Outdoor Gear Reviews | ub Outdoors

July 11, 2011 in Backpacking & Camping by Carl H. Martens

The Stikstool, a product of Terrapathic Engineering was designed for the backpacker who uses a hiking stick and also enjoys the comforts of having a chair once reaching camp for a comfortable place to sit.  The idea for the product was thus seems to make quite a bit of sense.  Why not produce a product that is both a walking stick and a chair.  Fitting with all the hype surrounding the Transformers movies.  This transforms from a hiking stick to a hiking stool; from a hiking stool to a hiking stick.  It is really a quite ingenious idea.  I’m all about having to pack less stuff and keep weight low so any gear that can serve multiple purposes is gear I’m interested in. 

The Original Stikstool comes with the following components:  leg (3), coupling (2), end cap (6), o-ring (6), collar (1), seat (1).

Assembly instructions seemed simple enough.

1. Attach one end cap to the bottom of all legs
2. Slide one O-ring down to 1/2 inch below center of all legs
3. Slide all legs through the bottom of the collar to the O-rings
4. Slide one O-ring down to the top of the collar on all legs
5. Attach end caps to the top of all the legs
6. Attach the seat (note:  Be sure the legs are inside the little pocket inside the flap)
7. Adjust as needed

While hiking and using components as a hiking stick, what you carry in your pack is the seat, collar, and four end caps.  The legs which make up the hiking stick are made from sturdy anodized aluminum pipe and measures 61.25 inches in length when constructed.  The couplings which connect the legs into the erected walking stick are made of rigid PVC and they simply twist on and twist off.  The collar is made of recycled HDPE plastic.

ub’s take on the Stikstool

We feel that this is a great product concept, however feel that it should be refined and improved upon.  Although the instructions seem easy, we found that the Stikstool did not go together as easy as you’d like.  After a day of a long hike up and down hills over rough terrain, I want simplicity and ease of use.  I didn’t find this in the Stikstool.  It’d be nice if there were markings for O-ring placement so that one could easily erect the stool.  To improve upon this, we added some electrical tape around the legs to signify where the O-rings should go.  After continued use the hiking stick’s couplings bond to the legs seemed to loosen and stability in the stick was compromised.  We’d like to see a clicking setup with pins which would connect the legs together when in use as a walking stick.  Lastly, another thing we weren’t fan of is the unused loose components…we used a Ziploc bag to keep these together…would have been nice if the stool came with a bag or even better yet, if there was a way to integrate everything together so that no components were loose.  Ultimately, the biggest disappointment was the finagling needed to construct the stool converting it from a hiking stick to a stool.  We love the idea of this product, but at this point view this first go at it as a mere prototype which, if refined Terrapathic Engineering might be on to something that would be a valuable and much loved piece of gear for the outdoors.  At a mere $31.95 the Stikstool is appropriately priced and if intrigued, worth giving it a try.