saved by girth hitches

Babberney

Babberney

Location
Austin, TX
I was pulling my rope the other day and the false crotch looked strange to me. When I got it down, this is what I found:

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I never imagined the beer knot would work loose like that. I realize now I've been climbing on that same loop of webbing a long time (yrs?) without really inspecting the knot. Just a reminder to do

thorough gear checks regularly on every piece of gear.

k
 
Can you install that False Crotch from the ground. I'm looking at amking one of these and yours looks alot like what I'm trying to make. Can I ask where you bought the webbing and what length is the best. Thanks alot.
 
I've been using this type of webbing with beer knot for years and have never seen that happen before. Thanx for the post reminds me to check my gear. I don't use those loops for personal safety, mostly speed lining and other rigging.
 
That's pretty enlightening. I've used water knot runners going on 30 years now, mostly climbing on rock and never had one come untied.

I just started using beer knots about a year ago, I'm going to check every one every time I use the now. It makes sense to stitch them down to keep them from working loose. I guess not being able to easily see that one end isn't such a good thing.

Stitched runners are great, particulary the high mod ones. When they first came out in the early 80's, it took a long time for me to develop trust in them. I still like to tie my own.

I'm glad those girth hitches held, sometimes they slip. You must be living right.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Can you install that False Crotch from the ground. I'm looking at amking one of these and yours looks alot like what I'm trying to make. Can I ask where you bought the webbing and what length is the best. Thanks alot.

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I install it from the ground. Using the pulley as the small ring, I can just thread my throwline through and tie on the bag--no need for extra hardware to keep it from pulling out. Then, as the ball goes up, I can clip the biner into the other side of the line. I pull the ball/pulley over the branch, drop the ball, and use the line to pull in my rope.
The most frequent problem I run into is that the throwline sometimes gets between the sheave and cheekplate, making it hard to pull the rope through. A good shake while pulling on the line usually does the trick, but it helps a lot just to be careful about positioning the throwbag over the sheave before sending it up.

I buy the webbing at REI, but it's standard 1" tubular stuff--any climbing store should have it by the foot. That one was pretty short--about 20" from ring to ring after the girth hitches--but I have several lengths handy all the time for when I might want to tie into something bigger.

buy the hardware from Sherrill or somewhere that has rated brands. The quick link in the photo is Maillon-Rapide and meets minimum ANSI strength requirements.

k
 
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The most frequent problem I run into is that the throwline sometimes gets between the sheave and cheekplate, making it hard to pull the rope through. A good shake while pulling on the line usually does the trick, but it helps a lot just to be careful about positioning the throwbag over the sheave before sending it up.


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I had this problem too when attempting to pull a FC with a pulley, so I went back to the ring. Here's my newest FC.

110825-IMG_2369.jpg


I leave at least 3" on either end when tying a beer knot, never had one come undone.
 

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thats scary man, is the webbing rated for fall arrest? i use these slings often, sometimes for personal support, i just dont know if its rated or not

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REI lists mil-spec webbing as rated to 18.1 kN. since it is doubled in a loop, that's more than enough to make me feel safe. I'm not 100% positive ANSI still sees it that way.

k
 
Are you talking about 1" tubular nylon webbing? Rock climbers fall on it repeatedly. Granted, the rope is dynamic but it's not unusual for a sling to catch 20 or 30 screamer falls in a day on a tough sport route and then do it again the next day. It tough stuff.

I gotta admit though, I use a Buck Friction Saver because it's so abrasion resistant. I use webbing for redirects and catching pieces I need to keep control of.
 
That webbing is Made for personal support. Some of the stitched slings I have are rated at 22kn. If used for rigging they should be replaced often since they are nylon.
 
Tied webbing slings have always been accepted as long as the webbing has a breaking strength of at least 2,700#.

When I've tied slings using a water knot I always pulled the end of the sling up a little and tacked it with my sewing machine. If the tail didn't have the small 'loop' I knew that the water knot had set a bit tighter. This was a way to monitor movement.

After I learned the Beer Knot I didn't tack the ends down. All slings get attention like any other gear for wear.
 
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I 'lock stitched' the tucked end just for that reason.

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ditto. had a beer knot on the loop on one of my truck chocks work its way loose - spooked me into stitching them from then on. glad you were unhurt! i guess you'll be a girth hitch believer from now on.
k.
wink.gif
 
Does that ever get jammed in the tree durring retreivals of the FC? It seems to me that with flexible webbing or rope, the crab would be pulled directly into a crotch. The conventional cambium saver with 2 rings has thick webbing overlapped making the area near the rings stiff. This helps to kind of lift the ring above the crotch slightly, but i can see a rope or webbing material pulling low through the crotch resulting in a jammed biner. I like the idea to have it adjustable but haven't taken the time or effort to make one

i just realized i derailed this thread so i will repost this climbers talk.

glad you were ok with that...that would make me sit and think for a while
 
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