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30" Hawk Helium Step Broke

Tjraley2 said:
Seems like hawk as a whole has gone to crap. Yeah their customer service is garbage. But the best customer service is making products that don’t break. They seem to have walked away from doing that. I’m hearing bad things all over about their stuff. I think those of you who are having issues with your gear should have a little party on their social media. The kinds of things I’m hearing aren’t just quality control problems, they’re defective products and negligence.
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The original Hawk products were great. The company was in Frankenmuth, Michigan. They sold out to GSM Outdoors which is huge outdoor equipment conglomerate that owns Muddy, Stealth, NAP, Big Game Tree Stands and other brands. GSM has the worst customer service not only with Hawk but with all the brands they represent.

GSM Outdoors | Specializing in Innovative Outdoor Products

GSM Outdoors is home to brands such as Stealth Cam, Wildview, Epic Action Cameras, Walker’s, Cyclops Lighting, Maestro Game Calls and American Hunter Wildlife Feeders.
www.gsmoutdoors.com www.gsmoutdoors.com

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
Arrowsmith1 said:
The original Hawk products were great. The company was in Frankenmuth, Michigan. They sold out to GSM Outdoors which is huge outdoor equipment conglomerate that owns Muddy, Stealth, NAP, Big Game Tree Stands and other brands. GSM has the worst customer service not only with Hawk but with all the brands they represent.

GSM Outdoors | Specializing in Innovative Outdoor Products

GSM Outdoors is home to brands such as Stealth Cam, Wildview, Epic Action Cameras, Walker’s, Cyclops Lighting, Maestro Game Calls and American Hunter Wildlife Feeders.
www.gsmoutdoors.com www.gsmoutdoors.com

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
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See I don’t get why companies do this. It helps them get in the big box stores yea but I see it the same way I see what happened to bear bows. They made great bows and then wanted to get them in bass pro and Walmart so started putting out crap quality for years and years. Everyone knew that and they had such a bad reputation for quality that no one was buying their stuff. Just in the last 5 years they’re trying to build back their brand with some good stuff.
 
I had straps that slipped (as did others). The suction cups....well...sucked. Now a broken step? Yeah I get they are cheap and easily modified but this company seems bottom of the barrel. Not trying to be dramatic but if a rock climbing equipment company had so many failures they would be done. Period.
 
Ohio Angler said:
I weigh around 275 give or take a little. I wasn't carrying anything else except for my bow. I should be well within the weight rating.
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Not defending their product, but if you put a dial type scale on a chair and stood up on it like your trying to climb, bet you would be surprised how the scale spikes in weight. Same with coming down. Just a friendly warning 275lbs turns into much more with inertia.
 
Thanks for sharing. At first, I thought this break was at the bolt, but its actually at one of the holes in the metal. Even though I use a Hawk for one stick, I feel the quality is suspect. I often worried about that type of break at the bolt. Did it break suddenly when weight was applied or did it break as you stood on it? Did your foot immediately slide off the step or did you have a chance to transfer weight to the other step? Sorry if these questions sound silly, just trying to picture options if this were to happen at height.
 
KYRanger said:
Thanks for sharing. At first, I thought this break was at the bolt, but its actually at one of the holes in the metal. Even though I use a Hawk for one stick, I feel the quality is suspect. I often worried about that type of break at the bolt. Did it break suddenly when weight was applied or did it break as you stood on it? Did your foot immediately slide off the step or did you have a chance to transfer weight to the other step? Sorry if these questions sound silly, just trying to picture options if this were to happen at height.
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That's the only problem with cast aluminum, there's no fatigue to see it just breaks.
 
I have a set the I bought a few years ago and put them on a tree in the backyard once. Never hunted with them and I'm not sure I want to. I think I will stick with my full length lonewolf and Muddy pro sticks for now.
 
KYRanger said:
Thanks for sharing. At first, I thought this break was at the bolt, but its actually at one of the holes in the metal. Even though I use a Hawk for one stick, I feel the quality is suspect. I often worried about that type of break at the bolt. Did it break suddenly when weight was applied or did it break as you stood on it? Did your foot immediately slide off the step or did you have a chance to transfer weight to the other step? Sorry if these questions sound silly, just trying to picture options if this were to happen at height.
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All very good questions. It broke almost instantly. I didn't have time to adjust my weight or move around. Luckily I had my linesman's rope secured and I wasn't extremely high. I stepped on the step and it just broke very quickly.
 
I have 2 sets that I bought last year, I'll continue to use them as normal. Lots of people on this forum use them often and this is the first I've heard of a big problem, I feel safe enough though will keep this in mind and try and always distribute weight even
 
Glad your not hurt. I try to operate with the assumption anything can fail.
If you spent 600 dollars on a set of sticks, or 150 dollars, you should always use them with the assumption they can fail. They are a piece of manufacture material. Not every inch of it has been x-rayed and checked on a regular basis and can fail. That's why we use the linemans belt or other safety line. A back up in case something goes wrong. I know I will continue to use my helium's.
 
Buckkillr said:
I have 2 sets that I bought last year, I'll continue to use them as normal. Lots of people on this forum use them often and this is the first I've heard of a big problem, I feel safe enough though will keep this in mind and try and always distribute weight even
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It's not the first time this happened. Check around there were some other incidents with these sticks.
 
WyoSaddlehunt said:
My issue with Helium sticks is nowhere as scary as yours. But I've been trying to get someone at Hawk to respond for over a week. I know Covid is creating problems for everyone, but a week? I've tried email and phone, no response. 3 of the suction cup posts broke the first time I used my sticks, I'm hoping Hawk sells replacement posts.
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I had the same issue. The best thing to do is to call them. Be prepared to wait for ~30 minutes and spend a total of 60 minutes on the phone. However, they will send you replacements free of charge. They did for me. Shipping only took 2 days.
 
Ohio Angler said:
That's for sure. I would be very concerned about quality.
I have to say though, every time I take a step on one, I now have a much better grip and always expecting a failure.
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Not sure I could EVER use that stick again!!

I use a 20" Helium with a 2 step aider for my 1st stick and because of all the failure stories as of late it will never go any higher from the ground.
 
Thank God you were not injured. Well that just knocked them out of contention for me. I'm 6'-2" and about 250 with all clothes and gear.
Was thinking of getting a set as a back up to my LW's.
Not now.
 
I bought a set and never used them after a thorough look into how they were built. @arkfan is right MADE IN VIETNAM. _XJ_0S.gif <<< Hawk's team when you use their gear...

Hawk is junk and ive been trying to steer as many people away from HAWK as i can. Such a shame, people gravitate towards their products because theyre very affordable and "look cool". You get what you pay for.

Hopefully this thread makes it around and people wake up and smell the B*LLSH*T
 
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