lenght of cord - eye to eye or not

jerseygirl

jerseygirl

Location
balancing on the edge . . . .
Hello all

I am getting ready to go to the next step - a closed split tail and was wondering what you all use.

do you use an EYE to EYE splice?

OR do you tie knots at the end?

what type of cord do you perfer?

what type of hitch do you use?


thanks

jz - getting ready for the next 100 climb YAHOO
 
Hey JG,

Spliced eyes on an eye and eye are great if you know exactly what length you like. I prefer to tie scaffold knots (did I get that right Mahk? :)) on mine so that I have some adjustability of the length. This also allows me to buy bulk cordage and cut it to whatever lengths I like, which is much cheaper than purchasing pre-spliced cords. Spliced cords will also sometimes change the stiffness/thickness of the cordage. In the end it all comes down to personal preference.

I recommend starting off with something cheap and reliable, such as some 3/8" Tenex, and experiment with that for while.
 
Yo,

I have recently switched to Icetail, spliced eye to eye. I use a distel hitch, I really like it, smooth up and down, no binding.

Without going to the truck to fish it out and measure it...I think its about 20-24" long...I find it a bit short for the initial ascent, I have added a short strop and another biner to the setup to give me some length to grab when going up, once up to the first branches, I ditch the extra gear and resume with one biner to my bridge.

I tried beeline spliced eye to eye, and I found it tightened down too much onto my 1/2" line, even at 115lbs, the hitch got too tight!

I use the distel on my lanyard too, it's tied with a bit of regular prussik cord, knots to make the eyes, distel hitch with a micro pulley

Cheers
 
Agree with Leon, tie the double overhand/scaffold knots to find out the length that works best for your knot, cord and climbing rope combo. No one can tell you the right length, it varies based on knot choice, rope construction, diameter, hitch cord construction, etc. Be aware that the knot anchoring the working end of your climbing rope (if you're not using an eye splice) can put you into descent mode if it's in a position to contact the hitch. You'll find that the biggest challenge compared to Blake's climbing is getting off the ground. Once you figure that out it's cake. A Pantin is very useful for closed split tail climbing.

Definitely work on the details low and slow, a closed hitch is much more sensitive (that's good) than a Blake's but it might surprise you if you're not paying close attention when you're getting used to it. Expect to use a Blake's for double-crotching, keep your system simple to start so you understand the behavior, then build in the goodies as needed (anchor bridge etc.)

I'm a devotee of 8mm Beeline on 11mm rope, you'll probably try a few different types of hitch cord before you find the right one.
-moss
 
This comes from a newbie to climbing so keep that in mind.

I use the velocity (hot), with a Tenex eye-to-eye splice (Sherril's standard 30", $20). I also use the distal hitch and find it very reliable for me in this combination. (Bermie and I are evidently very similar sizes!) I'm 5', 105 lbs. And size can and does make a difference on your knot preference.

David has taught me the tail tied system also so I have used the Blake's hitch and it was ok.(I don't like the Tautline at all) But I prefer the eye-to-eye splice closed hitch for not worrying about your knot rolling out.

Sylvia

P.S. We have heard nothing but good about the Icetail and will be trying it soon ourselves.
 
Yep, I was a Blake's adherent until very recently,and still use it in some situations.
With the distel and a micro pulley, I've got the whole one handed/self tending thing going and I like it!
Are there any tall ladies here? I top out at 5'4"...

The Icetail is great, only thing mine is a mucky looking washed out green colour, not very attractive, like that doesn't make the slightest difference to performance, but c'mon, we've got to look nice, what about some bright colours! (tongue firmly in cheek)
 
[ QUOTE ]

Are there any tall ladies here? I top out at 5'4"...


[/ QUOTE ]

5'8" here and more weight challenged then you both (!^*)

I have a spare piece of cord, not something I would climb on and will try the hitches, and yes the micro pulley will be a part of the set-up.

RogerM showed me a part of the anchorbridge, so I also have to talk with him about the hitch he was using.

jz
 
[ QUOTE ]
Are there any tall ladies here? I top out at 5'4"...

