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Oplux / rescue tech | Custom length 7mm vt prusik from Bluewater ropes.

S

sojourner

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Oct 14, 2014
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Since last year (when I purchased oplux for lb and tether), I have been going back and forth to find the best/safest friction hitch cord. I have tried oplux, 6mm trc, and now a 7mm vt prusik.

Pic shows from left
Trc in a distel = 15.5 kN mbs - knot weakness
7mm vt prusik in a distel = 22.6 kN
Jammy in a klemheist = 22 kN
Cut jammy in a distel = 22 kN - knot weakness

Initial usage of 7mm vt prusik in distel is very good. But I think that if the length was shorter, it would be ideal for 8mm rope (taking less wraps to hold tight and release easily with a tender).

I reached out to BlueWater ropes asking about custom length.
They will do that for me, but charge $30 setup charge, and adjust price per each based on length (original costs around $25). And I have to order at least 10.

I am going to do more testing this weekend and determine a length based on a good number of wraps for a distel hitch.

With that, and a price I find out next week, would anyone commit to purchasing a specific amount from me (I would not profit on this, just get the first group purchase).

I would be definitely in for 2 (maybe 4), but definitely 2.

If all goes well, maybe [mention]DanO [/mention] could run with it and keep all us 8mm rope users supplied. Unless he wants to take the reigns right now.

Also [mention]Red Beard [/mention] will be happy, there is no glow under a black light on the vt prusik.

Thoughts, interest, concerns, commitment?











97c7dec3faef09ea3834d5cfd5348e5f.jpg

af52d40e45a43488fd8bc49ac280c5c6.jpg
 
Vt's need to be tuned for good performance, they're not really a plug and play hitch like others that are commonly used. Make one with termimation knots so you can adjust the length before committing to a fixed length
 
brydan said:
Vt's need to be tuned for good performance, they're not really a plug and play hitch like others that are commonly used. Make one with termimation knots so you can adjust the length before committing to a fixed length
Click to expand...

The name of the product is vt prusik, not the valdotain tresse knot.
The pic I show, shows the vt prusik cord in a distel hitch configuration.

And my desire to get sewn eye to eye ends is to not suffer strength loss based on using a knot.

Am I missing something wrt your input?
 
10-4, admittedly I had VT hitch on my mind and didn't look closely at the pics. Sorry about that.

FWIW, 22.6 KN is strong enough to not worry about knot strength reductions. Arborist ropes for example are specified for a min of 24 KN, because that's proven empirically to be plenty strong enough given knots, abrasion, wear and tear, tight bend radii, etc. In other words, the safety factor is built into the spec. There's nothing wrong with the extra strength from splicing but isn't necessary with sufficient spec
 
Thanks for the input [mention]brydan [/mention]

With the approx 22kN is good enough, then it looks like the TRC is not at the same level as 7mm vat-prusik and jammy.

Even with that, I have had issues in the past where I put weight on the tether and eventually the distel would slowly slip. I am not seeing that with the vt-prusik.

I’d still like to keep this open to try and get enough people so we can some custom length vt-prusik. If not, then I guess I will just run standard length and deal with the longer hitch.

Anyone else have any additional input?
 
Definitely interested...

TRC seems to bite a little too hard on Ultratech 5/16 for my liking. Removing a wrap out of my distel was not enough friction to work.
 
I also have the sewn 7mm VT. I have tried it on my TETHRD Tether, works great from my limited testing. Have not tried yet on 8mm Oplux.
I also have the Beal Jammy from Dano (think 5.5mm) that locks up like a drum, still playing with tenders though, have some tips from here I still need to try with both of the DanO tenders.
 
tmattson said:
I also have the sewn 7mm VT. I have tried it on my TETHRD Tether, works great from my limited testing. Have not tried yet on 8mm Oplux.
I also have the Beal Jammy from Dano (think 5.5mm) that locks up like a drum, still playing with tenders though, have some tips from here I still need to try with both of the DanO tenders.
Click to expand...

