1.) crookedeye - 01/15/2016

i think i'm going to get one of these, i've been reading up on them and 99 percent of the people like them..anyone have any experience with one while deer hunting? plus if using a climber whats youre strategy if the bottom of youre stand breaks away and falls to the ground and youre hanging there?

you no youre going to have to cut the rope and hopefully shimmy down the tree. youre really going to have to wrap around the tree and cut the rope/ tether...

2.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

i dont no if a rock climbing harness ..if you fell would flip you upside down twisting..kinda like bullzi when he had that tree saddle remember it almost cut off his circulation..lol
when somthing does happen you an't going to no it. you wont have time to grab the rope and hold yourself up...i guess keeping everything tight is the way to go..

3.) bluecat - 01/16/2016

There is some history on this. If I was on computer I would try to search for you. Bottom line is I think they are nice. Will try and dig up for you later.

4.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

that isnt that one thread where you guys started talking about rock climbing harnesses and ended up talking about powdered milk and life after obama..then swampy abrubtly played some video of benny hill is it??

5.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

I've been using one for a while. There's a thread on here with Bluecat and me talking about it. I think it's something like "How they hangin'" part one two or three.

With a climber, the most important thing you can do is tether your platform to your upper, but you already know that.

If you need to self-rescue, I think you have at least two viable options: Set up a lifeline, which theoretically could be done on a new tree each sit before (as) you climb, but which I would think would be more than a bit of a PITA and time-sucker, and which I haven't been able to figure out how to make work perfectly.

Or you could do what I do, and carry a second tether with carabiners. I wear a pouch with some climbing, treestand and safety gear up and down the tree, so it's always with me. The idea would be that the platform falls away, you curse a little, and then pull the second tether from your kit.

Hook up, release the first tether, dropping down the tree a short way, and reset the free tether below the secondary tether. Release the secondary tether. Drop down the tree. Rinse, lather, repeat. I've done it for sort distances to practice. It's not exactly fun and takes a little energy, but it's viable. It is a lot easier if you carry two folding treesteps with you in your rescue pouch, but you can get away without if you must.

6.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

[QUOTE=crookedeye;38223]that isnt that one thread where you guys started talking about rock climbing harnesses and ended up talking about powdered milk and life after obama..then swampy abrubtly played some video of benny hill is it??[/QUOTE]


More likely than not, it is...LOL

7.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

what kind do you have and have you tested it?? the harness not the powderd milk..

8.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Mine are a model that's been discontinued for a while, but they're similar to this:



[url]http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en/climbing-harnesses/vario-speed-harness-BD6500720000ALL1.html[/url]



I suggest you get one with a tether loop set up that way, rather than the other way you'll see on the market.

I'll see if the maker I have---which I'm drawing a blank on right now-- has something I'd buy these days and get back to you.

Bluecat bought a very light harness I'd looked at and recommended as an option, but I don't remember the name. When he gets back here, look hard at what he bought. :tu:


I've read some threads on the net, and wouldn't buy the one or two harnesses that seem to be most popular out there myself, but that's just me.

The main thing is to avoid noisy buckles on the legs (which might make contact with your seat) and to get something that's easy on/off if you need that based on the way you dress. The one I'm showing above is not the easiest if you need to put it on/take it off many times during the day, but I'm okay with it.

9.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Yes, I have hung from a rock climbing harness. Piece of cake. Lots better than dangling like a piņata from behind your shoulders, LOL.

10.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

the old black diamond vario.. thats the one i have my eye on..

11.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

what about falling hard and unexpected??

12.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Other than the color and possibly the weight, it's the exact same design as the one I use.

Edit: I notice now that Vario has a metal loop for the back-of-the-thigh straps. I doubt it can ever make any contact with your seat, but my connection is sewn. Tape is your friend, anyway.

13.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Falling: not a big deal. It's mostly on your hips and less on your crotch than a traditional harness. And no helpless dangling. LOL. Look at some rock climbing falls (videos) and you'll see there are no worries for a little bitty treestand fall, LOL.

14.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

i'm a professional roofer i see what falls can do..

15.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

I think I might have posted this one before. Plug your ears if you're averse to salty language.

16.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

CE's never heard any of those words on the jobsite...:-)

17.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

i plugged my ears..

18.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

i'm not going to be rigged up like a rock climber just a harness and my girth tree strap..

19.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

seems like the guy in the video had a control fall it wasnt an arubt fall..them rock climbers no there going to fall

20.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Keep the length short and no worries. A second tether and spare carabiners come in handy, but this is a system that can be kept very simple. You'll see some stuff out there that is overly-complicated.

Lots easier to deal with in the tree than a traditional harness. Once you try it, I bet you never look back. I always hated the traditional harness. Wouldn't use one for the longest time, and then tried all sorts of things to modify it so it would work for me. Mostly failed, at least in terms of keep the weight and bulk of my gear down.

I think this is the harness Bluecat wound up with. Very light, and probably easier on/off than mine.

[url]http://www.rei.com/product/807460/black-diamond-couloir-climbing-harness[/url]

21.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

....

