Leather rope protector sleeves

Dick Flowers in his book recommends the use of leather sleeves to protect the rope and tree. He also mentions a source of Lighthouse Leather in Maine. I had ordered some from there a long time ago and like them a lot. They come in various sizes and can be folded and carried easily in a bag on your saddle and don't take much room. They don't weigh much and are easy to install. They also provide a very good or slick surface so that the rope slides very easily using DdRT.
Does anyone else use these?
Are there disadvantages as compared to the Dan House type protector?
Why are they not as popular as the Dan House's?
Are they harder to find or don't last as long?

I see that many have read this post but yet no replies so here is my two-cents worth.

Pros for leather: bends around smaller limbs; unique sound when used; half-round shape makes them not slide down the rope when removing; excellent grip to the bark.

Pros for rope sleeves: metal core reduces friction more; exterior cover grips well enough but slides when needed; can be ordered to any length; can be used for permenant swing installations.

Cons for leather: more friction; only available in one length; can not be used for permenant swing installations.

Cons for rope sleeves: outer cover will get damaged if abused; weighs a little more.

See you at the top,
Dan

Leather vs. Steel. Pros & Cons,
2 cents worth it is. . .

I started using leather a few months ago.

Anyhow. . .
I assumed leather would be too soft and short lived. I was somewhat mistaken. The sleeve I was introduced to was relatively stiff and thick. Additionally, the opening is larger than on a 3/4" steel sleeve, allowing you to pull a splice through the leather sleeve if necessary, (a nice feature). The leather sleeve provided a smoother ride than the steel unit but didn’t seem too much faster, (i.e. similar overall friction).

Removal from tree. . .
When yanking one of these things out of a snug crotch on a close limb, say 20’ or less, I’d rather get “tagged” with leather than steel. The leather is a bit lighter and a hole bunch softer. <klonk!>

As for longevity. . .
I cant say how well a leather sleeve will hold up (especially in wet weather) since the two I am using are still quite new. I do know that after 3 years of use under all conditions the bullet-proof nature of the Dan House Rope Sleeve has come through.

One place a steel unit surpasses leather is. . .
In a tight crotch the Dan House Rope Sleeve will protect your line from a “pinch” when loaded. Unlike leather, steel will hold it’s shape. You may unintentionally get your tree saver stuck in a tight crotch but at least you will not get the rope stuck. I have climbed a few American Elm’s here that seem to have nothing but narrow “V” crotches. A jammed line makes for a long day of “equipment rescue”, no thanks, stick with the Dan House Unit here.

Summary. . .
So, instead of switching from steel to leather, I carry both. More junk & more weight to lug to the climb site.

Will Climb For Gadgets,
Electrojake

The school uses both types. Leather works best on small branches. They do not tend to slip off the smaller branch settings. The pre-formed leather sleeve does much better staying in place than flat leather sleeves.

The larger branches get the House Sleeve. Preformed leather sleeves work poorly on large diameter branches.

Leather sleeves seem to stay up better when the tree is wet.

I've been using a few of the Lighthouse Leather ones for a few years. Even got one left up in a tree overnight, in the rain (not me, someone I lent it to). They are lightweight and flexible, but over time have collapsed /flattened so that it is always a bit of a chore to thread your line through. Because of this cramping, I've also had difficulty having the saver stay on the limb after placement but still pulling unloaded line through.

Sherrill's may keep their shape better and not have these problems. My current favorite sleeves are the Su-sleeves from Elliot in Taiwan -similar to the House, but lightweight, super flexible, grippy ribbing.

Harv

How much wear have you put on the Su sleeve?

I had a little problem threading my 11mm line through it. A tightly taped rope end helped get it started better.

I've mostly been using the thick pre-formed leather sleeves from Sherrill. Seems to work OK on the range of branch sizes on the trees I encounter (a lot of large pines, and a smattering of mid-sized deciduous), and I never have any trouble getting the things to stay on the limb once placed. Haven't experimented with wet performance.

The main problem is that they are so stiff that it can be really hard to pull them over branches under some circumstances -- they sometimes have to swing up and lever up a bunch of rope in order to get in place, which requires some really hard tugging. Usually the best solution is to get a bit of momentum with the sleeve a foot or so below the branch, so that the rope coming up also has some upward momentum.

