Rappelling 101

[Jay_Disarray]

i like the htp rope, but i dislike how stiff it is. makes it a bit tougher to get a bending knot to purchase on the rope in my experience.

 

[Newhunter1]

i like the htp rope, but i dislike how stiff it is. makes it a bit tougher to get a bending knot to purchase on the rope in my experience.

I agree...in fact when I rappelled out of the tree the rope was so stiff that it did not want to cooperate. It kept twisting on me...got the oplux and no problems.

 

[Jay_Disarray]

is there an effective and safe way to soften the htp rope?

 

[gphil]

Does anyone loop your rappell rope back behind tree and rappell down both strands then just pull your rope out of the tree so that you dont have to worry about braking your girth hitch loose? You would need twice as much rope but dont you need twice as much rope for SRT as well?

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[robstewart]

Does anyone loop your rappell rope back behind tree and rappell down both strands then just pull your rope out of the tree so that you dont have to worry about braking your girth hitch loose? You would need twice as much rope but dont you need twice as much rope for SRT as well?

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What I see arborists do is still use one rope but tie the other end off to the bottom of the tree. Then you’re still doing SRT but can easily pull the rope down because one end is at the bottom of the tree.




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[robstewart]

So I finally got to get out with my new safeguard. It worked perfectly. I was able to ascend with it using a pulley on my foot ascender for mechanical advantage. I kept it connected the whole hunt but released most of the pressure and lowered my weight into my fleece saddle.

To rappel down it was fairly smooth once I got the hang of it. Speaking of which just releasing the lever mid rappel I was able to hang in it while I worked on my ring of steps.

I didn’t use any sort of backup prusik either.


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[diff74]

So I finally got to get out with my new safeguard. It worked perfectly. I was able to ascend with it using a pulley on my foot ascender for mechanical advantage. I kept it connected the whole hunt but released most of the pressure and lowered my weight into my fleece saddle.

To rappel down it was fairly smooth once I got the hang of it. Speaking of which just releasing the lever mid rappel I was able to hang in it while I worked on my ring of steps.

I didn’t use any sort of backup prusik either.


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What rope are you using with the safeguard?

 

[Tr33_n1nj@]

So I’ve been rappelling for about a week now. I’m using 9mm HTP. The safeguard is very jerky. I can get down but I much prefer to switch over to Atc type device and autoblock to rapel down. My HTP does get twisted in the safeguard. I use my brake hand on the tag end to try to keep it flowing but I think that is at least part of the cause of the not so smooth ride. I’ve had 0 problems getting my girth hitch out of several different trees. Using a triangle and stepping back a little, it comes right off with a tug of the pull down line. I will definitely give Oplux a try when it’s time for more rope.

 

[gphil]

Does everyone stuff their rope in a bag or roll it up every time?

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[weekender21]

Does everyone stuff their rope in a bag or roll it up every time?

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I just do a quick hand elbow wrap and throw it in my pack.


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[robstewart]

What rope are you using with the safeguard?

An 11 mm static.


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[robstewart]

Does everyone stuff their rope in a bag or roll it up every time?

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I stuff it into my backpack unless I’m packing extra clothing etc. Then I fold it in half a couple times until it’s about 4’ long and then I drape it over the top of my pack and secure it on the sides and top.


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[robstewart]

So I’ve been rappelling for about a week now. I’m using 9mm HTP. The safeguard is very jerky. I can get down but I much prefer to switch over to Atc type device and autoblock to rapel down.

I found it jerky at first. I found slowly applying pressure and not trying to go too fast helped. I did a couple of ascensions playing with it at lower levels and I think when I put my right hand on the rope and held it like I was rappelling with a figure 8 that it was the smoothest.



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[bj139]

I found it jerky at first. I found slowly applying pressure and not trying to go too fast helped. I did a couple of ascensions playing with it at lower levels and I think when I put my right hand on the rope and held it like I was rappelling with a figure 8 that it was the smoothest.



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That's how I found it the smoothest as well.

 

[JCLINE84]

My experience from yesterday,
I received my safeguard in the mail and went to try it out in the yard. I installed in on my rappel rope and adjusted my Beal Jammy (tied in autoblock) to support me. I'm standing on the ground just leaning back away from the tree for a visual reference. While the safeguard worked flawlessly I'm still having trouble getting the Beal Jammy to catch consistently. I have wrapped the autoblock enough that I can barely clip into it and still am have trouble with it biting consistently. I untied it and tied it back in prussic configuration and it bit better but would still not automatically catch if I opened the safeguard and let go of the knot. My fear with the prussic is while descending it would catch and basically lock down causing me to either re-rig and unweight my rappel line or cut the prussic and depend solely on the safeguard (Only in emergency) I feel confident in the safeguard supporting me but still would like to figure out how to have the friction hitch as back-up/extra control for the descent. My thoughts are the same as previously mentioned that the slick sheaths that both ropes have is effecting its ability to bite due to the limited friction. Is this something that typically gets better as the ropes get more use and broke in? Or should I expect the same issues to remain?

The safeguard is holding all of the weight and not allowing the jammy to grab the rope. It takes tension on the rope for a friction hitch to grab the rope. If you were using an atc device the friction hitch would bite the rope no problem. With a grigri or safeguard you dont use a friction hitch. Instead you tie off your tag end of rope when you stop on the descent. Here is a link showing how to do that. https://www.petzl.com/NL/en/Sport/Tying-off-the-GRIGRI-to-have-your-hands-free

As far as stopping on the descent with a belay device and not using some type of backup, such as tying it off, I have never had an issue either. But it is irresponsible to give the advice that you dont need to do it. Because it is a device, and devices fail. Everyone must be responsible for their own safety when they are off the ground. I personally dont tie off every time but I realize that when I dont use a backup of some sort I am placing my life in the hands of a man made device that could fail at any time.

 

[bj139]

I have also tied an overhand on a bight at times. The direction of the knot is important as it is on the tieoff method from Petzl. Make sure you get this right or it will not stop you.

 

[beej32]

I have also tied an overhand on a bight at times. The direction of the knot is important as it is on the tieoff method from Petzl. Make sure you get this right or it will not stop you.

That looks to be a slip knot rather than an overhand on a bight. And I’m no expert, but I think the slip knot would be a really bad choice as a safety backup

 

[bj139]

That looks to be a slip knot rather than an overhand on a bight. And I’m no expert, but I think the slip knot would be a really bad choice as a safety backup

Maybe my terminology is not right, thus the need for the photo. Look at the knot closely and you will see if one end is pulled it will tighten. If the other end is pulled it will slip out. It is the same in the Petzl diagram on their site which was posted above.

 

[mattsteg]

Maybe my terminology is not right, thus the need for the photo. Look at the knot closely and you will see if one end is pulled it will tighten. If the other end is pulled it will slip out. It is the same in the Petzl diagram on their site which was posted above.

That's not a safe knot as-tied and shown.

 

[bj139]

That's not a safe knot as-tied and shown.

Please analyze and explain. I just looked at the Petzl diagram more closely and they don't even use a full knot. Yikes.