It takes balls to use nuts...

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Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Mar 17, 2013 - 07:14pm PT
I never got around to trying it but notching the rails on angle pitons to accommodate the single cable of a properly shaped copperhead wedged inside seems like a viable clean solution to piton holes. Even if you were nailing, being able to keep the load point tight to the rock surface would be easier than using any sort of tie-off loop especially on very overhanging rock.

Leeper Camhooks work so well I didn't bother.
McHale's Navy

Trad climber
Panorama City, California & living in Seattle
Mar 17, 2013 - 07:34pm PT
I think I edited my post while you were writing about the tie-off point. I was thinking in terms of clean climbing in general - not so much piton holes. The green sling in that case would be used just to keep from dropping the pin, and of course the pin would be cabled and not just slung like in the photo. The green cord simply represents a cable. Can you explain what you mean by notching the rail and etc?
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Mar 17, 2013 - 07:49pm PT
If you took a copperhead and bent the cable so that it would slot into the crook of the angle with the tip of the head pointed toward the tip of the piton.

If you drove this arrangement with a hammer into an existing piton hole, the rail of the angle would cut the cable unless it had a notch to prevent such damage while allowing the combination to be loaded as close to the rock surface as possible.

Visualize several 1/8" X 1/8" notches along both rails on an angle. With a good selection of pre-shaped heads I thought that a solid bump with the gloved wrist would be enough to snug the whole show in place.
McHale's Navy

Trad climber
Panorama City, California & living in Seattle
Mar 17, 2013 - 08:06pm PT
Well, I understand and know various ways of eliminating leverage and can easily see the advantage of notched rails for this, but am not sure what you mean exactly. Got a photo without notches in the rails? Is the copperhead creating a wedging effect or is it just stopping at a notch in a rail? Even a notch in the tip of a piton could be very handy, without detracking from normal uses.
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Mar 17, 2013 - 08:22pm PT
Minimizing leverage is the whole idea along with having the interior blob of copper twisting and camming as much as possible.

A variation on the theme of fitting holes. I was never pressed enough to try it with all the great widgets and nuts out there.
Big Mike

Trad climber
BC
Mar 17, 2013 - 08:29pm PT
Big Mike- I am entirely kidding, of course. I savor the thrill in climbing and still enjoy the space in between. While one is young and unfettered, grabbing the tiger by the tail on sight is as good as it gets!

It was just funny you said that Steve, as I watched him try the crux move on that slab, multiple times before he finally committed. My palms were sweating as he scrambled up it and i breathed a heavy sigh of relief as he reached the anchor... That was just me watching!!! I can only imagine the elation/relief he felt when he reached the anchor!!
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Sep 7, 2013 - 03:46pm PT
Tiger Bump...
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Sep 7, 2013 - 05:10pm PT
Looks more like a blubber knife...
donini

Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
Sep 7, 2013 - 06:25pm PT
I always take nuts on multi-pitch trad but use them sparingly. There are times when they work better than cams but, they also always require a runner and often take longer for the second to clean.
rgold

Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
Sep 7, 2013 - 10:24pm PT
I'm just the opposite. I carry lots of cams, but on about a third of the pitches I do, I end up at the top of the pitch having used only nuts or almost only nuts.

But to some extent it depends on the type of rock you're climbing on.
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Nov 16, 2013 - 02:30pm PT
Being left with little more than our nuts at the end of things is as it should be...
McHale's Navy

Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
Nov 16, 2013 - 02:53pm PT
Since tri-cams supposedly work so well ( I have hardly used them but own a couple ) why has there not been more development in spring loaded cams with cams on only one side of the stem like the original Lowe cams. Is part of it the lack of range they would provide? I can think of ways to fix that possibly. The first Lowe cams were unstable but that can be fixed. Just wondering. Do we know any more about the period of time between the Lowe Cam and Jardine's Friends - the inbetween development? I recall some discussion somewhere but maybe you can rehash it for us Steve.

Maybe it takes balls to invent new nuts? They're out there.....I can feel it!
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Nov 16, 2013 - 03:19pm PT
Step away from the sewing machine and lunge for the CNC! LOL

I have a three attitude design that goes all the Way Back.
donini

Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
Nov 16, 2013 - 03:25pm PT
LOVE my stoppers, retired my hexes found them too vexing.
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Nov 16, 2013 - 03:44pm PT
I still carry wired hexes- old school #1-#3 and new #4 and a Golden #5.
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Nov 16, 2013 - 04:10pm PT
You could end up here...






Robbins said it best when he noted that "the possibilities for different designs are as limitless as one's imagination" back in 1967.
McHale's Navy

Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
Nov 16, 2013 - 04:27pm PT
That piece looks fun - meant to work in 2 planes looks like? Haven't seen that posted before. Looks like the center of gravity could be too high? Yeah Jim, I'm not into hexes all that much either.

Steve, what's a CNC?
mcreel

climber
Barcelona
Nov 16, 2013 - 04:35pm PT
Remember ball nuts? You have to be nuts to use balls.
McHale's Navy

Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
Nov 16, 2013 - 04:46pm PT
I have more ball nuts than tri cams. Ball nutz are cool. I don't seem to have the balls to use most of my nuts anymore though. At my age I'd be nuts to use all of my balls anyway. If this keeps up, somebody will be accused of plagiarism......but nuts to that!
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
Nov 16, 2013 - 06:14pm PT
This isn't the three attitude nut mentioned earlier.

A CNC is a computerized metal milling machine. You enter a drawing and it gives you back the finished nugget.

The nut above was made by two guys in Colorado, one of two. I bought a bunch of funky prototypes from these guys all made by hand.

Very whimsical design.
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