You guys kill me.

These stands today don't even go by the "3" rule. They go by "2".

Make the thing and pile 3 times the recommended weight on it (While standing on the ground as if I needed to mention it but aparently it does need to be mentioned) and it'll be 33% stronger than any made. You'll be happy to know your house does follow the 3 rule.

You guys put a lot of faith in these mass produced stands. My mass produced "certified" stand took a dump on me this year. No miss use, no abuse, just a poor STRUCTURALLY ENGINEERED DESIGNED stand. That right there should tell everyone that if they can't do it no one can. YA RIGHT.

The real problem is way to many people have no business being in a tree.Some do need a house 20" up to keep them safe and the rest are just careless. Another harness failure happened. Kid was 20 feet up. She went to school here. Trusted that StRUCTURALLY ENGINEERED PIECE OF... equipment with her life.
http://www.local12.com/news/local/story/Christmas-Show-Performer-Dies-After-Fall/q7y2EcSYhEOfbrXReykeYg.cspx

You can keep that "Certified" lable, it's only there for legal purposes. It's your butt, protect it. No one else will.

I know I can make a better one. Better isn't stronger per say, better is something that doesn't hinder me in all aspects of hunting. Better is something that helps me disappear. That's "better".

Make your stand hunter and the one after that and the one after that. Even if it never works out you'll be leaps and bounds ahead of most people who blindly hang their butts 20 feet in the air. Illumination is the real goal in life!