TreeStuff Aerial Friction Brake

[kevin bingham]

Interesting Kevin. Even more than the Wrench?

 

Do you work with the same team day in day out or is it common that you will show up with lots of different ground teams for different companies?

It is a wrench, but yes, even more than a wrench for climbing. A wrench for climbing helps me around the tree a bit faster, but in terms of the logistics of the whole job, the rig n wrench has made an even bigger impact on my overall production. I am a small tree company. There are two climbers and two groundworkers. One is 19, the other is 64. I'm training the 19 year old for the trees. Unless it's a very big tree, the portawrap stays in the truck. The climber is up and at it. The groundy can take the load and then pass the lowering line to the climber who lowers it while the groundie handles it. We have been breaking up into two crews of two more often since we started Ariel rigging. Before, it was always nice to have two on the ground, one man running the Porta wrap and the other managing the limbs as it came down. The whole job runs smoother without the portawrap. It also means we can smash things and fill up the yard as the groundies no longer need to be able to access the trunk of the tree and the Porta wrap. We fill up the yard and clean up after its all done. The other thing with the rig n wrench is being able to tip tie limbs and have the groundies able to pull the limbs into the hole. Yeah, I really can think if a tool that has had such an impact on my day to day production. Mind you, my trees are mostly not in the huge category.

[Mick Dempsey]

Errm, yes a couple of pics would be nice, though I do get what your saying...

I never would of thought of doing something like that myself, but seems such a simple solution...

 

I'll be trying the simulate that system at some point during the weekend..

 

Thank you very much Mick, been a puzzle I've been thinking on for a while..

 

Lost the pics! I look again later.

[kevin bingham]

Lost the pics! I look again later.

 

That is pretty slick, I've done that using a stack of slings and non locking caribjners, pulling through the caribiner, losing the sling and biner. never have tried just a crotch, have you ever misjudged the balance and had the rope fall out of the crotch? I will play with that, definitly saves a sling. Doing that gives you mechanical advantage as well.

[RC0]

The Ariel friction gadgets are good for reducing the multiplying effect on a fragile tree. The shortcomings have been pointed out already....not to mention that if you need to tighten something right up, the friction will them work against you. The rig n wrench set up, is unique though....in that it's frictionless when you pull, but then drags when you release. I generally work with just one other guy now days, so it's really easy for me to take over the rigging line while he's maneuvering the load. Throughout the course of a job thus makes up for a lot when you're a man short. It's not for huge prices or anything like that, but when there's only 2 of you it's less likely that you want to be rigging huge prices anyway. We love it. And I'd recommend it to anyone above any of these other Ariel brake things in terms of merit.

[Mick Dempsey]

That is pretty slick, I've done that using a stack of slings and non locking caribjners, pulling through the caribiner, losing the sling and biner. never have tried just a crotch, have you ever misjudged the balance and had the rope fall out of the crotch? I will play with that, definitly saves a sling. Doing that gives you mechanical advantage as well.

 

Slings and krabs would be better, but it's usually done (by me anyway) as a spur of the moment thing, if the groundie is emptying the van or otherwise distracted.

So I wouldn't have any slings on me.

 

Any dropped off? Probably, but I'd never do it over a high value target. Usually just to prevent a limb from "spronging" into something or to lay it onto a shrub rather than smash it.