Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Anyone hunt out of a climber?

I went looking for a replacement for my 25 year old summit.

Have you seen the MARP on the new Lone Wolf “cross over” stand? 😳😆

Those things better climb themselves and blow me going both ways!

I may be mistaken but I don’t think Lone Wolf is owned by the same guy anymore either.

But treesramds in general are insane, price wise.

Look at a local trader paper or ask around
I got two a couple years ago by mentioning it to my nephew
Turned out he had a steel summit and a aluminum one , got them both for 225.00
Both were in excellent shape
I love them , if I find an area I like , I put a cable lock on them and hunt them sometimes for weeks .
Kenneth

I like a good climber for all day gun season sits. My go to for years have been a Summit Razor SS for bow hunting any my Goliath SS for gun. Both aluminum and both good for all day sits. Not ideal for every situation but a great addition to the arsenal for when the situation calls for it. I sold my Razor 2 years ago when I took up saddle hunting. I would argue that a good saddle is just as good and a bit more versatile.

I do. I use Summit Titans. I have two. I can drive them up with my ranger to whatever tree I am wanting to hunt. Strength and comfort are high priority as I am not hauling it on my back. Plus I’m a big boy.

That's correct. Andrae D'Acquisto sold his original company in 2006 IIRC.

I use my original Lone Wolf 20 y/o climber a couple of times throughout each year. If it needed replacing (beyond the traction belts), I'd buy another - 20 ft in the air is not the time I'll sweat a cheaper (and bulkier) alternative. And, in times when folks are hyper-sensitive to where things are made, you get a 100% made-in-America stand, using metal made here as well.

But if size and extreme comfort are a higher priority than portability, there are better options.

I haven't been in a tree in more years then I can remember. That said I do have 2 Summit Goliaths collecting dust in my garage. I'd originally bought 'em for my sons who have used them sparingly. I may give one a whirl later this year.

Were I in the market today for a climber I'd strongly consider Cougar Claw Treestands. USA made in Foley, Alabama. I've read nothing but positive reviews about the stands and the owner.

Here's another option, one of which I just got delivered, still sitting in the box in my garage; a tripod stand, Millennium T-100 Tripod.

My oldest son has turned me onto a big 10 point, which he swears is every bit of 180," but this buck, and I'm sure several others, lives in an area overgrown with head-high brambles, small pines, and stunted trees, none of which are over 8.'

Hopefully this tripod will give me just enough height to see into the buck's lair, and maybe even get off a shot.

He may have sold it but I’m 99% sure he was the guy demoing that new stand at a saddlehunter YouTube vid I was just watching. He must still be associated with the company some how.

Yep, he now operates under Lone Wolf Custom Gear (he kept the rights to the name).

Summit Goliath for me if I'm in a climber

The saddles are interesting.

I'm too old to climb trees anymore. Haven't used one in years and my last one is rotting at the bottom of the last tree I used it in . I use either a popup or a tripod now days. Both work just as good for me . I set the popup where I want to hunt 4 weeks before season so the deer are used to seeing it and hearing it when the wind blows by the time I'm ready to use it . The tripods are up all year and get used for coyotes during the off season. I got one I been using 15 years and it's still as stable as it was the day I put it up. It is harder to get into than it was 15 years ago but that is to be expected. Gonna put up an 8 footer I bought last year at the end of season when the prices were down but I will mostly hunt from the popup.

It's been a couple of years since I used a climber. Lone Wolf hand climber was my go to then because of the size/weight. Summits were the most comfortable of all I tried.

Last several years I've been using a saddle. Sometimes with the LW hand climber seat as a platform, other times with a small/light lockon so I have the option to sit.

Still use a lot of lockons known spots on private land that I'll leave up all season. I use a saddle in them rather than a harness...gives so many options to position yourself.

Summit Viper here. Very comfortable stand and easy to climb with. Bulky to pack through the woods. I put a set of MOLLE shoulder straps and waistbelt on the Summit and it is better but it is nowhere near as compact as my son's Lone Wolf.

Many, many times

Since about 1988 - give or take.

I did for several years.

Summit Goliath ( larger framed viper ) and API magnum.

I like the rigid frame climbers because they stayed the same size as the tree tapered..

Ol man style stands would get smaller across the back as you went up.

Now, i hunt box stands.. get out of the rain with room for my heater, snacks, and a book to read 😂😂🤣😂

Big fan of the API's myself.

