Fair-Lead/Self-Tender Pulleys

[Mikey P]

Having already opened the proverbial can of worms by asking what were the major differences between semi-chipper and full chisel chains, I thought I'd throw another one in for good measure....

 

I'd like to try out a fair-lead/self-tending pulley on my climbing rig, ie, just below the Blake hitch so it tends it automatically - I tried it out on my climbing course but it just didn't feel right at the time so I didn't use it again. Now I have a bit more time, I'd like to play with it a more and see if it was just me not doing things properly or whether it really is a waste of time.

 

In its favour, I quite like the idea that you can adjust it moving back in from a branch walk with only one hand.

 

I've seen a few pulleys out there, some small, some not so small, but all of them seem, well, a bit over engineered for quite a simple task. I'm not planning to put body weight on the pulley, or use it for rigging. Maybe pulling a saw up from the ground so that's about it. All it really has to do is bump up against my friction hitch and/or nicely feed the rope into the hitch.

 

So, the question is, could I look at a simple small pulley from a garden centre/DIY shop/boat supplies store, for a few quid or am I just being a cheapskate? Should I bite the bullet and get a more expensive version from ISC or Petzl? Will this mean that I can use it more flexibly (rescues, etc)?

 

Any recommendations?

[MattyF]

a cheap pulley will do the job just as well,i have a cheap plastic alley petzl pulley that tends slack very well