• The SH Membership has gone live. Only SH Members have access to post in the classifieds. All members can view the classifieds. Starting in 2020 only SH Members will be admitted to the annual hunting contest. Current members will need to follow these steps to upgrade: 1. Click on your username 2. Click on Account upgrades 3. Choose SH Member and purchase.
  • We've been working hard the past few weeks to come up with some big changes to our vendor policies to meet the changing needs of our community. Please see the new vendor rules here: Vendor Access Area Rules

Versa button question

JSEXTON23

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2017
Messages
1,234
Location
Ohio
I recently purchased some hawk helium sticks. I ordered some versa buttons and some amsteel blue and I'm going to start with that mod. My question is what is the procedure for making the versa button flat? I mean, how do you get no bolt head extending? If using a hex head bolt is there still an issue like there is with a button head Allen bolt?

Just curious how you guys get around the stacking issue with this mod. And please be specific on methods. I'm not very smart and need to be walked through things sometimes.
 
I recently purchased some hawk helium sticks. I ordered some versa buttons and some amsteel blue and I'm going to start with that mod. My question is what is the procedure for making the versa button flat? I mean, how do you get no bolt head extending? If using a hex head bolt is there still an issue like there is with a button head Allen bolt?

Just curious how you guys get around the stacking issue with this mod. And please be specific on methods. I'm not very smart and need to be walked through things sometimes.
You don't need to have the versa buttons flat. In this thread, see post #93. If I had to do it again, I would move the versa buttons a little further down the stick though, sometimes the sticks do want to kick out. How far would take some experimenting. I just did a ratio of the distance that they originally were on the stick.
http://www.saddlehunter.com/communi...ification-a-closer-look.851/page-5#post-25507

Also, FYI, amsteel is not recommended to be used for this method. It is slick and it's breaking strength is greatly reduced when knots are tied in it.
 
You don't need to have the versa buttons flat. In this thread, see post #93. If I had to do it again, I would move the versa buttons a little further down the stick though, sometimes the sticks do want to kick out. How far would take some experimenting. I just did a ratio of the distance that they originally were on the stick.
http://www.saddlehunter.com/communi...ification-a-closer-look.851/page-5#post-25507

Also, FYI, amsteel is not recommended to be used for this method. It is slick and it's breaking strength is greatly reduced when knots are tied in it.


Well great! I was planning on splicing a loop and using Amsteel because that’s what people were using here and I ordered 25ft! Geez.

And do you recommend moving buttons down if I’m not cutting the sticks but leaving them full length?
 
Well great! I was planning on splicing a loop and using Amsteel because that’s what people were using here and I ordered 25ft! Geez.

And do you recommend moving buttons down if I’m not cutting the sticks but leaving them full length?
There are people doing it, but from everything I know and read I don't recommend it. Plus I just found a post on archerytalk where someone contacted samson about it and they don't recommend it.

Hmm.. if you are not cutting the sticks down I don't know if I would move the buttons. You would not be moving them very far from the current hole. You will have to experiment. I think dave did countersink some buttons so that is a possibility then. Also, I haven't tried them yet but the xop buttons are smaller than the lone wolf.
 
I've never had any issues with my amsteel....
20161124_195232.jpg


and as you can see, I have leverage sticks not hawk and the full length buttons don't impede stacking with these sticks....

20161203_071335.jpg
 
Well great! I was planning on splicing a loop and using Amsteel because that’s what people were using here and I ordered 25ft! Geez.

And do you recommend moving buttons down if I’m not cutting the sticks but leaving them full length?

Currently my versa buttons are in the original hole from the bracket I removed off the helium for the standard sinch straps, as I call them. After having one kick out the other night, I will be moving them down lower. My sticks are full length. It makes sense that they kicked out though. I was on the top step when it happened. The button is to close the top and is applying majority of weight to top cleat the higher you get. Obviously it needs to be centered so I'll move the button down.

