Ropetek Hitch Hiker

[Tarzan]

Me neither pard!

 

[DMc]

Sylvia and I had a good time with Cody and his family this last Sunday. We were able to through a rope in a tree so that he could try out my HH prototype. Took him about 2 seconds to figure it out and understand its abilities.

Dave

 

[pantheraba]

Well, hooyah...cool that you two got to link up.

 

[Tarzan]

I am so lucky that I have Dave and Sylvia here! They are awesome!

 

[PCTREE]

How did you like the HH??

 

[Tarzan]

It is awesome! I am a newb climber, but have been lucky enough to have Dave show me some advanced tools and techniques and when it comes to srt this is the most simple, compact and straightforward tool I have used. I really can't wait to work in a tree with one!

 

[woodworkingboy]

I was recently working with the hot shot Japanese climber that is an inspiration to all of us over here. He recently purchased a rope wrench and is much digging it, he informed. I'm anxious for him to use the HH as well. The guy really knows his stuff in a place where such information is quite limited. An aggressive seeker of abilities for sure.

 

[Oldmilltreecare]

This is a great thread, it's exciting to be able to follow a product through the incarnation process and feel the excitement building, knowing that one day soon I'll be able to climb on the finished article.

I spent eight years on a Lockjack and in February this year I converted to a Rope Wrench. We had an epic thread on Arbtalk which seems to have converted a lot of people to SRT (DMc was a great contributor) and chatter started to discuss optional hitches with the RW ie: Unicender & RW etc.
Then DMc disappeared!

A few weeks later I discovered The Treehouse by accident and found DMc all over this thread ����! Now I know why he disappeared ��

Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing the RW ZK2 but the HH is captivating. To have the device under the hitch makes perfect sense to me as I've always found the RW to be a slight nuisance flopping around with the necessity to set it up the rope to avoid the hitch knot binding. Don't get me wrong, the RW is a truly brilliant device and an impressive leap forwards as a trail blazer.

As I have not seen or used one I can't offer feed back but I can make one comment. IMO, for a device to be able to satisfy the British (& probably European) market it needs to be able to flow easily from DRT to SRT to DRT. Reason for this is that our trees are not massive, therefore we mainly climb the tree DRT then switch to SRT at the TIP. The slick pin on the RW facilitates this perfectly.
It looks to me as though when on a DRT set up, the HH will sit neutral when not needed and bite when needed. Is this the case or have I missed something?

 

[SouthSoundTree]

I'm hoping to get some welding done today. My friend doing the welding has the tools to slightly upsize the opening of the prototype HH, allowing me to fit the dogbone sent by DMc. I have a Big storm-damaged birch to prune tomorrow, and hope to fly the dogbone! Haven't worked on my own jobs for the last couple of weeks. Employees have been taking care of everything! Looking forward to some more climbing next weekend, too.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Working those cedars for two days on SRT with an F8 set up had me wishing for the HH to be available.

 

[DMc]

...Then DMc disappeared!...

LOL I'm still there....and here. I'm so confused.

... IMO, for a device to be able to satisfy the British (& probably European) market it needs to be able to flow easily from DRT to SRT to DRT. Reason for this is that our trees are not massive, therefore we mainly climb the tree DRT then switch to SRT at the TIP...

The HH does switch smoothly from SRT to DdRT. Feels as natural as can be. So you entered the tree DdRT and then switched to SRT at the TIP? That sounds backwards to me.

Dave

 

[squisher]

Yah I was thinking that sounded backwards too.

 

[rangerdanger]

Been meaning to post on here for awhile, I got a dogbone in Charlotte when I saw Paul and I must say, I like it a lot. I'm trying to divide my time evenly between the RW and HH to get a good comparison for them both. I'll post more feedback here after I have a bit more time to compare the two, but these are both great devices.

 

[kevin bingham]

I climb ddrt up the tree a lot. It easier for ascending with out a throw line. Alternate lanyard. Srt is better for working once youve reached the top.

 

[PCTREE]

Sorry for the delay in progress. My machinist has been super busy so we haven't been able to make much progress on getting more made. Anyways I have found the hitch cord that I think works the best with the HH, All Gears 5/16 TVP, doubled up with one braid inside the other. It releases really well to ascend and consistently grabs. I love it so much I think I might even supply a 40" section with every unit. Im really hoping to have some HHs made here in the near future

 

[DMc]

I climb ddrt up the tree a lot. It easier for ascending with out a throw line. Alternate lanyard. Srt is better for working once youve reached the top.