I started out with a Dan House Sleeve several years ago, and still have my orginal. It is holding up great!

I purchased some leather sleeves a couple of years ago, after about 9 months of climbing the stiching and rivits started to come apart.

I have also found that there is less friction with the House sleeves. The leather sleeves seem to be much noiser while under weight, which can be quite unnerving for first time climbers. As they get closer to their anchor the squeeking gets louder and their nerves get thinner.

I have currently been climbing on the Su Sleeves ( for about 7 months) and agree with Harv, they are treemendous!

Also, I always lower my cambium savers (regardless of Leather or Steel) the same way I install them, by using my throwline attached to the climbing rope. This gives me complete control of bringing my rope back down to the ground at a very controlled descent, no chance of "klunkin" the ole noggin. This method is safer for the climber and the tree he/she is climbing. It also prevents that chance of your rope wrapping itself on a lower branch and performing a magical knot that even Houdini couldn't get out of. It may take a few more minutes at the end of your climb, but don't we all live in tree time??

5 stars for the Su Sleeve
4 1/2 stars for the House Sleeve
2 1/2 stars for the leather sleeve
No comment on the ringed friction savers.

Originally posted by tengu
Also, I always lower my cambium savers (regardless of Leather or Steel) the same way I install them, by using my throwline attached to the climbing rope. This gives me complete control of bringing my rope back down to the ground at a very controlled descent, no chance of "klunkin" the ole noggin. This method is safer for the climber and the tree he/she is climbing. It also prevents that chance of your rope wrapping itself on a lower branch and performing a magical knot that even Houdini couldn't get out of. It may take a few more minutes at the end of your climb, but don't we all live in tree time??

I hung a conduit sleeve once (once is enough) by pulling it off the branch without throwline attached. I will only do it now if the TIP is relatively low, there is a very clear unobstructed path to the ground and no risk of damage to the tree or humans. In other words not very often.

I am curious Tengu, why "no comment" on ringed friction savers? Is there a story there? They can be a little trickier to install and take out then a sleeve but overall perform well for vertically oriented branches that are a little less diameter than what a conduit likes to bend around.
-moss

With stars in my eyes I am happy to annouce that I will be offering extra-flexible rope sleeves in the near future. My supplier requires a large order.

Watch for future posts as soon as I get them available.

See you at the top of a Mississppi Oak,
dan

Dan,

Will that be made from the same conduit as the Su-sleeve?

Just from reading the product spec. sheet and trusting memory of Su-sleeves I have to believe that my extra-flexible conduit will be the same or better.

With my exact-fit end ferrules on each end I hope to have the best combination.

NewTribe says that Elliot's sleeves were brought with him to the Oregon Rendezvous but are not going to be offered.

I hope to have the new ones available this spring.

AH the ever changing world and the world-wide connections still amaze me every day.

Dan

Saludos from Merida in Venezuela. I used the D-House saver for about 2 years and I finally retired it because I droped it one too many times. I suggest you follow Tengu`s advise in lowering the saver to prevent damage to you or the savers. I made a few new savers with Dan`s technique and they are a little bit stiffer and harder to set up when new but become easier to handle later with use. Overall I recomend this saver and will look forward to ge one of the new super flexible material ones from Dan. Rating: Good job overall and great workmanship

Peter, I have three Su-sleeves that I've used on both solo and group climbs, probably averaging about 20 settings apiece, with no apparent damage other than the electrical tape peeling back a bit.

I still use all my House sleeves. My oldest, which had the thinnest skin, has developed cracks, but is still usable. I'm looking forward to the House sleeve v2.0

I've often heard that creaking noise that Tengu mentions when approaching a stiff (Sherrill type) leather sleeve. It is scary at first until you talk your animal brain into understanding what it really is...

I like the metal ring friction savers just fine, it's just that I don't bother to set them up any more unless I'm going to be up and down the tree a few times on the same TIP (like during research work). It's just too much fuss. The leather sleeves (and, I assume, the conduit type) are just so much faster to place, especially when advancing in the tree.