LWCG Ambush Platform

[Nutterbuster]

Unfortunately, we do a good job of representing that stereotype well.

Which stereotype? The short, chubby dentist who pays to shoot the last lion in Whogivsacrapistan to prove his masculinity, or the trailer park denizen who screams about his 'merican rights being violated as he's hauled off for jacklighting deer?

Not sure which camp I fall into. Maybe I need to call and ask my liberal friends.

 

[EricS]

It is all about what people want to spend money on. I spend a lot saddle hunting because it’s a year round hobby. Even today’s “poor” could buy this platform if they really wanted it. If they are willing to give up a $5 pack of smokes or swap that $8 cheeseburger combo for a Bologna sandwich it wouldn’t take long to save the money. Is it worth $300? If it’s quiet, secure and durable it is definitely worth it. Sadly it doesn’t seem to fit that criteria yet.

 

[Nutterbuster]

It is all about what people want to spend money on. I spend a lot saddle hunting because it’s a year round hobby. Even today’s “poor” could buy this platform if they really wanted it. If they are willing to give up a $5 pack of smokes or swap that $8 cheeseburger combo for a Bologna sandwich it wouldn’t take long to save the money. Is it worth $300? If it’s quiet, secure and durable it is definitely worth it. Sadly it doesn’t seem to fit that criteria yet.

Yep. The value of a product is the intersection between how much the consumer will pay for it and how little the producer will sell for it. It'll be different for everyone.

For me, I bought it just because I could and I was curious. After putting 3 hunts in it, there's a lot I like about it. I did not have a problem with it flexing or making noise. But I also weigh under 200lbs and didn't really see a need to put extreme side pressure on it.

 

[Silvio]

I'm super bummed. At first glance unboxing I was psyched. Then...

-versa button is WAY off center and far from square on any axis

-post pivot hole isn't square with the slot it pivots in, you can see how crooked the post is when folded, and feel it binding as you rotate it to perpendicular(can see gap difference on left and right of post in picture)

This on top of the bolt issue, and wow. The quality is quite poor. This is going back. I really bummed.
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These quality issues are more than disapointing to say the least....its obvious the saddle ambush plateform is not in their wheelhouse. I missed this production and happy I did. I'll make my own thank you and have fun doing so.

 

[kubes14060]

I'm guessing there is a great opportunity to still make "the perfect platform". I love my Predator but I am new to saddle hunting and not used to it yet. The idea of a bigger platform was attractive to me but I wouldn't pay $300 for the Ambush as its currently delivered.
I would love to have oodles of cash to play around with a bunch of prototypes, invite a bunch of people from Saddlehunter.com down to my property and stand on platforms all day. Sounds like a blast and I think "the perfect platform" is out there somewhere yet to be made.
The problem is that the "perfect platform" is in the eye of the beholder and whats perfect for me is not perfect for you.

Long rant for me trying to say - I wish there was a bigger platform than the Predator that is as solid on a tree as the Predator is!! (hint to Tethrd team for creating Predator XL)

 

[okccj]

It is all about what people want to spend money on. I spend a lot saddle hunting because it’s a year round hobby. Even today’s “poor” could buy this platform if they really wanted it. If they are willing to give up a $5 pack of smokes or swap that $8 cheeseburger combo for a Bologna sandwich it wouldn’t take long to save the money. Is it worth $300? If it’s quiet, secure and durable it is definitely worth it. Sadly it doesn’t seem to fit that criteria yet.

I would add that if someone really is in a difficult financial situation, hunting probably shouldn't be something they're doing.

 

[okccj]

I'm guessing there is a great opportunity to still make "the perfect platform". I love my Predator but I am new to saddle hunting and not used to it yet. The idea of a bigger platform was attractive to me but I wouldn't pay $300 for the Ambush as its currently delivered.
I would love to have oodles of cash to play around with a bunch of prototypes, invite a bunch of people from Saddlehunter.com down to my property and stand on platforms all day. Sounds like a blast and I think "the perfect platform" is out there somewhere yet to be made.
The problem is that the "perfect platform" is in the eye of the beholder and whats perfect for me is not perfect for you.

Long rant for me trying to say - I wish there was a bigger platform than the Predator that is as solid on a tree as the Predator is!! (hint to Tethrd team for creating Predator XL)

I'll be surprised if there aren't more options next year for larger platforms.

 

[mattsteg]

Which stereotype? The short, chubby dentist who pays to shoot the last lion in Whogivsacrapistan to prove his masculinity, or the trailer park denizen who screams about his 'merican rights being violated as he's hauled off for jacklighting deer?

Not sure which camp I fall into. Maybe I need to call and ask my liberal friends.

Why not both?

 

[mattsteg]

But seriously there are a lot of different flavors of "jackhole with bloodlust". Leaving aside e.g. vegans, seems like plenty of people have disassociated meat from death (it comes in a plastic pouch, right?), are convinced that the only reasons people kill things are either hate or callous disregard, and think that nature will "just work" if not for those bloodthirsty hunters.

 

[Nutterbuster]

jackhole with bloodlust

I'm putting that on my resume and dating profile. Love it!

I kill things for the same reason my cat does. I enjoy it, I'm pretty good at it, and I like to eat animals.

 

[okccj]

But seriously there are a lot of different flavors of "jackhole with bloodlust". Leaving aside e.g. vegans, seems like plenty of people have disassociated meat from death (it comes in a plastic pouch, right?), are convinced that the only reasons people kill things are either hate or callous disregard, and think that nature will "just work" if not for those bloodthirsty hunters.

I agree with this.