Sometimes being different is cool, sometimes it is just weird. :what:

Seriously though, one of the most common reasons to develop an SRT system is ease of entry. With the right setup walking up a rope is as easy as walking up a ladder and just as fast. I use SRT for entry and working in any tree large or small. When I go to work I bring my throw line :roll: to quickly set my rope to wherever and however I want. It is so easy and fast that I can say that the only time I will climb in another manner is when I am wearing spurs.

Dave

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Paul.. when the time comes, truly, I would like to purchase one of the two biner set ups instead of the dog bone. Just a personal preference.. ok?

 

[bonner1040]

Anyword on pricing?

 

[PCTREE]

Stephen trust me the dogbone is far superior functioning.

Boner I'm starting to think Hy with biner and hitch cord so total setup minus rope will be $160

 

[SouthSoundTree]

Paul, does that cord work across the board on all ropes? Might supplying the cord be a liability if someone uses it incompatibly (of course, of course they should test it, I'm just thinking of the McDonalds coffee held between the thighs burn lawsuit). I guess its just a matter of instructions/ warning that come with the HH at time of sale.

I don't envy the liability/ openness to lawsuits for product designers, but selling a product is a good way to make some money, rather that only when doing tree work itself.


I'm so sold on SRT that I would really be hesitant to hire a climber that isn't open to it. Its so much faster and easier, and you can use TIPs/ redirects that you couldn't with DdRT based on the way it loads the limbs. I almost did switch to a DdRT in the tree yesterday, but was able to recrotch to avoid it, thankfully. F*&% fighting friction, its a losing battle.

As far as DdRT to advance, it does have its place. I did see slick use of the fly fishing reel for throwlines in the tree. SLICK. Anybody know what brand/ model are the popular ones for tree use?

 

[pantheraba]

Stephen trust me the dogbone is far superior functioning.

Boner I'm starting to think Hy with biner and hitch cord so total setup minus rope will be $160

You know, this is probably how catchy nicknames get started. "Boner" just seems right, compared to Bonner...and only leaving out one little "n" makes it so.

 

[SkwerI]

(I'm just thinking of the McDonalds coffee held between the thighs burn lawsuit).

If you would bother looking up the facts on Google then you wouldn't be thinking about the McDonald's lawsuit. Go read the facts and then tell me why this was a frivolous lawsuit? Intentionally serving coffee at 185 degrees plus even after repeated injuries over several years is not frivolous.

 

[PCTREE]

SST good call on the TVP working on all ropes, Im guessing Im going to advise suitable ropes for the system, I have been sent quite a few 20' sections of ropes from different manufacturers and the ones that work well we will recommend. As to this being a good way to make money Im really not so sure, seriously if I were to add up all the hours Ive put into Ropetek Im sure I would have made a way better return on my time investment cutting grass However I do enjoy the creative process putting together new products. I have thought seriously about trying to get a job doing product development but other than the few products I have made I have no credentials..

My next little gizmo I would like to do is a remote control TIP so when you hit the ground you just push a button and your rope releases.........

 

[treesmith]

SST good call on the TVP working on all ropes, Im guessing Im going to advise suitable ropes for the system, I have been sent quite a few 20' sections of ropes from different manufacturers and the ones that work well we will recommend. As to this being a good way to make money Im really not so sure, seriously if I were to add up all the hours Ive put into Ropetek Im sure I would have made a way better return on my time investment cutting grass However I do enjoy the creative process putting together new products. I have thought seriously about trying to get a job doing product development but other than the few products I have made I have no credentials..

My next little gizmo I would like to do is a remote control TIP so when you hit the ground you just push a button and your rope releases.........

And for your next gizmo after the remote TIP....how about a remote-control hovercraft w/attached chipper that can chip trees from the top down? Should prove handy in crowded urban settings.....

 

[MasterBlaster]

If you would bother looking up the facts on Google then you wouldn't be thinking about the McDonald's lawsuit. Go read the facts and then tell me why this was a frivolous lawsuit? Intentionally serving coffee at 185 degrees plus even after repeated injuries over several years is not frivolous.

Damn! Did Daniel get your password? :what: