Tachyon/LAVA right choice for natural crotches?

KingArbor · Feb 3, 2010

Sorry for ANOTHER rope thread.
Ive been climbing on a bare bones tail tied tautline hitch since day one. Ive always used 16 strand rope (primarily arbormaster), and a natural crotch. I am young and always looking for the next best thing. The obvious next step is investing in a split-tail/micro pulley combo with a new climbing line. Ive tried a number of different hitches and setups, and ive settled on a Distel Hitch (bee line) and one of 2 climbing lines; Those being a new slice of Arbor Master, or Tachyon/LAVA.. I havent ruled out other lines but ive read great reviews on LAVA and have been itching to order a hank of it.

HOWEVER, im concerned about the durability of the smaller 7/16 rope used in a natural crotch. I have no experience with false crotch, or friction savers, though I am not ruling out using them (I am decent with a throw ball/bigshot)... Will Tachyon hold up well in natural crotches? The performance of the Kernmantle rope is appealing, but im wondering if the heavier duty ropes will suit my style better. Obviously I dont expect smaller lines to last as long, but what kind of life can I expect from it? Do most LAVA/PI guys use a friction saver? If I stick with something more abrasion resistant like Arbormaster, is 8mm or 10mm prusik cord a better performing split tail?

tree md · Feb 3, 2010

Different cords react differently on different ropes. Get what you want and try out different hitches and see which one works best for you. I haven't tried the Lava personally so I can't comment on it. I am using Poison Ivy with an HRC prussic cord. I would recommend tying your eyes until you figure out what length works best for what ever knot/combo you go with. Once you figure out how long your cordage needs to be for whatever knot you settle on then you can buy spiced eyes if you want. Tied eyes will give you more leeway to try different knots in the beginning though.

I like the Kernmantle rope for rope and saddle climbing. I can SRT or Ddrt with mechanical ascenders. It's less stretchy and the 11mm works well with my ascenders. Something to consider if you plan on doing any SRT or incorporating mechanical ascenders into your technique.

The Poison Ivy does tend to pick a little in natural crotches and will fuzz up a little but that has been no hindrance to me. Sometimes I use a friction saver, sometimes I don't.

I am using 8mm HRC and have had excellent results with it.

My Poison Ivy Rope has lasted me for three years now but I barely climbed on it the first year I had it. I was slow to incorporate it into my work because it was new to me and my more familiar 1/2" Safety Blue was more comfortable and faster for me to work with when production was top priority. Plus, the smaller 11mm rope made my hands cramp on longer climbs at first. I guess I just got used to it because I never notice any cramping anymore. My PI rope has lasted longer because I still use the Safety Blue in muddy conditions or on sappy trees but I much prefer to climb on the PI. Take care of your rope and it will take care of you.

D Mc · Feb 3, 2010

Arbormaster is a great all around rope. Tachyon has a very good feel and has replaced Velocity for me. I use 8mm Ice on either one with good results. They both work well with the mechanical ascenders I use. If you get a new rope you might want to order it with a tight eye and try the hitchclimber pulley. It makes a very tidy and efficient setup.

Dave

RacerX · Feb 4, 2010

If you're concerned about the rope lasting then you should use some form of friction saver. A leather cambium saver is a cheap and useful tool. IMO neither of those ropes is really designed for running day in and day out in a natural crotch setup without some form of protection. The $20 leather cambium saver is about as bare bones as you can get unless you want to make your own

KingArbor · Feb 4, 2010

Good advice on tying my own split tail prior to purchasing a spliced eye.. A cambium saver seems like a worthwhile investment for any rope, on any rough skinned tree.

One last question..
Ive seen others using True Blue with an eye-eye for use on the arbormaster ropes. I imagine this would perform similarly to a 1/2" blakes/tautline? Can VT, Distel and all the other friction hitches be tied (and functional) with any diameter cordage given that the host rope is the appropriate size? Im assuming that the smaller cordage is firmer and covers less surface area, there for being more sensitive and performing better with a slack tender. Is that more or less the difference between the two? Im just trying to have a finer understanding of this subject before I go buying every length and size of cordage to make my decision. Thanks for the great feed back guys.

tree md · Feb 4, 2010

A split tail is just that, a piece of tail cut from the rope to use as a friction hitch. It allows you to climb with an open system and saves rope due to the split tail taking the heat and abuse. When most tree climbers went to this system they just cut a peice of rope from the tail of their rope or some other line. They then began to develop more heat resistant tails and marketed them specifically for use as a split tail.

The prussic cord tails are borrowed from the mountaineering side of climbing as well as the french prussic knots. They are higher performance and more responsive than an older plain Jane split tail.

I believe 8mm is as small as you want to go with your cordage on 11mm line.