That’s the feedback I was looking for. I don’t mind splurging if it’s totally worth it. Next topic, which size? The smaller ones or taller? I like to be about 16-22 ft height unless conditions dictate lower or higher. Should I buy 3 or 4 sticks? I’ve never used aiders. Those are the major life decisions I will be having too make lol
How tall are you? What's your inseam? For most people the 24" will work. My 7 year old daughter climbed them the other night. If your looking for the most compact setup, then the 18" are best. But the trade off is you most likely need another stick to get the same height. With no aider, 4 sticks should get you in the height your looking for. Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
I'm using LW sticks, but plan on cutting them down this weekend. Should bring them from 32" to around 26" with 2 steps instead of 3. Last night was my first hunt from the saddle. It went pretty well and I never got sore or tired. It's going to take me a few trips to really get the hang of it, and figure out the best way to pack and carry all of my gear. But so far, so good.
One advantage to a saddle I discovered by accident Saturday morning. When pulling up my bow and backpack in the dark, the pack got caught on my bottom climbing stick and pulled it off the tree so that is was hanging horizontal. When I went to climb down and got to that stick, I had to completely trust my saddle and ropes by taking my feet completely off the tree and hanging upside down to reach the stick and correct it so that I could get back on the ground. I cannot imagine anyone doing that in a normal safety harness. I doubled roped myself in with the tether and the lineman's rope before attempting it. Fortunately, I had practiced hanging upside down at home in the event that I took a bad step of the platform and flipped, so moving around upside down was something I was prepared for.
I have LW and Hawk 20"sticks, I haven't had an issue with the Hawk sticks. The LW sticks are great, but a pain on some of the public land spots that get thick. Novix has a set of mini sticks that look just about perfect. I have not had an issue getting high enough with the 20" sitcks, an aider on the bottom stick can make up that up. https://novixoutdoors.com/products/mini-climbing-sticks
How exactly do you do that? I really like hunting out of a saddle and platform, but I DESPISE climbing sticks ESPECIALLY securing the platform while using said sticks. I came to the decision this weekend that I might be done saddle hunting just because setting up the sticks and a platform is just too noisy, time consuming, and most importantly DANGEROUS for me. Once I am up, I love it. Help me find a good climbing/platform system before I give up my Bruh! status. MOST of the areas I hunt have tall straight trees that I can get right up in a traditional climber, but there are those with the occasional limb that I can work around whilst hanging from the saddle
that's similar to how I secured my LW hand climber seat as a platform last season. I bought a OOAL Ridgerunner XL cam-over this year and it also kicked out on me a couple times last week. I ended up using another strap on the bottom to secure it. Wasn't perfect but no kick out. As to the Ridgerunner XL as a platform; I feel I would have preferred the non-XL version. The width closer to the tree is more beneficial than the extra length, even for a guy with size 12s like me. If I end up sticking with this, I will probably go with a ratchet strap on top to see if I still need a bottom strap. I don't mind the ratcheting noise as I know how to do the silent click method. ...but that still doesn't solve my climbing/hanging method issues.
I have the standard Ridgerunner and do not like how it attaches to the tree. No matter how hard I tried, it's almost impossible to get it to cam lock securely, and I monkeyed with it for quite awhile last night. I plan on removing the cam strap and replacing it with a ratchet strap instead. The problem is the platform doesn't make contact with the tree and create that extra tension on the strap that you need to really lock it in place. Overall I like the platform and it worked well once I was on it. Just needs a better mechanism to really lock it down. I may try either the Phantom or Novix platforms as well.
What don't you like about climbing sticks, and what is the issue with the platform? For me, it's no different than a hang-on and sticks. Using the lineman's belt so you have both hands free, it's not an issue at all. Which part are you struggling with, and why do you feel unsafe?
I've found that I don't even have to use the ratchet strap with the modded viper platform. I can still apply side pressure as long as I have a foot placed on the end against the tree first. See picture: I also used a disc grinder and sharpened the teeth on the platform so it really bites the tree hard, Sometimes too hard! I'm not in the best shape, 5'7" 235 pounds, and I find climbing this way pretty easy, once I started using a ropeman one on my tether instead of the prusik. I HATE sticks with a passion.
Thanks for the feedback. I’ll have to do some pondering on that. I’m 6’ and my inseam is probably 33”. I was packing the LW sticks and they were catching on too much brush. Thought about the smaller sticks to help with this. I’m sure I’ll figure it out.
Modifying my LW isn’t out of the question since I have so many of them. I just keep hearing the buzz about the beast sticks. My pack is the tethrd predator platform pack and I just bungee my 4 LW sticks to it. I packed them vertically and they were either too high catching on limbs I was trying to duck under or too low hitting the back of my thighs with every step. Couldn’t find a sweet spot. Horizontally they stuck out way too far. Tweaks needed but overall I do like it. I did an all day where I moved locations and took a couple hr break. That was the day I felt some hip pinch. The next hunt was evening only. I put my tether a little higher and it felt better.
First part- my experience with the Ridgerunner as well. I think it's exacerbated in the XL due to the narrowness of the platform closer to the tree- if you end up trying to get around the side of the tree, you end up putting almost totally horizontal pressure rather than horizontal and vertical, which really pushes it out. I see no other alternative other than to put a ratchet on the top and hope that's enough. As to the sticks, I find I almost always end up snagging one with something on the way up creating a mess. With the saddle, its usually the linemans belt or sometimes the looped straps. I dunno, maybe I just need to practice a lot more but I have been using sticks off/on for years and have yet to find a method or brand I really feel comfortable with. I pretty much have to have a double step; the LW styled ones with alternating steps are a no-go. I went on Novix' site and there is no saddle platform listed. I am assuming it's a frankenstein of their seat attached to one of their mini-sticks?
regarding another of my "dislikes" of sticks; I have the same issue. No real good way to pack them in.
The Novix platform is only available through Trophyline for some reason. https://www.trophyline.com/collections/accessories/products/the-mission-platform
I could be wrong, but I believe they are the manufacturers of it. The NOVIX line is their product line for things that are not directly a part of the saddle.
