How HOGFADER Got Started

My passion for hog hunting began more than 10 years ago on a friend’s ranch along the Nueces River in South Texas.

It didn’t take long before I was hooked. Every trip left me looking forward to the next opportunity to get back out there.

Over the years, my hunting buddies and I experimented with just about every trick, gadget, and feeder light we could find. Our goal was simple: improve our chances of taking a hog during nighttime hunts.

But we kept running into the same problem.

The Problem With Traditional Hog Feeder Lights

Many of the feeder lights we tried operated in one of two ways.

Some switched on at full brightness after dark and remained illuminated throughout the night. Others stayed at a lower brightness until motion was detected, then instantly jumped to full brightness.

Neither approach was ideal.

We repeatedly observed larger, more cautious hogs hesitating to approach brightly illuminated feeders.

Sometimes they would remain just outside the illuminated area, where we could hear or occasionally see movement but couldn’t get a clear enough view to make an ethical shot.

Sudden changes in brightness were another problem. When a light instantly jumped from dim to bright, hogs would sometimes scatter.

After experiencing this repeatedly, I became convinced there had to be a better way.

Developing the HOGFADER Illuminator

In 2018, I began developing a feeder light specifically designed to address these problems.

I had a particular operating sequence in mind.

I wanted a light that would automatically activate at dusk and remain illuminated at a very low brightness throughout the night.

When a hog approached the feeder, a motion sensor would detect its movement and gradually increase the brightness.

Not instantly.

Not in a few seconds.

I wanted the light to brighten so gradually that the hogs would have time to adjust without being startled by a sudden burst of illumination.

After years of development, testing, and improvements, that concept became the HOGFADER Illuminator.

How the HOGFADER Illuminator Works

The Illuminator uses motion detection and specially programmed gradual illumination technology that I call No-Spook fading.

Here’s how it operates:

At dusk: The light automatically enters nighttime mode and remains very dim.
When motion is detected: The light gradually increases in brightness over approximately 70 seconds.
At full brightness: It remains illuminated for two minutes, giving the hunter time to identify the animal and prepare for an ethical shot.
Afterward: The light gradually fades back to its dim nighttime setting.

The goal is to provide excellent visibility around the feeder without the sudden lighting changes that can startle approaching hogs.

Designed by a Hog Hunter, for Hog Hunters

HOGFADER wasn’t developed simply because I wanted to manufacture another hunting accessory.

It came from years of actual hunting experience and frustration with the feeder lights available at the time.

I wanted a system that would give hunters a better opportunity to observe approaching hogs, especially those larger, more cautious animals that tend to stay outside brightly illuminated areas.

Today, the HOGFADER Illuminator is the result of that original idea and years of continued refinement.

It’s the feeder light I wished I’d had when I first started hunting along the Nueces River.

And that’s how HOGFADER got started.

Learn more about the

HOGFADER Illuminator feeder light

and discover how our No-Spook fading technology can improve your nighttime hog hunting experience.