... but c'mon, we've got to look nice, what about some bright colours! (tongue firmly in cheek)

[/ QUOTE ]

I think Kathy H. is a life-size person!

I agree on "dressing for success and looking good" in our field. I have perpetual helmet hair and vanity is completely out of the question when (here in Montana) you spend most of the time dressed in so many layers you look like a walking Pillsbury dough person. The least we can do is have attractively colored gear! (tongue also firmly in cheek...however the looking like a dough person is an actuality.)

Sylvia
 
Ha ha, ditto on the helmet hair!
Gosh...its so hard to colour co-ordinate all the bits and pieces, the guys have no idea of our stress level
boohoo.gif
 
Red snaps for termination.
Blue cord is accessory slack tender cord
yellow for my saw cord
white cord for hitches lanyards
grey silver for locking biners that I climb with
gold for locking biners that i use for hitches
black and red my gator and mongoose
orange for utility biners
red rope split tails
A lime green climbing rope
a white helmet with grey straps
grey boots
A PINK BOW in my hair

GOSH GOLLY GEE all the colors

NO wonder i clash

jz - long hair in a bow that be me

OH MY - what about my socks
 
[ QUOTE ]
I think Kathy H. is a life-size person!

[/ QUOTE ]

confused.gif
grin.gif


dead people don't post, so y'all are life-sized too i guess. i'm 5'9", buck and half at fighting weight (not at the moment
frown.gif
)

i've been climbing on HRC and bailout for a few years - swore by hrc, tried bailout and loved it, wore out my bada$$ michael taine spliced bailout and switched back to hrc (easy to splice). had a standard slack-tending pulley for a while but tried the hitchlimber and haven't looked back - only bummer is you need spliced eyes on your hitch cord or it can potentially cause your hitch to fail (not that fun), so until i can lay my hands on another spliced bailout i'll be using hrc with two spliced eyes. i'm gonna guess between 18 and 20" - too lazy to go out to the truck and measure
grin.gif

k.
 
HRC = heat resistant cord, 8mm double braid (5/16") with a nomex/technora cover and vectran core, meaning the fibers start to glaze (melt) at like a million degrees (well, maybe not a million). made by new england rope, easy to splice.

bailout= another insanely heat resistant cord about the same size, 100% technora, a touch smaller in diameter, super stiff so it holds the vt shape nicely. made by samson for firefighters to use "bailing out" of burning buildings. next to impossible to splice, though my friend michael t. seems to have figured it out.

hitchclimber= a micropulley with 3 rated attachment points, made by treemagineers - makes it possible to consolidate all your attachments (even multiple climbing lines) at one point so you are not pulled in different directions and don't have a fistsfull of gear banging around. awesome piece of equipment - google it, they have a webpage somewhere i'm sure. if you use the hitchclimber as your fairlead or slack-tending pulley and clip the end of your climbing line in just above your hitch cord it does a lovely job of streamlining everything.
 
Well I use the 20 inch Icetail with a schwebish (SP?) I am a bit old school though...lol with the micro pulley for slack tending. I weigh 150 on a good day and top out at 5'7". I was just looking at some of the new tree gear and am very jealous.... wishing I was making more money to get me some goodies!!!
 
[/ QUOTE ]



i've been climbing on HRC and bailout for a few years - swore by hrc, tried bailout and loved it, wore out my bada$$ michael taine spliced bailout and switched back to hrc (easy to splice). had a standard slack-tending pulley for a while but tried the hitchlimber and haven't looked back - only bummer is you need spliced eyes on your hitch cord or it can potentially cause your hitch to fail (not that fun), so until i can lay my hands on another spliced bailout i'll be using hrc with two spliced eyes.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hey Kathy, could you explain how the hitchclimber with knots on your hitch cord could cause it to fail?

I just ordered a hitchclimber from Sherrill's and 10' of Bailout cord from Wespur, but now I'm concerned.
confused.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

New threads New posts

Back
Top Bottom