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Here we go ...


As mentioned in another thread, the undervalued and humble sling.

We love them, we need them all the time.

Where to start,.. is the only problem


I use one a lot for bits that are too big to hand hold so I can cut them then deal with them at leisure.

Foot loops

Hand loops

Holding branches

Pulling branches

Temporarily holding cut timber to the tree while you shuffle about before throwing it downwards

Tying in a ball and throwing at groundie

Tying to various branches using a rigging plate

Connecting small lowering pulleys to branches

That almost covers it Tom...

A thing which can be thought about is holding with the sling to avoid getting all wrong handed.... as in having an arm over the saw and ending up getting cut.

This can be dealt with by better work positioning, but the sling offers a useful and safe alternative, when you can't be arsed to move all around the tree just for one cut

Ah, nothing worse than holding a branch which twists as you cut and turns your arm over in a way it just shouldnt.

Tape slings are the answer, to almost everything.

Nuts to all this expensive stuff... FR Jones should just stock Duct tape, WD40 and slings of various lengths.

Sorry to edit your post down Tom.

But that would broaden the topic a bit. I've often thought of starting a thread along those lines.

All the chat about all the gear when all you need is a rope, a harness n strop and a very few odds n sods.

I guess its the few odds n sods that'll be difficult to agree on.

Any brands and common sizes people use and can recommend?

I'll dig out the receipt from Clarks today and try and get that info. I have settled on an optimum size that works well for me.

At the same time I'll organise a photo and info for some very good and cheap safety glasses I get from them.

I'll sort out my commission from Yvonne later

The slings I have at the moment are:

Lyon 25mm x 100cm Endless Sling £3.80 ex Vat
Lyon 25mm x 150cm Endless Sling £4.80 ex Vat

The Safety Goggles I like and get from Clarks are:

Optema Safety Glasses Clear Lense £2.85 ex Vat.


I seem to be going longer and longer as you can see the 150cm sling next to the one it replaced in the pic. My main use is holding branches that I cut and allow to dangle, so.. long is good for this.

I tie a knot to hold the crab in place which is the weak link at 10kn whereas the sling is 30kn without the knot. So I'm not doing mahoosive bits with it.

The glasses are wrap around and adjustable so you can squish them against your face and really keep the dust out. They have little hinges on the arms so they actually tilt to fit really snug.

Redirect used with a revolver. SRT of course.