I've been wanting to share some thoughts on the Monkey Beaver 2.0 for a while now, but needed to get enough time in the saddle for a useful review. Mostly that meant getting a bit of SRT/pruning work on it, since most of my work is just fir removals on spurs. Some photos first.
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The saddles I've been running the last few years have been the original Monkey Beaver and the TreeMotion s.Light, to give some context.
First and most important, the MB 2.0 is wonderful, and much better than the OG/1.0 saddle. It has become the saddle I use 90% of the time and expect to do so for the foreseeable future. I've put the 1.0 in deep storage, because I don't plan on using it again unless I need to for some very odd reason. As others have said, saddle fit and features are hugely dependent on your own body and climbing style, so it is impossible to guarantee my experience will be the same as yours, but the 2.0 is WAY more customizable/adjustable than the 1.0 in terms of features and comfort, which will benefit pretty much everyone.
You will probably only do it once, but the customizable pockets to place saw holders and accessories, compared to the fixed positions of the 1.0, are great. I'd always wished for gear loops closer to the middle/right side on the 1.0, since I work solo a lot and need to carry extra gear with me fairly often. The 2.0 solves this by giving more options. The adjustable lumbar support for the upper portion of the back pad makes a huge improvement for me at least, and it being a carry handle is a nice bonus. Very happy with this feature in terms of the support it offers. I bought the leg pads on a whim because they were cheap, and have been surprised how much they have improved comfort when hanging on your line for long rappels to the ground. I don't do crane work myself due to the market I work in, but I assume the pads will be really nice for that. Even without suspenders, I was amazed how little I felt hanging a 500i with a 28" bar on the saddle, it is very good at supporting weight/gear.
My biggest complaint with the OG/1.0 was that for me at least, it kinda sucked as a pruning saddle. When climbing SRT, no matter how I adjusted it, I often felt I was moving/spinning in the waist-belt, rather than it moving together with my body. For spurless climbing where I'd be doing any significant movement/twisting, I always changed to my TreeMo. I won't say the 2.0 is better than the TreeMo in that regard because it's not, and feels less sporty overall given it's size, but it so far has worked well on pruning and limb-walking, and that alone makes it SOOO much better than the 1.0.
Anyways, that has been my experience, happy to answer question. If you are in the area and want to give it a go, check the ferry schedule and hit me up, I'll let you try it out yourself.