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Horrible day.. and I hate the mantis

Arieleagle said:
went out today to an area I was drawn by lottery to hunt. I planned to go up in a tree. first it took me forever to find a spot Bc the place I wanted to go was occupied by another once I selected a tree it took me an hour to even get my saddle on and my sticks (hawk) on the tree. I made an aider- that didnt work so I threw it in the trash. The mantis saddle was not designed to fit women. the straps are wimpy and are about 50 feet too long (exaggeration) so I have to wrap them around my waist so they don’t hang to my knees.. the saddle fits like a diaper.. after several attempts the last year in trying to making it work I have decided that I hate it. I think I want to cut It into pieces and throwing it in the River. I think this saddle design is for men..
back to the drawing board..
anyone want to buy a tethrd mantis for $25? It’s a total pos.
winds were high today and I think it kept deer from moving. not sure what tactic to take tmrw. there are 3 days left in this hunt.
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Sorry to hear about your bad experience today. Hope your future hunts are more enjoyable. As you realize/learned, some saddles fit better than others. Good luck!

And, by the way, really nice handle/user name. I like it! :)
 
I've never tried a Mantis, but I was always convinced that everyone's comfort issues stemmed from the bridge. If it had an adjustable bridge that girth hitched to the bridge loops, I think that would solve a lot of problems for people.

The higher the bridge slides up on the loops, the more hip pinch and wedgie sensation you will feel. If you can slide the bridge down on the loops, and make it stay, you would get more of a butt cupping fit. (Think playground swing)

I know the first thing I would do: Cut that dumb Amsteel bridge off, throw it away, and add my own custom adjustable rope bridge. I think it would make a world of difference.
 
My daughter really liked the Transformer.
She found it comfortable right away. (quicker than I did)
She just hung in it and Whamm-O... She liked it!
 
If you're interested in trying another bridge style, let me know and I can walk you through what I did to make mine. You would need ~8' of 10mm climbing rope and ~4' of 8mm accessory cord.
 
Hopefully once you finally got situated you were able to see the value behind saddle hunting. Its a great way to hunt but it sounds like you just need the saddle that fits you.

It also sounds like you were a little on the un prepared side and didn't give it much practice. Ditch the aider and just keep it simple until you get comfortable climbing. Once you find a comfortable saddle and get your system down you will be much happier.

The hunting public just posted a great YouTube video and they had very windy conditions. Jake shot a monster. You can't change the weather but you can change your attitude towards whats possible in the woods especially during the rut. Good luck and stick with it! I hope you shoot a nice deer and you can retire that mantis knowing you gave it your all. Don't get frustrated, things can change in a matter of seconds when you least expect it.
 
Patriot38 said:
Hopefully once you finally got situated you were able to see the value behind saddle hunting. Its a great way to hunt but it sounds like you just need the saddle that fits you.

It also sounds like you were a little on the un prepared side and didn't give it much practice. Ditch the aider and just keep it simple until you get comfortable climbing. Once you find a comfortable saddle and get your system down you will be much happier.

The hunting public just posted a great YouTube video and they had very windy conditions. Jake shot a monster. You can't change the weather but you can change your attitude towards whats possible in the woods especially during the rut. Good luck and stick with it! I hope you shoot a nice deer and you can retire that mantis knowing you gave it your all. Don't get frustrated, things can change in a matter of seconds when you least expect it.
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Thanks for the encouragement! I’m going to give it one more try tmrw. On the mantis the bridgs loops are sewn back too far so I have to twist and reach far back to access the linemans rope and tether. Even more difficult with a lot of clothes on. I’m not going to give up.. on the mantis I will tho.
i threw the aider in the garbage at the park- .
 
DB4x4 said:
If you're interested in trying another bridge style, let me know and I can walk you through what I did to make mine. You would need ~8' of 10mm climbing
rope and ~4' of 8mm accessory cord.
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Yes I would like to try another bridge style. I don’t like the amsteel one that comes w the mantis
 
I think you need some patience more than you need a new saddle. But I agree about the mantis, it leaves alot to be desired.
 
Sorta off topic here but for 25 bucks I’ll take it! Haha it’s gotta be an upgrade from my hawk! But in all seriousness there’s more than enough guys here to help you out and walk you through the advice on this site is priceless! I wish you the best in finding your comfort!
 
Come to the light, the JX3 tree saddle light..............
Don't be afraid, you will sit from dark to dark very comfortably, be able to snooze when you want, no dreaded hip pinch, no back aches, you can shoot 360° around the tree with any weapon, bow or gun.
No platform required, only a ROS, no sore feet, no knee pads required, no sore knees, no tired legs from leaning as you can sit all day, built in pack frame for carrying all your needs. Buy once, cry once.
Come to the light, the JX3 light...........
 