22.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

[QUOTE=crookedeye;38238]seems like the guy in the video had a control fall it wasnt an arubt fall..them rock climbers no there going to fall[/QUOTE]

I see what you mean. A short connection with a rock harness is no different from a short tether with a trad rig, though.

Grabbing the tether is not necessary with the rock harness. You can find videos of guys jumping out of stands with them, simulating surprise falls.

23.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Great Benny Hill video.....LOL...I'd never seen that one. :grin:

24.) billy b - 01/16/2016

I just use a venition blind cord tied to my belt loop for a harness, man up crookedeye:bk:

25.) Dan-o - 01/16/2016

I use the Vario Speed that Swampy posted. I like it because it's light, and of the benefits "after the fall".

What I don't like about it are two things. It's a pain to put on over heavy clothing, and it's a pain to take a piss with one on when you have a bunch of clothing. Maybe if my hose was longer it would be easier.

26.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

LOL...


I forgot about that (the peeing). The harness isn't completely in the way, but it's a little in the way.

I don't usually have the heavy clothes problem some guys do, but newbies need to realize the Vario-type is a harness you step into and out of, rather than one you buckle or snap up. It's easier to do in good light and where you are not in a hurry, as in at the truck (or even at home) rather than at the tree. If one were completely spastic, which I am some mornings, he could sit down and pull it on, LOL. The good thing is you'll never know you have it on walking in and out, and unless you really are careless, it doesn't become a tangled mess.

Easy on/off is one of the benefits of the model Bluecat chose, I think, which is designed a little differently. (It's linked earlier, unless I'm mistaken.) Plus it is only 8 oz as compared to 15 or 16. If he's found anything about it he doesn't like, I haven't heard.

Hope he comes back soon so I can quit speaking for him, LOL.

27.) crookedeye - 01/16/2016

i was thinking about a tether to slow down the fall..but i guess if you keep everything snug with my hss rope i shouldnt break anything..billy i'm no spring chicken any more ..

i did hang my stand this year without a harness and linesman belt.. i was holding on for dear life, i think i pulled a mussel, never again. i'll use my hss with a linesman belt for hanging stands..

28.) Swamp Fox - 01/16/2016

Without making any modifications to your RC harness or buying any new gear, or at least any gear uncommon to hunters, simply take an easily-adjustable lineman's belt with carabiners on each end to hook to your harness belay loop (the tether loop or front "handle"). NO HUGGING THE TREE OR SLIDING DOWN! LOL. Keep the belt on your person in case you need to self-rescue from a climber.

Again, just leapfrog the tethers down the tree (Sequence: tree tether, leap lineman's belt, leap tree tether, leap LB, etc. all the way down).

29.) crookedeye - 01/17/2016

[QUOTE=Dan-o;38244]I use the Vario Speed that Swampy posted. I like it because it's light, and of the benefits "after the fall".

What I don't like about it are two things. It's a pain to put on over heavy clothing, and it's a pain to take a piss with one on when you have a bunch of clothing. Maybe if my hose was longer it would be easier.[/QUOTE]

dano theres a item out by hunterhelps.com.. they come in a 3 pack raseberry orange, hunter green and grey..apparently you tie one end to youre Do Hickey and leave the slack hang out of the upper part of youre zipper when nature calls you just pull on the 100% mole skin string..no more digging and fussing around...

30.) Swamp Fox - 01/17/2016

:laugh:



That was a missed opportunity by JB...But he was busy trying to get the Fart Baffler off the ground at the time...

"100% moleskin"...LMAO

31.) crookedeye - 01/17/2016

i would recommend you tie off before entering youre stand..its kinda like a rock climbing harness..you dont no you even have it on...

32.) Swamp Fox - 01/17/2016

LOL...

33.) Bob Peck - 01/18/2016

[QUOTE=crookedeye;38230]what about falling hard and unexpected??[/QUOTE]

Arresting a fall is only one half of the equation. Avoiding suspension trauma (dangling for hours) and safely descending is the other.

100% of the 5-point harnesses whether for rock climbing or treestand hunting are nearly identical in design. Attachment points, webbing width, double or triple sewn webbing and buckle types are the main differences. In terms of design and where it contacts your body, a 5-point is a 5-point.

Here are some descending products I've tested and would recommend:

[B][SIZE=5]DOWNSAFE DESCENDER[/SIZE][/B]





[B][SIZE=5]RESCUE ONE CDS[/SIZE][/B]



[B][SIZE=5]TREE SPIDER LIVE WIRE[/SIZE][/B]


[B][SIZE=5]
OLD SCHOOL SUSPENSION RELIEF STRAP [/SIZE][/B]

34.) Swamp Fox - 01/18/2016

A couple of things about suspension trauma: In most cases, and I believe especially all cases where the victim became or is unconscious, rescue protocol is to lay them down flat rather than prop them up, after getting them off the rope.

Second, if the victim was suspended for two hours or more with no or little ability to move about, get them to a facility capable of dialysis after rescue.

A startlingly high number of people who hung suspended die post-rescue, and while it's unclear exactly why in many or most cases, these two tips go to addressing the possibilities.

35.) bluecat - 01/19/2016

This is what I bought. I believe it is a black diamond.