The latest Matt Cornell harness

SoftBankHawks · Jul 7, 2020

Any reason that brand is suspect? it has a rating and what seems like numbers pertaining to a standard, a quick on-line check should be able to squash the uncertainty.
I took the Valiant out for a two hour rec.climb (between these recent deluges, 2020's rainy season is giving its all)..anyway...
Surprising how little pressure there is from a single line suspension on the leg. A full 8hr day will be the real test but quite stunning how the leather pad can dissapate pressure. I wonder what the inner padding is? The way I rigged the back elastics mean that the leg pads can scoot around somewhat and I got a definate ball chop at one point, hoping that this can be fixed by studying the rigging options.
I had no idea that grommet belts were so comfortable...I mean, what the ..... wowzers.
The Valiants back pad causes zero pinch points, does not seem to ride up or down. Again, the test will be when carrying a saw, at least there are upper rings for attaching a chest/shoulder strap if needs be.
The friction coefficient on the lower D's has to be the lightest on the market, webbing can not move as slick as rope and because of this the Valiant feels fast and intuitive when moving around in the canopy. I spend a lot of time thinking of efficiencies within systems though this never even crossed my mind, looking forward to exploring this more.
Its a heavy harness, the extra weight is a real issue for me as my sites are always packed into, I wonder how far the positives outweigh this one negative.
How does leather fair in wet weather?

evo · Jul 7, 2020

Anyone ever think of trying a pair of figure 8s for either the hip dees or the lower dees?

Jonny · Jul 7, 2020

Yup, saw someone did that

Jonny · Jul 7, 2020

Quintanana · Jul 7, 2020

Seen that too but seemed a bit bulky. Maybe a mini 8 if anything...

Brocky · Jul 7, 2020

No side rings in the above picture?

@SoftBankHawks, I‘m guessing that’s FTC Volcano that you’re using, was wondering what the core is like, braided or strands?

rico · Jul 7, 2020

Jonny said:
View attachment 69091

No side dees on his set up... I noticed a few folks were running their Valiants that way on the facebook photos...I can't even contemplate how I would get anything done around here without side dees on my saddle....

DSMc · Jul 7, 2020

Regarding the leg pad suspension bungees. Having elastic stretch is not enough to maintain proper placement and articulation. Try running the suspension cords though one of these little gems.

HARKEN 16mm Single Block | West Marine

Shop, read reviews, or ask questions about HARKEN 16mm Single Block at the official West Marine online store. Since 1968, West Marine has grown to over 250 local stores, with knowledgeable Associates happy to assist. Shop with confidence - get free shipping to home or stores + price match guarantee!

www.westmarine.com

rico · Jul 7, 2020

SoftBankHawks said:
Any reason that brand is suspect? it has a rating and what seems like numbers pertaining to a standard, a quick on-line check should be able to squash the uncertainty.
I took the Valiant out for a two hour rec.climb (between these recent deluges, 2020's rainy season is giving its all)..anyway...
Surprising how little pressure there is from a single line suspension on the leg. A full 8hr day will be the real test but quite stunning how the leather pad can dissapate pressure. I wonder what the inner padding is? The way I rigged the back elastics mean that the leg pads can scoot around somewhat and I got a definate ball chop at one point, hoping that this can be fixed by studying the rigging options.
I had no idea that grommet belts were so comfortable...I mean, what the ..... wowzers.
The Valiants back pad causes zero pinch points, does not seem to ride up or down. Again, the test will be when carrying a saw, at least there are upper rings for attaching a chest/shoulder strap if needs be.
The friction coefficient on the lower D's has to be the lightest on the market, webbing can not move as slick as rope and because of this the Valiant feels fast and intuitive when moving around in the canopy. I spend a lot of time thinking of efficiencies within systems though this never even crossed my mind, looking forward to exploring this more.
Its a heavy harness, the extra weight is a real issue for me as my sites are always packed into, I wonder how far the positives outweigh this one negative.
How does leather fair in wet weather?

