Building a spin feeder...HELP!

[MULESKINNER]

I ordered my feeder from Cabelas yesterday. Now I have to attach it to a barrell of some sort and figure out how to place it.
Should I hang it or put it on a tripod, how high etc...? I have never used one and wouldn't be using one now except I have paying customers who expect high deer numbers and thought the feeder would keep more deer closer.
Any suggestions on what works best?
L A T E R . . .

[raktrakr]

i would hang it.place a pulley out on a limb and run your rope(or cable) from the barrel through the pulley to some kind of manual winch, something like whats on a boat trailer. this way should be easily refilled as opposed to the tripod. unless you know an easy way to refill the tripod

[Highbow]

Muleskinner, I have two feeders out and they both are being used daily by several deer. I got a couple of plastic 5 gallon buckets, two small pulleys and some rope. I can lower these down to fill them up or adjust the timer and I hung them on tree limbs that are big enough to hold the weight.

[GSP]

I have a question on this line. I'm wanting to put out some corn or grain in a gravity feeder for youth weekend. How long does it usually take for deer to start working these? There are deer in area now. I just want to get them closer.

[MULESKINNER]

How high should I hang it, and with moderate to heavy use how long is a 5 gallon bucket going to last. I live 40 minutes away and can't be there a lot.
Can I just screw some legs on the bucket/barrell?
I was thinking about using a 55 gallon drum.
Is that too much? Does the corn go bad before used up?
Is corn the only thing EVER used in one?
What about pests (coons and critters)?
I will probably have even more questions? The more details the better and thanks for your replies so far.
L A T E R

[raktrakr]

it should have time adjustments on it for dusk and dawn feedings, and how long it runs. manually turn it on and hold a bag underneath for the time it runs and you should be able to figure how much it will use in a weeks time. i hope this helps

[Highbow]

My five gallon feeder will last almost two weeks without any problem, feeding twice a day. They don't really put out a lot at a time. I have mine hanging about 8 feet off the ground. The coons and squirrel will destroy a leg type feeder if they get a chance. Coons can be destructive and will eat anything they can get to and dig the rest out.
GSP, I have two funnel type feeders that I used in the worst weather to provide supplemental feedings, They held about 30lb of sweet feed 12% protein, the bad part is deer can empty them in one night but so can a bunch of coons and squirrels.

[Strutter]

Mule, go to a garage somewhere and get yourself a valvoline oil drum like 90 wt gear oil comes in. They have a metal top with the folding tabs on them. They are 16.5 gallon drums. Clean it out and attach feeder to bottom and also attach some eyebolts about 3 or 4 inches down from the top opposite each other to hang barrel from. Use big washers on inside to keep from pulling through. This barrel will hold 100 lbs of corn and last about 2 months if feeding 2x a day. You will need a pulley system rigged up to lift the barrel or a couple real big friends. I have a pulley on one cable over a large limb and another cable going through the pulley to a homemade winch which I attached to a tree with the other end attached to the barrel. Sounds complicated but is very simple and works like a charm. If you want more info just email me.

Strutter

[Multidigits]

All good advice. I used 20 gal. metal Industrial grade garbage cans for mine. You'll need a funnel inside to feed them empty. Some of the feeder makers sell one for this purpose.

I also used a 1500 lb. boat winch to lift the rascal into the tree. You need a stout limb to hang it of of. Full up, it will weigh several hundred lbs. Corn feeds the best. Protein pellets jam up sometimes. If you want to feed turkeys, you can mix in feed oats or feed wheat, but they will come to the corn just as good.

If your close to Caneyville, try Otis Bryants for corn, the winch nad anything else you might want to mix in the feed. He has corn for $2.40/50 lb. bag.

[GSP]

Mule, I wouldn't tie too much money up into these feeders. I heard from Commission member Brown last week. "It's not "if", it's when, we outlaw them".