- Location
- Chattanooga
It was about 35° when I got home. I stuck on two long sleeve shirts over my tee shirt, grabbed my gear bag, put on my helmet cam, and headed for my favorite tree. I rigged my PMI 10mm for a RADS - Video coming - watch this spot!
It is viewable but, it hasn't finished processing yet so the quality may not be as good yet as it's gonna get.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlwjvnDtPz8
At first I thought me and the nForce wasn't going to get along at all. It seems that if you pull the handle of the ascender away from the rope a bit as you push it up, it won't grab. After playing with it low (while I impatiently waited for my wife to bring me my walkie-talkie that I forgot) I got the hang (no pun intended - yeah, right) of it and ascending it feels pretty much like any other ascender. Well except it advances smooth as butter, and behind the scenes, there are no razor teeth clawing the cover of the rope; just these little pointy thingys.
Since the nForce (I would have called it XForce because it multiples force) applies force in two ways, the conventional cam and a flexing frame to supplement the camming action, it doesn't need the long, sharp, angled rope shreaders that other ascenders use - well, that's the company hype if you know what I mean. But I'll tell you what, it sure releases quickly and advances smoothly when you lift up on the handle.
But that's not the best part; the best part is if/when you need to move it down the rope. You simply reach up with your index finger and pull the cam back, or you can use your thumb on the other side of the ascender; one is as easy and convenient as the other. And I had on leather gloves. The thing releases completely. I didn’t one time notice any hint that the cam was about to engage, as in pick, the rope, and it comes down freely and easily.
After the first pitch, I did a second RADS pitch hands only and was able to refine my stroke technique a bit to insure the nForce would engage properly. The trick was to use the index finger to apply a slight pressure to the cam and it’d hit the rope and do the rest on it’s own.
Would I recommend rushing out and buying one (or a pair) – no. Why? Hmmm, I don’t know why you shouldn’t rush out and buy one or two. Honestly though I’m not sure it has a lot of advantage over say a Heightec PMI XCam ascender. The XCam is kinda like an Ascension but has smaller, pointy, straight teeth that look a whole lot like a CMI Ultracender or Expedition cam. I think the nForce teeth are a bit smaller than the others I mentioned.
I only bought one, the left one, to use in a RADS. I’m thinkin’ I may try the nForce along with a PMI Xcam in a Texas sit-stand and see how they do. I need to do some more climbing on the nForce before I start drawing any real conclusions though.
It is reported that it nose dives, I forget exactly how that comes about but it is fixable by a slight technique adjustment, but I didn’t have the problem.
The thing is, it doesn't cost any more than more conventional ascenders, so if you were thinking of getting an ascender or replacing one...
I'll try to get some video on YouTube tomorrow.
It is viewable but, it hasn't finished processing yet so the quality may not be as good yet as it's gonna get.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlwjvnDtPz8
At first I thought me and the nForce wasn't going to get along at all. It seems that if you pull the handle of the ascender away from the rope a bit as you push it up, it won't grab. After playing with it low (while I impatiently waited for my wife to bring me my walkie-talkie that I forgot) I got the hang (no pun intended - yeah, right) of it and ascending it feels pretty much like any other ascender. Well except it advances smooth as butter, and behind the scenes, there are no razor teeth clawing the cover of the rope; just these little pointy thingys.
Since the nForce (I would have called it XForce because it multiples force) applies force in two ways, the conventional cam and a flexing frame to supplement the camming action, it doesn't need the long, sharp, angled rope shreaders that other ascenders use - well, that's the company hype if you know what I mean. But I'll tell you what, it sure releases quickly and advances smoothly when you lift up on the handle.
But that's not the best part; the best part is if/when you need to move it down the rope. You simply reach up with your index finger and pull the cam back, or you can use your thumb on the other side of the ascender; one is as easy and convenient as the other. And I had on leather gloves. The thing releases completely. I didn’t one time notice any hint that the cam was about to engage, as in pick, the rope, and it comes down freely and easily.
After the first pitch, I did a second RADS pitch hands only and was able to refine my stroke technique a bit to insure the nForce would engage properly. The trick was to use the index finger to apply a slight pressure to the cam and it’d hit the rope and do the rest on it’s own.
Would I recommend rushing out and buying one (or a pair) – no. Why? Hmmm, I don’t know why you shouldn’t rush out and buy one or two. Honestly though I’m not sure it has a lot of advantage over say a Heightec PMI XCam ascender. The XCam is kinda like an Ascension but has smaller, pointy, straight teeth that look a whole lot like a CMI Ultracender or Expedition cam. I think the nForce teeth are a bit smaller than the others I mentioned.
I only bought one, the left one, to use in a RADS. I’m thinkin’ I may try the nForce along with a PMI Xcam in a Texas sit-stand and see how they do. I need to do some more climbing on the nForce before I start drawing any real conclusions though.
It is reported that it nose dives, I forget exactly how that comes about but it is fixable by a slight technique adjustment, but I didn’t have the problem.
The thing is, it doesn't cost any more than more conventional ascenders, so if you were thinking of getting an ascender or replacing one...
I'll try to get some video on YouTube tomorrow.
