DIY Epple hook

[Monkey with a chainsaw]

Hi everybody , haven't found a post on the web about making your own traversing hook so I made one.
Also find quite annoying that a bent pipe sells for 150 AUD !
It all costed me 9 AUD (all from the local hardwere store ) and 20 min of my time.
The bent pipe is just a big wall hook , it was the perfect size and bent , make sure you get a shackle that fits around the pipe.
I've already used it and works perfect !!

 

[Santiago Casanova]

That is a very good idea. I was going to bend one with 1/2 emt conduit and see how it preformed. Now if you weighted the tip it would act more like the captain hook. I think a wheel weight stuffed in the end might be just about right.

 

[Jehinten]

That is a very good idea. I was going to bend one with 1/2 emt conduit and see how it preformed. Now if you weighted the tip it would act more like the captain hook. I think a wheel weight stuffed in the end might be just about right.

1/2" EMT bends fairly easy, if you toss it and only hook the end of it may try to straighten back out when you put your weight on it. I made a DIY hook out of 1/2" black steel pipe, and bent it on a bench vise. Its not too hard to bend, and it adds a bit more weight for throwing it.

 

[Santiago Casanova]

Is the store bought epple hook made of 3/4" emt or something else? You make a good point out of the bending. I could try 1/2 rmc hevywall conduit. That would add some weight and give me a threaded end to put a cap on. It has an od of 1 1/8".

 

[Z'sTrees]

Nice work! Simple as can be, I like it

 

[Santiago Casanova]

I made one from 1/2" emt. I am going to try 3/4 next. I also hammered a bolt in the end for weight.

 

[Monkey with a chainsaw]

I made one from 1/2" emt. I am going to try 3/4 next. I also hammered a bolt in the end for weight.
View attachment 50933

Nice bending skill .
If you cut the end with the shakle shorter, you won't need to weight the tip , since the centre of gravity gets closer to the middle .
I've used the same design as the epple hook .

 

[Santiago Casanova]

I will give shortening it a try after a test run. This is just to satisfy the itch until the climbing budget has room for a captain hook. I have used one and I am going to try to replicate its behavior.

 

[JMerritt]

i made this one out of 1/2" aluminum quite a while ago. it was very easy to cut out with a bandsaw and i used a router to clean up the edges. i just traced the profile of the dmm hook off a picture on the net.

 

[Burrapeg]

NICE!!!!!!

 

[Monkey with a chainsaw]

i made this one out of 1/2" aluminum quite a while ago. it was very easy to cut out with a bandsaw and i used a router to clean up the edges. i just traced the profile of the dmm hook off a picture on the net.View attachment 50941

That's awesome man! How much did you pay for the material and where did you get it ?

 

[Brocky]

Very nice! It should be hanging on a wall with a frame around it.

 

[Mowerr]

How about using an old metal chainsaw handle? I got one off an old mac or eager beaver I think. Feels real strong but I don't know much about the quality of metal they used back then, feels light aluminum hollow.

 

[surveyor]

I was looking at aluminum horseshoes on line, with the thought of cutting off one half of one side of the shoe.

 

[southsoundtree]

I bought a ladder hook. That's as far as I've gotten. Any input from people who've tried a steel ladder snap-hook?

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Many chainsaws were made from magnesium. Not because of strength but because of unknown strength I wouldn't use old Saw parts. Tubing seems a better choice

 

[Mowerr]

Many chainsaws were made from magnesium. Not because of strength but because of unknown strength I wouldn't use old Saw parts. Tubing seems a better choice

Thank you

 

[JMerritt]

That's awesome man! How much did you pay for the material and where did you get it ?

a piece of aluminum that size should cost less than $20. i had a scrap left over from making akimbo parts. you could get it fo even cheaper if you bought a scrap from a machine shop.

 

[Kandelero]

One of these things looks much like the other. $40 CAN for the pair. As they are never life-support I have bought and will trial in the coming days.

 

[Jehinten]

1/2" EMT bends fairly easy, if you toss it and only hook the end of it may try to straighten back out when you put your weight on it. I made a DIY hook out of 1/2" black steel pipe, and bent it on a bench vise. Its not too hard to bend, and it adds a bit more weight for throwing it.

I finally got around to taking pictures of my hook for this thread. It was on a long term loan out and recently got it back and started using it again. As mentioned above it's a 1/2" black steel pipe that was bent freehand in a bench vise. The pipe was then drilled for the shackle pin and the pin was welded to the hook. The key here was to un-thread the pin just enough that the shackle can swing freely on the threads, while still having a full set of threads for strength. I then cut the head of the pin off for a more streamlined profile and so that the pin's head wouldn't catch in a union.

My opinion, a weighted tip isn't necessary. I tried to create one by driving 1/4-20 nuts in the pipe's opening and filled it with weld, but the design's center of gravity will always lead to that side of the grapple facing down as its being pulled onto a branch.

Cost maybe $5 for the shackle, I had the pipe on hand and it can hold full bodyweight with no issues. That said, just like all other traverse hooks, it's not meant for life support.