Ice Floss Set-up

[ketch]

Seems like this forum would be the right place for this question. At least a good place to show off my lazy attitude.

 

Last spring I moved over to a 7.7 x 60 Ice floss for my glacier rope, I've really loved that. Usually when I'm showing stuff to newbies and practiceing I use a heavier line still though. Yesterday I was back on a glacier with some relative new folks and one commented that he was trying to remember setting up a z-pulley. I said" lets work on that right now."

 

Here's my challenge. I usually set up a z-pulley with Bachman knots (tied with 5mm cord loops) for both hitches. When I set this one up (first time with the floss) both of them needed to be futzed with a bit to hold tight. Should I go to a smaller cord loop or change the knot?

 

I felt kinda silly. I had never practiced this with the new line, but it was cool that in the time since I changed I had never needed to use a z-pulley either.

[willstrickland]

Use smaller cord. The knot is all personal preference, but if you change the friction knot to something else, you will lose the primary advantage of the bachman...the easy feeding of the rope (which I assume is the reason you use the bachman vs. something else).

[snoboy]

I have not tried this out yet, but I trust the person who has worked it out.

 

My friend is a heli ski guide, and they carry an emergency crevasse rescue set up that uses 5.5mm Spectra cord. Finding something to grip on that, and still be strong enough to yard on is a challenge. He finally settled on using the 1/2 tubular webbing. Not the smooth climbspec stuff, but the rougher stuff that aid climbers often use as tie-offs. I can't remember the knot used though. I think it was a klemheist.

[catbirdseat]

The Kleimheist sounds like the most appropriate knot for webbing. The prussik knot doesn't work well at all for that application.

[Alex]

yeah the cord needs to be smaller diameter than the std 5 or 6mm perlon to grip the skinny skinny ice floss.

[ketch]

Thanks, all that what I suspected. I usually am on a two man rope and we practice escapeing the rope and setting up anchors just usually stop short of the actual z-pulley. It's kinda like once I've got a couple anchors in and I'm free of the rope the rest is pretty easy. Maybe I'll carry the process all the way next round.

 

When it's a short team I always use my prussic that is already there for the initial escape and it is already a 4mm that one works great.

[layton]

Isn't ice floss 8.0mm by beal? when did they make it smaller? that blows

[snoboy]

There's a 7.7 twin called IceTwin, and an 8.1 double called IceLine on the Beal website. :shrug:

[John Frieh]

Blue Water makes ice floss (which is a double): the original production was 7.8 mm; it is now made in 8.0 mm available in 42, 60 and 70 m lengths.

 

Like snoboy said: Beal makes Ice Twin (7.7 twin) and 8.1 double which you can clip as a double or a twin (though they don't advertise it this year).

[Alex]

I have the 60m 7.7 lines, they are nice ropes but you definitely need to have an adequate "thin line" belay and rappel device to avoid loosing control while rappelling