There has been a lot of talk throughout these forums regarding Summit treestands. I just picked up a Summit Viper in the middle of this season. The first treestand I bought in almost 10 years.

A little background. First off, I have used a Loggy Bayou climber since 1993. I bought the new climber with the big, padded seat opposed to their notorious butt numbing netting they did have. With this stand, I took many deer and enjoyed a lot of good hunting out of it. The thing I really liked about this stand was its simplicity. One piece, with a fold up seat that ratcheted fast once at hunting height. Perfect. Also, it spoiled me with its 12lb weight. No problem at all packing. It packed flat also. The downside was it was a little noisy to climb with, but remedied some with a little bungee cord. All in all, I couldn' t be happier with it really.

Now comes the Summit Viper. This stand really caught my eye the past couple years for its comfort factor. Something I was looking for as the Loggy was not the most comfortable breed. I gun hunt too, and the Viper was attractive with the wrap around you design. So, I settled on it and bought it.

Design:
The design is great. The snakable cable works ridiculously easy and is stealthy quiet while climbing. The stand is built like a tank and it looks as though you could back over with the pickup and still throw it on your back and tote it to your tree. Welds are all locked before welding using a special wedge cut in the two pieces that slide together making a more secure weld. I will praise Summit over and over for its devotion to being safety minded and never taking shortcuts. This stand is absolutely rock solid in all respects.

Comfort:
What I can say other than take a pillow with you! Seriously though, I have not found a more comfortable stand. I spent many of days on a numb butt in the Loggy from daylight to dark. I spent almost an entire week in the Summit from dark to dark and couldn' t tell. Its atonishingly comfortable, and warm thanks to the seat design.

Functionality:
As a bow stand, I can see some limitation. The bar doesn' t seem to be too much of a problem, for me, it was the two side posts that house the cable. The sit pretty high on your sides, even with the seat up all the way and do limit behind the tree shots unless you stand and turn completely around. Still not a big deal. As a gun stand, I can see it would be almost perfect. A decent rest all the way around, and a place to rest your gun or bow for that matter while you wait.

The stand gives you a lot of possibilities when it comes to adjustments. Even while up in the tree, the top part isn' t too hard to re-adjust if the angle isn' t right. Wrap the strap around the tree before you do this though. But I have on occasion had to move the cable in or out a notch to get it just right. (***make sure you wear the harness!!) Its also nice to be able to set the platform height to your liking also. Something the Loggy lacks because of its one piece nature.

Weight:
Here is the only complaint I have with it. In my opinion, its heavy. Yes, the Loggy has spoiled me here, big time. Its still not bad and is actually lighter than most in the industry. Taking into consideration the overkill in materials used to make this stand and its obvious why its a little heavy. Even at 18 pounds, its tolerable. But, if you carry a day pack like I do, and often strap it fast to the stand it does weigh it down pretty good.

Overall:
I really like this stand. Comfort far outweighs the added weight I gained with it. Dont get me wrong, if they come out with a titanium Viper, wieghing considerably less, I' m there! But I can not find anything else wrong with it. Summit has excellent customer service and has alot of add ons for their stands also. Value is almost a crime in my opinion. Not only do they give you a near flawless stand, but also every stand comes with a Seat O the Pants safety harness. Can' t beat that! Like all stands, there are limitations, but honestly, the Summit line has very, very few that would turn anyone from buying one.