Hitch Climber Prusik Length

[tylerk]

Hello everyone, new poster but been lurking around, but let's get to it.

I've been climbing for only a short while and started off with a hitch climber ddrt(i think thats correct) setup. It's been working out. I don't care much for the friction at the tie in point waiting for the rope to rotate as I'm limb walking, but that's for another day.

Basically I have a standard setup, 1/2 rope 8mm eye to eye, but my eye to eye seems too long. I've looked long and hard and no one really explains the lengths of these for the setup. I have two cords, one is 37" and the other is maybe 35". My problem is even after wrapping the cord in a VT and it looks sloppy as i ascend. Also i lose some of my distance climbed as the cord sets.

So here's the question. I think I'm going to buy another eye to eye, can I use one short enough that it sits right above the hitch climber so that the hitch climber immediately pushes it up?

 

[greengreer]

You could use a different hitch that has less sitback than a vt. One of my favorites is a michoacan. 30" seems to be a fairly standard e2e length. The best thing to do is buy a few feet of a few different cords and see what works best for you as far as cordage, length, and hitch configuration. Just tie fishermans knots instead of the spliced eyes.

Also buy or build a friction saver, that will lessen your efforts tremendously.

 

[acer-kid]

Also buy or build a friction saver, that will lessen your efforts tremendously.

Well.... It can. As far as hitch response upon paying out slack. Or even coming back from a limb walk eating slack.

Let's not ignore the fact it takes more upper body strength to carry your load with a f/s, and on too of that, you'll burn thru hitch cords faster. Or, at least I did. Dependant on climbing style, I suppose.

 

[benjo75]

My hitch cord is 30 inches with spliced eyes. I also have some that are 32 inches. I use the VT and don't have any problems with it. I tie my VT the way Dan shows on his video at Climbingarborist.com.

 

[greengreer]

Well.... It can. As far as hitch response upon paying out slack. Or even coming back from a limb walk eating slack.

Let's not ignore the fact it takes more upper body strength to carry your load with a f/s, and on too of that, you'll burn thru hitch cords faster. Or, at least I did. Dependant on climbing style, I suppose.

Yes friction can help you stay put and will save your hitchcords, but it varies tree to tree and limb to limb. It basically sucks when you are ascending, descending, or moving laterally, and is hard on your ropes.
I don't climb ddrt at all anymore except from the crane, but if I did I would definitely take a minute to setup a ring and ring friction saver.

 

[Griff93]

I climb on a VT myself. I prefer a 28" 8mm on a 1/2 line. It's barely long enough but it really cuts down on the setback.

 

[tylerk]

Thanks for the response guys, i think ill try a a length of rope first and find a length that works for me like was suggested, my problem is still being new to knots and suck that i tend not to trust my knots for life support. I know it's limiting but I've only used eye cords and i have an eye splice rope as well, but I guess if I'm going to be in a tree i need to get them dialed in and start trusting them lol. I might start with griffs setup and get a 28 inch cord to start.

 

[tylerk]

Sorry, I have another question. I see people saying double crotch, or double crotching all the time, but I can't find an explanation or video anywhere on the internet. I'm guessing it's a slang term for something else, and that's why I can't find information on it. Any incite would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[acer-kid]

Double crotching, (to me anyways) is being tied into two separate anchors simultaneously, with two separate work positioning systems. Either two independent systems (two ropes) or a second ascent system tied into a separate anchor with the tail of the first system.
That's my understanding/opinion of it anyways. I do not consider the m-method, or whatever it's called, to be true double crotching.

 

[BuckmasterStumpGrinding]

Double crotching in srt is where you go past your main tip to another tip that you may not trust as much. If the secondary tip breaks your line should still be through the main tip and keep you from falling too far. Think of it like anchor points in rock climbing.

 

[acer-kid]

Double crotching in srt is where you go past your main tip to another tip that you may not trust as much. If the secondary tip breaks your line should still be through the main tip and keep you from falling too far. Think of it like anchor points in rock climbing.

I call that redirecting?

 

[tylerk]

@greengreer you mentioned the friction saver, I just got one and I like it for less friction at the TIP, but since there is less friction does that mean i need to use another descending device to create extra friction like a figure 8 or something, or will I be fine just descending as I normally do with the friction hitch. I understand less friction points means more rope wear on and at the hitch, but would it be the point that i need to take extra measures on my decent or is there still enough friction up there that i would be ok?

 

[benjo75]

I think that would depend on your body weight, friction hitch, and the tree. Hackberry would definitely have more friction than Pine. Most of my DDrt climbing was natural crotch. Near the end of climbing DDrt I started using an adjustable ring friction saver. It definitely put more weight on my hitch causing it to bind more than I was used to. I didn't use a figure eight or Rope Wrench though. I just dealt with it as long as it was working. I would say if it's not binding too tight or slipping or doing anything stupid then your hitch should be ok. But it probably will wear on your hitch cords a little more.

On SRT when I'm making a long descent, I put a figure eight just below my hitch to take the load. I don't take the VT off, I just add the figure eight below it. Sure you could descend without it but I always keep an Eight on my belt anyway. And it only takes about ten seconds to connect it to the saddle and climb line. Then I just ease my weight into the eight and pull my VT down and basically release all of the load on it. When I get to the ground my hitch cord is just fine and the Eight is almost too hot to touch. The Eight is around $20 and lasts basically forever. Saves a lot of life on my hitch cord. And if I need to stop on the way down and walk a limb I just take a few seconds and disconnect the Eight and go as normal. The friction hitch is never disconnected.

 

[TheGoodFellers]

The munter hitch is a good option if you need to belay on a single line