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Mantis versus the Phantom

I have a Mantis, can't get comfortable in it, no matter what I do. Been a saddlehunter since 05, using TL saddles. Haven't seen a Phantom yet, hope to soon. Gonna purchase a new saddle this summer. Like suggested before, find one near you and give it a test run.

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I think it comes down to a simple question. Are you comfortable in your current saddle?

If not what complaints do you have that make you think you need a new one? If you just want to try it, then get your wallet out and let your consumerism fly. If your complaint is that you can’t kill deer from your current saddle, a new one will have low impact on your kill count.

I’ve been fighting the non stop marketing that makes me think the grass might be greener. The thing that keeps me from buying another saddle is that I am perfectly comfortable in my current setup.


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Yes.... definitely worth the upgrade.

when I had my mantis’s I fought hip pinch and it riding up constantly. They seemed to have resolved that with the phantom. I am very happy thus far with the phantom.
 
I think the phantom is worth an upgrade if you look at the new improvements and they make sense. For me they absolutely do.

I was comfortable in the mantis but I knew there was a different saddle out there that might be even better. The things that bothered me were:

Small linemans loops - fixed in phantom
No adjustable bridge - fixed in phantom
No cupping like others - fixed in phantom
Riding up- fixed in phantom

The comfort channels are a huge improvement for me specifically. I noticed that putting more pressure in the bottom part of my saddle seemed to help with comfort and riding up. I had no way to keep my bridge from riding up the straps in the mantis. The comfort channels are genius.

I almost purchased the tactisaddle just because of the adjustable "rump strap". Having the ability to control where the pressure is distributed is paramount for longer sits in my opinion.

If theres something that keeps me in the woods longer...clothing, saddle, stand...etc it makes sense for me to upgrade if it's possible.

I didn't try any other saddles. I'm just a huge fan of tethrd and all the people that design their gear. Theres probably 100+ years of saddle experience between those guys. I trust their gear completely. Good luck! Stay safe and have fun
 
I'm more of a Sitter so I switched to the Phantom. I couldn't get by the hip pinch in the Mantis so hoping the comfort loops fix that and they should. Saddle shape is achievable IMO in almost any saddle if you fine tune some things I put a new amsteel bridge on my Mantis that cinched the loops which made a huge difference but I still busted out my consumerism and upgraded. If your comfortable why spend the dough. Give it a half season and the Phantoms will be for sale simply because tons of tree stand hunters bought into the saddle hype and marketing and wont give it enough time to like it.
 
@Ontariofarmer is right about the subjective opinion of what saddle is best.
For me personally I have more time in the phantom than I did my mantis.
I found my mantis comfortable on perfect trees but when put in less than Ideal trees it was a real struggle to find a sweet spot in my adjustment. The phantom I found to check all my boxes for a minimalist setup without the comfort issues I had with my mantis.I’ve since sold my mantis and kestrel. Both were good saddles.
If your happy and comfortable in your mantis there is no reason to upgrade.
 
My Phantom arrives today, I’ll definitely offer my opinion if you want it. I didn’t sell my Mantis because I’m a bit skeptical the Phantom can really be that much better, I never had any issues with my Mantis. We’ll see....


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Take my opinion for what it’s worth, I obviously work for Tethrd and had my hand in the design of the Phantom. I have personally spent over 300 hours in both saddles and to me the Phantom is overall a
Big upgrade from the Mantis. I was able to find comfort in the Mantis and enjoyed using it, but did have times where I struggled to stay comfortable on a long sit. The thing I liked about the Mantis was how lightweight it was and the fact I could wear it on long hikes in to my hunting areas without really noticing it. After hunting with the Phantom in just about every hunting scenario imaginable it checks all the boxes for me personally. Light, very little bulk, comfortable, adjustable for different scenarios, easy to use etc. For me personally I think it’s just about perfect.

Some will call me biased I’m sure and that’s ok, but that’s just my personal opinion after hunting from the two saddles plus all the others I have tried over the years.


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weekender21 said:
I’ve spent hundreds of hours in my Mantis and 5 minutes in my Phantom. I’m not convinced my Mantis is for sale....


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i wouldn’t sell it either. You always need a backup or 3.
 
If you are comfortable in the mantis then probably not. I owned 3 mantis saddles trying to make the mantis work, 2 mediums and a large. I sit 90% of the time, I could never get comfortable. The phantom is very comfortable while sitting. I took a 2.5 hour conference call last week hanging out of the phantom. I never had to adjust it. Worst case scenario you can rent a phantom for $20 to see if you like it.
 
weekender21 said:
My Phantom arrives today, I’ll definitely offer my opinion if you want it. I didn’t sell my Mantis because I’m a bit skeptical the Phantom can really be that much better, I never had any issues with my Mantis. We’ll see....


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What was your order#? I am waiting for mine...just curious
 
Keep the OG. Wait it out and soon the Phanton will be all over the market. Plus the OG looks better
 
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