Making prussiks

[aldo]

Considering the price of premade or for that matter any climbing gear in OZ, I thought I would try and make a couple.

I went to my local climbing gear supplier and he cut me a few lengths. I noticed as he rolled them up that the outer sheath retracts exposing the core of the line. This didn't seem right to me so I questioned him and he says, not to worry this is normal.

I am not convinced.

I ended up buying the line to practise my knots regardless. I can pull the outer sheath back to its correct length. Once at this point is there a method to fix it in place while tying off?

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[HarleyScooter]

Aldo, I just went through this, here is a link to the splice the local saw/ climbing shop said to use. I used bee-line and yes the cover will come off. They told me I had to use a double braid, class two, core dependant splice. On the example
http://www.samsonrope.com/site_files/Class_2_Double_Braid_Eye_Splice.pdf ,
they are splicing a big eye so they leave the cover on, but for the prussik's small eyes you remove the cover. Really all I did was to cut the cover off do a double bremmel with about 5" burried in the cover, lock stitched it and then whipped it.
I am just learning too so I will wait to hear coments from the pro's.

 

[canopyboy]

The prusik lines like ultratech and beeline are class 2 double braids, meaning all the strength is derived from the core. The cover moving on the core is normal on a cut end. Like you said, you should be able to pull the cover back down. If you want to hold it there on a free end, whiplock it and it should stay.

But if you're making eye-to-eye prusiks with it, you won't have a free end. Yes, a full class 2 splice would give you the best strength from your splice. But the length of the bury per the instructions you linked makes most of your e2e fat, stiff, and tough to use. Therefore the way e2es are usually made is with a locking brummel like aldo mentioned, followed with a 6" bury (this is for the core fibers only). Once you the splice is completed, pull the cover back up over the splice and whiplock the cover in place. This also locks the splice together, preventing it from working apart over time. There is no cover over the actual eye. To keep from snagging the core fibers of the eye with your carabiner, you can either dip them in a coating that holds everything together, use some beeswax, or I actually prefer to whip the eyes.

Disclaimer -- I only starting making my own e2es last spring. I've made about 20 so far out of beeline and ultratech. I have sat through a splicing class taught by NickfromWI (www.splicesbynick.com) and he does it the same way with the exception of whipping the eyes. I also make my eyes a bit smaller so they stay snug on my biners. Once you get the hang of it, it takes about 30-60 minutes to make one. I find it quite rewarding, and like the ability to make different lengths from different cord without paying the price for pre-made ones.

Here's an old thread from when I first figured it out....
Rainy Days Splicing Part 2

And a picture of one with the eyes whipped (with black thread, a bit hard to see.

 

[mcb]

have you got a pic taken from a higher angle on that setup? im curious what the upper 'biner and loop are for? never seen a setup like that

 

[Job Corps Tree]

That upper Loop should be the other end of the climbing Line ( Braded Eye in it) No Knot and the braded eye will hold 90% of the Ropes strength

 

[mcb]

ahhh.. im seeing it now.. thats for the fixed end of the climbing line. im just not used to seeing a loose attachment to the biner like that.. i always use double fishermans or anchor hitches so it threw me off, almost looked like a block/tackle sort of leveraging setup which ive used a few times to pull my tired but back up the tree!

man, that looks like a really neat, clean setup to climb with. beats the mess ive always got tangled up in front of me. nice.

 

[canopyboy]

That's an old picture when I was first messing with the hitch climber. I pretty much always terminate with a double fisherman's. But I found it would interfere with the VT sometimes in that configuration, so that shot was with a figure 8 on a bight. That put the f8 knot well above the VT and solved the interference problem. But I didn't like the sloppiness, so I went back to the fisherman's and found that if I just clipped the termination to the middle (and slightly offset) hole on the hitch climber all was well again.

Let me know how the splicing goes.

 

[mcb]

the pulley was a bit pricey at $54, but im amped to have an easier climb, its only money!

this hitch climbers guide has a picture of a nice pulley leverage setup
http://www.wesspur.com/images/pdfs/hitch_climbers_guide.pdf

 

[canopyboy]

I think there are several threads (possibly more) on here about whether the HC is worth it. I regretted it a bit at first, but have come to like it and use it constantly. And yeah, it gives you a lot of options if you want/need to use it in a different configuration.

 

[outofmytree]

Aldo if the cord you were sold is beeline it is heat resistant and cannot be fused on the cut ends as your climbing line is. We use super glue here to acheive the same effect. 3 or 4 drops will suffice and once set the outer sheath stays put.

 

[aldo]

Appreciate the comments folks. Thank you.