hunters must have a piece of hunting equipment.
The ground blind is usually stronger and more durable than other styles of hunting blinds on the market, it is built to withstand the harsher weathers we endure during the hunting seasons.
Whilst not as quick to assemble as the dog house blind, the hub blinds still boast an easy to assemble method with a quick pull of each pully on each side you will be up and ready to start your hunt in no time.
The common opening method for one of the shooting holes is a simple detachable loop. Rather than having to unzip you just detach the loop that is connected to the body of the hide and the whole rifle shooting opening to open. This means you will not spook any prey with the noise of a zip opening/closing.
As with the doghouse hunting blind, most high-end hub blinds / ground blinds are waterproof and built to protect you and your hunting gear from the elements. But always check with the hunting store before purchasing a hub blind. You do not want to damage your hunting gear because of misinformation.
The most common hub blind is built to accommodate three hunters and their hunting equipment inside of the blind. Whilst there are smaller and much larger ones available on the hunting market today. A three man hub blind is the most common.
The average weight of a 3 man ground blind is 8 Kilograms net weight. This will vary depending on the size of the ground blind, the manufacturer and the features built into the hub blind. If for example it is a waterproof hub blind, it will have an added layer of waterproof skin which will add to it’s weight so bear this in mind when considering transporting your hunting equipment.
There appears to be wider range of opening styles for a hub blind compared to a spring steel blind. One of our most popular sellers is a hub blind with square / rectangle openings for guns. There are options to have small / Large openings, Square, rectangle or circular openings and even zipped or silent openings.
Hub blinds tend to be the largest type of transportable hunting blind. The smaller most popular model started as a 3 man hub blind. But there are much larger hub blinds on the market built to accommodate as many as six hunters and their hunting equipment. But bear in mind size, weight and ease of transport when considering one of the larger hunting ground blinds.
As with the dog house blind, hub blinds come with a full range of different camouflage patterns available so make sure the hub blind you are purchasing blends into your hunting environment.
With the average hunting session last 6 hours you would be wrong to think you will be able to stand holding a heavy shotgun or rifle throughout the duration of your hunt. And trying to carry a hunting blind as well as a chair and gun can leave a hunter needing more arms! The 1 man chair blinds are an excellent piece of hunting gear that can really upgrade your hunting equipment.
A one man chair blind comes with all of the features of the doghouse blind and hub blind, but this comes with a fixed hunting chair built within the hunting blind.
And what is great about this one man hunting blind is that all of the gun openings are built for the perfect height of someone sitting on the hunting chair with their rifle or shotgun.
The camouflage area of the hide is folded behind you whilst you sit into the chair then once you are ready you simply pull the camouflage outer from behind you over the top to cover you inside the hide.
A large zip area at the font on the bottom of the hide allows you to easily exit the hide. You will have one large opening at the front. Where you are able to aim and rest your gun. Plus there will be multiple openings on both sides of the one man hide. Quite frequently the side panels will have a scrim netting to conceal the hunter inside of the hide.
The most popular style of their chair blind is built for one man. There is also a two man chair blind available but bear in mind the size and weight of a blind that has two fixed chairs within the hide.
The average weight of the hunting chair blind is 7kg. Slightly heavier than the other blinds available because of the added weight of the chair that is included.
The types of 1 man chair blind available will range from different types of camouflage, different types of openings at the front and on the side of the hide, and even different types of chairs fixed within the hide.
We would recommend one large opening at the front. Side windows with scrim netting, a fold-down fixed chair with an army or camouflage pattern, and at least one cup holder.
As mentioned previously there is also the availability to have two chairs fixed within one of these chair blinds. This is a great addition for when hunting in pairs or if you need a bit of extra room to store your hunting gear.
Next on our list of hunting blinds is the lightweight pop up hunting blind. Unlike some of the heavier, bulkier hunting blinds this hide is built with mobability and ease of transport in mind. Typically used in spring / summer / Autumn months these types of blinds will typically keep you cooler than other blinds and will not weigh you down when transferring your hunting gear to your chosen spot.
You may have guessed it from the name, but these lightweight hunting blinds are incredibly lightweight! Ranging from as little as 3kg’s weight on average the main feature of these is to allow a hunter to be mobile and not weighed down by his hunting equipment.
Not only mobile it is an instant setup hunting blind with pop up feature to allow you to assemble the blind within seconds.
Typically a blind to be used in the sunnier seasons during hunting the thinner exterior fabric will keep you cool during the mid-day sun.
These are built to accommodate one or two people during their hunt.
3kg – 4kg net weight.
Waterproof / Non-water resistant
Types of camouflage pattern
All of the previously mentioned hunting blinds all have had one thing in common, they are all located at ground level. What better way is there to get a good view of your hunting ground? Head for higher ground!
Not only does this give you the benefit of having a better view of your hunting area but you are less likely to spook your prey.
Whilst most tree stand blinds are not typically standard hunting blinds they are more like a raised seated area protected by camouflage. Although it is possible to get advanced tree stands that do have all of the features of a large ground blind.
Using a tree stand hunting blind can be a great way to get the upper hand on your prey.
An elevated position means you are harder to see and you have a much better view of the surrounding area.
There is no need to bring a separate chair when using a tree stand blind, these come with a fixed seat. Just set up your shooting equipment and away you go.
Because of this being elevated and at the top of the ladder to keep weight down these are usually built to accommodate one person.
With a fixed ladder and a chair built in these are on the heavier side of the range of hunting blinds we have been discussing ranging from 15kg upwards.
There is quite a range of hunting blinds on the market. Different types of protection from the elements.
Founded in 2013 by outdoor enthusiasts in the south west of England, Menimal supplies hunting equipment, shooting accessories, field gear, camouflage clothing, and essential tactical kit for shooters and hunters accross the UK and beyond. Each item is tried and tested in the field by us. We understand what works in real conditions because we use the gear ourselves.
From blinds and decoys to tactical accessories and outdoor kit, every product is selected for durability, function, and value.
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