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A storm in Raleigh last fall made me rethink my whole climbing setup
I was doing a takedown on a big white oak that had a major split. We had it rigged, but a gust came through and the piece swung hard into my main tie-in point. It didn't fail, but I felt the whole tree shudder. I realized my usual 1/2 inch line felt way too thin for that kind of dynamic load. The next day I switched to a 5/8 inch double-braid for all my primary rigging on big wood. Has anyone else had a close call that made them change their gear specs for good?
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black.mark4mo ago
Diana, you bring up a good point about checking the anchor setup, but does that really cover a sudden side load from a gust hitting a piece mid-swing? A half inch rope's strength rating assumes the load comes from the same direction every time, and real world forces don't always follow that. Was your old setup specifically designed to handle lateral shock loading, or were you just trusting the static strength numbers?
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diana1556mo ago
Switching to a thicker rope just because of one scare seems like an overreaction. A half inch line rated for tree work can handle huge loads if it's in good shape and rigged right. The problem might have been your anchor point or how the piece was cut, not the rope itself. Thicker gear is heavier, slower to work with, and more expensive for not much real gain. Isn't the real fix to check your setup and cutting plan more than just buying bigger stuff?
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