Your Valiant is looking very sweet, and I really like your idea of terminating the side dees with a splice... Gonna work on that one myself.

As someone who spent most of his career in saddles that do not have any bungee/elastic/webbing running from the waistbelt to the back of the leg-pads I almost alway remove it from any saddle which has it ... This includes the TreeMo, MCRS and the Valiant. I have found that all this connection seems to do for me is pull my leg-pads up, causing pinching...No thanks..

"The friction coefficient on the lower D's has to be the lightest on the market, webbing can not move as slick as rope and because of this the Valiant feels fast and intuitive when moving around in the canopy." This is one of the things that separates Matt's designs for the rest of the pack, and until you have experienced it you wont understand what you are missing. Matt's saddles flow like water out of a faucet.

ductaper · Jul 7, 2020

rico said:
https://www.fusionclimb.com/collections/belay-devices-pulley-ascender-1/products/o-ring-6cm-large

I noticed one of the Valiants on facebook was using these rings on the suspension. I know very little about this company so I don't know if one would trust their life with fusion gear.....

I could get DMM's in black, but by the time you pay for shipping there gonna $17-$19 a piece... Fuck that.

I personally stay far away from Fusion gear after a bad experience with one of their auto-locking carabiners that I got as a gift.

I was hanging from one in my shop to test it, low to the ground, and was moving around, twisting in the saddle, etc, when I heard a little "click". I couldn't figure out what it was until I went to unhook the biner later and found out that as I bumped the locked gate there was enough play in the lock that the gate moved out of the notch in the mouth of the biner and was being held in the "open" position because the biner was deflecting and it couldn't close.

I'm only 160 lbs! It blew my mind that, first of all, there was enough slop in the lock to allow that much movement and, worst of all, their inferior metallurgy (could be type of AL or heat treatment) would deflect that much under just my weight. That's seriously scary.

I duplicated the test with all sorts of other name-brand biners, from ancient rock climbing ones that didn't even have a break strength on them to newer lightweight petzls. None of them deflected at all under my weight and the gate could open and close properly when loaded (I just tested this to compare spine strength/metallurgy).

The kicker came when I called the company to have them replace it. I got a grumpy person on the phone who didn't care at all that their life-support device wasn't capable of life-support and just told me that since I wasn't the original purchaser (again, a gift) they couldn't help me at all. They'll never get a dollar of my money. Actually, I'm happy they wouldn't take it back because now I have my first subject for my break testing machine.

Look, YMMV with rings. This is just my experience and I wanted to share it since you asked. My take on them is they make something that looks pretty but isn't as strong or safe as the name brands.

rico · Jul 7, 2020

ductaper said:
I personally stay far away from Fusion gear after a bad experience with one of their auto-locking carabiners that I got as a gift.

I was hanging from one in my shop to test it, low to the ground, and was moving around, twisting in the saddle, etc, when I heard a little "click". I couldn't figure out what it was until I went to unhook the biner later and found out that as I bumped the locked gate there was enough play in the lock that the gate moved out of the notch in the mouth of the biner and was being held in the "open" position because the biner was deflecting and it couldn't close.

I'm only 160 lbs! It blew my mind that, first of all, there was enough slop in the lock to allow that much movement and, worst of all, their inferior metallurgy (could be type of AL or heat treatment) would deflect that much under just my weight. That's seriously scary.

I duplicated the test with all sorts of other name-brand biners, from ancient rock climbing ones that didn't even have a break strength on them to newer lightweight petzls. None of them deflected at all under my weight and the gate could open and close properly when loaded (I just tested this to compare spine strength/metallurgy).

The kicker came when I called the company to have them replace it. I got a grumpy person on the phone who didn't care at all that their life-support device wasn't capable of life-support and just told me that since I wasn't the original purchaser (again, a gift) they couldn't help me at all. They'll never get a dollar of my money. Actually, I'm happy they wouldn't take it back because now I have my first subject for my break testing machine.

