Hawk Helium Stick w/ Cam Cleat

[2Shea]

Hey guys, new to this forum here and just ordered myself a SitDrag to practice on and possibly use for some quick hunts this coming season. I have been doing a lot of reading on here and have come to the conclusion I am going to order some climbing sticks. I am going to do 3 sticks (the 30-32" model) and can't really decide between Muddy Aerolite or the Hawk Helium sticks.

My plan is to leave 2 of the sticks in the original condition, but modify 1 of the sticks with a rope cam cleat so that I can use it with the "Single stick" method for getting higher in the tree or take it solo for longer hikes to cut down weight. I know the Single Stick method doesn't have to have the cam cleat but I seem to like that style best I think. I realize the Muddy can be fitted with the cam cleat pretty easy as I have seen a few mods with it, I guess my main question is... Can the Hawk Helium sticks be modded to take a cam cleat? They are cheaper so I was leaning toward them, but don't want them if they can't be modded. I haven't seen any with this yet. I have seen some that use the versa button but none that have the cam cleat since they are so thin.

If anyone has any info on that please let me know.
Thanks guys and look forward to reading and learning a lot more from you all.

 

[kenn1320]

What is a cam cleat?

 

[flinginairos]

What is a cam cleat?

Like what comes on on the Muddy sticks.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NAUTOS-91035-AL ... 1E&vxp=mtr

 

[kenn1320]

Thanks flingin. I would not use that for single stick climbing unless you tie a tether to it. Very easy to drop a stick and the buckle/strap style will ensure it doesn't fall out of reach.

 

[flinginairos]

Thanks flingin. I would not use that for single stick climbing unless you tie a tether to it. Very easy to drop a stick and the buckle/strap style will ensure it doesn't fall out of reach.

I use the Muddy with the rope cam for one stick and it works great. The rope really helps when sliding it up the tree. I tested dropping the stick with the rope fairly loose and it grabbed the tree and stopped within a foot so I'd call it pretty safe. Just don't fully take the rope off and drop it that way :lol:

 

[2Shea]

Thanks flingin. I would not use that for single stick climbing unless you tie a tether to it. Very easy to drop a stick and the buckle/strap style will ensure it doesn't fall out of reach.

I use the Muddy with the rope cam for one stick and it works great. The rope really helps when sliding it up the tree. I tested dropping the stick with the rope fairly loose and it grabbed the tree and stopped within a foot so I'd call it pretty safe. Just don't fully take the rope off and drop it that way :lol:

This is why I want the cam cleat for my single stick. Supposed to work great, easy to use, and doesn't fall far if you drop it. Granted I'm sure it could fall to the base of the tree if you got it too loose, but so could any stick for that matter.... I just wonder if anyone has used it for a Helium Hawk stick

 

[kenn1320]

I haven't used one of those, but don't you have to pull the rope out of the cleats to loosen it from the tree? Technically aren't you suppose to tie a half hitch before putting weight on it? I have helium with lw button and rope mod, it would be very easy to oops it. Matter of fact I was on a test climb on a tree with some lean and big around. I thought what happens if I let the rope go by accident. Well I almost couldn't get it back around the tree. Do what you like, we all weigh our own risks. I put a buckle/strap back on one stick for my 1 stick climbing.

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Re: RE: Re: Hawk Helium Stick w/ Cam Cleat

Thanks flingin. I would not use that for single stick climbing unless you tie a tether to it. Very easy to drop a stick and the buckle/strap style will ensure it doesn't fall out of reach.

I use the Muddy with the rope cam for one stick and it works great. The rope really helps when sliding it up the tree. I tested dropping the stick with the rope fairly loose and it grabbed the tree and stopped within a foot so I'd call it pretty safe. Just don't fully take the rope off and drop it that way

Same here. Works great.

