Tree 'elevator'

SeanKroll

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From the other Tree with a View thread.

An idea for lack of a power-ascender, with need to go to the ground and back up a bunch.


Bob/ Bstewart and I set one up for rec climbing/riding people at Zipfest about 7 years ago, at Shadow of the Sentinels. One person would counterweight the other person, with a management for weight disparity between riders.
 

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With a log or people, or both?


Don't we routinely suspend load over someone, climber or groundie?
 
Not to the log, to the stick man.

Estimating the weight of the log/person is guess work at best, and getting it even slightly wrong would have consequences.

This looks like the first scene of one of those hospital dramas.
 
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  • #5
I left out the climber's climbing system. Its not a guess wrong, freefall to your death thing.

If you can't magically guess, you start out with too heavy log, say 250#, and cut a small chunk off to lighten it, 225#. Maybe too heavy, still for me, cut off 10 pounds, maybe 15.

200 pounds geared up, and 210 pounds on the other side. There will be some friction at the block. You can go up or down with about 20# of effort, not 200.


I've been a fan of the Wraptor for years, and think its one of those things like getting along without expensive 4wd. It's expensive until the day it saves you a bunch of money, and then the next time it saves you a bunch, and the next time, until its paid for itself and making your money.




When Bob Stewart was coming up and I was going down from 100', I put a friction hitch on his side of the rope, and attached it to me to compensate for the 40 or so pound difference. I forgot what we did to pass and once I was lower than him, but it was done safely, years ago.


Both climber and counterweight can be tied mid-line, so that there is control line below each. Easy enough.
 
Or as August reveals the dark mystery in a recent video: you climb up (spikes & lanyard or otherwise) and set the block where you want it.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f3i57Bb2YW4" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

To me, there's nothing particularly unsafe about the general method. I've been at a 2 story restaurant that featured a dumbwaiter to get the food to the 2nd floor. It rode on a track, with a counterweight that ran down the track on the opposite side of the shaft, geared pulley above and looped control rope to get it up & down. The car itself was oak and cedar, let alone fully loaded with food, probably weighed 200+ lbs. Same basic concept here, just no "rails" or tracks for the load and counterbalance -- thus the possibility of interference on the way up!
 
The pulley/block can be installed with a bigshot, APTA, pneumatic throwbag gun, throwbag alone, bow and arrow etc.

Jomo
 
Disregard this post

Did you mean pulley block or chunk of wood block? I figure there's a way to use a throwline and rope and other gear to pull up and secure a block from the ground. Use a truck to pull your chunk of wood up. Sorry if I misunderstood your question.

EDIT: Oh, I thought you said to me "That was A sorry attempt at the chicken/egg thing Nutball..."
 
A lot easier to get three groundies on the rope to assist in hoisting yu up 100 feet, than riggin any counterweight.

Usin groundie strength on rope work intensive removals is the key to preventing muscle cramps in the climber bringin the operation to a halt.

Spread the load out whenever possible.

Jomo
 
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