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holdatcharlie

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Everything posted by holdatcharlie

  1. holdatcharlie
    It reminds me of something my grandad had for his hernia!
  2. holdatcharlie
    Thanks for your advice guys. But I would have thought that here would be the one place you could get safe gear from a responsible seller. Adam - climbing equipment shops are a bit thin on the ground here in North Lincs! Where do you go to try gear?
  3. holdatcharlie
    Hi. Anyone got a good, used climbing harness gathering dust in the garage, shed or back of the truck? I've been rec. climbing for about two years and working on the trees in my garden. I got a well-used Petzl Navaho harness off ebay as a starter but its not really designed for climbing trees. It doesn't have a separate top belt so when I get a few bits on the harness it tends to want to pull over my hips. So, I'm looking for a good quality, used, 'proper' harness. I don't mind if its a bit scruffy so long as its safe! As a rec. climber I'm not going to be using it every day and all day and obviously can't get the VAT back on a new one or offset the cost against tax. I'm 12 stone with a 33" (jeans) waist. If anyone has anything suitable and doesn't want to get stung for ebay/paypal fees drop me a pm with details and pics if poss.
  4. holdatcharlie
    At 63 my motto is "If you stop - you die" After dealing with awkward clients most of my life I used to think: "There's nowt as queer as folk" (its a northern thing).
  5. holdatcharlie
    Wolter. So your answer to my original question is: the friction hitch will not become extinct, it will always be there as a back-up, but it will not be your first choice. Not extinct but part of evolution.
  6. holdatcharlie
    Anybody else find these really useful? Cut across the tube to make strong 'laggy' bands of all shapes and sizes! 1" wide bands from old car tubes are good choked through tarp eyes for trailer covers. Or choked through a loop on the end(s) of a rope for a makeshift bungee. Smaller tubes off a (racing) bike are good for putting over a bight of rope to keep it tight against a karabiner. Mountain bike tubes are a bit bigger and make slightly larger bands. The beauty of them is that you can cut them to whatever width you need. Bike tubes make good grippy sleeves for tools too. They are all good for keeping tools together or to quickly tie the neck of a sack etc. I first discovered them when I used to beach fishing. 1" long racing bike tube strip over the thumb meant casting with a multiplier reel was a lot less painful. Anyone got other (non-smutty) uses.
  7. holdatcharlie
    What were you doing wrong?
  8. holdatcharlie
    With the imminent arrival of the zigzag to join the mechanical ascender and descender, the spiderjack and positioner - is the end of the 'old faithful' friction hitch nigh? Will these slick mechanical marvels oust the quirky, fiddly friction hitch with it's bewildering combinations of knots, cords, diameters and systems? Will the Hitchclimber system be the swan song of the 'old school' of climbing? Or, is it that reliability; that flexibility; that variety; that 'quick to fix'; that very 'tuneability' of the friction hitch that will make it the first choice for the next generation of arborists?
  9. holdatcharlie
    Hi. I climb mainly for fun (and to maintain my own trees) - so I can't justify investing in some of the exotic hardware that I read about on Arbtalk!. I've always used a simple whiptail and blake's setup. I have experiment with a VT but (from what I read) it seems to need a pulley for that type of hitch to work best. So, what pulley would you guys recommend for the VT (and other similar hitches) for someone like me who climbs on a budget? I have been looking at Hitch Climbers (maybe unnecessarily complicated - but then maybe also very versatile). A Pinto - seems kinda expensive compared to the HK. The ISC fix-sided pulley looks nice and cheap but I have read it only takes a max. of 12mm rope. Or maybe one of the Petzl pulleys? Any advice will be very welcome.
  10. holdatcharlie
    What's the advice on leaf litter? Burn - not mulch or compost?
  11. holdatcharlie
    Yes. Its one of mine. I have a large garden (1.1 acres) with fields on 3 sides. The hedgerows (mainly hawthorn, blackthorn, ash and rose) contains several large ash trees. Ash grows like weeds around here - but maybe not for much longer! They are definitely bees and its a live tree. They have nested there a couple of years. Before that it was a starlings nest. The cones didn't stay there long. Something got them - squirrel, rook or magpie. I usually get wild swarms of bees in the shrubs. Got a local bee-keeper in one year as domestic stocks have been devastated. That was a laugh! Him up this hawthorn tree trying to isolate the queen (no - not that one) and persuade her to go into his box! Apparently if you do this the rest will follow. Wouldn't dust bees but have wasps and hornets. they don't like their nests being cut by hedge-trimmers. they are straight at you!
  12. holdatcharlie
    Anyone seen this sort of thing before. Found it in an ash tree this summer. I think they must have been short of dormitory space!
  13. holdatcharlie
    Thanks all for your suggestions. I think I will experiment. Obviously with DdRT the hitch goes round the doubled rope which gives the rope a section of (roughly) 13mm x 26mm. So the friction cord is in contact with more of the climbing rope. A VT, which is easy to advance, would seem a good hitch choice. DdRT has the advantages of SRT - quick access - but also gives the option to use the rope dynamically once in the tree without having to have it untied from the ground. Although leaving the SRT rope in the tree provides for a quick exit if necessary. Like hornets! What do you guys do for bees and hornets? Dust the nest and take an early lunch?
  14. holdatcharlie
    So the key is the hitch cord - not the knot?
  15. holdatcharlie
    My climbing rope is 13mm Marlow Gecko. How does that fit in the soft/hard theory? With DdRT (as opposed to SRT) do you have to use fewer turns on hitches - for harness hitch and footloop?
  16. holdatcharlie
    What do people think is the best hitch to use for DdRT - that is two ropes static climbing - not dynamic. I see it in TCC but is that old school? It looks useful as you can then use the rope for regular DRT dynamic climbing. I tried a Blakes and Prussik but they seemed a bit too grippy
  17. holdatcharlie
    Will do - sorry.
  18. holdatcharlie
    Another one for you. What do people think is the best hitch to use for DdRT - that is two ropes static climbing - not dynamic. I see it in TCC but is that old school? It looks useful as you can then use the rope for regular DRT dynamic climbing. I tried a Blakes ans Prussik but they seemed a bit too grippy.
  19. holdatcharlie
    Hi. I mainly climb trees for fun and am fortunate to have many large trees in my garden. Is it good practice to use one rope for double-crotching (for limb-walking)? That is - rope eye from harness to crotch A then back to harness (via Prussik1) then out to crotch B and back to harness (via Prussik2)? Or, is it easier/better practice to use two ropes?
  20. holdatcharlie
    Thanks for that. Sounds good advice.
  21. holdatcharlie
    Does this work with moles? They can be a bit crafty when it comes to traps. I have had more success flushing them out with the hosepipe (after sticking a spade in the 'old' side of the run).
  22. holdatcharlie
    The belay idea was more 'fall arrest' than belay in the rock climbing sense.
  23. holdatcharlie
    I have a Samurai hand saw. But I wish I had got a Silky.
  24. holdatcharlie
    Not specifically 'Rock' climbing gear. 13mm ropes. Whiptail with Blakes to climbing line. 2in1 lanyard. Biners. Figure of 8 descender. Prussiks etc. Many tree climbing techniques and gear are common with rock climbing aren't they?
  25. holdatcharlie
    Thanks for your input - particularly for your concerns about my safety. Believe me - I will be very careful and treat the job with respect. I will SRT up to my working point and look for good, safe, high crotches to work from. I will probably have someone on the ground to belay me and double-crotch for the limbs. I will keep the pruning to the minimum. Any other work can wait until I have practised more with my rigging techniques. Thanks. Charlie.

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