Hitch climber.

[mark_goldfinch]

Hi all,

Two weeks ago I switched from Prusik to a hitch climber pulley on my main line and im having a few teething problems, I am using a vt system as my friction hitch and its tied as loosely as I dare. Is it rite that it doesn’t self tend when im climbing the main trunk because as soon as im in the canopy it seems to work perfectly, wrongly or rightly im getting my groundy to pull the slack through when im on my main assent. Im slowly getting used to it and love descending on it. When it does self tend is it rite that I then have to set the vt by hand so it bites before I put my weight into it.

Looking forward to your comments,

cheers mark

[Dan Curtis]

It may be that its just that little bit too loose/ the cord is slightly too long. Try with other hitches too, dare I say it...the VT isn't the only hitch in the world! Other than that, getting your groundy to pull slack is a good thing, you're safer, and they're not bored while you're getting up there

[Backpain]

I'm no expert but i think you need to find the perfect combination of friction line to main rope and then the length / type of hitch. The swabisch always looks like a nice knot to me. Tried a few combinations but still climb on a prussiks.

[Mark Bolam]

The self tending thing is overrated IMO.

 

I now prefer to set my VT so it grabs every time without me 'setting' it.

 

Like you, my groundie tends slack during ascents anyway.

[will.morris]

Mine generally won't self tend until I'm a fair way up and the rope below me is going straight (i.e not sat on branches), it does'nt bother me though. Mine grabs reliably but I always set it as a habit just to be safe,probably not necessary but its piece of mind!

 

How do you tie yours? (no of wraps/crosses/length)

 

Its useful having the slack pulled through by your groundy, much safer especially when its a wet slippery stem.

[WorcsWuss]

I gave up very quickly on getting mine to self tend, prefer to have a responsive hitch and pull a bit of slack though than it not grabbing when I need it to. A foot ascender is the solution if you want to avoid tending slack manually after every few pulls.

[Czlowiek Drzewo]

used it with distel then Vt, But Scotspine1 showed me Swabish and it bites a lot better. the Vt needed to be dressed more and the distel was to tight.

 

Was using a 8mm ocean polyester to 11mm line before which worked good..ordered wrong size ( 10mm ) of ocean polyester and used it on 11mm line today..kept slipping.

[Old Mill Tree Care]

The self tending of an HC system is bull. I you want self tending, get a Lockjack, Spiderjack or Unicender.

 

Otherwise, get your hitch knot set up so it is reliable enough to grab every single time so that you are not worrying about it. It's still essential to check a VT knot continually and one of the most important elements of the system is the compatability of the rope and hitch cord together. There are a few previous threads on this subject that you could search for.

Once you've got that sorted, buy a Pantin.

 

 

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[Marc]

The self tending of an HC system is bull. I you want self tending, get a Lockjack, Spiderjack or Unicender.

 

 

 

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Agreed, although when high enough with a vt set just right and the tail right below you with the wind in your favour it can self tend nicely, and its wise to grip it to make sure it does grab again. But its best not to get hung up on it self tending.

 

I like my vt hitch to grab reliably, i try to set it so that its just on the cusp of not grabbing, this will make it always break smoothly. The VT certainly takes a lot more patience to get right but there are few hitches out there that can match it.

If my cord length is not quite right i'll just tie a knute.

[Paulfreebury]

I tie mine like this, it doesn't tend so well but it grabs every time, it's a copy of Drews setup