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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Original Post - Nov 14, 2015 - 09:58pm PT
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Found an old copy of the "Big Wall Tech Manual" from 1988, so I scanned it--it's an edited copy--didn't think I had a copy anymore. Way out of date, of course, but thought I would post the link here for archival purposes.
PDF linked here: http://www.bigwalls.net/climb/index.html. (The pdf is 22mb so be patient!)
(There is another surviving copy that I have that was in my "topo" book, called the "shop copy" and graphically annotated by Fish, Lechlinski, and Willie Jo, but that version isn't fit for public G rated forums like this one).
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jonnyrig
climber
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Nov 14, 2015 - 10:16pm PT
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Thanks for that.
BTW... have you opened any of the politically-themed threads?
Not exactly G-rated...
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Nov 14, 2015 - 10:48pm PT
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pg #8, edit says "No #0" [copperhead]
legit
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nutstory
climber
Ajaccio, Corsica, France
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Nov 15, 2015 - 12:29am PT
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A collector item that I look for a long long while...
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Da-Veed
Big Wall climber
Bigfork
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Nov 15, 2015 - 07:15am PT
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Best thing on ST in a while! Thanks.
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11worth
Trad climber
Leavenworth & Greenwater WA
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Nov 15, 2015 - 08:33am PT
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11worth
Trad climber
Leavenworth & Greenwater WA
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Nov 15, 2015 - 08:38am PT
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mucci
Trad climber
The pitch of Bagalaar above you
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Nov 15, 2015 - 08:47am PT
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Still got mine!
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Nov 15, 2015 - 02:37pm PT
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$3.50!!!
Highway Robbery!!! ;)
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 15, 2015 - 03:42pm PT
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Munge, I don't think we ever sold a single one. My intent was always to include it with orders from A5 Adventures for free. Someone at the last minute suggested we put a price on it, perhaps just to make it seem authentic.
It was published soon after I wrote 2 articles for Climbing #98-99 I think, and it was really the first text on big wall climbing techniques since Royal Robbin's Advanced Rockcraft.
It was also the dawn of the computer typesetting--the text was printed from a Apple Mac Plus--I had to go to Kinko's to print it on a laser printer from a 3.5" floppy, then physically cut and paste the text onto boards, combined with copies of John McMullen's artwork--this was all pre-Pagemaker software (or if there was Pagemaker1.0, it was far too expensive in addition to the $2500 Apple Macintosh Plus).
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Crag Q
Trad climber
Louisville, Colorado
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Nov 15, 2015 - 04:35pm PT
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Totally awesome. I remember learning how to do a lower out from a couple trees in Camp 4 while holding that book in preparation for our first wall.
My friend partner used to wave his awesome wall spoon in front of me. It was the definition of a coveted item. I managed to track down a couple of the Olicamp spoons through McGuckins and drilled the clip in hole myself. The nostalgia of eating with it still makes everything test better to this day.
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11worth
Trad climber
Leavenworth & Greenwater WA
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Nov 17, 2015 - 06:10pm PT
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 17, 2015 - 07:41pm PT
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^^^^
Funny you have those! I think they were in some of the boxes of books and other memorabilia I sold to Chessler some years back?
When I think of all the hours we spent at Kinko's, copying and reducing/enlarging those boards to make it all fit with the laser printed text....
Still, it was a brave new world, being able to publish a little book without a real publisher.
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Nov 18, 2015 - 06:57am PT
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I still have mine.
Funny how much stuff we almost took for granted back then are historical artifacts now. Somewhere, Arizona climber? Rock & Ice? I wrote a review of this manual bitfd.
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pyro
Big Wall climber
Calabasas
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Nov 18, 2015 - 07:52am PT
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I was in high school reading that A5 magazine.. made class go faster
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 18, 2015 - 08:35am PT
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Jay, i don't know if I ever saw that review. Post up!
You wrote that wonderful piece for one of our catalogs, though, of course...
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Gunkie
climber
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Nov 18, 2015 - 11:22am PT
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Love it! From my early days of trying to actually climb a big wall.
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11worth
Trad climber
Leavenworth & Greenwater WA
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Nov 18, 2015 - 04:33pm PT
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I have an A5 Nose in a Day pack. I wonder how many of those were made.
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rlf
Trad climber
Josh, CA
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Nov 18, 2015 - 05:05pm PT
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graphically annotated by Fish, Lechlinski, and Willie Jo
With that crew I can only imagine. Especially Russ and Mike...
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 18, 2015 - 10:30pm PT
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Re: Nose in a day packs. The first version of those were made by Roy, who often posts here. I think only 10 were made. The black ballistics ones.
Later i designed a pack also called the Nose in a day, but it was also known as a crag pack.
Then i started making mini-haulbags, with the A5 innivated waterproof closure (for climbing packs), which were the way to go for long day routes.
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11worth
Trad climber
Leavenworth & Greenwater WA
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Nov 19, 2015 - 07:17am PT
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Deuce, Mine is the black ballistic one. Thanks for the info.
