Acceptable base tie-off for SRT

  • Thread starter Widow Shooter
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Widow Shooter

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Been thinking a lot more about base tie offs.

Usually I but a figure 8 knot on a bight, clip a biner in the loop then back it up with a couple of half hitches and another biner in that loop.

works good, but in an emergency, no way to get lowered out:O

So I tried rigging this :

Web sling choked around the trunk for smaller trees, the DMM 30kn one, clip a biner in, then rig a figure 8 in there, then do a minimum 3 half hitches on a bight, leaving a loop, clip another biner in there and back to the main biner so the half hitch can't pull out.

it looks like this IMGP9143.jpg IMGP9142.jpg


I also have a 5/8" eye sling, brand new to use on big trunks, timber hitched backed up by half hitches like this: IMGP9144.jpg

This is simple and would allow a person on the ground to lower you, or also, if you lanyard in, would allow more rope to be pulled out if needed :)

what say you all?
 
How about a grigri with just a marlin spike below it. Should hold without a backup so the marlin spike will never see a load, easy on/off and lowering.
 
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  • #3
yeah, was trying to not buy anything else ;) use what I have, plus the "8" is rated at 30kn which is nice, fool proof, no moving parts.
 
That's pretty golden, Cary. Just be sure you have enough rope below the 8 to get you to the ground.

You might consider encorporating a prusik loop so the lowerer could leave the 8 unattended if need be, and the lowering would be backed up, too.
 
Somebody posted a setup where you simply attached the rope to the tree as usual, but tied an alpine butterfly above the whole tie in stuff.
Then attached another line to the alpine butterfly, which was run through a figure 8 on it's own sling.

Then in case of emergency, just cut the SRT rope and lower the whole thing, climber included by way of the figure8.

Costs a rope, but how often have anyone here had to be lowered by a groundie.

I thought it was a brilliant idea.
 
We use a f8 or a Grigri and we back up the 8 with a prusik. Our sling at the base of the tree is a 30ft + /- length of Fly with an eye spliced in one end. Then we have a prusik loop with a ring tied into it. The prusik adjusts to fit the tree and the the eye i the sling gets placed through the ring and then the lowering device gets clipped to the eye.
 
Could you not just use a portawrap? I don't know why it has to be so complicated. It is cool though. :)

Edit: Just noticed you said it before me Stephen.
 
OOPS, put this one in the other thread... This is the alpine butterfly set up I believe.
 

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  • #11
I was reading somewhere the the A-butterfly is not a good knot compared to other inline knots, I think the tried and true figure 8 on a bight is rock.
been trusted by rock climbers for decades as life support :)
 
Alpine Butterfly is rock solid as a knot. Love it.

That picture is exactly what I set up, expect for some gear changes. 2 alpine butterflys, in case of emgerency cut rope between two knots with a lowering system clipped in.
 
yeah, was trying to not buy anything else ;) use what I have, plus the "8" is rated at 30kn which is nice, fool proof, no moving parts.

But it is a petzl! Do I need to tell the factory your not as big a fan as they think you are?
 
Especially if the fig 8 is tied in-line.

Why the anti-butterfly sentiment?

love
nick

I was looking at the butterfly set up and I like it except for the knot itself. So say you have lower someone and they have a friction saver installed the knot is going to stop there and not let you lower the victim anymore.
 
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  • #19
I was looking at the butterfly set up and I like it except for the knot itself. So say you have lower someone and they have a friction saver installed the knot is going to stop there and not let you lower the victim anymore.
why would they have a friction saver installed on an SRT line? ;):P
 
Yes, the only reason for the biner to be hard to pull out would be of the grigri slipped but it still shouldn't be that big a deal.
 
Wow, I like that hitch! Still not clear how it fits into this application. What's the purpose? The GG will be clipped to the trunk-wrapped sling directly. Is it like a collapsable stopper knot back up in case the GG slips?
 
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