Types of friction savers?

Try this page, it gives a good overview including the ART Rope Guide (the Sherrill web site doesn't allow links to internal content):
Friction Savers

-moss

How to install your pulley-friction saver from the ground
1. Throw a throw line over the limb that you want to be your tie-in point.
2. Put one end of your climbing line through the pulley.
3. Attach both ends of the climbing line to one end of your throw line.
4. Put the other end of the throw line through the ring of the friction
saver and pull your climbing line over the branch/limb.
5. *If the tree is small enough (or your climbing line long enough), attach
the little harp on the end of your friction saver to the working end of
your climbing line right below the ring of the friction saver. This way
you don’t have to climb all the way up to your tie-in point if you don’t
have to.
6. Pull the whole contraption (climbing line and pulley) through the ring
and…
Work light and safe J,Wolter Kok (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

There was a diagram attached to this pdf file but I do not know how to copy it into this post so you have to figure it out by yourself or better with assistance from someone that owns a Rope guide and uses it regualrly even better!

oldtimer wrote:

6. Pull the whole contraption (climbing line and pulley) through the ring
and…

Well, uh, for less money than this thingie costs you could just have a 2nd rope with a pulley on the end.

Well every climber has his/her techniques and what they prefer to use. Some of the more gear progressive climbers in the arborist world prefer this tool because it allows them to do a lot of work (while trimming branches) and adjustments in the tree that a traditional Rec Tree Climber does not have use or need for. I have climbed on it ( at the Rendezvous most recently) and it does significantly reduces the friction while climbing.

But, that is one of those pieces of gear that I have not been willing to pay for to add to my growing collection of stuff.

Davej wrote:

Well, uh, for less money than this thingie costs you could just have a 2nd rope with a pulley on the end.

Yep, you could put a 2nd rope over a limb, position a pulley secured to the end with your DRT rope through the pulley, tighten up the rope holding the pulley, trunk anchor it on the ground. Use a good secure way to attach the rated pulley to the end of the rope, a backed Fig 8 on a bight with a rated screwlink delta through the bight holding the pulley would be a good choice.

Beware, climbing DRT on a pulley is very different, you go up faster (much less friction) but you also can go down faster if you're not paying close attention.

Also remember that you are doubling the load on the supporting limb with this type of TIP. Make it a nice fat branch with the rope over the branch at the trunk union.

But... I'd just use a rope sleeve 99.99% percent of the time DRT. It's simple and very effective, minimizes gear and makes install and removal quick and easy.

Most arborist climbers who use rope guide-like devices footlock a doubled rope to get into the tree and then place the rope guide manually on the limb. It's the difference between the time-based demands of work climbing and the less pressured rec climbing approach. I wouldn't focus too much on these advanced false crotch techniqes, the important thing is to get many hours in the tree climbing using simple and sound basic technique. I've said this many times but it's worth repeating, look for technical solutions to problems you discover while climbing. It's pointless to try and solve problems that you haven't run into yet.
-moss