Hi Everyone,
It's been a while since i've checked into this forum, or any forum. I love reading the reviews on the SteppLadder, both good and bad! I wanted to touch on a few things that you guys brought up.
-I have been using the SteppLadder for 15 years now, ever since I started hunting with Jim Stepp when I was 12 years old. Sometimes I am a bit of an outlier when it comes to explaining the ease of using the SteppLadder, as I have been using them for so long that I can tie them blind folded, upside down, sideways, underwater you name it I can do it. However there has been years of practice and I was taught by the man himself, Jim. What I can tell you is that once you get the hang of the loop you should be able to cruise up a tree. Myself personally, as well as my little sister and anyone that uses them correctly with a little practice can climb 20+ feet in less than 5 minutes effortlessly.
-I noticed a few posts about the rope being hard to work with, we converted from Jim's older brown round rope to a new smoother, flat polypropylene rope that keeps its memory, does not pigtail, and is easy to work with in the cold. This rope has a tinsel strength of 2800 lbs.
-When it comes to getting the SteppLadder secure to the tree, if done properly it should be rock solid even with lateral pressure. I tell many people that in order to get the stepp tight and secure to the tree you need to put a little force into it (not much but enough to push the standoffs into the bark of the tree). The key to getting the stepp as tight as possible is to bring the stand offs (the sharp ends) above the lateral line of the rope and pull as much slack out of the rope as possible, then push a little slack out of the rope and cam it over.
-We are days away from releasing the SteppLadder Aider! I am not here to convince anyone that their method of climbing is better than the other method, my thoughts are simple, whatever works best for you is the method you should go with. Personally, I like compact, light weight, strong and ease of use when being mobile. With the new SteppLadder aider, you will be able to climb 20 Feet with only 5 Stepps. That means you can carry 5 lbs into the woods with you in the most compact way and climb 20 feet. I will be posting videos on this new design shortly.
-Using the SteppLadder to climb and as a platform with a saddle in my mind is the ultimate combo! I hunt a lot of public land accessed by kayak and when in a run and gun mindset the SteppLadder is the ultimate set up. The Stepps can be placed at the exact foot placement that you need to make it easy to run around the tree for multiple shot opportunities.
-The strength is unbeatable! Put it this way, I hung my 3,000lb tractor off the ground by one stepp.
I hope I touched on a few areas for you guys, I love hearing all the different thoughts out there! Please feel free to give us a call or shoot us an email with any questions that you have. I will get better at following up on this forum with any questions or comments.
All my best,
Andrew | President
Wild Edge Inc.
www.wildedgeinc.com