Bowhunting · Saddle · Saddle Hunting ·Oct 28, 2026

The Lightweight Saddle Hunting Setup: Every XOP Saddle, Platform and Add-On, Built Ounce by Ounce

I built my first saddle in 2016 out of a sit drag. It was heavy, it was ugly, and it was the best thing I'd ever hunted from, because it let me reach trees a stand never could. I've been mobile hunting for over 30 years, starting with a climber, so I'd carried plenty of weight into the woods before that. But the first time I wore a saddle on a long walk in and felt my back and shoulders stay quiet, I understood why this style of hunting has taken over public land.

A lightweight saddle hunting setup combines a saddle, a platform, climbing sticks, a tether and a pack, and the weights add up fast. XOP's lightest platform, the ATOMIC, weighs 2.3 lb and folds flat. The INVADER weighs 2.6 lb and the EDGE 5.4 lb. The MUTANT saddle system weighs 3.7 lb in Medium, and two HYDRO sticks with two REACTOR aiders add about 2.75 lb. A build around the ATOMIC, MUTANT and HYDRO sticks lands near 8.75 lb before the pack, while complete kits like the EDGE and MUTANT bundle (9.9 lb) and FULLRUT MIDNIGHT (18.1 lb loaded) trade weight for convenience.

Here's the problem. The gear has gotten so good, and there is so much of it, that building a setup has turned into its own puzzle. Platform or no platform. Which saddle. How many sticks. What do you do about the tether. Whether the add-ons are worth their weight. The honest answer to "what's the best lightweight saddle setup" is that it depends on a handful of tradeoffs, and weight is the loudest of them but not the only one.

So here is the full XOP lineup, what each piece does and weighs, and how I would put it together.

Start With the Platform

The platform is where most of your weight and most of your comfort decisions live. XOP makes three, and they are very different.

The ATOMIC is the lightest, at 2.3 lb according to the tech specs. It's a microlite fold-flat platform with a 14 by 11 inch standing surface, a 10 inch I-beam, a 300 lb weight rating, and XOP's I7 alloy. The articulating offset bracket lets it fold completely flat for transport, and integrated strap keepers keep it quiet in the pack. XOP built it for hunters who "count ounces and chase hard-to-reach places," and that's a fair description. At $249.99 it's also the most expensive of the three, which tells you where the engineering went.

The INVADER is the one most saddle hunters end up on. It weighs 2.6 lb, carries 350 lb, and has a 12 by 11 inch surface with a 10 inch I-beam. It has 35 degrees of adjustability with built-in leveling, a patented V-Step meant to give you stable shooting stances as you move around the tree, and a 4-point bracket with Axiom teeth designed to bite on a range of bark types, from big trees to small ones. The page lists it at $149.99 on sale, down from $179.99 when I looked. Integrated aider and stick attachment points make it a natural partner for the sticks I'll get to in a minute.

The EDGE is the entry point. It's a cast aluminum platform at 5.4 lb by the tech specs, 13.75 by 11 inches, rated to 350 lb, with the same 35 degrees of adjustability and an EVO-TRAC surface for traction in wet weather. XOP positions it as a simple starting point for hunters new to saddle hunting, and at $99.99 on sale it's the easiest on the wallet. The cast construction is heavier, but the page says it's very quiet. If your walk is short and your budget matters more than your pack weight, it's a fair trade.

I'd summarize the choice this way. If you walk a long way and count every ounce, the ATOMIC. If you want the best balance of weight, shooting stance and price, the INVADER. If you're just getting started and want something simple, the EDGE.

Then the Saddle

Two saddles anchor the lineup, and I want to be clear that both are what the rest of the saddle community would call a saddle, even though XOP's own pages say "harness" in places.

The MUTANT is the workhorse. At $119.99, it weighs 24 oz in Medium and 28 oz in XL, and the full system, with ropes and hardware, comes to 3.7 lb in Medium and 4 lb in XL. It fits 28 to 38 inches in Medium and 38 to 48 inches in XL, carries 350 lb, and uses a 10mm Vector rope. It has a breathable mesh seat, quick-connect DOUBLEBACK X buckles in forged aluminum on the waist belt and leg loops, an adjustable NANOCORE bridge, and MOLLE on the waist belt for pouches. It also ships with a lineman's belt and tether, two aluminum carabiners and the bridge, which is the real value: you open the box and you're mostly done.

The NOMAD is the lighter, more technical option. It's listed at 21 oz in Medium, built from Cordura with structural webbing and breathable mesh panels, with a 10mm Vector bridge and a 350 lb rating. XOP describes a dual-path load design that separates the waist belt from the bridge load, aimed at reducing pressure and hip pinch on long sits. It's $179.99, and it was sold out in every size and color when I checked, so verify stock before you plan around it. Also note it doesn't list the tether and lineman's belt as included, so budget for those.

I'm a Mutant person for most of my hunting. The NOMAD is the one I'd look at if I were chasing the last few ounces and spending a lot of time in the tree.

The Way Up: Sticks and Aiders

A saddle platform is only as useful as how you get to it. This is where I've spent the most time experimenting, and it's where the weight savings are biggest.

