leg loops vs. butt strap

[371groundie]

I will be purchasing a new saddle soon and i have been eying alot of different makes and models. I'm fairly new to climbing and all my climbing has been in an old simple saddle someone snagged from the big orange years and years ago. it 4 d rings, no leg straps or loops. its really bare bones. (just putting this out here so you know what I'm used to)

I'm looking at a weaver wide back saddle that comes with the option of a butt strap or leg loops. I've never had the chance to use a saddle with leg loops. I'm inclined to go for the butt strap since that would be closest to my previous experience, but i noticed most of the new saddle models come with leg loops or a variation thereof. just looking for opinions, pros/cons, etc

thanks in advance.

 

[RacerX]

If you do a search here you'll find a plethora of varying opinions as to which is better. I've used both and find the butt strap to be slightly more comfortable when suspended for some time but a little less maneuverable. For the most comfort go with a rigid batten seat. Kind of like have a piece of wood strapped to your butt so, depending on your style of climbing, you might find it to be somewhat cumbersome. Now I'm using a Weaver Cougar with leg straps (prefer the maneuverability) and that I like it a little more than the butt strap (the butt strap tends to squeeze your legs together). It took some time to get used to and to fine tune the adjustments.

 

[oldirty]

nothing better than the batten seat on a saddle. imo. i own 4 saddles, all batten seats. i did try on a saddle with the leg loops and did not like how they can run up your thigh and crush your nuts......which they tend to do.

again. imo. the butt loop is a waste of time.

spend some money on a good saddle instead of having to suffer through a minimal saddle (kinda like the one you got now). do you need a 500 dollar saddle? maybe not but try one on anyway. just to see how it might fit.

otherwise for the money i would say the cougar with the batten seat is a good spend dollar wise. don't worry about the bridge recall and make your own.

take a look at the dragonfly.

i'd recommend the saddle i wear now but they don't make it any more. actually now that i said that check out the petzl swing. ( hybrid of the saddle i wear now.)


good luck and and be willing to spend a couple bucks. it is you and your comfort in the tree that we are talking about here. that alone is worth a bunch of loot.

 

[TimberJack_7]

Tried the butt saddle one time and hated it so much I refuse to even look at one. They squeeze your legs together and are just plain uncomfortable to me.

Never used one with the butt board simply because I am never sitting in one spot too long (except when you have a new groundie and you are waiting on them).

Personally I prefer the leg loops over everything since IMO they offer the best manueverability in the tree. If you are going to be doing a lot of climbing, that may be the way to go. If you are going to be riding a crane or doing a lot of bucket work, maybe you should look at something else. I was lucky way back in the day when I trained. The guy that taught me had a butt saddle and two leg loop saddles so I got to pick the one I trained in.

And yes, watch yer nutz with whatever you pick, you only have to rough them up once or twice to figure out how to position everything lol

 

[Grace Tree]

nothing better than the batten seat on a saddle. imo. i own 4 saddles, all batten seats. i did try on a saddle with the leg loops and did not like how they can run up your thigh and crush your nuts......which they tend to do.

again. imo. the butt loop is a waste of time.

spend some money on a good saddle instead of having to suffer through a minimal saddle (kinda like the one you got now). do you need a 500 dollar saddle? maybe not but try one on anyway. just to see how it might fit.

otherwise for the money i would say the cougar with the batten seat is a good spend dollar wise. don't worry about the bridge recall and make your own.

take a look at the dragonfly.

i'd recommend the saddle i wear now but they don't make it any more. actually now that i said that check out the petzl swing. ( hybrid of the saddle i wear now.)


good luck and and be willing to spend a couple bucks. it is you and your comfort in the tree that we are talking about here. that alone is worth a bunch of loot.

+1 on the Dragonfly. The only neg is trying to balance on one when your sitting on a limb. Otherwise, no more leg straps for me.
Phil

 

[tree md]

Do you run up the tree, cut two dead limbs and come down or do you do big knarley take downs where you have to get in really funky positions and have some hang time envolved in the job. If you are the type that makes a lot of small pruning cuts in a tree then leg loops might be your style. If you're the type that will spend a full day doing difficult rigging and removing big knarley trees then a butt strap would be better and a baton seat (like OD said) would be ideal.

If you're used to the butt strap type seats then I doubt you will be comfortable with leg loops scrunching your nuts up all day in the tree.

 

[TimberJack_7]

Like Tree MD has suggested I guess it may depend on the type of work you are doing. Most of my work consist of medium removals and removal of hazardous deadwood. Occasionally I do large ugly removals (lot of those this summer). My biggest area of discomfort is actually my spikes...maybe a new thread topic unless that is already out there.

 

[treeoperations]

ive used both, having a bosun seat in the saddle is good if you are sitting in your harness hanging from a high tie in point, anything else they start becoming a hinderance.

i have a tree austria with the thought that id buy the bosun seat seperatly but, to be honest, theres no way i would need it any more, as for the guys that say that having just leg loops crushes your frank and beans (GET THE RIGHT HARNESS AND SET IT UP RIGHT) leave the loops rather loose so they slide down on there own when your standing on spikes or on a branch.

try as many harnesses on as possible and think bout how much you move and twist about, think how often do you squeeze through that really tight crotch, how often do you get your self in a torturous position to make that cut that turns a good prune job into the perfect prune job.

 

[371groundie]

thanks for all the input. most of my climbing short air time, but im trying to be prepared for whatever gets thrown at me. and as most beginners i want to get the rolls royce of tree gear for a handfull of dimes and pocket lint.

i did do some reading from the past but im also appreciating new perspectives. i will definately show off when i get my new gear.

thanks again.