If you can, could you try the vt-prusik on the oplux with a distel hitch and let us know what you think (weight and number of wraps).

I’ll be doing that this weekend with a different number of wraps for tether and come back here with my results.
 
Assuming the same number of wrap's, and same MM rope's, does a distel knot have a stronger hold then a "valdotain tresse knot", all things equal?
 
tmattson said:
Assuming the same number of wrap's, and same MM rope's, does a distel knot have a stronger hold then a "valdotain tresse knot", all things equal?
Click to expand...

I have been told that the VT is fussy and has longer length. I tried it exactly one time and found that it was indeed fussy. I had to be certain to dress it properly almost every time. It definitely was not for me.

Your mileage might vary, but the distel has been good for me. I am a heavy guy, 275 - 300 depending on time of year. The distel configurations I have used have never locked up on me, easy to tend and easy to tie. And never slipped on me (with the exception of the jammy when first using it).
 
sojourner said:
I have been told that the VT is fussy and has longer length. I tried it exactly one time and found that it was indeed fussy. I had to be certain to dress it properly almost every time. It definitely was not for me.

Your mileage might vary, but the distel has been good for me. I am a heavy guy, 275 - 300 depending on time of year. The distel configurations I have used have never locked up on me, easy to tend and easy to tie. And never slipped on me (with the exception of the jammy when first using it).
Click to expand...

I have that issue with any hitch and the VT Prusik Cord. I have to make sure to dress them well before loading.

I got the Valdotain tresse to hold the best of any with the least amount of dressing with that cord.

A distel had to be dressed very well to get it to tighten up.
 
Last edited:
Buckshot1822 said:
I have that issue with any hitch and the VT Prusik Cord. I have to make sure to dress them well before loading.

I got the Valdotain tresse to hold the best of any with thebleast amount of dressing woth that cors.

A distel had to be dressed very well to get it to tighten up.
Click to expand...

That is interesting. We have definitely had different experiences wrt the vt-prusik 7mm cord.
 
sojourner said:
If you can, could you try the vt-prusik on the oplux with a distel hitch and let us know what you think (weight and number of wraps).

I’ll be doing that this weekend with a different number of wraps for tether and come back here with my results.
Click to expand...
Did a quick test with my Oplux and VT Prusik in basement. Tried both the VT and the Distel.
Distel seemed a bit better. I am about 155 lbs. Both the VT and Distel held, but even with full weight on, when I adjusted (pulled down) on the knot, sometimes it held and others it wanted to keep slowly sliding down (I held on to the tag end with a little slack in it so I did down fall to the basement floor and my behind. I am pretty sure I tied both knots properly, but I will go back and review that I had the Distel tied correctly, pretty sure I did.
I felt I needed at least four wraps and five was better. I am not sure how comfortable I would be using the 7mm VT on 8mm Oplux, at least with my little testing today. The Beal Jammy works great on Oplux , but when it locks up moving it is much harder, not sure how much a tender will help, need to play with that more.
 
tmattson said:
Did a quick test with my Oplux and VT Prusik in basement. Tried both the VT and the Distel.
Distel seemed a bit better. I am about 155 lbs. Both the VT and Distel held, but even with full weight on, when I adjusted (pulled down) on the knot, sometimes it held and others it wanted to keep slowly sliding down (I held on to the tag end with a little slack in it so I did down fall to the basement floor and my behind. I am pretty sure I tied both knots properly, but I will go back and review that I had the Distel tied correctly, pretty sure I did.
I felt I needed at least four wraps and five was better. I am not sure how comfortable I would be using the 7mm VT on 8mm Oplux, at least with my little testing today. The Beal Jammy works great on Oplux , but when it locks up moving it is much harder, not sure how much a tender will help, need to play with that more.
Click to expand...

I appreciate your tests. I will definitely add to them this weekend.
I guess I will represent the heavy set saddle hunter.

I want to find a good number of wraps that will support a wide range of weights.

Again, thanks.
 
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