Best purchase I’ve made in a while. 10 ft Werner Tripod Orchard ladder from Home Depot. $300. Had to wait a few weeks to pick it up from the store, but that’s okay. Way better than the ladder I was using that I got from my neighbor’s trash, lol.
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I was looking at that one online too but I was a little worried about the weight. I ordered an aluminum one from American ladders this spring but they cancelled the order saying they have to find a new freight shipper. How does this fiberglass ladder feel carrying around the orchard?
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It’s honestly a little heavy. Today I “rock walked” it around quite a bit. Tilted it on one leg and spun it 180 degrees to move it. I got the 10 ft one, I think I could have got by with the 8 ft. I wanted an aluminum one because I know I’m going to leave it outside quite a bit, but they are hard to find and the shipping is expensive.
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I got a 10’ and later cut it down to 8’… too hard to navigate through and into my trees. I keep the trees 16’ or so maximum height.
That’s good to hear Home Depot sells them, the hardest part is getting them shipped to you.
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I looked every where for a couple of years trying to find one aluminum Stokes type orchard ladder. The prices were high and the shipping was ridiculous. Finally found four of them on facebook. The fellow did not want to split them up. All or nothing, a 5’, two 9’ and a 10’. All in nice shape. He told me I would use the 5’ the most. He was 100 per cent right. I love that little ladder. Turned out he was located within a couple miles of Wafler Nursery just an hour and a half drive down the lake from my home. Picked up the ladders and my tree order on the return drive. Sometimes all the stars seem to line up. 
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That is pretty nice. I wish I had the room for one. Ladders have gone up a lot in price. I will have to see what they got available now. I use pole harvesters except for persimmons. Can’t pull them down with harvester. Too well attached.
Ladder levelers may help on uneven terrain. I made the mistake of planting my persimmon on uneven ground.
The Japanese version is engineered very well but more expensive. None of the tripods work for me, though. When you are working on big apple trees you need a ladder with a lot of flexibility of height to get inside the trees. Being able to walk up and down either side is also a great asset and reduces the frequency of having to move the ladder.
My go-to that I use almost every single day is the Little Giant design in the lightest versions available. I have 4 different sizes but mostly use the 9 footer (17’ as a straight ladder) except when working on the tallest apple trees. A tri-pod probably would have been useful at times this year because of the steady presence of deep snow, but I keep my Stokes 8 footer at home. It is OK for smaller trees of the type most members likely have in their orchards, although 6’ would be a more useful height if you keep your trees at about 12’. Only the 8’ was available from Tractor Supply and they gave me a good deliverd price compared to other sources.
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I have an 8’ and a 14’ both aluminum. The 8’ gets a lot more use, but when I need the taller one I’m glad I have it.
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Man, I’ve pulled a ladder out of construction dumpster and over the years I’ve grabbed multiple ladders from the side of a highway, but none of them were as rough as yours! 
I’m glad that you didn’t get hurt and that you got something new in better shape. How are you liking your new ladder now that some time has passed and you have more experience with using it?
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Got any photos of the Japanese variety?
Is this the model you use?
What is wrong with the tripod ladders? I never used one, but they look like something useful to go in between the branches. Are they too unsteady?
I didn’t even look at it. The bright and shiny tripod ladder caught my eye. Yes, #2 is a very rough ladder!
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Look at this ladder. Pretty pricey. I guess it for the purest that likes wood.
It says vintage, but they sell all new stuff. Dunno, maybe they sell new and used. I would not like to use it.
Here are some other options…
This pole looks like it would sink in the dirt easily if wet.
This may be of help for the arborist for trimming.
No, I don’t use the skyscraper, I’ve reduced the height of most of the old apple trees I have so don’t usually need to go that high. I think the 21’ is the standard tall model and it fits in my 6’bed nicely when reduced to it’s lowest size.
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The LG design allows a great deal of height adjustment while with a tri-pod you are pretty much stuck with a height that can be too short to go where you want or to tall to fit under the branches of trees. This is a problem when working on big old trees, not standard sized trees with a 12’ height and spread so much. As I said, the LG design also allows you to go up and down either side expanding your reach without moving the ladder. They are also easier to get secure balance on steep terrain and can double their height when used as a straight ladder. Both ladder types have their advantages with the lightness of tri-pods being key, but I need to fit my ladders in a 6’ bed so the LG system is a no-brainer for me.
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Wow…those are beautiful!
Little Giant Ladder Systems | SkyScraper | How-To
That is a giant! I would need a 1 person model. I didn’t know how they work until I watched the video.
Yeah, the U.S. companies are making them the same way they have since they first started making them with aluminum. Here I’m seeing a lot of landscape crews using the Japanese models even though they are more expensive. They put a lot more engineering expertise into them. The brains in this country don’t seem to be invested in hard goods much anymore.
I’ve got to use a 10ft Hasegawa Japanese tripod ladder once, and it weighed less than my 8 and 10ft Stokes ladders at home, it was really really nice…found a company selling them, but it’s not twice the price nice! I also own a Little Giant ladder, and while good at multitask function, that thing has to be the most cumbersome ladder I’ve ever encountered in my life, and I used to paint houses and dealt with many different style ladders. Does well with certain tasks, but IMO not very practical for regular orchard use, mainly due to four points of contact on the ground being unstable compared to a triangle/tripod ladder. Aluminum tripod ladder is the standard in orchards for a reason
Yes! Three points more stable on uneven ground. However, I adjust my front ladder legs forward if necessary to make me four point ladder stable. Since I am old and full of years, I never ascend until the ladder is stable . My orchard is not level and has many slight rises.