Anyone ever made one out of a stand and fill deer feeder? I have a tank on my property that needs a feeder. I have access to some free stand and fill deer feeders so I would like to modify one of those rather than spending more money on a fish feeder that just looks like a deer feeder. Any advice appreciated! Thanks.

Dedicated fish feeders spin up to higher rpms and throw the feed directionally a long ways out from the feeder…allowing more fish to feed.
Texas Hunter builds a really good one.
I would think you can make a deer feeder work if you can control your direction or float it out in the pond a bit so it can scatter/disperse the feed.

I set up a moultrie deer feeder right by the bank. Obviously losing a lot of fish feed, but wanted to get some to them until I can set up my fish feeder I bought. Our water level fluctuates a lot to and the water hasn't been near the dock for the fish feeder to be effective hence why I set up the deer feeder in the meantime.

I was hoping I could simply buy a new spinner setup to put into the deer feeder that would be directional and made for fish food. If not, looking for any design information or links to how-to/DIY videos/articles if someone has seen one.

I'm going to follow your thread as I would be interested in that as well!

If you find one, come back to this thread and let me know!

Same here!

agcrock2005 said:

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I was hoping I could simply buy a new spinner setup to put into the deer feeder that would be directional and made for fish food. If not, looking for any design information or links to how-to/DIY videos/articles if someone has seen one.

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Spinteck sells a 12 volt directional spinner kit. I don't know if they sell the individual directional spinner plate separately.

Just spitballing here:

Adjust the distance between the spinner and the drop tube so a small amount comes out at once, not as much as you would for corn. This might allow the spinner to throw farther as there is less mass to move at once. Adjust spinner run time to longer so you get the amount you want.

Also might consider a larger diameter spinner for the feeder you already have. My thought is the feed would be in contact with the spinner blade for a longer period of time and transfer more of the energy to the feed causing it to throw further. Not sure on the physics here, but I think I'm remembering some of my basic physics correctly. Added weight to the spinner may cause too much load on the motor/motor switch/battery, so keep it close to the same weight as original.

If you have a 12 volt system, maybe try a 6 volt motor. It would turn faster and I don't think it would run long enough to cause damage to the motor.

I'm from the age of: Use what you have to make it work instead of buy something new or make it yourself..

Just some ideas

I went down this rabbit hole. I looked into fabricating a metal "u" piece just above the spin plate and then opens up to broadcast in a general direction. It didn't work as planned because the fish feed is smaller in diameter than corn is generally. The only one I saw work in my research was a feeder that was over the water next to the bank. To me, that was not feasible as far as filling it up. I went with an All Seasons fish feeder and it has been great.

A TA Outdoor board sponsor directional feeder. Just pointing it out.

If decide to buy new I'll offer some experience. Few years back I purchased one of the other brands due to price.
Found that, one, it was powder coated steel instead of coated galvanized so it started rusting in a few years.
Secondly, it would not throw sinking fish food which I wanted to use in certain times of the year.
I replaced it with a larger capacity Texas Hunter so I would not have to fill so often… (the other company only offered 70LB capacity) and TH has a unique two motor design that allows all types of pellets to be fed ( floating and sinking).
It's also galvanized steel with powder coating to prevent rusting.
However they are a lot more money if you compare 70LB machines…. But you can get much more capacity without it adding a lot of cost over their 70lb model.

Don't know what your feeder is like or if this even works.

Directional conversion kit.

https://www.texasdirecthunting.com/directional-feeder-conversion/

Looks like SpinTech makes one too

https://spintechoutdoors.com/products/directional-wildlife-fish-feeder?srsltid=AYCX9vIMi71mco0PeFF9EJrtUUPnuSbzLkU2ggZP3b9Oufmmapv5-VNa

I've never tried/used this but for $95 it's likely worth a shot . . .

https://www.allseasonsfeeders.com/products/directional-unit-1

Much cheaper than the air drive units.