I have owned a summit viper for a while now, and absolutely love it!! Certain places that I have been hunting here lately, I'm limited to certain trees. I've had to be very particular about what tree I climb. Any hard barked trees(Red oaks, Black oaks, etc.) is a no no! My viper creeps and the teeth pops on the bark while I'm climbing up or down? Extremely noisy!! Any one else have this problem???? Buddy told me to buy a lone wolf climber and I wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. Said they worked great on hard and soft barked trees!! Any one know anything about this???
i was climbing a hard oak today, was about 21 ft. up, stopped to cut a branch, that the bottom portion had grip, i was wrong! watch out what trees you climb.
I use a Goliath and the only trees I wont climb are Beech and Scaly Hickory. If you are worried about it not biting well enough... just make sure that the platform and climber has a slightly above flat angle. You can always file your teeth a shade as well. Been using Viper stands of some variation since 1996.. wouldnt even consider another stand.
Having owned several different Summit climbers(currently a Viper SS) and a Lone Wolf Sit & Climb, it has been my experience that the Lone Wolf does not bite the tree as hard as a Summit.
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"Never stand and take a charge...charge them too."
All climbers basically work on the same principle. None are going to work better than others. A Lone Wolf will slip just the same as a Summit. Slipping happens when there’s not enough down pressure out away from the tree. It’s usually the top section of the stand that slips most often, just because there’s less downward pressure.
My experience is the same as VAhuntr, Summit grabs tighter than LW, but both slip under the right circumstances. BTW, oak have very soft, textured bark. If you’re slipping on them don’t ever climb a hickory.
Summit and Hard Barked Trees????
