4 DIY Port-A-Wraps

treesap · Mar 16, 2021

here is the one my dad built

27RMT0N · Mar 16, 2021

Looks good.

metaspencer · Mar 16, 2021

Most excellent!

treesap · Mar 16, 2021

hoping to get it out later if it stops raining, I already have a job for it (Large rotten live oak limb) might have a little controlled felling to practice on as well

never really seen controlled felling, just a pull line to pull the tree away from houses, sheds etc but I think depending how this works, there may be uses for it (Want the tree slowed down on the landing, for nice lawns, bushes, etc)

kinda nice that we have so much forest area I can test stuff in, and lots of work to do anyways, such as a large tree (Dont know the species) that is a codom with like 8 stems, lots of dead limbs, and widowmakers in it that need to come down (Not really a threat to anything/anyone but they are a pain when I mow, since they are large enough I cant just mulch em, although I am getting a chipper/shredder soon)

might make a video of it, probably will have some pics up soon, depending if I take my camera or not next time im near it, would be a fun job to clean it up, probably wont rig anything on that tree, depends if the whole thing will get cut down in the future, if it does then there will be lots of rigging, (Just for fun, practice, maybe some to drop stuff in a pile to buck up for fire wood), I wont be surprised if we take it down soon, since it is dying at a very rapid rate, leaving debris all over out yard (Really nice 1 acre meadow surrounded by trees)

I cant for the life of me find pictures of the tree Im talking about, but its pretty cool

sorry for the long post, my typing kinda got away from me lol

CutHighnLetFly · Mar 19, 2021

metaspencer said:
Hi all -- after reading on here in various places about DIY portawraps, I thought I'd try my hand at making a few: small, medium, a hitch-mounted version, and a take on a bollard. Some of the ones I mocked up are better than others and all are a little rough, but I'm posting in the event that others are making their own climbing, rigging, and roping equipment.

Some prefer store bought equipment of course, and that's fine. Maybe you see it as safer or better or not worth the trouble to make your own. But I've seen some pretty innovative and cool DIY tree gear out there.

So far, I've made: a bunch of slings, a few lanyards, a rope jack, a tree trolley, and these port-a-wraps.

A vid on making my 4 port-a-wraps is here:

SomethingWitty · Mar 22, 2021

flushcut said:
I would be very cautious with your trailer hitch friction device. I have serious doubts that your MIG welder has the power to weld into that 1" plate. And clean off all of that rust before you use them, your ropes will thank you. Thank you for sharing.

Everyone needs a little 220 stick welder. There is also some potential leverage against the bead that looks no good. The design has some serious issues.

I have some small gripes about the designs in that video, mostly because I think @metaspencer must not have a lot of time on a porty. There aren't situations where you resort to feeding the end of the line through. It should always be pop a bight in and take the 180° bend or wrap to taste.

I approve of this content, but the trailer hitch design is not good, and the other two could be tweaked to emulate the commercial designs better and have a much smoother tool.

metaspencer · Mar 22, 2021

SomethingWitty said:
Everyone needs a little 220 stick welder. There is also some potential leverage against the bead that looks no good. The design has some serious issues.

I have some small gripes about the designs in that video, mostly because I think @metaspencer must not have a lot of time on a porty. There aren't situations where you resort to feeding the end of the line through. It should always be pop a bight in and take the 180° bend or wrap to taste.

I approve of this content, but the trailer hitch design is not good, and the other two could be tweaked to emulate the commercial designs better and have a much smoother tool.

Thanks for the tips man. You're right: zero time on a porty before making these. They've been working for me, though, but I only rig down the occasional leaner.

flushcut · Mar 23, 2021

SomethingWitty said:
Everyone needs a little 220 stick welder. There is also some potential leverage against the bead that looks no good. The design has some serious issues.

I have some small gripes about the designs in that video, mostly because I think @metaspencer must not have a lot of time on a porty. There aren't situations where you resort to feeding the end of the line through. It should always be pop a bight in and take the 180° bend or wrap to taste.

I approve of this content, but the trailer hitch design is not good, and the other two could be tweaked to emulate the commercial designs better and have a much smoother tool.

Even some of the 120v inverter stick welders have more nuts than 220v MIG's. But yeah knowing how to stick weld is a good thing.

SomethingWitty · Mar 24, 2021

metaspencer said:
Thanks for the tips man. You're right: zero time on a porty before making these. They've been working for me, though, but I only rig down the occasional leaner.

You're very polite and I appreciate it.

A day with a real one will have you scratching your head trying to improve on the design. I spent some time doing it myself.

SomethingWitty · Mar 24, 2021

flushcut said:
Even some of the 120v inverter stick welders have more nuts than 220v MIG's. But yeah knowing how to stick weld is a good thing.

My dual voltage inverter machine is close to useless unless it's on 220.
I haven't tried a dedicated machine, although my flux core inverter does well for what it is.

Daniel · Mar 31, 2021

Cereal_Killer said:
Wow everyone's really jumping on the guy for trying to innovate and have fun? Not like he's trying to make a new product to sell, he's experimenting and learning and sharing.

Now if he were to be out to patent one of these to make money then yes I'd agree wholeheartedly that's wrong (and on that subject, I'm in the "what petzl did with the chicane is wrong" camp too) but he's just creating tools for him to use and showing his process and his testing.
If the goal is to kill innovation ya'll are on top of it! In no way did he claim he did anything original, just slight modifications to better suite his needs. Why start at the bottom when you can stand on the shoulders of giants.

The video isn't titled "I made a new device no one's ever seen before and the idea is all mine"...

as soon as any new invention is posted publicly, the clock starts ticking. The inventor has one year to apply for a patent or its too late and the patent will be rejected

KevinS · Apr 24, 2021

treesap said:
I agree with Spencer on port-a-wrap being generic by now, I dont care what you call it, so long as everyone on the job knows what it is when you mention it

Portable wrap friction device. When the name is the description you become a household legendary name beyond the generations that know who made it. Those guys made a solid tool and basic name. They’ll both outlast those 2 guys. That’s there legacy.