ORIGINAL: Trex
I have a very old Summit Viper. It is made of steel and is very heavy. I weigh approx 250 and have never had a concern with the structural soundness of this stand. I don't believe you could put a dent in mine with a 12 pound sledge hammer.
I had one of those also...no chance of having one of them fail on ya unless the rust bugs get it..lol. Those were the tanks of the tree stand world. Traded it for a new cuddeback dig deer camera..lol.
Im sure Summit will make it right...their customer service is among the best outt here.