Look, YMMV with rings. This is just my experience and I wanted to share it since you asked. My take on them is they make something that looks pretty but isn't as strong or safe as the name brands.

Thanks ductaper. This is the exactly the kind of info I was looking for...

Mowerr · Jul 7, 2020

rico said:
Thanks ductaper. This is the exactly the kind of info I was looking for...

Somebody else on here has said that some years ago fusion got in some trouble for a cert they had on some piece of gear, that really wasn't certified.
So they seem to be a very messed up company I think.

rico · Jul 8, 2020

Mowerr said:
Somebody else on here has said that some years ago fusion got in some trouble for a cert they had on some piece of gear, that really wasn't certified.
So they seem to be a very messed up company I think.

Thanks Mowerr. This news combined with ductapers story is all I need to hear. Its a big no go on using Fusion rings on the Valiant...

Jonny · Jul 8, 2020

Yates makes black aluminum rings, but they’re close to 20$ each too, and if spending that, I’d rather have DMM.

Maybe go with ISC, and get some of that hard coat spray paint that gets baked in the oven after application.

Personally I think the ISC rings look sweet as they are.

rico · Jul 8, 2020

Yea I like the stock ISC ring myself, but my buddy was hoping for black on his new Valiant.. Fuck dropping $125-$150 on rings, and buying rings that are not trust worthy is out of the question.. He is just gonna have to suffer with the stock ISC rings...

SoftBankHawks · Jul 8, 2020

rico said:
Yea I like the stock ISC ring myself, but my buddy was hoping for black on his new Valiant.. Fuck dropping $125-$150 on rings, and buying rings that are not trust worthy is out of the question.. He is just gonna have to suffer with the stock ISC rings...

Silver is the new black .

SoftBankHawks · Jul 8, 2020

DSMc said:
Regarding the leg pad suspension bungees. Having elastic stretch is not enough to maintain proper placement and articulation. Try running the suspension cords though one of these little gems.

HARKEN 16mm Single Block | West Marine

Shop, read reviews, or ask questions about HARKEN 16mm Single Block at the official West Marine online store. Since 1968, West Marine has grown to over 250 local stores, with knowledgeable Associates happy to assist. Shop with confidence - get free shipping to home or stores + price match guarantee!

www.westmarine.com

Hi Dave, long time no speak, hope that all is well with you. I opened the link to see a little sailing block, you’ve got me there, would you mind elaborating for my slow mind ?!

SoftBankHawks · Jul 8, 2020

rico said:
Your Valiant is looking very sweet, and I really like your idea of terminating the side dees with a splice... Gonna work on that one myself.

As someone who spent most of his career in saddles that do not have any bungee/elastic/webbing running from the waistbelt to the back of the leg-pads I almost alway remove it from any saddle which has it ... This includes the TreeMo, MCRS and the Valiant. I have found that all this connection seems to do for me is pull my leg-pads up, causing pinching...No thanks..

"The friction coefficient on the lower D's has to be the lightest on the market, webbing can not move as slick as rope and because of this the Valiant feels fast and intuitive when moving around in the canopy." This is one of the things that separates Matt's designs for the rest of the pack, and until you have experienced it you wont understand what you are missing. Matt's saddles flow like water out of a faucet.

I realized a couple of things about the rigging on the Side D, firstly, the multiplication of turns on the line and increased friction because of it seem to keep everything from moving around, which is obviously important but if you ever did need to change the i) position of D ii) length of hip riser then a little bit a pulling and pushing can facilitate both things. Sliding rings back allows riser to lengthen, and vice versa.

SoftBankHawks · Jul 8, 2020

Brocky said:
No side rings in the above picture?

@SoftBankHawks, I‘m guessing that’s FTC Volcano that you’re using, was wondering what the core is like, braided or strands?

Yes, exactly. 4 or so parallel strands.

Steve Connally · Jul 8, 2020

I thought about a rigging plate on the back. Too much bulk for me!! I have 2 sidewinders, both need repair. Paul's made me think of it. Love a sidewinder just wish I could fix mine.