I think we need to do our part to not play into stereotypes, and disassociate hunting from other polarizing issues (e.g. politics, religion, etc.). I find it unfortunate that someone's political affinity is so strongly correlated with their views on hunting.

 

[mattsteg]

I find it unfortunate that someone's political affinity is so strongly correlated with their views on hunting.

Not to derail the discussion - but that in particular dramatically reduces the influence of hunters and our ability to advocate for ourselves on hunting and resource issues.

 

[Nutterbuster]

We've gone off the rails here. Fun, but frustrating for the future search function users.

I still am leaning towards liking the ambush. Wish they'd hurry up and ship my sticks. Wanna see if that's as easy as I'm hoping it will be.

After talking with Brad Kuhnert for a little bit, I think some guys are using the platform in a manner not anticipated. The platform is big enough that in all but the largest tree, you don't have to stand on the edges and side load it to shoot 360°. You can stand on the center and have enough room to shuffle around while leaning into the saddle to keep balance. It's quite different than sitting in the saddle and kicking out against bolts, which is what I do normally.

I don't know that you can make a platform that wide without having some flex if you really load the edges. Haven't played with an assassin, but if it does better under side load I'd attribute that to the extra 2lbs of metal on the frame.

 

[okccj]

We've gone off the rails here. Fun, but frustrating for the future search function users.

I still am leaning towards liking the ambush. Wish they'd hurry up and ship my sticks. Wanna see if that's as easy as I'm hoping it will be.

After talking with Brad Kuhnert for a little bit, I think some guys are using the platform in a manner not anticipated. The platform is big enough that in all but the largest tree, you don't have to stand on the edges and side load it to shoot 360°. You can stand on the center and have enough room to shuffle around while leaning into the saddle to keep balance. It's quite different than sitting in the saddle and kicking out against bolts, which is what I do normally.

I don't know that you can make a platform that wide without having some flex if you really load the edges. Haven't played with an assassin, but if it does better under side load I'd attribute that to the extra 2lbs of metal on the frame.

Interesting comments from Brad but sort of makes sense given that the Assassin, and maybe the Ambush too, was intended to be used in combination with a harness, not a saddle. Brad's harness requires the user to stand/lean at all times. Sounds like I'm giving myself a reason to spend more money and buy the harness

As for the flex, the Assassin did not move at all and I assume its because of its beefier build. The flex wouldn't bother me if it didn't also bring about the noise.

 

[mattsteg]

Interesting comments from Brad but sort of makes sense given that the Assassin, and maybe the Ambush too, was intended to be used in combination with a harness, not a saddle. Brad's harness requires the user to stand/lean at all times. Sounds like I'm giving myself a reason to spend more money and buy the harness

As for the flex, the Assassin did not move at all and I assume its because of its beefier build. The flex wouldn't bother me if it didn't also bring about the noise.

That doesn't sound like a reason to buy the harness. It sounds like a reason not to, unless you think it somehow works better in this configuration than a "normal" saddle set up accordingly. Your description just sounds like a "less flexible saddle".

 

[Nutterbuster]

Interesting comments from Brad but sort of makes sense given that the Assassin, and maybe the Ambush too, was intended to be used in combination with a harness, not a saddle. Brad's harness requires the user to stand/lean at all times. Sounds like I'm giving myself a reason to spend more money and buy the harness

As for the flex, the Assassin did not move at all and I assume its because of its beefier build. The flex wouldn't bother me if it didn't also bring about the noise.

I don't want to put words in his mouth, but my understanding is that he does not use a conventional saddle, but a harness that is made to support your lower back as you
lean. I believe he was behind both the assassin and the ambush.

@mattsteg is kinda right. It's different than what most of us are doing. Pros and cons to both systems. I think they're both quite comfortable. I give an edge in maneuverability to a conventional saddle and a ring of steps. However, if you're going to use a platform, to me it absolutely makes sense to use a bigger one, lean, and have a harness made to facilitate that. If you don't like your feet on bolts, suffer from hip pinch, can't shoot your weak side from a ROS, and prefer to lean or stand on a traditional hang on, then the ambush makes a lot of sense.

I do 90% of my sitting and shooting from a ROS from 3 steps. I like having steps all around the tree just I case I want to reach up and move my tether to face a different direction. But I don't swing around the tree to hide from deer or make my weak side shot a strong side shot. On a normal tree, I can shoot any deer from any angle in either setup.

 

[Sharpshoot3r]

Is the stand manufactured at the same place as the platform? I have a set of minis and stand, no issues that i can see.

 

[Nutterbuster]

Is the stand manufactured at the same place as the platform? I have a set of minis and stand, no issues that i can see.

That is my understanding after talking with Andrae and Brad. My old minis had some pretty rough machining, and some slightly crooked versabuttons. The new ambush had a very crooked button due to a shard of metal that shouldn't have been there setting under the nut and "cocking" it to the side.

So far I've seen plenty of good-looking products out there, but also a fair amount of crappy ones. My understanding is they're ditching that manufacturer in favor of one with better QC.

 

[okccj]

That doesn't sound like a reason to buy the harness. It sounds like a reason not to, unless you think it somehow works better in this configuration than a "normal" saddle set up accordingly. Your description just sounds like a "less flexible saddle".

The way I spend money on saddle stuff, if I hear a sneeze down the hall it's a reason to buy more gear.
Generally I'm a thrifty guy but put some saddle gizmo in front of me and I can't type those credit card numbers fast enough.

Imagine all the money this forum has extracted from us that we wouldn't otherwise have spent.

 

[mattsteg]

Imagine all the money this forum has extracted from us that we wouldn't otherwise have spent.

but just think of how much cheaper it is than having a treestand in every tree!