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New here, curious about what I should be looking for in a rope.

Newb2hanging

Member
Joined
Sep 21, 2022
Messages
93
Hi all, looking to give saddle hunting a go this year. Just snagged a trophy line saddle. The sporting goods store I got it it at didn’t carry any sort of suitable climbing rope. I hear Samson predator line is very good for the purpose of using a DRT climbing method. I was going to try and hit up an REI store and find something similar. Any suggestions on what characteristics I should be looking for or could anyone suggest a certain line I might find there?
I would just order the Samson line, but opening day is Saturday and the line would not get here by then. I’d like to get my hands on some ASAP to get some practice runs in.
I’ve been tinkering around a bit practicing the knots on some crumby rope, but I don’t feel comfortable getting very high off the ground seeming that the rope is only rated for 130lbs…aka my body weight lol
 
1. Buy only rated climbing rope from reputable sources (well known arborist or climbing supply companies.) Do not buy rope from Amazon, Alibaba, or other sources where knock-off / counterfeit or non-rated climbing rope is sold.

For saddle hunting, Eastern Woods Outdoors is a well known, reputable source.


2. Make sure you use rope that has a minimum breaking strength (MBS) that is 20 times stronger than the working load it will see. (Knots reduce the breaking strength of the rope 25% to 50%. After you factor that in, your 20X safety factor is really just 10X.) You are 130 lbs, but when you’re fully clothed and if you climb with additional gear, you need to add up the total weight and multiply by 20. That’s the MBS that the rope should have.

3. Since you’re planning to use it for DRT, select a static climbing rope with a kern-mantle construction that has a durable outer sheath and has at least 11mm diameter. (You’re a beginner and that will make it easier to handle than a smaller diameter climbing rope.)

4. SLOW DOWN AND DO YOUR RESEARCH. I know you’re excited with your new saddle and because hunting season opens in 2 days, but before jumping into hunting from a saddle with both feet, talk with seasoned saddle hunters to get answers to your questions and mentoring at a saddlehunter meetup or take a certified rope climbing class. Read everything you can on this site. The search function is your friend!

Be skeptical, conservative, and safe in your approach as you figure out your system and learn the ropes - if something sounds or seems sketchy or unsafe, it probably is. Be extra careful about following the advice of strangers on the internet (myself included).

5. Hunt from the ground until you have more time to practice your technique during daylight with someone else present to assist you in a non-hunting scenario. Ground hunting will give you the time for the Sampson Predator rope to arrive from a reputable source. And once your rope arrives, practicing with a knowledgeable assistant will give you the experience to begin doing it solo in actual hunting situations.

Stay safe!
 
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Great advice there. I started with the Sampson predator rope and Drt climbing. It is not that hard to learn and there are only a few knots to figure out. Practice before hunting is essential though.
I have since graduated to the jrb method,the knots are more complex but I like it better than the moving rope. I still use my predator rope for that though,I love the feel of it vs a smaller diameter rope. I may switch in the future to loose some bulk.
Don't ever forget the stopper knot on the Blake's tag end. And rappel slow so you keep the heat build-up to a minimum.
 
IDK where you live, but if there is an REI or a rock climbing store near you, buy rope from them. It probably won't be lite weight run-and-gun rope, but it will be climb rated. And probably good to have 50 feet of something as a back up.
 
1. Buy only rated climbing rope from reputable sources (well known arborist or climbing supply companies.) Do not buy rope from Amazon, Alibaba, or other sources where knock-off / counterfeit or non-rated climbing rope is sold.

For saddle hunting, Eastern Woods Outdoors is a well known, reputable source.


2. Make sure you use rope that has a minimum breaking strength (MBS) that is 20 times stronger than the working load it will see. (Knots reduce the breaking strength of the rope 25% to 50%. After you factor that in, your 20X safety factor is really just 10X.) You are 130 lbs, but when you’re fully clothed and if you climb with additional gear, you need to add up the total weight and multiply by 20. That’s the MBS that the rope should have.

3. Since you’re planning to use it for DRT, select a static climbing rope with a kern-mantle construction that has a durable outer sheath and has at least 11mm diameter. (You’re a beginner and that will make it easier to handle than a smaller diameter climbing rope.)

