Scott F
Well-Known Member
https://www.treehopperllc.com/shop/20hc-climbing-aid/
I received my Treehopper 20HC climbing aid last night and haven't tried it yet but wanted to give some pictures for anyone who could be interested. My plan is to use it as a climber / platform similar to the few (but thankfully growing) other options out there. Pictures first, then some initial impressions.
Picture 1: This is the climber without the seat cushion, I will probably never use the cushion unless I use it as it was intended, as the upper part of an open-face climber. If I can find (or mod) a climber to have a shorter platform this will happen.
Picture 2: The base of the climber without the backside bar along with some size 12 or 13 (can't remember) boots. I just got home from work, they were the closest thing I had on hand, or foot...
Picture 3: A view of the base of the climber without the backside bar attached.
Picture 4: Seat cushion that came with the climber.
Initial (pre-use) thoughts:
*caveat - I have never even held another climber/platform that was an open-face design so feel free to take this initial impression for what it cost you to read...
-With a advertised 400lbs weight limit I am comfortable using it in the application I want to use it for.
-This entire thing has only 2 parts, to me it appears to limit opportunities for noise. Some stealth-strip ninjas will find places to slap that on this climber but I am not from that lot.
-It does not fold flat, when laid flat on the ground it rises 8" off the floor.
-Despite the widest part (the backside bar) being 18.5" wide, the entire stand in the smallest configuration is only 24" long so pack straps will work well on this and the majority of this stand will 'hide' behind my shoulders and upper back so it shouldn't snag much on brush during the walk in.
-I don't weld but it appears to be obviously professionally made; has a lifetime warranty.
-The seat cushion is removed by 4 snaps as you can see in the photo. The snaps themselves are riveted to the support bar and are exposed when removed. I wonder if after 1 use of standing on it I could deform the snaps giving me the opportunity to devise alternate seat cushion adhesion techniques if the cushion is reapplied...
-The backside bar is attached by removing it, wrapping it around the tree you intend to climb and sliding it onto the 'handle' portion of the base then dropped into the notches. To adjust for the tree's diameter you just locate the recessed notches on the backside bar and turn the bolts to tighten. It gets very solid when assembled and my high school physics teacher would be impressed to know that I conclude that it is safe.
-The bolts, specifically the wingnut portion are not able to be removed so there is nothing to lose. The end where the wingnut is screwed on has a small countersunk bolt with a washer on it so that would have to be removed to remove the actual wingnut.
-The platform base where I intend to stand is with the cushion removed is: 18.5" x 8.5" to the bar with snaps on it, but there is actually 12" of depth for you boots because the usable foot space extends beyond the referenced bar.
Unknowns at this time:
-side pressure ?
-Easy of use ?
-Noise of installation on tree and during use ?
-Do I 'need' to rivet or attach a base that I will stand on to provide more standing surface ?
I am going to use this tomorrow morning; I am not bringing any other climbing methods to force me to figure out its warts, should they exist.
Overall I am pretty excited to try this out and glad I made the purchase. At $130, if it doesn't work as I intended, I didn't lose too much and I gained an open-face climber top.
I received my Treehopper 20HC climbing aid last night and haven't tried it yet but wanted to give some pictures for anyone who could be interested. My plan is to use it as a climber / platform similar to the few (but thankfully growing) other options out there. Pictures first, then some initial impressions.
Picture 1: This is the climber without the seat cushion, I will probably never use the cushion unless I use it as it was intended, as the upper part of an open-face climber. If I can find (or mod) a climber to have a shorter platform this will happen.
Picture 2: The base of the climber without the backside bar along with some size 12 or 13 (can't remember) boots. I just got home from work, they were the closest thing I had on hand, or foot...
Picture 3: A view of the base of the climber without the backside bar attached.
Picture 4: Seat cushion that came with the climber.
Initial (pre-use) thoughts:
*caveat - I have never even held another climber/platform that was an open-face design so feel free to take this initial impression for what it cost you to read...
-With a advertised 400lbs weight limit I am comfortable using it in the application I want to use it for.
-This entire thing has only 2 parts, to me it appears to limit opportunities for noise. Some stealth-strip ninjas will find places to slap that on this climber but I am not from that lot.
-It does not fold flat, when laid flat on the ground it rises 8" off the floor.
-Despite the widest part (the backside bar) being 18.5" wide, the entire stand in the smallest configuration is only 24" long so pack straps will work well on this and the majority of this stand will 'hide' behind my shoulders and upper back so it shouldn't snag much on brush during the walk in.
-I don't weld but it appears to be obviously professionally made; has a lifetime warranty.
-The seat cushion is removed by 4 snaps as you can see in the photo. The snaps themselves are riveted to the support bar and are exposed when removed. I wonder if after 1 use of standing on it I could deform the snaps giving me the opportunity to devise alternate seat cushion adhesion techniques if the cushion is reapplied...
-The backside bar is attached by removing it, wrapping it around the tree you intend to climb and sliding it onto the 'handle' portion of the base then dropped into the notches. To adjust for the tree's diameter you just locate the recessed notches on the backside bar and turn the bolts to tighten. It gets very solid when assembled and my high school physics teacher would be impressed to know that I conclude that it is safe.
-The bolts, specifically the wingnut portion are not able to be removed so there is nothing to lose. The end where the wingnut is screwed on has a small countersunk bolt with a washer on it so that would have to be removed to remove the actual wingnut.
-The platform base where I intend to stand is with the cushion removed is: 18.5" x 8.5" to the bar with snaps on it, but there is actually 12" of depth for you boots because the usable foot space extends beyond the referenced bar.
Unknowns at this time:
-side pressure ?
-Easy of use ?
-Noise of installation on tree and during use ?
-Do I 'need' to rivet or attach a base that I will stand on to provide more standing surface ?
I am going to use this tomorrow morning; I am not bringing any other climbing methods to force me to figure out its warts, should they exist.
Overall I am pretty excited to try this out and glad I made the purchase. At $130, if it doesn't work as I intended, I didn't lose too much and I gained an open-face climber top.
