"Best" saddle

[cory]

My new ninja (23 y o, V10 rock climber (I'm V2 ftr ) learning trees and treework, he's doing very well so far but of course, 'it takes years" .

He's currently on a bottom of the line 4d weaver with leg straps (plus a zig zag). One thing you can say about that saddle, other than it sucks, is its light .

So he needs a better saddle. My being a dinosaur, I have a Buckingham 4d bosun seat 'Pinnacle' which I personally like alot although I've never really tried a different option.

I don't know much about modern saddles but if I had to pick the best sounding option, it would be the Monkey Beaver.

Thoughts?

 

[Burnham]

That's a good choice.

The rock climber in him might like the Petzl Sequoia. I sure do.

 

[cory]

I feel like that would be a good choice a number of years ago, but has it been surpassed since?

 

[lxskllr]

If I were buying a saddle it would be an MB2. I assume this is a gift? If not, maybe ask him. I have no idea what a rock climber would like.

 

[cory]

Of course alot of it boils down to personal preferences, and it's hard to try different saddles unless you're at a convention, so alot of it may be guess work

 

[cory]

I just mention the rock climber angle cuz he is a highly gifted, young, spry, flexible, strong athlete.

 

[Burnham]

The Sequoia has been changed a bit as the years have passed. Not a lot. It's still a good saddle, and somewhat less expensive than the MB.

You are right, saddles are a very personal preference sort of gear. Do you know anyone nearby that might loan one of these for a test flight?

 

[cory]

Good idea, i'll think on that

 

[Tree09]

I might be tempted to let him pick, pull up treestuff or whatever and say "here pick one." Sounds like he's got a few trees under his belt so he knows what he's gotta carry, and if he's a v10 rock climber he's gotta have an idea of how he moves and what harnesses will work best for him. By all means give some input too, but it sounds like he is gonna be an insanely good one! Worst case any harness you get from a tree supplier will work, and likely better than what he's been running, but that way he's got the input and he's likely to love it simply because it was his choice. That's how they deal with us spoiled pipeline welders, they'll just send us up to the welding supply store to get what gear we want so there's no excuse for failed xrays later

 

[cory]

More good input!!

 

[SeanKroll]

Anything is a step up, and can be sold if not liked.

Used saddles from reputable sellers are good in my book.

 

[cory]

You mean from climbers one knows?

 

[SeanKroll]

Yes

 

[SeanKroll]

Donney Coffey and Rico always sell legit things, most often as good as new.

 

[cory]

What is Donney's screen name

 

[SeanKroll]

Might be spelled with only one e, that being in his last name,
Donnycoffey, IIRC.

 

[Eric H-L]

That will be fun! So many choices. I am curious but never tried. Treemotion Pro? Courant Koala? Tree Austria? Weaver actually has some modern looking rope bridge saddles, like Weaver Denali(looks good on paper!) Buckingham has a huge range with some heavy looking top end gear like Ergo Pro. Valiant (Valient?) rope saddle. Probably at the lower end but still possibly? good for somebodies:Singing Tree, Camp Tree, Notch (I don’t know if Notch is still in the game. I see there is a Sherrill line maybe made to “compete” with their Notch?) and Tree Rex.

 

[Kaveman]

Monkey Beaver 2.0 if he wants a couch.

Petzl Sequoia if he wants light weight.

Just my onion.

 

[cory]

Singing Tree makes a saddle?

As I think more on this topic, kinda obvious that in addition to varying personal preferences, there is likely no "best". Probably any number of saddles that would nicely fit the bill for a given climber.

 

[lxskllr]

Not Singing Tree, but Singing Rock. I believe they're a Czech company.

 

[flushcut]

That's a good choice.

The rock climber in him might like the Petzl Sequoia. I sure do.

I was going to say the exact same thing. I came from rock climbing and Petzl is my saddle of choice. I climbed with the Petzl Jump for long time, super comfy. Sequoia SRT is what I have now with a slightly longer bridge than “stock”.

 

[Maximalist]

I still like the Petzl Sequoia SRT of the second generation.

 

[stig]

My apprentices get to hang in all the saddles in the arborist shop and choose one, regardless of price.
The last 3 have all chosen Petzl Sequoia.
Which is what I prefer, too.

 

[Burnham]

Not Singing Tree, but Singing Rock. I believe they're a Czech company.

My lady M uses a Singing Rock. Light as hell, too light for me, but she loves it. Well built, I'll say that.

 

[Eric H-L]

Not Singing Tree, but Singing Rock. I believe they're a Czech company.

My bad! I did mean Singing Rock!