Not sure if I’m too old to climb trees, but clearly I’m too old to fall out of them. I’m done with hunting aloft, except from elevated terrain locations, which fortunately are common where I hunt. I picked up a tripod stool with a 21” seat height that weighs the same as my safety harness and attaches neatly to my pack. I also have a cushion seat with a supported backrest and backpack straps for those places where I know there are handy logs and rocks to sit on. It can hold some stuff like a quiver, jacket, water jug, etc, and I added a chest strap. So far this season I’ve seen a lot of deer from the ground, so it’s working for me.

Summit for the win, they don't nest and pack as easy as an API, but once on the tree I do not think you can beat a Summit, we have 4 and love them, can climb up and down silently (no API chain rattle), and comfortable as hell. I picked up an as new Titan for $200 on FB Marketplace.

Add Third Hand Stabilizer straps to your climber and once you get in position and cinch those down the stand is as solid as if it were custom built by a master carpenter.

I have a Summit. Not crazy about using climbers but they have their place especially on state land around CT. My buddy has a Lone Wolf that seems nicer than my Summit but they are $$$..

I used to sleep in a tree lounge fairly regularly lol. Finally gave the thing away after realizing I killed way more deer while on my feet with ability to move/change locations very easily.

I've got two API Grand Slam Magnums and they're great. I like the chain instead of a cable.

This is the new version.
https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/api-outdoors-alumni-tech-magnum-climbing-treestand

Like Seuss said Facebook marketplace! Go summit and don't look back. Can find real bargains on there on used stands. Summit razor my absolute favorite for bow hunting but has been discontinued

API with coated chain. Used it for years. Sits better than my ladder stands.

Loved my API, could snooze all day in it!

Parked it 5 years ago at 55

I have two Summit Vipers. They're awesome. I'd go Goliath or Titan if not carrying it in very far.

I actually might consider buying one. Yes the price is really high but I have a few stands sitting around collecting dust and the sit and climb I use now is getting pretty tired. Sell them all and buy one. I'd rather have the Crossover than a bunch of crap that's not being used

Not since me and my Baker peeled both sides of a poplar tree like a banana on the way to the bottom. Don't you guys have limbs on your trees? I rather like disappearing in a spruce tree canopy to being a conspicuous lump on the side of an open tree.

I started with an Amacker lightweight stand and then moved to an Ole Man with a sling type seat. I haven’t used either in many years but I still find myself thinking, “that’s a good tree for a climber”.

I found one of those old Bakers at the base of a tree a couple years ago. The V on the back was grown into the tree and there was moss on the platform. I guessed at the time someone rode it to the ground and left the phugger where it landed. I found myself looking around for bones of the victim.

One of the first times my son used a climber, it was with the Amacker. I helped him get it set up and before I walked off to my spot I reminded him to tie the bottom platform to the top. I always used two paracord lines to attach the top and bottom sections.

I got about 50 yards and I heard a helluva racket and turned around to see him sitting about 10’ up with a sheepish grin and the bottom platform at the base of the tree. I walked back and old Dad hard time not giving him an “I told you so” but I kept it to myself but it was a good lesson. I told him how to hug the tree and got him down where he could get the bottom tied off.

Those older climbers could be a little treacherous and you had to really pay attention to what you were doing at all times.

He may have left it there while getting the "Baker Burn" from hugging the tree on the way down treated.

We have one guy that absolutely takes every shortcut he can. He now places high priority on tying the two platforms together.

Buckshot Stands

I have had the one I am using since about 1990. Faces the tree so you can use it as a brace or to hide behind. Have killed a lot of nice deer out of mine over the years. The newer ones are a little lighter.

Used to in my rough n wilder days ol man climbers are death traps☠️

I use a summit viper if the conditions are right, usually early bow season when the foliage is still up. Started with the old baker back in the early 80's, still have it, haven't used it since the 90's. Think I keep it just to occasional look at it and remember the some of those hunts.

Still hunting and carrying a climber on my back at 63...but it's getting harder every year. I'm good once I get up in a tree and am happy I went through the effort, until it's time to go and carry it back out!

The leveling system on the Cougar climbers has my attention! Nothing worse than misjudging the angle you need at ground level only to have a mucked up situation at your desired height.

A good friend has several Lone Wolfs, that's all he uses. Recently, one of the "rivets" broke and disabled the stand while he was climbing about 20 feet up, he had to tree hug all the way down. That would have been the end of LW stands for me but he still uses them and he likes go up about 30'.