Dropping isn't the end of the world. Option 1: recover the stick with my mini grappling hook. Option 2: climb with backup method (I use girth hitched slings)

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Back to the OP, haven't tried the mod. I will add the required penetration is larger for the cam cleat. I havent measured the bolt but the bolt is ~1/16" bigger. Don't know if this impacts the mod

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Re: RE: Re: Hawk Helium Stick w/ Cam Cleat

I haven't used one of those, but don't you have to pull the rope out of the cleats to loosen it from the tree? Technically aren't you suppose to tie a half hitch before putting weight on it? I have helium with lw button and rope mod, it would be very easy to oops it. Matter of fact I was on a test climb on a tree with some lean and big around. I thought what happens if I let the rope go by accident. Well I almost couldn't get it back around the tree. Do what you like, we all weigh our own risks. I put a buckle/strap back on one stick for my 1 stick climbing.

No. Rope stays in cleat and the safety hitch stays. You loosen the rope slightly while on the cam and hitched and work it up the tree. Works great. Flinginairos has videos on YouTube (search guidos web, part 1, part 2). My setup is almost exactly the same. I use 1-3 sticks with 5 step aiders to get to up to 22 feet. Use 1 stick if I want to carry less sticks or go higher.

 

[DaveT1963]

I bought a rope cleat from amazon but the holes are really small less then a 1/4 inch. Having a hard time finding hardened 2 inch 3/16 bolts locally

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Re: RE: Re: Hawk Helium Stick w/ Cam Cleat

I bought a rope cleat from amazon but the holes are really small less then a 1/4 inch. Having a hard time finding hardened 2 inch 3/16 bolts locally

Try a farm supply store

 

[kenn1320]

Order them from McMaster Carr, you will be shocked by how fast they are sitting on your door step!

 

[redsquirrel]

Would this cam cleat work with amsteel?

 

[flinginairos]

Would this cam cleat work with amsteel?

It should. The cam crushes the rope just like the ropeman does. Just have to half hitch the rope past the cam and I figure it would hold fine.


Sent from space

 

[redsquirrel]

Would this cam cleat work with amsteel?

It should. The cam crushes the rope just like the ropeman does. Just have to half hitch the rope past the cam and I figure it would hold fine.


Sent from space

Cool.

So this got me thinking a little. Why not just use a cleat like on a boat?
http://www.mcmaster.com/#rope-cleats/=10t4qgm

 

[BassBoysLLP]

Re: RE: Re: Hawk Helium Stick w/ Cam Cleat

Would this cam cleat work with amsteel?

It should. The cam crushes the rope just like the ropeman does. Just have to half hitch the rope past the cam and I figure it would hold fine.


Sent from space

Cool.

So this got me thinking a little. Why not just use a cleat like on a boat?
http://www.mcmaster.com/#rope-cleats/=10t4qgm

I'd guess poor weight to strength ratio.

 

[kenn1320]

Cool.

So this got me thinking a little. Why not just use a cleat like on a boat?
http://www.mcmaster.com/#rope-cleats/=10t4qgm

Why not just use a versa button?

 

[redsquirrel]

Cool.

So this got me thinking a little. Why not just use a cleat like on a boat?
http://www.mcmaster.com/#rope-cleats/=10t4qgm

Why not just use a versa button?

Because I have to cut the versa buttons down to make them fit. Just trying to think outside the box.

 

[kenn1320]

Cool.

So this got me thinking a little. Why not just use a cleat like on a boat?
http://www.mcmaster.com/#rope-cleats/=10t4qgm

Why not just use a versa button?

Because I have to cut the versa buttons down to make them fit. Just trying to think outside the box.

I was joking Red, just really dont see any advantage to a boat cleat over the button. On a serious note, since we can use smaller diameter rope (amsteel) it only makes sense the versa button could be smaller. Its working by pinching the rope, so too big of a button may actually be detrimental to the end goal. DaveT has it working with a full size button, guess we will wait to hear how it works with your shorter button(not in a whoopie application, just the standard rope wrap method).