Treemotion Review

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Widow Shooter

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First off, has my search for the ideal saddle ended? ( and I know Chip is gonna run with this like a scalded cat LOL)

Okay, Yeah, yeah, yeah....I'm going to have to eat my words on this deal, no salt. no pepper, uncooked and harsh ;)
Luke at www.treestuff.com sent me a Treemotion sans- payment to try out.

And I "did" tell Luke I would write a review on it, honest, good OR bad. But I don't really think he was worried about a bad one.

I have been kinda bashing it here and there because I did not think any saddle is worth 500 bucks, i mean c'mon now.
I thought it was big and cyborg-ugly.

So I get it, take it outta the slick Treemotion box and think, " wow, this thing IS ugly":/:

Tried it on, rigged a climbing rope on my chin bar and sat in it.
Declared that it was a piece of overrated crap.

Then I decided to hail up some FB people i know who have it, James Kilpatrick, Scotty Olson, Ian Sporre and a few others. I also posted on arbtalk cuz i know a lot of UK/German climbers wear it.

The next day I took it outside, rigged a line in the backyard and actually spent an hour adjusting the many different adjusters that it has.
The more i played, the less I noticed wearing it; and this, is a good thing ;)
so after getting it dialed in, it has proven to be by far the most versatile saddle I have ever sat in, climbed in or worked in.
The amount you can customize it to your body is amazing, no more of this "one-style fits all", this is easily configured to anybody's body and climbing style.

Even though it looks high in the back, you never notice that, if you look at the accompanying pics, you will see that the back pad covers a lot of my back pocket, my Sequoias don't, they ride higher by design, and I notice this after hanging in them, I have to readjust and pull it back down out of my lower ribs.

That is another thing, I have a HUGE ribcage for my 5' 8" most saddles dig my lower ribs while hanging. The TM does not.
It rides so low in front and the waist belt is contoured on the sides to not even touch the lower ribs, even while hanging. You can wear it REAL low, and I like that 8)

And this saddle stays put once you adjust it, even with a saw hanging off it.
Just for kicks, I climbed in it for an hour, then came out, switched to my beloved little Sequoia...was not feeling the love at all. LOL

It is not even in the same league for comfort while hanging, range of motion or adjustability.
the way you can clip into the D's on the rope bridge is amazing for comfort, but the Sequoias let you do this too.
One big plus is the red ring under the green D rings that you normally lanyard into, really seem to do the intended job of dispersing pressure to a larger area while lanyarded in. They do work as intended.

the quick changing and adjusting of the rope bridge is a big plus too, a quick Dbl fishermans and you are good to go:D

The added feature of customizing where and how many gear loops you can have is a sick feature! If I keep, I'm looking forward to setting this up.
It means no more fumbling to find shit, it is right where you put it, very intuitive. Having spots for caritools everywhere and even on the leg loops is CRAZY, like a fox that is.

Overall I would give it a 5* out of 5* on all counts, this coming from a guy who said he HATED the ugly beasties.
I still think it is ugly, but in a sexy Star-Wars kinda' way.
Treemagineers really did do their homework in designing this, and I believe it was trial and error, but I think they have it nailed -tight now.

There is a reason why the top TCC guys in the world wear them, it is the most innovative climbing tool out there.

The outer skin is a thick , industrial grade synthetic leather/vinyl type stuff, it used Austria-Alpin buckles , which my Treeflex had and I love, and the hardware is all DMM, so you know it's top drawer.
Petzl and DMM are tops in climbing hardware IMO. the back pad can come out along with the leg pads since they are Velcro-ed on if you need to wash it.

So in short, it is worth every penny if you are a serious climber.
James K. told me that even if he had to replace it every year he would do it, his is 3 years old and is approaching retirement, and he said that it has made him MAD money, and in the end that is the bottom line right?
He also said he uses the same saddle for work, comps and play, so you know it is pretty durable.

Could it be my go-to saddle now?

HELL YES! (it's okay Greg, my Petal tat is safe ;) my helmets, ascenders, and fave biners will still always be Petzl. LOL)

This is MY unbiased review, I'm sure like everything, some people will love it, some will hate it. It boils down to how it lets you climb, your climbing style, type of work you do, etc.

