Yes,I had problems posting on the SRT Wassup? thread
And, TreeMachine, that wire-gate backup probably weakens your system. Because it is shorter, the wire-gate biner is taking all the load and, if it fails, then the steel biner would get shockloaded and perhaps rotate a bit making the gate vulnerable to becoming unlocked.
I see where you're coming from with that, but I must admit, it's a stretch.
I appreciate you stating the conditions under which you
would use system 'a la Nick'. Coincidentally, that mirrors exactly my conditions for ascending 'a la Nick. Do you inspect your gear each and every time you use it? I thought so, as do I. And do you take careless risks during your climbs. No. Do you double check, and then triple check your rigs before a cut, Yes. Tied in twice before cutting, yes. Point being, we don't take unnecessary risks. We think safety, and if we question the safeness of a technique, then we don't do it. MM clearly questions the safety of method 'a la Nick', and probably should not do it.
Quite honestly, I have done 'ascent a la Nick' only a few times. If I've crowned out a tree and I need to come down, I will 'a la Nick' it from up top, with two biners and then abseil, but that's the known as an 'inverted Nick'. The times I use traditional 'a la Nick' is when I need to pull a tree over. Bigshot the shotbag up, over, and trace down, and rig 'a la Nick'. Cut. Pull tree over.
When you speak of 'shockloading' a 40 - 65 kN steel triple lock, do you understand the actual forces behind those ratings? They're far beyond a static 5,400 lb, and well beyond the strength of your rope. Even what lateral forces you can subject it to 'a la Nick' are a fly's sneeze compared to what the caribiner can handle. This is heat-tempered
steel we're talking about here. As for the gate popping open accidentally, that's why we have triple lock biners with good, strong springs in the gate mechanism. Personally, I would like to see a quad-lock.
I use retired steel biners, on occasion, to pull bush stumps out of the ground using my truck and a chain. I have a short length of steel cable, thimbled at one end and eyed at the other. I wrap the eyed end around the stump, use a steel caribiner to complete the choker. Hook up chain and POW! That, gentlemen, is improper dynamic sideloading of a caribiner. Under these exteme conditions I have messed up a gate sheath, but never have bent or broken a steel caribiner. Will my weenie weight ever approximate those levels of force? Simply impossible.
This does not serve as 'proof' of steel triple lock integrity, used 'a la Nick'. We can only call it empirical observations.
Murphy, very good point about the small branch letting loose while on the ascent. That's something to
always watch out for, 'a la Nick' or any method.
ps I need to go on a short vacation, so I'll be leaving y'all for 5 days. Don't bash me too bad in my absence.
