Originally posted by NickfromWI....It just looks a little sketchy to me. Your survival in the tree relies entirely on the electrical tape not ripping off. Don't mean to be a party pooper, but I don't like the looks of the braided friction saver.
No prob Nick, it's just an idea I tried out. I tested it low by putting it over a branch and put myself and a rope on it ('biners through the loops). It was very sturdy. I didn't try picking up a car or anything
The deal is that there is so much friction because both "legs" of each loop are braided the length of the device. So the tape acts more to hold things in place as opposed to actually holding the weight of the climber. for instance I tested it with the tape off to see what would happen. It fails slowly as the braid gradually unravels, gives you enough time to review your life and say a prayer or two
It would make sense to whip over the tape and/or stitch and add thimbles as Electrojake mentioned or some other combination of whipping and stitching without tape, so that that part wouldn't get damaged during installation in the crotch.
I'm not recommending that anyone actually climb on it just putting it out there to be scutinized. As I said earlier I'm rejecting it as unpractical since it can be done much lighter and less bulky through traditional construction methods (splicing rope, sewing webbing etc.),
-moss