Here are a few pics showing the amount of stuff you could get on it, i don't climb with near that amount, but hey, I could have gotten more on there easily ! IMGP7230.JPG IMGP7229.JPG IMGP7225.JPG
 
Nice, you know Scotty Olson?He's a real cool dude and a friend of mine. I tried the tree motion out at Vermeer day in 09, i like it, however i just haven't had the need, or extra 500 to put down on it. Thanks for the review man.
 
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  • #3
Nice, you know Scotty Olson?He's a real cool dude and a friend of mine. I tried the tree motion out at Vermeer day in 09, i like it, however i just haven't had the need, or extra 500 to put down on it. Thanks for the review man.

neither do I but I'm selling a couple of saddles not to finance it ;)
 
The only guy I know around here who climbs in one says it took him about a month to get it adjusted and dialed in.
So you can probably still get it better.

As for this: " I still think it is ugly, but in a sexy Star-Wars kinda' way." I think you are one sick dude:lol:
 
Head and shoulders above any other harness I 've tried, and I'v tried a few.

Welcome to the club Cary!
 
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  • #9
yeah but real sweet "O"'s and easy to clip into Butch.
 
Darn things wear out pretty quick though. They do sell some replacement strap kits, I have replaced the two upper staps on mine. And the suspenders are way overpriced and SUCK!!!

Suspenders are my main complaint as I have no butt and have to wear them with tm saddle and any chainsaw attached.
 
Why do you think every TM owner stops searching for another saddle after they buy one? :) I am glad you like it!

Just be prepared to go through a lot of the elastic string material, it gets snagged and breaks when your in PITA trees like Honey Locust. Takes about a minute to replace though, so no biggie. :)
 
Why do you think every TM owner stops searching for another saddle after they buy one?

I wonder how (like I did my CF Geckos) many people don't take a shine to it and sells theirs?

The O's must be bigger than I think?
 
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  • #14
I wonder how (like I did my CF Geckos) many people don't take a shine to it and sells theirs?

The O's must be bigger than I think?

2 3/8" OD, 1.5-1 5.8" ID :) they are pretty big
 
Why do you think every TM owner stops searching for another saddle after they buy one? :) I am glad you like it!


I own a TM, my saddle search is far from over. Yes I think it is a good saddle, but not the end all. Any saddle that requires 300 bucks worth of webbing replacement after 1 to 2 years is far from perfect. To be honest, I think the Seqioua is alot more comfortable, lightweight and durable. And for about 200 bucks less a far better value. Still waiting for a GREAT saddle to hit the market.The TM is not it.
 
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  • #16
I own a TM, my saddle search is far from over. Yes I think it is a good saddle, but not the end all. Any saddle that requires 300 bucks worth of webbing replacement after 1 to 2 years is far from perfect. To be honest, I think the Seqioua is alot more comfortable, lightweight and durable. And for about 200 bucks less a far better value. Still waiting for a GREAT saddle to hit the market.The TM is not it.

Owning both, I would have to disagree :) the TM is far more versatile, i still like the Sequoia, but it is not as comfortable, least not for me.

And no, it probably is not the end all to end all; we are a pretty unfaithful lot ;)
 
I really dont see how it is more versatile. Its a little more customizable storage wise, but for the sake of hanging, they both adjust well, and the petzl is far more durable and much lighter. If I could go back, I wouldnt buy either of them.


and you claim to own both when you havent even paid for it Cary!
 
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  • #18
;) yeah, you are right, but maybe I will own it soon :) would not buy the Petzl either? why?
 
Because they market it as a modular saddle, yet they WILL NOT sell you components (gold rings) when they need to be replaced.
 
I agree, It is bad that they will not sell the rings separate. But I do understand it, being a split ring held together by a bolt. IN the litigious society we live in today. The risk is too great, that they may be installed incorrectly, fail, and then they will be involved in a high dollar lawsuit.
 
Weren't they available when the first came out? My guess is the risk managers got involved, and they had already been marketing it as modular. Something of a compromise, that might satisfy both management and consumers. Would be to train the retailers to replace them, and the bridge.
 
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  • #24
they are both very good saddles, but being modular means paying for the parts ;)

I will say that the Sequoias hang a saw better then the TM, I tried it on the deck and the TM keeps wanting to slide until it hits my ghetto booty :)
the Petzl stays put.
 
You can buy the parts, Petzl just has to install them. I am not really disagreeing with you. I just see their reasoning.
 
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