JC3 said:
Come to the light, the JX3 tree saddle light..............
Don't be afraid, you will sit from dark to dark very comfortably, be able to snooze when you want, no dreaded hip pinch, no back aches, you can shoot 360° around the tree with any weapon, bow or gun.
No platform required, only a ROS, no sore feet, no knee pads required, no sore knees, no tired legs from leaning as you can sit all day, built in pack frame for carrying all your needs. Buy once, cry once.
Come to the light, the JX3 light...........
Click to expand...
Yes I have been looking at that and it looks very appealing.. would like to try sitting in one before buying
 
Bigterp said:
FYI the wts mantis appears to be tongue & cheek after a long uncomfortable sit. Let’s lay off the I’ll take it responses outside the classifieds so we can leave this thread open for the OP & hopefully help her get dialed in.
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I feel like relieving the OP of this burden is most genuine thing I can do :)
 
Lol on the commentary of relieving my burden of the mantis.. sorry guys the $25 comment I made was more tongue in cheek... if I sell it now then I have no saddle. The mantis is better than nothing at this point and I’m trying my best to make it work. I also have a lone wolf hand climber and am attempting to use the seat as a platform in order to ascend a tree without sticks. I added a strap to the platform to put my feet under. In order for me to climb the tree with the platform I need to have a shorter bridge. The amsteel bridge that is on the mantis is too long. I need to shorten it or make an adjustable bridge in order to make climbing possible.
the second issue I have with the mantis is the waist belt. wimpy one inch webbing. I watched a mod where a battle belt is sewn on the belt to add durability. ?? Would that work?? The belt on my mantis is weighed down by the dump pouches I have on each side that contain my linesmans, ropeman 1, tether rope and the carabiners that go with them. This causes the waist belt to fold in and the buckle loosens so I am having to tighten it often. A one inch strap for the waist belt doesnt cut it and also makes the mantis look weak. I think the mantis was made for one who has the body of a mantis..-stick straight w no curves. That is definitely not me. I wish I thought of that before I bought it.
just two years later there are so many other saddle makers available
 
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Arieleagle said:
Lol on the commentary of relieving my burden of the mantis.. sorry guys the $25 comment I made was more tongue in cheek... if I sell it now then I have no saddle. The mantis is better than nothing at this point and I’m trying my best to make it work. I also have a lone wolf hand climber and am attempting to use the seat as a platform in order to ascend a tree without sticks. I abolu need to shorten my bridge in order to make that workable. an adjustable bridge would be ideal for this.
the second issue I have with it is the waist belt is too wimpy- I saw another mod where a battle belt is sewn on to add durability. ?? The belt on my mantis is weighed down by the pouches I have that contain my linesmans, tether rope and the carabiners that go with them. This causes the waist belt to fold in and the buckle comes loose so I am having to tighten it often. A one inch strap for the waist belt doesnt cut it I think the mantis was made for one who has the body of a mantis-stick straight w no curves. That is definitely not me. I wish I thought of that before I bought it. now there are many more alternatives available
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Are you using dump pouches on your Mantis? If not, you could make a fleece saddle and use it at hunting height for added comfort.

Climb with the Mantis and when you're ready to hunt, pull the fleece saddle out and hang. Sitting in a fleece saddle is like floating on a cloud.
 

Fleece Saddles

just picked this up at Tractor Supply (for another use) 60 x 80 inches fleece throw.... several saddles hiding in here for 15 bucks.
saddlehunter.com
 
Arieleagle said:
Lol on the commentary of relieving my burden of the mantis.. sorry guys the $25 comment I made was more tongue in cheek... if I sell it now then I have no saddle. The mantis is better than nothing at this point and I’m trying my best to make it work. I also have a lone wolf hand climber and am attempting to use the seat as a platform in order to ascend a tree without sticks. I added a strap to the platform to put my feet under. In order for me to climb the tree with the platform I need to have a shorter bridge. The amsteel bridge that is on the mantis is too long. I need to shorten it or make an adjustable bridge in order to make climbing possible.
the second issue I have with the mantis is the waist belt. wimpy one inch webbing. I watched a mod where a battle belt is sewn on the belt to add durability. ?? Would that work?? The belt on my mantis is weighed down by the dump pouches I have on each side that contain my linesmans, ropeman 1, tether rope and the carabiners that go with them. This causes the waist belt to fold in and the buckle loosens so I am having to tighten it often. A one inch strap for the waist belt doesnt cut it and also makes the mantis look weak. I think the mantis was made for one who has the body of a mantis..-stick straight w no curves. That is definitely not me. I wish I thought of that before I bought it.
just two years later there are so many other saddle makers available
Click to expand...

Battlebelt mod is alright. You’d hang the saddle and the pouches off of the battlebelt. doesn’t solve all the problems.

There are ways to make the Mantis more comfortable but in my experience one spends a lot of time pulling the Mantis down and then it slides up and you have to pull down again. The belt should not be loosening though… it’s supposed to take your full weight hanging off of it so should not loosen walking around. That said, are your pouches attached far forwardin the section of the molle that isn’t affixed to the belt (going off of memory here)
A pic of the saddle might be useful for further advice
 
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