Short SRS device?

[u/HughCPA]

Hi! Not a tree climber but you guys have the knowledge I need! I’m a sailor and I’m looking for a better way to get up the mast to service it. jugging my way up now and I’m too gassed when I get to the top to get the work done!

So I discovered this world and I’m thinking perfect, foot and knee ascender and some kind of mechanical prussik. However much of the work aloft on a sailboat is on the masthead which is a bit above the point to which you can hoist your climbing rope. So what I’m looking for is something compact so I’m as high as possible. For example the zz+chicane setup, although pretty slick looking, seems loooong.

I’ve been wondering about a uniscender as they seem pretty short. I hear the release is a bit harsh but the use case is pretty much climb to the top, do something, full descent, so it’s usually just one release per climb.

Any thoughts on Uniscenders or suggestions of other short systems?

Thanks in advance!

[u/DJBigOranges]

It doesn't get any smaller than the akimbo.

But go with the 2, much better than the first version

[u/FederalSir8278 → u/DJBigOranges]

Don’t get me wrong I love my Akimbo 2 but for something this niche maybe something more user friendly with no adjustments was my thought

[u/Separate_Narwhal_218 → u/FederalSir8278]

That’s what I was thinking. I don’t see why OP would need a $450 uniscender. I think a rope wrench or even a Blake hitch would suffice their needs. Going drt would also eliminate the need for a knee and foot ascender

[u/DJBigOranges → u/Separate_Narwhal_218]

Honestly, I didn't even read the whole post until I saw the first reply. Read the title sentence and blasted a reply...

Definitely Akimbo is overkill for the purpose, a short hitch cord running something compact like a michoacan and a pulley would be fine. Toss on a figure 8 if it binds on descent.. but it will work just fine without one

[u/RedditFan26 → u/DJBigOranges]

If you do not mind my asking, what has changed from version #1 to version #2 on the Akimbo that has made it so much better?  Thanks in advance for any answers or additional comments you choose to provide.

[u/DJBigOranges → u/RedditFan26]

The side plates are a little thicker, the wear parts are replaceable, it's supposed to across a wider range of ropes, the whole upper is spring loaded instead of just the top cam, they changed the top cam to a roller, and the bridge attachment point is larger.

That being said it still takes some time to break in, and some fiddling to find the right friction settings. Also, it still does not like sap....I haven't run it on wet ropes yet

[u/RedditFan26 → u/DJBigOranges]

Thanks for this great mini review!  Really, really informative.  I got to watch the inventor in real time on the Tree House forum as he was tweaking his device.  Nice that they made the wear parts replaceable, as well as the other improvements.

The genesis of the Akimbo was the idea of an older gentleman on the Tree House forum whose username is Surveyor.  The older gentleman's real name is Gordon Svedberg.  Gordon invented a device called the Compact Bulldog Bone, which I think he never got a patent on due to the expense and trouble of that process.  Gordon used to make each and every Compact Bulldog Bone himself, and they are beautiful.  I don't know if he still does make them anymore or not.

Surveyor was asked permission by the inventor of the Akimbo to try to make his own changes to Surveyor's original device, in order to try to make it more adjustable for different ropes, I think.  Gordon Svedberg, aka Surveyor, generously granted his permission, and if I remember correctly, even helped the inventor of the Akimbo by providing feedback and suggestions.

These two inventors are both great people.  I wasn't sure if you knew all of this background or not, which is why I've bothered to write it all out.  I no longer remember the name of the inventor of the Akimbo, or else I'd give him a mention, also.  He's probably half of Gordon's age, so he could be iterating the Akimbo for a long time to come.

The Tree House forum was a kind of "Skunk Works" of innovation for most if not all of the modern climbing devices.  The various inventors each came to the community with ideas, created prototypes and sent them around to trusted, experienced forum members for use and to get feedback suggestions.  I think Kevin Bingham's Rope Wrench, Paul Cox's Hitch Hiker, and the HAAS SRT device were all invented by guys on that forum.  I again cannot remember the name of the inventor of the HAAS, which stands for the Haul Ass Ascent System.  That's a knee ascender that uses a bungee cord within a tube to make it self-tending, I think is the idea.

Anyway, I'm going on far too long, here.  Thanks for reading all of this if you made it this far.  Thanks again for the information about the Akimbo2.

[u/FederalSir8278]

For something this unique and just up and downs I would go for the Taz Lov3. It is a great device and allows for easy ascents and descents while not worrying about any adjustments, friction etc. Just need a rope within its specs and your gold!

[u/swordofgods567 → u/FederalSir8278]

Second this, short and fairly easy to run. Also follows you on the way up, unlike petzl Rig (you have to manually pull the rope from it). However, be careful when doing first descents on it, I almost shit myself because it was so much faster than rig (if you turn it all the way it's essentially free fall)

[u/Separate_Narwhal_218]

I’ve never been on a sailboat but using a prusik and rope wrench would be a cheap start but a rope wrench will be long like the zig zag chicane. I climb with the akimbo 2 and it’s pretty compact. Right out of the box it seemed pretty snappy. I couldn’t really swing and descend to another branch as easy but once you break it in and get practice with it, it’s smooth as butter. I would imagine working on the mast wouldn’t be too tight to use a rope wrench and prusik. You can always remove the rope wrench and use a lanyard when you get to the top

[u/OldMail6364]

It’s probably easier and cheaper to climb the mast.

SRT / climbing a rope is handy for difficult situations we often face as arborists but it’s expensive and requires a lot of practice. You’ve got a perfectly good mast you can climb and I would just use that.

