Anchor Bridge Climbing System

what carabiners do you use with the AB system? for the short side, with your VT system. and you said at the show you must use a size 3 snap. Is there anyway to shorten it up so the pulley is closer to the climbing hitch?
 
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countryboy,



That CMI pulley certainly looks like it has some good applications. Admittedly I haven't worked off of this system too much in real life situations, but in basic testing I didn't like the effect too much. I know loads of climbers love using this piece to advance their line so you may want to get their input to offset mine.

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I on the other hand am a fan of the cmi "mickey mouse"
micro pulley. The issue of the anchored part of the line being so close to the hitch hasn't bothered me too much.
A down side is that there's a little bit of "flop"
in the system when taking weight off, for example, stepping up onto a branch creating a small amount of slack. One up
side to it is that with some experimentation, I was able to eliminate one leg of the anchored bridge system, with an equally as nice effect. however, without a split anchor bridge system leaning through my lines(i.e. on a limb walk)
isn't an option. It really all depends on the task at hand and my mood that day. I've found both ways to be quite helpful. One more thought...I plan on getting a "hitch climber" which I think will probably be better than the cmi.
Until then, I'm happy with cmi.
 
Used mine for the first time today. Awsome, just like Rich H showed ad TCIA. Problem is, I have killed the splice end of my rope so I terminate my line with a fishermans knot. Unfortunately the knot is bulky enough it prevents my VT from locking off. I'm sure this can be cured with a new splice.
 
Hey Steve, thanks for your input and thanks for the complement on the system.

I think if you try a less bulky termination knot your VT may not have as much trouble. An anchor bend or yosemite bowline usually do the trick. Let me know how it works out.

ps

your other option would be to send your rope to me or Nick or any other splicer and we can fix you right up.

Thanks again for the input.
 
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...I was able to eliminate one leg of the anchored bridge system, with an equally as nice effect. however, without a split anchor bridge system leaning through my lines(i.e. on a limb walk)...

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You can eleminate one leg of the system and still have split lines. Take a short (c. 5 inch) loop of string (throwline, starter cord, shoe lace etc) and tie a two wrap prusik on the eye side of your climbing line. Clip a key chain carabiner into the loop and around the (eye end of) the climbing line. When you want to use the extended bridge clip the brass snap to the key chain carabiner. The Prusik can be easily adjusted to match the length of the extended bridge and just stays on the line when not in use.

Another change I made was to put the brass snap and the micro pulley on the same carabiner that the split tail is on. Or, to look at it another way, use the carabiner that normally has the split tail and micro-pulley, and add the snap right beside the micro-pulley. This eleminates the slop that is created if the snap is on the 'biner and the snap is then clipped to the micro-pulley.
 
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what carabiners do you use with the AB system? for the short side, with your VT system. and you said at the show you must use a size 3 snap. Is there anyway to shorten it up so the pulley is closer to the climbing hitch?

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The reason for the # 3 boat snap is to give you just enough seperation between your lines so that your hitch won't dive right into your anchor carabiner on the long side. I tried using a smaller snap and found that more often than not the climbing hitch was too close and often would not set properly. Also the swivel action of the boat snap is important so that the pulley can orient itself properly and allow your knot to slide past the anchor carabiner. Does any of that make sense?

I agree with Mahk, and countryboy that the pulley on the boat snap is sloppy when the system is anchored low, but having the pulley directly on the carabiner decreases the effectiveness of the self tending function when extended, not by much mind you but enough to make it worth my while to deal with the slop when anchored low.

While switching to a single bridge set up (similar to Mahks) is by far the most popular modification I have seen so far with this system I still think the dual leg system has merits if for no other reason than to protect your splice. (like the one that steve had to cut off) For me the simple extension and clipping with the dual bridge is far easier and cleaner than the alternatives.

Thank you everyone for your input on this system and keep at it with the modifications. Before long we should have something that looks nothing like this piece but works far better.
 
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...having the pulley directly on the carabiner decreases the effectiveness of the self tending function when extended,...

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Can you explain more? I haven't noticed any loss of effectiveness. The hitch advances immediately when I pull on the line. The string Prusik allows infinite adjustment to fine tune things.
 
Now that you mention in Mahk when I saw your set up at TCI I believe your hitch cord is tied in real tight to your carabiner. This would give you a very quick response when you pull on the line. Most set ups that I have come across have some level of distance between the carabiner with slack tending pulley and the start of their hitch, the decrease in self tending effectiveness happens when you have say two or three inches of distance between your slack tending pulley and your knot. This will basically give you the same "slop" associated with using the boat snap, but in a lesser fashion. When the anchor bridge is extended with the boat snap it is sized up so that the pulley is directly beneath your knot. (unless you are using a split tail lanyard which is tied further out) This allows for very quick response when pulling in the line,but creates a ton of "slop" when anchored low.

Using the string Prusik allows you to extend your bridge to any level you want, but if you still had a two or three inch distance between your slack tending pulley and your knot you will have two or three inches of play between pulling your line and your hitch advancing.
 
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