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BASE104
Social climber
An Oil Field
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Nov 19, 2015 - 07:30am PT
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Yours is a hell of a lot easier to read than Chongo's big wall book!
I had to read that thing once. I HAD to. It will turn your mind to mush, although there are some cool things in it here and there.
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 19, 2015 - 12:39pm PT
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Oh, and no t-shirts left! But maybe Simon who posts here would want to revive a few of the designs, like "bad bolt juju", my personal favourite.
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 19, 2015 - 12:47pm PT
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 19, 2015 - 09:03pm PT
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In the catalog context:
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 19, 2015 - 11:21pm PT
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Wow!
That's some good bolt juju.
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Gunkie
climber
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Nov 20, 2015 - 05:53am PT
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Re: Nose in a day packs. The first version of those were made by Roy, who often posts here. I think only 10 were made. The black ballistics ones.
I have a blue cordura (?) A5 NID pack with the detachable top closure. Still use it all the time; mostly these days, to carry around surfing wetsuits, leashes and surf wax. Brought from a shop in Boston in 1991 (?) from a guy who did a lot of freeing of aid lines on Cathedral Ledge. Irish or English surname.
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 20, 2015 - 11:04pm PT
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Nice gear catch on that whipper photo, by the way...
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E
Ice climber
mogollon rim
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Nov 21, 2015 - 05:44am PT
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one of the "changes" in the catalogue by the fellas was the addition of the bigwall buttwater recycling unit
I think that russel might have a copy
I also remember some special topos
Duece I think you showed me those
goodtimes
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Nov 21, 2015 - 04:41pm PT
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Hey John- How did you become aware of HME bolt hangers such that you would choose to illustrate them in your catalog rather than Leeper hangers?
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 21, 2015 - 05:18pm PT
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Steve, I don't think Leeper hangers were available in 1987. The illustrations for the tech manual came from the A5 Adventures side of things--which was mostly a retail supplier--the text was largely the same content that was in Climbing #98-99.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Nov 28, 2015 - 08:49pm PT
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Nice, I didn't know that, about that line, Dingus. Deuce, what DMT didn't say is that line is up on Highway 108 near Sonora Pass proper.
Nice to see the SPH as an A5 gear proving grounds. :)
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rmuir
Social climber
From the Time Before the Rocks Cooled.
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Nov 29, 2015 - 07:29am PT
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Is there an eight hundred number for Big Wall Tech support?
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Jeff Gorris
climber
Not from, Portlandia
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Nov 29, 2015 - 02:25pm PT
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Nov 29, 2015 - 03:09pm PT
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Still got mine with Barry's pen topo drawing of yours and his line...
"Days of no Future"
on the back inside cover.
Which I have done three times Deuce. One of my favorite all time "Solo" lines in the Red Ditch.
I think only 10 were made. The black ballistics ones.
I had one of the original ones that had the Red Shoulder and Haul straps. Used it to shreds....
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 29, 2015 - 06:12pm PT
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WOW! Chief, that's impressive. I seem to recall a bit of tough offwidthing on that route--how is that on the solo?
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Scrubber
climber
Straight outta Squampton
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Nov 29, 2015 - 06:47pm PT
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Too bad the "original artwork" from Chessler is actually several copies of the poster of the original artwork used in the book. The price was too good to be true for something like that if it was an original. Still a nice addition to anyone's climber-cave.
K
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Nov 29, 2015 - 07:20pm PT
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Deuce...
As you probably remember, gear was minimal in that section. All I had for the 40 or so feet were two marginal #5 Friends, lots of chickenwinging and no looking down. Coming out of that hole was the crux to say the least. Definitely a Classic.
But yours and Xavier's Swiss American over to the left is without a doubt my favorite line in there. Xavier definitely did some crazyass route finding on the "4x4" pitch.
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 30, 2015 - 11:42pm PT
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Chief, i'd like to hear more about Swiss American. Does it get many ascents? How is that 4x4 pitch? Still 5.9 mantle to an A4 beak move?
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
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I still have my A5 bolt kit! My A5 wall spoon vanished though which I really lament. That was the best spoon I'll ever own.
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Deuce...
I did it in May of 01'. I will never forget leading it, the 4X4 pitch. It was so committing and you dare NOT even think about coming off. Cus if you do, smack, splatter and most assuredly, left for dead while hanging in space upside down.
Definitely one of the narliest marginally (if even that!!!) protected most committing 60-70 or so feet I have ever done. That's 40 something years all over the world, done.
It is a Masterpiece. And from what I recall spending my last days in the Red Ditch back in the Spring of '01, yours and Xaviers piece of Excellence gets very few ascents. Saw hardly any evidence of folks getting on it. No major hammer scars on the Beak/Pins placements etc.
Badass Deuce!!! Badass....
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 1, 2015 - 04:27pm PT
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Awesome report, Chief! Xaver did have his moments of intensity. Some brilliant moments. He lived for it, and sadly, died for it as well. I miss that guy! Cheers
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