Are the prices keeping you from buying a safety harness?

[dtrain56]

there is no price to high for the security and safety of a harness...your life is worth it

[Patriot]

I have to be honest.  The price has kept me from buying one.  I can't believe HSS wants $100+ for a simple vest.

[Goose]

ORIGINAL: 69Viking

This will be the first year I hunt a whole season with climbing stand so I will be buying a Hunter Safety System vest before the season starts regardless of it's cost. If anyone has the newest model vest I do have a question. I know they made the vest lighter but is it true the pockets don't close? I notice the old one had velcro closures but there is no mention of how the new pockets stay closed.

 
Some of them are zipper and some are flaps with no velcro or anything. They used to be velcro and that IMO is every bowhunters worst enemy. I haven't used it hunting yet but I cant forsee any problems from the pockets.

[Wanderer]

I use a Summit "Seat-O-The-Pants Fastback harness and it does the job quite well. Also, treestand manufacturers usually include a safety harness with each stand. As I've bought 2 new 2 man ladders and a new hang-on stand in the last two years, I've got 5 back-up harnesses from Ameristep. They may not be on a par with HSS vests, but they'll sure keep a man in the tree in the event of a slip.

[69Viking]

ORIGINAL: Goose

ORIGINAL: 69Viking

This will be the first year I hunt a whole season with climbing stand so I will be buying a Hunter Safety System vest before the season starts regardless of it's cost. If anyone has the newest model vest I do have a question. I know they made the vest lighter but is it true the pockets don't close? I notice the old one had velcro closures but there is no mention of how the new pockets stay closed.

Some of them are zipper and some are flaps with no velcro or anything. They used to be velcro and that IMO is every bowhunters worst enemy. I haven't used it hunting yet but I cant forsee any problems from the pockets.

Goose thanks for the input. If I remember right you have the Pro model right? I think I'm going to go with the reversible model with the blaze orange. I hunt private land in Alabama where I don't need the blaze orange option but it's required in the Air Force WMA that I hunt in Florida. With as warm as it can be early in the season I don't want to have to wear the camo pro safety vest and than an additional blaze orange vest to meet the Florida requirement. I grew up in Minnesota and have a pretty good cold tolerance still so I hunt down here in the south with as few layers as I truly need. It generally starts out cool in the mornings but can get pretty warm by mid day.

[DeerCamp]

Ehh they are a lot of money..Which isnt very good, however Ive been saving $20 bucks here, $20 bucks the hunter saftey system..Ill be buying the strap that will attach to the tree so Ill be safe on the climb up  and down too..

[spottedskunk]

I love coming home and seeing my mother and father after a deer hunt in the treestand. Using a treestand and safety harness is like putting butter on bread. Its like clockwork. I will use one for a long time.

I personally I use a muddydog harness vest.

[Hunting Ohio]

I have a Hunter Safety System and a Tree Stand Life Line.
Your secured from time you leave the ground.
Hunt safe and good luck

[8uck5nort]

I got an Idea!

No laughing until you hear it. [;)]

Okay here it goes.

I kept thinking about why a vest style of harness is so expensive vs the "free" one (I know, there is no such thing as free, but work with me here) you get with the stands. I have about 10 of these things sitting in plastic. A vest style harness is basically just a shirt without sleeves with the same haness sown in on the inside...

Ah ha, and here is the brainchild part. Why not take an old sturdy shirt or light coat that would be destined for the Slavation Army (or old mil surplus clothing for that matter) and cut the sleeves out and sow in the the body harness to the inside of said article of clothing?

Essentially that is all the vest part does is make it easier to put the webbing of the harness on. It keeps it from twisting, etc... It holds it place while you put it one. That's essentially it. I don't see any drawbacks or issues with the structural integrity of the harness by affixing a garmet to it, which is essentially all the HSS vest styles have done.

I am on a budget just like 95% of the rest of us. Making your own vest harness for a fraction of the cost, even if you had a competent seamstress do the sewing, makes sense. Last, but not least, you are far safer because you are at least wearing something to protect against falling.

Now you can start laughing...

(Edited for spelling)

[MSHunter]

Hi 8uck5nort,
That may work, but I'm sure it will void any warranty on the harness (if one exists) since it has been modified.
Harnesses are made to specific standards: the thickness of the webbing, the thickness of the thread used to sew it together,
the number and type of stitching used to sew the harness, the placement and selection of d-rings and buckles, tensile strength etc.
Why not wear the harness as is?