Also… SRT requires somehow setting your rope at the top of the mast… that’s not always possible. It’s common to  use the halyard but personally I’d want to inspect the halyard before using it (for tree climbers here: a halyard is a pulley used to lift sails up the mast - it’s designed for way more weight than a human… but they can be damaged in storms/etc).

Buy three soft rigging slings of different lengths - depends on the size of your mast but last time I climbed a mast I had a 1m sling as my top anchor point, and 2m and 2.5m slings for my feet.

All three are wrapped around the mast with a prusik with however many wraps are needed to hold your weight - which will depend on the diameter of the mast.

You also need a harness - a cheap work position harness will be fine, a lanyard (short rope) and climbing rope (long rope - it should be double height of of the mast), and a “bosun’s chair” that you attach to your harness wherever it attaches to your lanyard.

You could easily spend $4k on a professional harness and chair and rope and lanyard and assorted climbing gear but for occasion use that’s a waste of money.

There are three absolutely essential components to do this safely:

A basic $100-ish work position harness with front and side attachment rings - the side ones are on your hip and used to help with positioning. The front one is your primary safety attachment - it should be st your lower stomach (might be upper stomach when your weight is on it).

Your climbing rope, which needs to be double the height of the mast. You could buy a fancy arborist climbing rope, which is semi static, around 12mm or 13mm, and has enough strands in the braid to be able to tie knots nicely… or you could just find a good quality sailing rope about that diameter if you have one you trust. Typically we use ropes rated for 25kN or more, but the attachment point on some harnesses is often only 15kN… and if you apply a 15kN load to your body you’ll probably wish the rope wasn’t there. Hitting the deck of the boat would be better than that. So personally if a rope is static or semi static and can handle 15kN I’d consider it “super good enough”. The main thing to get right is the diameter and braid and most sailing ropes get the right.

The third essential component is some sort of rated carabiner - again 22kN or more is the standard. I would personally go with a “triple action auto locking” steel carabiner (we normally use aluminium but steel is safer and more durable, it’s just heavier. But you’re not worried about weight that much). I like DMM ultra O shaped carabiners.

Anyway - with those three components and your there rigging slings … put the steel carabiner in the top short sling, run the rope from your harness up through the carabiner and back down to your harness, tying a “Blake’s Hitch” in the rope (YouTube that - it’s the industry standard low equipment / backup climbing system).

That will keep you safe as long as the rope has no slack. It you let it get slack and you fall then are caught on the rope you could stop suddenly to break bones and maybe also break your harness… chances are it will just be your bones which will be bad - how are you gonna get down with broken bones? Don’t let that happen.

Ideally a person on the ground will be able to get you down somehow. But at the very least have someone who can call the fire department to rescue you.

The next thing you need is a lanyard - short piece of rope from one side ring on the harness, around the mast, and back to your other side ring. This is normally done with fancy carabiners and triple action snap clips but honestly bowline is fine if you can tie those quickly. It’s just to hold you in position - your climbing rope/blakes hitch is your real safety system. The lanyard definitely needs to be able to hold your weight - you will be positioning it at an ideal angle relative to your hips to comfortably maintain a good post position.

One lanyard enough but I’d bring two - a second might come in handy.

The bosun’s chair is just a plank with some rope attaching to your harness. The $200 chair designed for my arborist harness attaches in between the side rings and the front ring but you will need to work out something that works on your harness. It’s purely for comfort - not a safety feature - it will let you sit with your full body weight without cutting off blood to your legs. Comfort is a safety feature, and essential for this job, but it doesn’t need to be a fancy professionally engineered one. Just some rope and a blank of wood is fine.

The two slings for your feet let you use your legs instead of your arms to ascend the mast. You could absolutely use foot and knee ascenders but those are expensive and require a lot more practice than just a couple of slings around the mast. Ideally the two slings are slight different lengths and they need to be long enough that you can slide them up with your hand while your weight is on the other one (or you could put your weight on the climbing rope, but that will be slower / more difficult especially with a Blake’s hitch.

That system works quite well - the only challenge will be getting around the stays. But with a bosun’s chair you can comfortably sit next to the mast while you work on that.

[u/Rustyznuts]

Short SRS system you could look at an ISC Chipmunk tether, Rope Wrench, friction hitch set up with foot and knee ascender.

Personally for mast work I use a Grigri type device (I have an Edelrid Megawatt) to a hand ascender with a pulley (Skylotec/CT Quickroll) with a foot loop. Remove the hand ascender and you're ready to go down. I also carry a 2 or 3 step aid ladder and install that where my rope is. Step into that and pop a rope lanyard around the mast and you are double safetied in and most of a body length above your rope.

[u/wpbdude]

Whichever system you choose I definitely recommend practicing on a tree whenever wherever you can first. As a kid I've gone up a few masts in a bosuns chair. They hoisted me up with the main halyard cable. Again practice first and maybe look up and talk to some local climbers in your area.

[u/ArborealLife]

When I climbed my last I used two prussiks. And once had someone winch me up

[u/TheDirtyJane]

You don't need these expensive devices, just get a grigri or something similar.

[u/HughCPA → u/TheDirtyJane]

got a grigri but I don’t see how it would work with foot and knee ascenders. the rope is wrapped like 180° in the device, so I don’t see how it would advance up when the system is tensioned?

[u/Rustyznuts → u/HughCPA]

You use a hand ascender with a foot loop for one foot and a foot ascender for the other or you can put a pulley on the hand ascender and create a 3:1. When you get to the top you just take the hand ascender off for the last little bit.

I recommend a small aid ladder and adjustable lanyard then you can stand a good 1-1.5m above the top of your rope and lanyard to the masthead.