New rope swing

[treesmith]

While the guy was here with the dozer last week pushing up my burn piles and such, I had him push off some hedges/brush/undergrowth that was taking over the lower part of my yard. I discovered a wonderful place to hang a new tree swing. A two-liner, that will allow some HIGH swinging. I have to climb the tree (red oak), and take off one dead limb and one other limb that will impede the swinging, as well as lighten the limb the swing will be attached to. My quandary now is attachment method. Years ago (like 22 years ago), I ran a piece of 3-strand 1/2” rope I’d brought home from Asplundh up onto a big limb on a red oak, and my girls enjoyed it for years. The limb did begin to grow over the running bowline after several years, and the end of the limb began to sir back, so I climbed it and cut the limb off. Paul sent me a piece of Wraptor rope (about 80’), and I attached it to a main fork in the top of the same big red oak, routing it out through a fork on a limb above where the old swing had been, giving them an even higher swing. That lasted about a year, and the jacket began to rub through from the friction in the lower fork, so I replaced it with a piece of 3/4” Multiline, which is still there, and still doing fine.

I have ordered a length of 1/2” Treemaster for the new swing, but can’t decide if I want to bore through the limb and use eye bolts, if I want to simply use running bowlines (and climb it a couple times a year to inspect/loosen them, or if I want to utilize tree straps. Any thoughts? Limb is about 35’+/- where I’ll be attaching the lines. I’ve always been hesitant to use hardware, but a quick web search shows lots of folks are using eye bolts nowadays. I could a guy on YouTube who has a business installing tree swings and he uses eye bolts as his method.

 

[lxskllr]

I think I like the idea of hardware. It doesn't seem to hurt the tree, and is more robust.

 

[PCTREE]

I would drill and use regular J lag bolts for cabling. For extra peace of mind drill through and use I bolts

 

[lumberjack]

Eye bolts seem like a winner to me.

 

[pantheraba]

When I have set them up before I have taken a rope and belayed the main support...tied the main limb to another part of the tree just to take some of the stress off of the one limb that's being the only support for the swing.

 

[treesmith]

Looking at these...two to hang the swing, and two to support, as Gary mentioned. One set slightly beyond the farther eye bolt, angled up toward the top, and another fork above, angled toward it, with a cable/turnbuckle to remove most of the slack.

National Hardware N245-175 3260BC Eye Bolt in Galvanized

 

[Bodean]

I would go through bolts over j lags if possible.

 

[SkwerI]

J lags are plenty secure and you never have to worry about the limb growing around the rope. I've done plenty of J lags over the years for swings, hanging large plants, etc. No need to drill all the way through the limb and create a bigger wound (which may rot instead of compartmentalize). Through bolting is for cabling large trees with tens of thousands of pounds of load, not swings with a 100 lb kid.

 

[treesmith]

Got a link to what you used? I can’t see a J-lag being secure enough for a swing as there’s the possibility of the thimbled line hopping off the J.

 

[SkwerI]

Last time I think I got the J lags from Tree Stuff. Drill deeper than the shank length and bury the J lag until it hits.

 

[lumberjack]

If you're going to use a lag instead of through bolting, you can still get a lag with an eye instead of a J.

 

[No_Bivy]

another option is to tie an open bowline with backup knot high in the center of the tree, then run the rope out through a crotch far out a limb. Stronger. no drilling. Gets rope further from the trunk. Simple, fast. easy to replace

 

[treesmith]

That’s what I did with the “big swing”, but this is to be a two-line “pump” swing. I haven’t figured out an acceptable way to mount two parallel lines secured higher up.

 

[No_Bivy]

bolts

 

[treesmith]

Eh?

 

[pantheraba]

If the lag is installed vertically, it is only the threads against the wood that are preventing it from pulling out. There's no way I would trust thread friction on life support with a lag bolt. If the lag is installed perpendicular to the direction of the force then you're counting on the lag being strong enough that sheer force will not break it. Maybe grade 8 provides that type of strength. But it still seems dicey to me.

My instinct is to install an eye bolt all the way through the limb with a large strong fender washer and a good nut. Even double-nutted to be sure nothing works loose.

 

[pantheraba]

another option is to tie an open bowline with backup knot high in the center of the tree, then run the rope out through a crotch far out a limb. Stronger. no drilling. Gets rope further from the trunk. Simple, fast. easy to replace

I really like this idea best. You can put some padding to protect against friction where the rope goes through the crotch or across the limb so that as it swings you're not slowly wearing and cutting the rope. That way you don't have metal rubbing metal all the time at an attachment point.

 

[treesmith]

If I could figure out a way to suspend two parallel lines about 20” apart out on the limb, with said lines anchored higher in the top, that’s what I’d do.

I agree regarding lags in living wood for life support.

 

[treesmith]

bolts

Could you elaborate?

 

[treesmith]

I had a theory of using horizontally bored eye bolts, 20” apart, at the point I want the swing, with ropes running through as John suggested (which I always do with single-rope swings). The eye bolts would see negligible loading, as they’re merely there to hold the ropes at their designated points. A length of rubber hose/tubing would provide chaff protection at the friction point where the ropes run through the eyes. Thoughts?

 

[Mellow]

Friction at the eye bolts would be the weak link.

 

[treesmith]

With 1/2” eye bolts, and tubing around the rope, I don’t see that being an issue.

 

[ruel]

Eye bolts through the limb. Hammer on thimbles to the eyes and splice on some 3 strand. Basically like setting up a cable.

If you wanted to get super Crazy you could worm parcel and serve the line, good for many, many years

 

[gf beranek]

Beware of Rope Swings! High liability.