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JX3 arrived!

briand60

briand60

Member
Joined
Feb 12, 2020
Messages
48
Location
Sussex County NJ
I received my JX3. I got a a chance Sunday to try it out at ground level in the yard. First thoughts:

it seems really heavy when you pick it up. That said with 10 WE steps inside it caries so much better than my LWCG 1.0, mini sticks and with a pack I couldn’t believe it. it feels like half the weight.

I loved the saddle but my knees couldn’t deal with it. Hanging in the tree was awesome. I am a huge fan of facing the tree. The Whale Tail works fantastic.

I ordered a few more Treehopper steps for a ROS as I had some already. Also ordered a OCD strap from DanO. Have a Kifaru Sherman pocket coming for minimal pack stuff (Price ouch).

Love the way it feels on my back and in the tree. Lots of time needed to dial it in. Tether and LB ropes are very nice. Seem to be 10 mm. Wish they were two different colors. Carabiners seem top notch. Can keep my Tethrd 8 mm set up on my climbing harness for the LWCG setup.

Will need to practice shooting my bow from the JX3 As not used to shooting sitting down. It will be different. Muzzleloader should be an advantage.

Comfort factor seems amazing. Safety and security perfect. Packability incredible. Finding trees with great cover and using the JX3 could be an interesting adventure.

Will practice and hope to use in winter bow but 2022 season will be exciting. Super pleased so far. Will report back after real field use.
 
briand60-
To get the most out of the JX3 set the tether around the tree as high as you can reach.
This enables you to move around the tree 360 degrees easily.
When you set the height of the seat, try to make sure your knees are at 90 degrees when on the steps, for the most comfort initially.
You can change the angle through the day as needed.
Just came off a 11.5 hr sit last night (go in early and stay late) and feel great, lots of little naps, no shooters appeared.
When bow shooting "lean into" the webbing on your bow arm side, this provides stability and lots of clearance (I shoot a recurve).
I see you are alittle north of me (Hunterdon Cty) did you get out for 6 day yet?
 
JC3 said:
briand60-
To get the most out of the JX3 set the tether around the tree as high as you can reach.
This enables you to move around the tree 360 degrees easily.
When you set the height of the seat, try to make sure your knees are at 90 degrees when on the steps, for the most comfort initially.
You can change the angle through the day as needed.
Just came off a 11.5 hr sit last night (go in early and stay late) and feel great, lots of little naps, no shooters appeared.
When bow shooting "lean into" the webbing on your bow arm side, this provides stability and lots of clearance (I shoot a recurve).
I see you are alittle north of me (Hunterdon Cty) did you get out for 6 day yet?
Click to expand...

JC3, thank you for the feedback. I'll take all the info I can. Any advice on getting into or above cover with the JX3? All the videos and reviews I have seen are all on telephone pole style trees.

Work has prevented me from getting out for the 6 Day but will be in the timber Saturday. I'm in Stockholm in Sussex County. I hunt public in zones 2, 3 & 6. Hunt the Newark Watershed but the quads are a real problem there. Looking forward to using the JX3.
 
briand60 said:
JC3, thank you for the feedback. I'll take all the info I can. Any advice on getting into or above cover with the JX3? All the videos and reviews I have seen are all on telephone pole style trees.

Work has prevented me from getting out for the 6 Day but will be in the timber Saturday. I'm in Stockholm in Sussex County. I hunt public in zones 2, 3 & 6. Hunt the Newark Watershed but the quads are a real problem there. Looking forward to using the JX3.
Click to expand...

The hybrid has nothing to do with how you climb a tree with branches and cover in it. You can climb any tree with the hybrid that you can climb with a hang on, soft saddle, or climber. It’s just the thing you’re sitting in when you get to your desired height.

You’re right that most videos show clean trees. Mostly that’s to not waste time and make things simple. But that’s also what people gravitate to in the woods. If you’re the type of person who gravitates to clean trees, the hybrid won’t hold you back. If you’re the type of person who gets in trees with many branches, the hybrid won’t hold you back. “Relative to every other stand type”

but you’ll be super comfortable in it once you’re there!
 
Great saddle. The first hour in the tree figure out how to shoot your bow from different positions and angles in the tree. And then sit back and enjoy the comfort and don’t miss a deer because you fell asleep


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Must be a record! 5 posts and no one has mentioned coming to the light! :)

Congratulation on the purchase. Enjoy!
 
Will be the best hunting investment you’ve made.

I still use my Kestrel some, but I cringe at the thought of having to have my knees against the tree (no whale tail? Eek..)

It’s amazing how controlled you can be moving around the tree with the whale tail as deer are approaching.