4. SLOW DOWN AND DO YOUR RESEARCH. I know you’re excited with your new saddle and because hunting season opens in 2 days, But before jumping into hunting from a saddle with both feet, talk with seasoned saddle hunters to get answers to your questions and mentoring at a saddlehunter meetup or take a certified rope climbing class. Read everything you can on this site. The search function is your friend!

Be skeptical, conservative, and safe in your approach as you figure out your system and learn the ropes - if something sounds or seems sketchy or unsafe, it probably is. Be extra careful about following advice of strangers on the internet (myself included).

5. Hunt from the ground until you have more time to practice your technique during daylight with someone else present to assist you in a non-hunting scenario. Ground hunting will give you the time for the Sampson Predator rope to arrive from a reputable source. And once your rope arrives, practicing with a knowledgeable assistant will give the you experience to begin doing it solo in actual hunting situations.

Stay safe!
Appreciate the advice. I’ll check them out. Not sure where I would be able to find any sort of seasoned person on this sort of thing around me. Hunting from the ground blows, just eager to get elevated. Lol
 
Welcome! As others have said, get good quality rope. I bought my rope from Wesspur, when they had the DRT saddle hunter package that the NYSaddlehunters were sponsoring. I think NYSaddlehunters are selling their own packages now. I got 75 feet of Sampson Predator, 180 feet of dynaglide throwline, a 14 OZ throwball and a throwball cube.

Shipping should not take too long. My advice is hunt off your old method a few times if necessary and then get in some practice with the DRT before committing to hunting off it. There is a bit of a learning curve, but it's not bad.


24-strand Climbing Ropes | WesSpur Tree Equipment
 
Great advice there. I started with the Sampson predator rope and Drt climbing. It is not that hard to learn and there are only a few knots to figure out. Practice before hunting is essential though.
I have since graduated to the jrb method,the knots are more complex but I like it better than the moving rope. I still use my predator rope for that though,I love the feel of it vs a smaller diameter rope. I may switch in the future to loose some bulk.
Don't ever forget the stopper knot on the Blake's tag end. And rappel slow so you keep the heat build-up to a minimum.
Never heard of jrb. I’ll have to look into it. Thanks for the tips though. I’ve been watching the NY saddle hunter on YouTube and they do a pretty good job of covering a lot of the basics and the important aspects of safety. It’s just kind of spread out in a lot of videos lol.
 
Welcome! As others have said, get good quality rope. I bought my rope from Wesspur, when they had the DRT saddle hunter package that the NYSaddlehunters were sponsoring. I think NYSaddlehunters are selling their own packages now. I got 75 feet of Sampson Predator, 180 feet of dynaglide throwline, a 14 OZ throwball and a throwball cube.

Shipping should not take too long. My advice is hunt off your old method a few times if necessary and then get in some practice with the DRT before committing to hunting off it. There is a bit of a learning curve, but it's not bad.


24-strand Climbing Ropes | WesSpur Tree Equipment
Yeah, that’s kind of where I’m coming from. I’ve been watching their channel and it looked fairly simple so I decided to take the jump this year.
My old method would have been hunting from ladder stands, but unfortunately I had to move and no longer have access to the land. I’m stuck hunting public this year and don’t have any sort of climber.
 
Not sure REI will have what you need, they might have accessory cord and tubular webbing by the foot, but other rope will be dynamic and sold in 60 meter lengths.
 
Yeah, that’s kind of where I’m coming from. I’ve been watching their channel and it looked fairly simple so I decided to take the jump this year.
My old method would have been hunting from ladder stands, but unfortunately I had to move and no longer have access to the land. I’m stuck hunting public this year and don’t have any sort of climber.
What kind of trees are most prevalent on the public land you will be hunting? This makes a big difference in the usefulness of Drt. Ideally you need a lot of trees with good strong limbs at the 25 to 30 foot mark. Any higher than that it will get difficult to have enough rope. Straight limbless trees are also very problematic.
 
Few good options.
 
This close to the season, I agree. Unless you have been practicing with the throwball a lot this will be tough to get down fast.
 
Not sure REI will have what you need, they might have accessory cord and tubular webbing by the foot, but other rope will be dynamic and sold in 60 meter lengths.
Hmm, yeah seems like most of their stuff is a bit to small in diameter to be ideal as well
 
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