New Hitch Climber Use.

Rupe

Rupe

Location
United Kingdom
I've been meaning to post an update on the hitch climber thread for soem time. I've now been using the HC for some time and have got used to it. The tail of yoru rope getting in the way just doesnt seem to matter once you've got the hang of it.

I got Chris Cowell to set me up a friction hitch in the right way so I would get the most out of the system and it has helped. I must confess that I never really got to f=grips with tying VT's etc, so spent more time worrying that my knot was wrong and less time actually using it, prefering to stick with either a distel or my favoured helical.

Anyway, the additional uses of the HC combine to make it into the really useful bit of kit that it was hyped to be in the first place.

Setting up an "M" sytem is so easy, and combined with a swivel it makes the set up really nice to use.

And then there is this new configuration that has been mentioned, whereby the whole thing self advances! Brilliant!!
 
Now, instead of attaching the splice of the rope to the HC, pass it through the swivel or sliding D and attach it to the bottom karabiner, which is now disconnected from the harness.
 

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You can climb all day like that or, without the need to lanyard in, just send the whole thing away from you and just pull up under the HC.
 

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[ QUOTE ]
A longer eye would be nice to help that part flex a bit.

Anyway, then attach the ropeman.

[/ QUOTE ]


Thanks for the pics, Rupe. Haven't used it yet, but it looks very smooth.

FYI, Beddes and the gear inspection technicians who reviewed this at the ITCC thought that the climbing line that is used for this should have a large (approximately 4") eye. As your photo shows, if a small (carabiner-sized) eye is used the rope is bent right at the splice. If a large eye is used there are two legs of rope to support the sharp bend and there is no chance that the splice can be compromised. A Blue Bandit could be used with a large, spliced eye to create a smaller (unspliced) eye to capture the krab.

Judge showed some other options, such as replacing the Ropeman with a string Prusik.
 
This is what I did after chatting with Rich H. I have Safety blue and the Blaze for climbing lines. The Safety Blue goes through the eye of the swivel with no problem. I used an "Ice Tail" tresse cord for the prussic. I will clean this up with smaller cordage down the road. It worked real well running off of a banister ( just got back from vacation..........this was the only way to try it). I will see tomorrow on the job!!!
 

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the only thing i can see right now which i dont like is the fact that you have to have everything unclipped from your harness when initially tying in at your tip.....im always paranoid about dropping stuff. with the normal set up you would only need to unclip the spliced eye end.
 
if you "send the whole thing away from you" and it goes too far away, how do you get it back? wouldn't the ropeman prevent the hitch from returning?
 
[ QUOTE ]
if you "send the whole thing away from you" and it goes too far away, how do you get it back? wouldn't the ropeman prevent the hitch from returning?

[/ QUOTE ]

I think.....I could be wrong.....that if you leave the prussic/ropeman attached all the time you need two hands to move the whole thing. So......you move it to arms length......I don't see how it could get away from you.


Then again.......I am just thinking out loud!!!
 
Thanks for sharing this. It's a neat system. I tried it, and the only thing that seemed clunky was the passage of the whiplock on my eye splice through the swivel. It acted like a speed bump. If I end up using this set-up much, I think I'll replace my surface whiplock with a NICCS lockstitch. Or, hmmmm, I could try the unspliced end of my climbing line with a termination knot.
 
[ QUOTE ]
the only thing i can see right now which i dont like is the fact that you have to have everything unclipped from your harness when initially tying in at your tip.....im always paranoid about dropping stuff. with the normal set up you would only need to unclip the spliced eye end.

[/ QUOTE ]

No. Climb as usual and when you reach the TIP pass the splice through your ropeguide, then unclip the HC from your harnes, pass the splice through your ring and clip it.

Ok, so if you let go of the splice end it would run back through the RG and you lose everything but its unlikely.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
if you "send the whole thing away from you" and it goes too far away, how do you get it back? wouldn't the ropeman prevent the hitch from returning?

[/ QUOTE ]

I think.....I could be wrong.....that if you leave the prussic/ropeman attached all the time you need two hands to move the whole thing. So......you move it to arms length......I don't see how it could get away from you.


Then again.......I am just thinking out loud!!!

[/ QUOTE ]

yes the ropeman prevents the hitch from returning, thats essential to making it work. When you pull on the down part of your rope you want the hitch to advance not return to you.

You have to feed the rope through the swivel to get it to go away from you, you could send it too far but not if you take care. It certainly won't go too far on its own. If you can't reach the ropeman then you have to stand on a branch and create slack.

I think this is why a ropeman is needed instead of a small prussik. A prussik lock in both directions so not so smooth while sending it away.
 
Hi Rupe

I love this thread! Do you remember the Welsh TCC 2002, I think that was when we first met, I used 3 ropes in the masters & confused everyone, including myself, with some strange undescribeable system. Well, the system your describing is exactly that system I used, althought with the hitch climber it appears that it a ton site easier than the Heath Robinson set up that I used then. It was thought up by Mark Tipper, who you may also recall was at the Welsh comp (was at college with Rob Gibbs). We christened it 'The Tip Slider', used it for a few months & dumped it in the 'been there done that archive'. Just interesting to see it coming to the fore. I'll see if I can dig out the original components & post an image.

Best wishes
Nod
 
I finished competing on 11th Sept 2001 (how could I forget?). I think Jon about the same time. My memory is Jon sharing it with me in '99 - I think Myerscough. I don't think he used it in the comp though, but we had worked together on the AMT tours. It came out of the bag somewhere along the line then.

Whatever.

I found it obsolete with other techniques, and its not very practicable for changeovers. Others have noted other drawbacks.

I remember a version with a daisy chain sling also.
 
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