Things fell into place for me recently and I was able to buy something I've had my eye on for a while. The Lone Wolf Sit and Climb Wide. I had previously bought and used for one whole season, a standard Sit and Climb. That stand, while quiet and packed well, was a torture chamber for me to sit in. The seat frame was too narrow and pinched in on my hips. I'm not a big guy at all, 6ft, 190 and it was simply too tight of a fit. The Wide version of this stand had my attention, but I never could bring myself to pay the $430 this stand was priced at. Well after two years of putting a little away for it and some side work opening up, I had the cash and picked it up. First things, first. I couldn't wait to try out the wider seat. MUCH better. At a full 21" wide, inside to inside, it was as roomy as my Summit climber. No more pinching in and feeling like you're restrained by the seat. The damper on the part is this. The seat itself. Flat out, Lone Wolf climber seats plain suck. Its not only uncomfortable, but is a nuisance to deal with. It's bulky, has straps and buckles flopping everywhere and the kicker, its noisy. For the life of me, I can't understand how a stand that's billed as the quietest climber in the industry has a seat this noisy and cumbersome. I expected this though, as my previous LW had the same seat, only smaller to fit its frame. I hated that seat too. My first order of business is to order a Hazmore net seat for this stand. Some other tidbits. The stand weighs exactly 21lbs, as advertised. Not too shabby for a stand of this size. Here is what shocked me about the weight. That seat I hate, it weighs 2lbs by itself! Secondly, the climbing bar. I removed the climbing bar, mostly because I've never been too crazy about sitting and climbing and like using the frame to support my weight as I pull the platform up, but I also wanted to see what it weighed. Again, 2lbs. If I keep the climbing bar off and put a net seat on this stand, it will weight right at 17lbs. Very good for a stand that is comfortable and packs like this thing does. I climbed a bit with it a week ago and so far, its worked beautifully. I used it with and without the climbing bar and it climbs well and seems pretty stable. One thing I noticed is the wider frame top has a little more weight to it and it doesn't want to fall down the tree like if you bump it like the standard did. Once you're at height and lock it down, its very solid and secure. The extra width of the top frame is exactly what I needed. Now if LW would put anything but the seat they use on these stands, it would be darn near perfect. I'll report back as I get the stand setup the way I want it. So far, I'm impressed.
I had a Lone Wolf, not the wide one, and I traded it for a Summit. Now I have two Summit climbers and I'd trade both of them for one wide sit and climb. Blessings.......Pastorjim
I agree. The one thing I liked more so than anything about the Summits, when compared to the LW, was the width of the seat frame. LW fixed that, albeit an even more expensive stand. Thats the ONLY thing that gets me about these stands from LW. They're expensive and IMO, require some customization on your part to get them "hunt ready". But once they're setup to be "hunt ready", you can't beat them.
An update. I talked to Lone Wolf on the phone the other day and asked about the climbing bar and if it can be removed. They said to NOT remove it. It will compromise the integrity of seat frame and will eventually lead to failure. So... I guess I'll leave the bar on and learn to climb with it. Who knows, I might even grow fond of climbing this way. Another thing I just found out was that if you do put a Hazmore seat on this stand, and you follow Hazmore's instructions, you will not be able to push the seat back, out of the way. However, if you don't mind having a smaller seat to sit on, you can mount it in a fashion that will allow this. I stand quite a bit, and use the seat more so to take a break from standing, so the seat can be mounted to allow it to be pushed out of the way.
Having never used a climber, I really don't have any valuable input to this thread. However, I do have a question. If you wanted a seat the can slide or flip out of the way, why not get the new flip-top climber? Also, did you get rid of your original Sit & Climb? If not, I was curious why you didn't purchase only the new top portion of the stand since they're sold separately? I plan on using a LW climber this fall, and am thinking about getting both the Wide Flip-Top and Wide sling seat tops so I can try them both.
I was wondering the same thing. Climbing bar took me a little bit to get used to as well, but it's not that bad.
Justin, I did get rid of the original S&C. I had a couple of reasons, mainly the narrowness of the top frame and it being unbelievably uncomfortable. When they came out with the Wide, I knew I'd have to eventually buy another one. I personally do not like the flip top design. To me, it just seems like it will be very cumbersome to climb with and pack. I could be wrong. Too much unneeded moving metal parts for me. Not to mention the hang on style seat cant be all that comfortable either ( I have a LW Alpha and the seat is a bear to sit on for long periods of time). For me, the ideal setup will have a net type seat on it that I can slide back out of the way while climbing and while I stand. It will be lighter in weight, and also less complicated than the Flip Top. Either way, definitely get the Wide version. It's night and day better than the standard. The climbing bar will take me a bit to get used to, but I'm sure I'll like it once I get a "method" down with it.
