So I need a deer feeder, and since I'm pretty much completely ignorant on these things, I have questions. Right now I'm only looking at 1, may add a hanging feeder or another as time goes by if things work out on this little lease.

Are there any that are really that much better than others? I likely have access to barrels and can fabricate and weld whatever I need at the house for legs and what not, are there any kits out there that are good? Are the cheapo Moultrie rigs at Academy worth anything or are they absolute junk?

I don't need something that holds a half ton or anything of that nature. The area I'm at is really heavily wooded, so a 30 gallon feeder will likely last a while on corn simply because this isn't hill country type area where your feeder goes off and 30 deer appear out of nowhere. The hope is that the feeder gives just enough incentive for game to be interested int he area, I honestly don't expect much more than that (at least with deer anyway).

I don't want to spend a fortune, but if the $100 setups aren't worth the money, i'll gladly spend more on something that I will get more than a season's use out of.

I've used winch and standard feeders. Many are old, some are cheap Moultrie, some are home made but all are still perfectly functional. Some are 30 gallon, some 55. IMHO the key to longevity and functionality lies in:

1) use quality legs (not the sectional legs sold with certain feeders)
2) spend the extra $20 for a quality lid
3) use some sort of vermin guard
4) adequately stake the legs to the ground

Most often, you pay for what you get.

Everyone has their own preference so I'll throw out mine.

I've been a tripod/55 gallon drum feeder guy my whole life until 3 years ago when I got my first stand and fill. The convenience of filling and moving it is great. I've got a 350 pound lamco and 600 pound ASF and both are great. Both have built on solar panels and my batteries are still good to go 2 years in. The 600 only needs to be filled twice a year.

I still have one tripod feeder that has a built on ladder so hauling bags of corn up to fill it isn't horrible, but I lose a lot of corn to coons and occasionally hogs hitting the legs. No issue with the stand and fill there.

To me, they are worth the extra money.

55 gal drum, angle brackets, and thick wall pipe legs. and put a fence around it if you have a hog problem.

I do this but cut the bottom of the barrel out and drop a funnel through the bottom. Gives you an extra bag in capacity and the corn empties all the way out.

Call me tomorrow. Ole blue might can be yours.