Discussion re Whillans Harness and other ancient harnesses
- Thread starter bograt
- Start date
Mark Wright
Active member
Mine was the same tape as mmilner from Caving Supplies and in the same configuration. The three straps came together with a big carabiner which I had a CMI left handled ascender attached with a pushbike inner tube for a chest harness. Attached via a low stretch rope was a right handed CMI and foot loop. I only had a figure of 8 descender when I first started and no cows tails so I only did SRT trips that didn't have rebelays.
I remember my first attempt at the descent method Pitlamp mentioned in a tree beside the SUSS hut on Rowter Farm. I found the acceleration a little excessive, about 9.81m/s/s. I think I must have been doing it wrong!! Its a good job it was a soft landing.
Those were the days.
I'm 50 next week by the way.
Cheers,
Mark
I remember my first attempt at the descent method Pitlamp mentioned in a tree beside the SUSS hut on Rowter Farm. I found the acceleration a little excessive, about 9.81m/s/s. I think I must have been doing it wrong!! Its a good job it was a soft landing.
Those were the days.
I'm 50 next week by the way.
Cheers,
Mark
martinm
New member
robjones said:mmilner said:
Maybe we should start a select group; our discreet lapel badge can say "I survived my home made harness"I suspect average age of prospective members will rarely be <50 :
haha. I'm 56 this year.
I also tied a length of cord around it as a backup, just in case. I assure you, I was and still am very safety conscious!
Bit of a wuss these days, tbh. But never had a serious accident in 37 or so years, (just cuts and bruises) so must be doing summat right...
If I've still got it (not sure) will upload a photo.
Regards, Mel.
Bottlebank
New member
I'm also 50.
My first harness was a long 1" sling and a maillon from Cave and Crag in Settle. Fig 8 for descending, prussic loops for upping.
Worked OK but I much prefer my current stuff
My first harness was a long 1" sling and a maillon from Cave and Crag in Settle. Fig 8 for descending, prussic loops for upping.
Worked OK but I much prefer my current stuff
bat
Member
I remember a group of us making sit harnesses from car seat belts removed from our local scrap yard, hand stitched then machine stitched over top,
they were actually very comfortable. Used them on the BEC Dachstein expedition along with some homemade rope walkers (rope walkers looked a bit like Gibbs but had small rollers at each end).
Yes I?m 50 + to
Gary
they were actually very comfortable. Used them on the BEC Dachstein expedition along with some homemade rope walkers (rope walkers looked a bit like Gibbs but had small rollers at each end).
Yes I?m 50 + to
Gary
Duncan Price
Active member
I took a freshly made 2" wide 6' sling down Swildon's to Sump 12 last year to use as a sit harness to abseil back down Victoria Aven on a figure 8 descender. In the end we didn't have time to climb it so it came out and the kit is now in Wookey 20 for a similar purpose. I wouldn't think twice about doing a classic abseil down a short drop against a wall rather than don a harness/descender.
>50
>50
Duncan Price
Active member
Fulk said:
Not since I last checked, but rather than pass the rope between one's wedding tackle it can be threaded through a krab from one's belay belt. So not quite classic and more comfy.
Pitlamp
Well-known member
bograt said:
You beat me to it Bograt - none of these techniques is easy to justify, when much safer modern alternatives are available. But I'd argue that everyone should know them because, in an emergency, they might just prove extremely useful.
Having said that, I can understand where Duncan Price is coming from with his comment about using a classic abseil in particular circumstances. He's right; the trick is to be familiar with a wide range of techniques and cave intelligently rather than simply following a set of (arbitrary) "rules".
Talking of 'old-fashioned' kit, does anyone remember the original Cloggers, which looked rather like the Petzl basic? They had a karabiner hole so placed that once the krab was in place, the cam would not open sufficiently for the rope to be removed . . . a safety feature, I guess.
However, when you got to the top of a pitch, you had to detach the krab in order to get the damn thing off the rope ? a bit of a nuisance with a foot-jammer (not to mention the concomitant possibility of dropping it down the pitch) ? but a right royal pain in the arse if you were using one as a chest jammer!
However, when you got to the top of a pitch, you had to detach the krab in order to get the damn thing off the rope ? a bit of a nuisance with a foot-jammer (not to mention the concomitant possibility of dropping it down the pitch) ? but a right royal pain in the arse if you were using one as a chest jammer!
My second SRT rig had a handless clog jammer as the chect jammer just as you describe. After an "entertaining" time hung-up beneath the Rowten waterfall I scampered as fast I could to Inglesport and bought myself a Petzl chest jammer.
The handless jammer retains a usefulness as a spare piece of kit likely to be useful for haulage rigs though. I most recently used mine two weeks ago self lining on the safety ropes alongside the multiple fixed ladders used to access the Halkyn Tunnel in the winzes adjacent to the Olwyn Goch Shaft.
The handless jammer retains a usefulness as a spare piece of kit likely to be useful for haulage rigs though. I most recently used mine two weeks ago self lining on the safety ropes alongside the multiple fixed ladders used to access the Halkyn Tunnel in the winzes adjacent to the Olwyn Goch Shaft.