I hunted all last weekend, 3.5 hours in the rain on Saturday, in my Summit Titan with this belt about 25' up a swaying pine tree. I got this stand a couple years ago, still have my old one but don't remember the name. I'm never comfortable sitting, chronic back pain, but this stand, with added foot rest, is really great. I do spend a good bit of time standing in it too and it has a pretty sold feel Shot a doe Friday standing, off hand, at about 115 yards in it. The climbing belt is a game-changer for me, I used to tie myself in with 2" webbing. The belt if comfortable and I use 1" webbing rope and a locking carabiner to secure to the tree. Once set, I believe if the stand failed or I fell out, I'd be in a position to recover and get down (hopefully I'll never have to find out!). When climbing in the dark, I usually strap-in about half way up for added security and just move the strap as I climb.

Rifle as pictures now disassembled at home, was soaked to the core. Was probable close to 30', photo looks like 10.


https://www.summitstands.com/summit-titan-sd-climbing-treestand-mossy-oak-camo

https://www.backcountry.com/black-diamond-momentum-harness-mens

I have 3 Summits. The Viper I think was my first, it is an open front and excellent for bow hunting. Then I have a Titan and a 180 Max. All three have been awesome stands when I need or wanna get up a tree. I carry a Corona limb saw in my pack and I can usually get up a tree that works for my areas I hunt.

That may have been a "Cobra", basically an open front Viper. I used the older version (with the aluminum flip tabs for the cable) of the Cobra for years.

Could be, I got that one after I returned back from Iraq in 2004, so I have gotten my monies worth from that stand. Still in excellent condition.

Summit viper for me.

I still use a Warren and Sweatt Rifleman climber. I sit facing the tree and the tree becomes a rifle rest. I have had to replace the wooden seat and footrest once, otherwise still like new.

I have some but hunt more out of hang ons. I’ve always been concerned about the noise made climbing alarming deer. Any opinions on that? Do you feel that it takes an hour or so before things settle and you’ve got a chance of seeing one or do you think the noise isn’t really a big deal?

Thanks.

Frank

I wish I had a dollar for every deer I've seen while climbing/descending. Sometimes they know I'm there and are curious, sometimes they act like they have no idea I'm there.

Yep, going up or coming down either way, my bow is already on the ground and I'm unable to make a shot. I have had deer, turkey, coyotes, coons, and hogs, all walk up on me as I am mid-tree somewhere without a care in the world of getting zapped. It's like they know somehow.

Killed two with the .348 out of the popup. Had a herd out front at about 50 yards and knew someone wanting a couple of does so I got him fixed . One standing shot double lung ran 30 yards and and opened the gap between wires on my 5 wire fence before she dropped. Second one waited just a little too long to run but did so I did something I never do and took a running shot. She was bouncing and I caught her at the top of a bounce with a shot just under the spine and right over the lungs. Knocked her down but she got up and ran about ten more steps . Must have been 15 does in that bunch , usually 6-8 to the herd around this area . On to the buck hunt for the remainder of the season. Happy that the .348 got blooded the first time it went out. Shes a 1936 with the bolt peep and I was shooting some 1940's vintage Remington Core Lokt ammo.

Very cool Eddie. The old 348 is a beast.

I’d make you an offer if I were closer 😊

IME Summit was the best I ever used. Mine got molten in AZ’s Madera Fire (if I have the name right). Sometimes a climber is unbeatable. I feel pretty safe in them with a safety strap all the way. Slow, I know.

Skeen, I’d make an offer if closer 😊

I still have my original Tree Lounge and a newer Tree Walker ( no longer in business) Both are great stands and very comfortable. For the last several years I’ve hunted either out of ladder stands or lock-ons and use a safety harness.

This year I’m hunting out of a Doghouse ground blind which I set up on a trailer. The trailer gets the blind up off the ground, keeps the cows from trampling it and I can easily move it. I also put an old piece of carpet on the floor and added a shooting rest.

I positioned the trailer/blind on a hill in the pasture overlooking a creek bottom a couple months ago so the deer would get used to seeing it. I killed an 8 point out of it on Saturday.

I hunt out of a Summit a bunch.

You jumped on that buck, didn't you?

Ha!! I could have given him the “Tim Wells” spear treatment.

Word. You’re whistlin’ Dixie if you don’t pack a little saw.

For sure, I found the Corona brand in the ACE Hardware store. I got their limb saw and pruning shears. I can cut a 4-5" hardwood in no time with the saw. I think they were 20-25 bucks in the gardening area. Best saw I've had.

Be alot cooler if he did

Have a tree lounge I bought yrs ago heavy as hell but super comfy

I have had a summit climber for a couple years now. I just bought a Millennium tree stand. I highly recommend its like sitting in a lazy boy and they’re light. Also very easy to set up. I sit all day now with no problem.