I had a sit and climb years ago. Sold it on ebay and bought the handclimber top section. Absolutely awesome stand, I live out of my handclimber in the fall.
A new update on this stand. I'm not totally sure its going to work for my needs. I haven't gotten the Hazmore seat for it yet, so that part is still uncertain. However, I was messing with it in the back yard last night I found a problem. The climbing bar on the Wide version can not be folded completely up underneath you. It appears to either have to be straight down or out in front of you. I want the bar out of my way. Folding it completely back under you would allow you to stand and push the mesh style seat back, out of the way, and give you the entire platform. The problem is the stabilizer straps and how they line up with the climbing bar. If you push the bar all the way back and tighten down the straps, the straps will push the bar back out. This is sort of a bummer. If LW would have still used the flat aluminum stock they use on the standard SC, it might have worked better for this purpose. However, the big square tubing bar is cumbersome in several ways. I may get a peice of flat stock and bend my own up and mount it inside the frame. This will allow it to fold up and be out of the way of the stabilizer straps. This sucks. In my opinion, for 450 bones, you shouldn't have to monkey this much with a stand.
I think it's rather unfair to say that for $450 you shouldn't have to "monkey" with the stand. In all honesty, it works completely fine out of the box. Thousands of people are using them, and killing deer with them just fine. You just want to customize yours more to fit your exact needs. I can go out tomorrow and drop 50K on a Super Duty, and then decide that for my needs/tastes I want to lift it, put bigger tires on it, chip it and put an exhaust on it. Is it fair to say Ford should have already done that for the price I paid?
Looks awsome,It would be on my wish slash wish list. with gas prices and construction work in the crapper some of us are not doing so well.... my wife would surely cut me off if i spent the coin. maybe a double cut off!
I hope you are able to resolve all the issues you are having with your LW. I am looking to buy a LW Alpha II Hang On this year. I have been Bowhunting for nearly 20 years and I have always wondered why certain Climbing stands were made a certain way. The first stand I was ever introduced to was the Bigshot, by Buckshot. They later became Equalizer Treestands. Now, Austiin Outdoors (http://www.austintreestands.com/) sell the SuperMag which is an Excellent stand to climb with. This type of climbing stand is the only one that makes sense to me. You are COMPLETELY enclosed as you sit and climb the tree. You can sit facing the tree or turn away by simply moving the seat. Having to sit on a bar and climb (like Summitt and so many others) seems to risky and not very safe. Yes, I do and you should ALWAYS wear a safety harness while climbing and descending from a tree, but having the added security of the stand being made around you seems best to me.
Judging from your pic you look like a fit guy, just buy a handclimber. As long as some guy isn't crazy out of shape they are easy to use. Less is more when it comes to climbers.
There was nothing wrong with the Summit. I just wanted something a bit more compact and quiet. The LW's are the ticket in that regard. TroutKing, I'm sure I'd have no issues with the hand climber. One of the most important things to me is comfort because where I typically like to hunt, it requires all day sits quite a bit. The Summit is certainly more comfortable than the LW's, but for my style of hunting, I can do with a little less "Summit Comfort" I have always wondered about some of the design decisions with these stands. I"m certainly not an engineer and don't claim to know anything about this. The climbing bar WAS the sticking point for me. I like everything else about the stand and will make it work. Today I actually got some steel flat bar and bent up a climbing bar, exactly like the one on the standard Sit and Climb. The only different is that the bar will mount inside the frame, rather than on the outside. I mounted it on tonight and messed with it a bit. I have to say, it is going to work perfectly. It will keep the strength and integrity of the stand as designed, but allow me to fold the climbing bar up under the seat while I hunt. I will most likely make a second climbing bar from aluminum when I get some. This one is just a prototype I wanted to mount and see how it works.
I will when I get back in town. The piece I fabricated to replace the stock bar isn't painted yet, but it should give you a good idea of what I did and why I went down this path.
I have the older wide sit and climb that does not have the tubular seat rail, but the bar stock like what is on the standard seat. I always keep the bar folded down in front of me and have no issues with it being in the way. Actually I find that it helps me be conscious of my leg movements while on stand. I've never had problems with the bar being in front of me and restricting movement. I can still move freely. I could see it being in the way if I wanted to dance a jig or something, but I rarely do that anymore. I did replace the seat with a Summit seat and the stand is great now. Super quiet and plenty comfortable for an all day sit. Once you get it tweaked to where you want it I'm sure you will love it.
Thats the plan. I think its going to be a fantastic stand once I get a couple of my minor issues with it corrected. I believe, for my style of hunting, the hazmore seat will work well. I usually stand quite a bit and found the other seats, like the Summits' get in the way and won't allow me to stand closer to the tree. Other than that, I think the Wide version may be the perfect stand for me.