I haven't done all the mods Dave showed yet, but all my versa buttons have the Allen head sticking up. I put some of that gun wrap that adheres to itself and is soft and quiet where the Allen head will contact the metal. If I drill the stick for the Allen heads to pin into on each other, it'd stack a little closer and I'm sure tighter, but it's not that bad the way it is. My sticks make zero noise walking in and out.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Currently my versa buttons are in the original hole from the bracket I removed off the helium for the standard sinch straps, as I call them. After having one kick out the other night, I will be moving them down lower. My sticks are full length. It makes sense that they kicked out though. I was on the top step when it happened. The button is to close the top and is applying majority of weight to top cleat the higher you get. Obviously it needs to be centered so I'll move the button down.

I haven't done all the mods Dave showed yet, but all my versa buttons have the Allen head sticking up. I put some of that gun wrap that adheres to itself and is soft and quiet where the Allen head will contact the metal. If I drill the stick for the Allen heads to pin into on each other, it'd stack a little closer and I'm sure tighter, but it's not that bad the way it is. My sticks make zero noise walking in and out.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
@Derek0413 correct me if I'm wrong but if your problem with kick out happened with you on the top step, isn't you lowering the versa button only going to exacerbate the problem? You're going to lengthen the fulcrum making it easier to move. Right?

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
 
@Derek0413 correct me if I'm wrong but if your problem with kick out happened with you on the top step, isn't you lowering the versa button only going to exacerbate the problem? You're going to lengthen the fulcrum making it easier to move. Right?

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I recently had a similar situation and perhaps can lend my observation and analysis to help.

I was hooked into my saddle and about daylight I noticed my top stick was almost 90degrees sticking out from the tree. It looked like this -|. I thought to myself “ oh boy, that first step coming down will be interesting!!”

What I came to observe when climbing down was that I looped my rope really high on the back side of the tree, making my stick lower than the loop. I think hickstick is correct in that moving the button down will worsen the issue. I’d recommend keeping the loop around the tree lower perhaps.
 
For anyone that this is happening to... are you using the rope mod? I never had this happen with my cam straps but it happened the first time I used the rope mod.
 
For anyone that this is happening to... are you using the rope mod? I never had this happen with my cam straps but it happened the first time I used the rope mod.

I had experienced this when I was practicing with the rope mod and an aider. The stick kicked out and left me hanging. Since then I went straight back to the strap! And never a problem with the strap.
 
I had this issue right after I got my leverage sticks. I had been using LW sticks for years prior to. I don’t believe it’s a rope mod issue as much as it’s a quality of stand off legs issue. I replaced all of my leverage legs with my lone wolf legs and I’ve never had the issue again.

Derek, I may have missed it, what sticks are you rope modding?

Dull leverage teeth
754a46b5a8e22b8e6372a35db07e2b6e.jpg


Vs aggressive LW teeth:
c5a1e81a9577bd1deda1381eeb17adf0.jpg


Maybe hard to see in pics, but trust me the LW really bite and hold.

When I find more time, id like to sharpen the leverage legs so my sticks stack better. Low on the priority list tho.
 
My 0.02. ... the rope mod requires the pressure be put on the stick directly away from the tree. Any left or right or inward pressure will allow the rope to "slide" or loosen and the step to "kick out".

This happened to me with amsteel, and I can easily recreate it with amsteel. Maybe amsteel is too "slippery". I tried it with muddy rope and can make it happen, but it is more difficult making it happen with the muddy rope.

In any case, for me, the rope mod is no bueno! Muddy pro with cam cleats or lone wolf Versa button for me. At 270 lbs dry weight, I really stress sticks/steps. One scare was enough for me to revert back away from the rope mod.

Again, just my 0.02
 
For anyone that this is happening to... are you using the rope mod? I never had this happen with my cam straps but it happened the first time I used the rope mod.
I had it happen with my heliums with a rope mod but I think the stretch in the rope has alot to do with it. I'm using 7mm accessory cord and it stretches way too much. I'll try and get it as tight as I can and it will still slide down 3-5 inches and I'm under 200 pounds. I've even had then slide back up after weight was removed. I'm defiantly going to look into some different rope for next year.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
 
Interesting read. I have the versa buttons and 7mm accesory cord to do the rope mods. Now i’m really second guessing it. With the stock straps, they get tight to the tree with no play.
 
Back
Top