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Woohoo.....my JX3 arrived and I picked it up on the 24th. Merry Christmas to me! LOL

Haven't even taken it out of the plastic wrap yet, but will spend some time today in the garage familiarizing myself with it.
 
This JX3 has a lot of straps and such to keep track of. :oops:

I'm sure with some time and practice, it'll become 2nd nature....but for now, it's a lot to process. :tearsofjoy:
 
tarafrost said:
This JX3 has a lot of straps and such to keep track of. :oops:

I'm sure with some time and practice, it'll become 2nd nature....but for now, it's a lot to process. :tearsofjoy:
Click to expand...

it has one more strap to deal with in a tree than any soft saddle.
 
kyler1945 said:
it has one more strap to deal with in a tree than any soft saddle.
Click to expand...

This being my first ever saddle, I'll take your word for it. LOL

Still waiting for my ropes to arrive....should be in the next week or two. And just ordered a set of Tethrd Skeletors! They're back ordered, so not sure when they'll arrive, but they were discounted for Boxing Week, so pulled the trigger.

Except for a ROS maybe, I should be all set to start on my saddle hunting adventure soon.....
 
Last edited:
kyler1945 said:
it has one more strap to deal with in a tree than any soft saddle.
Click to expand...
I don’t even know which strap you mean, but the JX3 does look intimidating when you first see it. It gives the impression that there is a lot going on. Then there is the whole part about remembering to put the backpack straps back on before climbing down. Forgot that once.
That said, I have enthusiastically transitioned to the JX3. Taken it on three hunts now and am really happy with it. Immediately became my go to saddle.
 
First sit today in the new JX3. Carries weight like a champ. 1 mile walk in with 10 x WE steps and Sherman pouch for a pack. No issues at all. Lots of fiddle factor at the tree but more due to the WE steps. Amazing how comfortable it is and how easy to quietly move around the tree.IMG_2056.jpeg
IMG_2059.jpeg
 
Nice. I have one sitting under my bed for last year need to invest time in my climbing method. Wanted to use lwhc but i was humbled quickly. How are you using the WE steps at hunting height?
 
Today I didn’t get to the height I wanted. My first time out in a while due to work. Been using bolts mostly this season but wanted to use the WE steps today (I hunt water shed property so not state land and can use bolts). Did not bring ROS as too much new stuff To work on. The WE steps were a complete PIA. I realize much of that is me. Then the tree had a lean at around 16’ that caused gravity issues so I dropped down a bit. So that said, I had my feet on one step. I could easily move 180 around the tree With just that. 3 hour sit. Much to learn. Winter clothing is a PIA with a beer belly and poor flexibility. Hard to see what’s going on with all that.

Posatives: no issues walking in fully loaded. Wears and handles weight much better than my LWCG 1.0 hang on. Shoulder straps and waist belt are great. Waist belt buckle on the 1.0 is sub par. No issues with knees on the tree like a regular saddle. I felt everything was quiet including all the fiddle factor. Comfort was fantastic. Learning bridge height to put seat at 90 from the tree is a work in progress. Going to use a Ropeman next time on tether as Prusik is hard to adjust once locked in. Moving around the tree on the fork is very quiet. Could stand on my step like a regular saddle no problem.

Negatives: mostly my lack of time with the equipment and my lack of saddle shape. Having a beer belly and being in my 60’s means connecting leg straps and lineman’s is a blind process. A bit of a blind fumbling around. Lineman’s loops could be more forward. The cold weather clothing and hand warmer muff adding bulk didn’t help for first time out.

All in all a great experience and very happy with the JX3. Like all new setups it’s a time in thing to get it dialed in. Late season probably not the best time. Weather will be poor next few days but hopefully back at it Friday. Don’t think I’ll use it for winter bow as no practice time shooting from it yet.
 
Cold and snowy here, and my steps and rope haven't arrived yet, so I couldn't practice on a tree even if I wanted to. Instead, I hooked up a 13' high SRT line in my garage and have been hanging from that and familiarizing myself with all of the JX3 ropes, straps, clips, etc. Also tried a bit of SRT using a RollNLock/biner combo as an ascender (ordered a real axcender yesterday! :))

Didn't go too high, since I'm using an old climbing rope, but it worked pretty well.

Only issue I had was that the JX3 was leaning back a lot....probably because I don't have a tree to brace my legs against, and only have the stock bridge which is probably a bit long for SRT.
 
b0275a71d5d7bdb1e17743014c910472.jpg

In mine now. It is my favorite stand. I’ve been through a bunch of saddles and stands trying to find something better. There is nothing better, I love my hybrid


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