"v" notch

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Y'all are coming down DdRT?

I just choke the top with a running bowline and come down on an 8.

So how do you get your climbing line down? When I first learned I would rappel down the manila climbing line (the other climber always spiked down...he wasn't familiar with biners) and then we would use that line to pull the spar while we cut it. It didn't "feel right" using a climbing line for a pull line but what did I know? I was just a green kid doing what the "pros" taught me. We also used to leave the ropes up in a tree overnight if we had to go back the next day...I don't do that anymore.

Anyway, I surely don't like the idea of my lifeline riding the spar to the ground.

So...if you rap down on a running bowline, how do you get the lifeline down? (leave a LONG tail on the bowline so you can loosen it from the ground?)

OK...I just re-read your post...maybe you are just rapping down a few feet to your next cut position, not all the way to the ground?
 
Gary, I'm using the climb line to yank the spar over. Never felt bad about it; If I have to put any real pull to it, I'm using a bull rope anyhow, and I'll ride IT down.
 
I would agree the pull on the rope amounts to nothing but what about the ground impact?

If you've been doing it for years with no ill effect then it must not be a problem. But I don't do it cuz I don't like to have to think twice about where my climbing line has been or what it has been subjected to.

How about during the TD, do you let limbs and chunks fall on your line or do you have the line moved as necessary so nothing hits it?
 
Limbs won't hurt your line, but they WILL foul you up. I don't drop chunks on any rope, and I don't fear the impact from hitting the ground hurts them, either.
 
Sometimes with the climb line tied to me, I'll run the other end through a crotch and lower small limbs myself. I've had a few weird looks when I say send me the other end of my climb line.
 
Gary, I'm using the climb line to yank the spar over. Never felt bad about it; If I have to put any real pull to it, I'm using a bull rope anyhow, and I'll ride IT down.

I never liked the idea of the spar falling onto my rope. MB, I didn't worry about the pull..and, I agree, if a lot of pull needed to happen we'd use a different rope.

It still wigs me out some to think of a big spar falling on a climbing line...there could be a crush between the spar and a concealed rock that could damage the lifeline internally and you would not ever see it.

Right? Nick, am I nuts? :dontknow:

Not ragging here, just want to understand.
 
I don't use my lifeline to pull anything or lower anything, except tools.
It's my LIFEline. I want to be 100% sure I can trust it.
 
I don't use my lifeline to pull anything or lower anything, except tools.
It's my LIFEline. I want to be 100% sure I can trust it.

Stig, that's what goes through my mind. I should not say, "It still wigs me out some to think of a 'big' spar falling on a climbing line." What I mean is that I do not like to have ANYTHING fall on my lifeline...limbs, chunks, spar of any size.

My first experiences with ropes were from Army Rangers...you didn't even step on their ropes...or smoke around them. If you did you got to do "mountain pushups"...upside down, feet uphill wherever you happened to be at the moment...sometimes it was on a small ledge and 50 feet up a rock face.

Of course, that was 3 strand Goldline climbing rope and they were concerned about sand working its way in between the strands and cutting the small fibers that made up the strands. Nowdays, we have a sheath that protects the inner rope from sand so I am not so anal about that anymore.
 
Limbs won't hurt your line, but they WILL foul you up. I don't drop chunks on any rope, and I don't fear the impact from hitting the ground hurts them, either.

I have seen some limbs hit butt first with a lot of force...to the point of almost sticking up...how could that NOT hurt a rope if it hit it?
 
I had to learn that one the hard way .... I had a brand new 150 ft. Fly , after 1 day and compression damage , a large chunk from above .... I now have a 140 ft. Fly .... of course it was the end with the expensive splice ....
 
...My first experiences with ropes were from Army Rangers...you didn't even step on their ropes...or smoke around them. If you did you got to do "mountain pushups"...upside down, feet uphill wherever you happened to be at the moment...sometimes it was on a small ledge and 50 feet up a rock face...

Same here, except it was Boy Scouts and the rope was KMIII.
 
My first experiences with ropes were from Army Rangers...you didn't even step on their ropes...or smoke around them. If you did you got to do "mountain pushups"...upside down, feet uphill wherever you happened to be at the moment...sometimes it was on a small ledge and 50 feet up a rock face.

Not to hijack this thread but what about those steel non-locking 'caribs we used to use!! Thank God, I'll never hear "Down and OUT!! Keep those gates down and out!" I still have a handfull of them kicking around.
 
:lol: We had a douche bag XO in ROTC scream down the rap wall for fookin that up. He took up some slack before he went over the edge which inverted the biner.

He was a douche of the highest order.
 
No way am I ever going to pull a spar over with my climb line, no matter what the size.

I generally keep rigging ropes and life support ropes totally seperate in use. I will admit to rappeling down a bullrope once in a while, but I don't usually go there. This might be because I do so much instruction...I feel I have to show the best practice when I'm teaching, and it just gets to be habit.
 
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How many stories have you heard of w/ people abusing rope w/ pulls and then having it break later during a decent or climb? I haven't. We climb w/ the hi-v orange line. Alot of dudes I know are starting toclimb w/ a rockclimbing rope set up. accenders webing redirects. that stuff streaches and gives in a fall alot more. I could see the rock rope failing faster after stess pulls/falls alot easier.
 
I'm totally with you there, Burnham.
When running apprentices, one has to lead by example.
However,since I'm very careful about retiring my bullropes in time, I feel that using them for rapelling out of a spar is ok.

Discgolfborist, it is not the pulling, which is an issue here. It is the spar falling on top of the rope.
There is as far as I know no way to tie a rope to a spar and pull the spar over wo. hitting the rope.
 
I rap the bull rope or use an adjustable FS. Doing that notch thing on pines seems like it would get pitch all over a lifeline.
 
No way am I ever going to pull a spar over with my climb line, no matter what the size.

I generally keep rigging ropes and life support ropes totally seperate in use. I will admit to rappeling down a bullrope once in a while, but I don't usually go there. This might be because I do so much instruction...I feel I have to show the best practice when I'm teaching, and it just gets to be habit.

Same here. I don't want a tree driving my lifeline into the ground and I really hate it when someone tells me to lower heavy wood on my tail. Since I'm the only one using my bull ropes I know I can trust'em but I understand why people wouldn't want to rap on one.

I'm pretty sure I remember at least one story of an old, highly experienced climber who fell using the v-notch. I can't remember the details or even if he lived or not... but it was enough to convince me that I'd rather not do it that way.
 
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