Matt / PA

Not only are the Summit stands IMO the safest on the market, they come with a great safety harness, and video explaining exactly HOW to remain safe and comfortable in your stand. Climbing stands in general, and Summit stands especially are inherently very safe. You are connected to the stand and can easily wear your included safety harness for the entire climb. Unless you are extremely negligent you are probably in more danger in the truck on your way to your hunting spot than you are in your stand.

If you like fixed position stands, their quality enxtends there also and they have some of the best climbing systems for these stands in their Bucksteps, and their safety system that attaches at stand height and at the ground level which allows you to be hooked up for the entire climb into your fixed position stands......where most accidents can and do happen. A great product that not too many people seem to know about.

BGfisher

Bow, I hope you were really reading these things and taking notes. Most guys did say about using a full-body-harness. Summit stands come with a very good one, one of the best. Here's food for thought, NEVER, NEVER wear a "safety belt" Use a full harness. A belt will almost certainly kill you as quick as hitting the ground if you should fall. As for the harness?? Learn how to use it and use it 100% of the time.

I also agree with those favoring Summit Stands. I bought three of them this year alone. That's how much faith I have in them.

HI MATT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Buck Magnet

If you want to get some really good info, e-mail Will Woller, I am having a brain fart right now, but I believe his e-mail is either [email protected] or [email protected] His father started Summit and he is about the nicest guy out there and I am sure that he will give you all the info you want and more!

VAhuntr

If you use the stand properly and wear the appropriate safety harness, the Summit will be one of the safest stands you can use.

5 shot

BowhuntingMachine I have a question for you. Is your father and grandfather against climbing tree stands in general, or just the Summit line?

BowhuntingMachine

they are against the summit line...only because they think the cable will break easy....or slide down the tree....

VAhuntr

If I remember correctly the cables on the Summit stands are rated to 8000 lbs. Email Summit and I'm sure they will address your concerns. The Summit stands are very safe as long as your take care of it, wear your safety harness and follow the directions provided with the stand. These guidelines are going to be the same with any stand on the market today.

justhrowit

I own a summit revolution....would'nt have it any other way.

I feel safer in this stand than I do in any other stand I have ever been in. I still use a safety harness...I use the Summit Seat O' the Pants. Safest harness out there. The only way I would feel safer is if I were hunting on the ground. These are great stands. The stands are as safe as the hunter. You need to make sure you are climbing a safe tree. Make sure the tree isn't dead or rotting, doesn't have loose bark, and is'nt leaning too much. You just need to be smart about which tree you climb. Not all trees are meant to be climbed. Be selective. Find the trees before you actually hunt. It's just like finding a tree to hang a permenant stand...you have to be selective.

Where do your relatives get these ideas that Summit stands are unsafe? I think they are just uneducated about the stands. Get them here to this website. Let them see how many people actually use these stands and maybe they'll open their eyes. Good luck to you.

J
justhrowit

Len in Maryland

The original steel Summit stands with the swing bar were not only strong, but were 'rock solid' in a tree. Man, were they great stands. Just a tad too heavy.

When they went to the 'XLS", they changed to aluminum and also went to the cable system. They had a lot of trouble with the struts bending due to the fact that they wouldn't take the load. We had a lot of customers not only break the single welds at the bottom of the stands but also bend the struts.

Their 'fix' was to indent the struts and double weld them. On the average, this solved the problems; but, heavier loads still were a problem. As I told them, they would have been much safer by using angle instead of flat stock for the struts.

The above is fact that can't be argued. Now I will get into hearsay. I understand that a few have had problems with the clasp opening up slightly. I have also heard that the new collapsing struts may have some problems.

All in all, they are safe stands. The fact that they supply a safety harness is great. I just hope it never has to be used by anyone. There have, however, been problems with the stands over the years. Maybe your "dad and grandpa" have heard of some of these problems. Maybe, however, they are just overly concerned about your safety. I am with my son.

ewolf

I had a 2 summit stand failures in 3 years. Just like len was saying the welds on the bottom of the struts broke the first time. the scond time the very end of the stand was just bedding down. Anyway the second time i called them he(Summit man) asked me when i bought the stand i told him you sent it to me the last time the stand broke. He told me he wouldn't replace my stand. Then i sent him some pictures showing the first stand and how it broke and how they redisigned it, into one big peice instead of 2. Then how the second one was bending. Needless to say i got a new stand. then sold that peice on ebay.