Twisting rope

As someone fairly new to tree climbing, I have a question. My first rope was safety blue. I wanted a longer rope and I bought a chameleon rope. I climb using the DRT techniqueMy gripe about it is the way it twists when I am descending. Sometimes it gets so twisted up I have to stop and unwind it before I can continue. What do people do about this?
The Navigator

aleiserson wrote:...chameleon rope... DRT technique. My gripe about it is the way it twists when I am descending.[/quote]

Descending on a hitch?

Davej wrote:

aleiserson wrote:...chameleon rope... DRT technique. My gripe about it is the way it twists when I am descending.

Descending on a hitch?

Of course descending on a hitch sometimes twists rope a bit. A while back, there was a fairly lengthy discussion about twisted rope. I started it.

Some of the suggested fixes were as follows:

1) Before climbing on new rope, stretch it out completely, in a straight line, and give it a couple of good stretches by tying one end off and running a gloved hand down the entire length a couple of times. Do this from both ends. This is called \"Milking\", it helps to get a lot of the twist \"memory\" out of the rope that happens from the manufacturing process and from being stored in the original package for extended periods.

2) When climbing, flake your entire rope out on clean ground, or better yet, on a tarp at the base of the tree rather than allowing the standing end to remain in a stuff bag. This will allow the rope to untwist itself while you climb instead of binding in the bag, causing the twist to happen further up the rope. I've found that this is especially helpful when descending.

3) Use a rope length that is suited to the tree you are climbing. Climbing a 20 foot pitch (first pitch, that is) with a 200 foot rope may add to the twisting problem because the rope can not fully spin to get the twists out. Using just the end of a rope may cause some bunching at the middle of the rope too, possibly contributing to the twist.

4) Never coil or wrap your rope to store it. Always store it loosely in a stuff bag.

5) Climb on both ends of the rope. Each time you climb, alternate which end of the rope you use. Pack the rope reverse of how it came out of the bag and run out the entire length of rope before packing it in the bag.

What did I do to get the twist out of my rope? All of the above! Not sure which tip was the actual fix - probably a combination of all of them - Good luck, climb safe!

One more
Climb Taller trees once in a while. This allows the rope to do what Baker suggested on his post.

I notice that my trees are too short and repeated climbs cause some rope twisting. Using different descending gear also has helped with my twisting problem.

Yes, descending on a hitch.

A lot of folks slide down while descending on a hitch. I don't do this because my hands don't work really well sometimes, and it tends to burn your rope. I descend in a batch process. Tight lower arm pull the hitch to your lower hand and gently let the slack out, it's a great exercise too for bi's, tri's and what is it, obliques?

Anyway, I never get rope to twist when descending this way, but I've observed it dozens of times with other climbers who are burning down (I cringe when it happens because I know that burnout is killing the rope quickly). Twist is induced when fibers on one side of the line are stretched relative to the others. This can happen when one side of the line is experiencing more friction than the other, or if your hitch is tight enough to flatten the line. Try loosening (safely) your hitch, and work on your descent control.

To add to the excellent advice so far, try to leave the tail of your rope free on descent. Often climbers attach the tail of the their rope to their harness so they'll have it available for re-pitching. If you leave the tail attached to your harness during descent you will capture any twist generated by the hitch.
-moss

moss wrote:

To add to the excellent advice so far...

Thanks Moss! I think I'm blushing!

Another way to milk off the hockles from your rope or throwline is to flake the line and then find three or four posts or trees that are about 5-8' apart. Weave the line between them. Every corner that the line goes around will roll the line a little and milk the hockles to the end of the rope. Watch the end of the rope. If you see a bunch of hockles piling up grab the rope and spin it like a jump rope to manually work the hockles out.

Another way to do this is in a tree. Set a throwline and have the tl go up weaving around several limbs in a more or less vertical alignment. Then, isolate the side that you'll pull out of the tree. The hockles will milk out and fall on the ground. Be sure to rake up the hockles and dispose of them properly. If you leave them lay on the ground they might find their way back into your rope bags.

Flaking ropes into bags or tarps is the easiest way to eliminate/reduce hockles. When I see hockled ropes I see climbers who coil their ropes.

Tom

Be sure to rake up the hockles and dispose of them properly. If you leave them lay on the ground they might find their way back into your rope bags.

I like some humor in the posts!

LOGLMAO

Good Advise TomD.