The HYDRO sticks are the lightest in XOP's lineup at 18 oz each. Two HYDROs plus two REACTOR aiders weigh about 44 oz, or 2.75 lb, and reach a listed 16 ft. I've reached about a 15 ft top step with three HYDRO sticks and a three-step aider on the bottom stick only, leaving roughly 18 to 24 inches between sticks. That's an extremely light way to get up a tree, but it's a more demanding climb than a tighter spacing with more sticks, so it rewards experience. If you want a simpler setup, the X2 at 26 oz per stick is what I call the best all-around stick in the lineup, and the one I'd tell most people to start with. My climbing stick weight comparison covers all five side by side, the climbing stick buying guide covers the choice in more depth, and what climbing stick aiders do and who actually needs them is worth reading before you commit to the lighter route.

Staying Attached

You can't talk about a saddle setup without the part that keeps you alive. The 8mm Predator Tether and Lineman's Belt is XOP's standard package at $59.99, and I wrote about why it matters in the Predator tether post. If you want a longer line for the ground-to-tree connection, XOP also sells an 8mm Sewn Eye Safety Line at 35 ft, and a VECTOR tether, which was sold out when I looked. The AUTOLOCK carabiner, a spring-loaded twist-to-unlock aluminum carabiner at 2.9 oz, is aimed at critical connections like saddles, lineman's ropes and tethers, and it works one-handed, even with gloves.

XOP also lists the KONG DUCK, a compact rope clamp for single ropes between 8 and 13mm that the page describes as an emergency ascender and rope regulator. That's a specialized piece of safety gear, so read the manufacturer's documentation and get proper training before you rely on it. I'm not going to tell you how to use it in a blog post.

Whatever you choose, use rated gear, follow the manufacturer's instructions, and practice low to the ground first. If you want the rundown on the habits that get hunters in trouble, my post on common saddle hunting mistakes is the place to go.

The Small Pieces That Keep It Quiet

Most of what makes a lightweight setup work is the small stuff, and XOP's accessories collection has a lot of it.

The C3 MICRO two-pack is an ultralight buckle system, 2.9 oz per buckle, with 13mm NANOCORE webbing and a 350 lb working load. The ATOMIC uses a C3 Micro buckle for attachment. The CAM 8 straps are the heavier-duty option for big trees, 8 ft long, rated at 350 lb, and two come in a pack. The H.F.A.S. (Hang Free Attachment System) is a 1.8 oz Amsteel strap with a prusik for attaching sticks to a tree, rated at 320 lb. NANOCORE ropes are the one-for-one replacement rope for the HYDRO, Fly and Super Fly, which XOP says eliminates metal noise. And HUSH is a camo felt silencing tape that's waterproof and covers two 18 inch sticks per roll, which is exactly the kind of cheap trick that makes a noisy setup quiet.

Add a REVO bow holder if you want your bow in a place you can reach, and see why I think a bow holder belongs on every setup. For the full picture on small additions, the treestand accessories guide and the post on accessory pouches cover it.

Three Ways to Build It

I'll give you the weights, and the arithmetic is mine, based on the published numbers.

The lightest build. The ATOMIC (2.3 lb), a Medium MUTANT system (3.7 lb), and two HYDROs with two REACTOR aiders (2.75 lb) come to about 8.75 lb before your pack. That's the setup for a long walk onto public land, where every ounce counts and you plan to move. You need to be comfortable on the tree, because the climb is more demanding.

The balanced build. Swap the ATOMIC for the INVADER (2.6 lb) and the weight comes to about 9.05 lb with the same saddle and sticks. You give up a few tenths of a pound for a lower price and a platform with the V-Step and 350 lb rating. If you want a simpler climb, swap the HYDROs for four X2 sticks and the total rises, but the climb gets easier and the setup works on almost anything.

The all-in-one kit. If you'd rather buy it all at once, XOP sells complete kits. The EDGE & MUTANT bundle includes the EDGE platform, MUTANT saddle, bridge, tether, lineman's belt, two aluminum carabiners and two prusiks for $199.99 on sale, with a published full system weight of 9.9 lb and a 350 lb rating. The FULLRUT MIDNIGHT goes further: an INVADER platform, Medium MUTANT, bridge, tether, lineman's belt, carabiners, prusiks, four X2 sticks, cam straps, a Solo Scout 16L pack and J-hooks, at $549.99 and 18.1 lb fully loaded. XOP positions it for hunters new to saddle hunting or anyone who wants a complete system from the start, and it's a lot of gear for the money. There's also an INVADER & MUTANT bundle in the saddle collection if you want the platform and saddle without the sticks.

Carrying It

All that lightweight gear still has to get to the tree. The Solo Scout 16L is the pack in the FULLRUT kit, and the Guide 10L and Gamma TS are the options for more room and a frame. I covered how they compare, and how I load them, in how I actually pack for a mobile hunt. Lock everything down with Gear Straps and a J-Hook so nothing clanks. And remember what I said in mobile doesn't mean ultralight: the right tree and a quiet approach matter more than shaving the last ounce.

If you're still deciding whether a saddle is the right call at all, saddle vs hang-on vs climbing stand walks through the decision. And once you're set up, the mobility is the point: hang one, walk two and when to abandon a spot cover how to use it.

Quick Answers

What is the lightest XOP saddle platform? The ATOMIC, at 2.3 lb, with a fold-flat design and a 300 lb rating.

How much does a lightweight saddle setup weigh? About 8.75 lb for the ATOMIC, a Medium MUTANT system and two HYDRO sticks with two REACTOR aiders, before the pack.

What's the best XOP saddle platform for beginners? The EDGE is the entry-level option at $99.99 on sale, and the INVADER is the one most hunters grow into.

Is there a complete XOP saddle kit? Yes. The EDGE & MUTANT bundle and the FULLRUT MIDNIGHT include everything you need to start. See the kits and combos collection.

Gear Mentioned