rope question

I recently picked up a new rope. Edelrid Eagle 9.8 mm dry rope. My climbing partner and I always do a quick check before starting to climb to make sure the Grigri 2 we both belay with is catching correctly. Just a habit we picked up during or gear check. first thing we noticed it didn't really catch good. We switch the belay device to an ATC and it caught but slowly slipped. It was our first day out with the new rope so we decided to bag it up and use the trusty 10 we had been climbing with all summer. I don't really wont to find out that there is a problem with the rope on a fall. Any one ever used this rope with a Grigri 2?

New dry ropes can be slippery as hell, especially if they are less than 10 mm thick. My new Edelweiss 9.8mm was frighteningly slippery for about the first 5 outings, now it's OK (but still a little on the slick side). I would use the rope for a few days with an ATC so that some of the dry coating has a chance to wear off and the sheath will roughen up a bit, then go back to the Grigri 2. My guess is that low angle climbs and rappels where the rope is dragging across the rock will roughen up the rope faster than steep overhangs where the rope just slides through the biners.

FWIW, I was told recently that the current crop of dry ropes tends to be slipperier than dry ropes in past years. Apparently rope makers are using better dry treatments, and using more of the dry treatment on their ropes than in the past.

Thanks Mark this makes perfectly good sense.

I've never had a problem with the grigri 1 or 2, even with brand new ropes down to a 9.4mm (which was way below the manufacturer's minimum rope diameter rating for the grigri 1). I don't meant this in a rude way, but is it possible you're just being overly-cautious? As long as the device catches, you're fine. Treat the grigri just like your ATC with a hand always on the brake (as you always should, obviously), and it's perfectly safe.

Abram Herman wrote:I've never had a problem with the grigri 1 or 2, even with brand new ropes down to a 9.4mm (which was way below the manufacturer's minimum rope diameter rating for the grigri 1). I don't meant this in a rude way, but is it possible you're just being overly-cautious? As long as the device catches, you're fine. Treat the grigri just like your ATC with a hand always on the brake (as you always should, obviously), and it's perfectly safe.

Could be overly cautious on the Grigri but the ATC definitely was slipping. I think Mark hit it when he suggested it being the dry coating. It does seem to be a lot slicker than other ropes I have used. Its not the rope I would have chosen. A buddy of mine bought it at a online sale accidentally hit the purchase button twice and it was non refundable. I guess this is what made me cautious was using a rope brand I have never used before.

Grigri2 takes smaller diameter ropes. Some slippage is normal. Are you using it to ascent, rope solo or just for belay. It should catch nicely once its jerked under load.

craghead wrote:Grigri2 takes smaller diameter ropes. Some slippage is normal. Are you using it to ascent, rope solo or just for belay. It should catch nicely once its jerked under load.

Just for belay.

If you aren't already, I would recommend using a high friction ATC while your rope is slick. This was pretty much a requirement when I went from a 10 to a 9.4 -- also, belay gloves might help out too.

The grigri2 really shouldn't have any issues catching anything between 9 and 11 mm, but definitely the more wear you give the rope, the better it will listen to your grigri.

Jon Powell wrote: Just for belay.

You should be good. Have your partner on second belay rope as a backup and have him take a fall with a fast pull on rope. It will give you the needed confidence to use it. The rope will soften the more you use it too.

Jon Powell wrote: [...] but the ATC definitely was slipping. I think Mark hit it when he suggested it being the dry coating. It does seem to be a lot slicker than other ropes I have used. Its not the rope I would have chosen.

Some slippage is normal on an ATC, I use one for trad instead of a grigri specifically for that reason (softer catches). The dry coating definitely makes it slicker, but I don't think that's a bad thing unless it was so slick you couldn't catch a fall, which seems unlikely on either device. Learn to love the smooth-feeding rope! :-)

ATC, ATC guide or ATC XP ???

the grooves make a difference ...

softer supple ropes are more "slippery" .. which is just fine if you know how to belay with em .... it also means they dont end up like stiff wires in a year or two

with such ropes its a good idea to use devices with more friction, or assisted locking ones ... gloves arent a bad idea if yr using an ATC with em either

also DONT assume that the gri gri will ALWAYS catch ... a lot of people will belay by pressing down the cam and may not react fast enough to take the thumb off read the link below for a similar accident on a gri gri ... if the rope is that slick simply belay as per petzls recommendation

i see alot of people belay with the thumb on the cam ... which is fine on thicker ropes where you cant belay any other way IF you only put the thumb on when feeding out the rope,not all the time .. and take it off instantly on a fall .... however if yr belayer keeps the cam down, is looking at hawt chicks and just throwing you euro slack ... find a new partner =P

rockclimbing.com/cgi-bin/fo…

people get dropped with gri gris all the time .. dont take it for granted especially on a rope thats more slippery that a seal

;)

Gloves are ghey

...unless you are aid climbing then they are cool

mark felber wrote: My guess is that low angle climbs and rappels where the rope is dragging across the rock will roughen up the rope faster than steep overhangs where the rope just slides through the biners.

Mentioning overhanging routes and dry treated ropes... I had a rude awakening using a new rope with a dry treatment, I ended up falling a bit further than I was expecting. Long story short, the rope will slide more easily through a straight line of draws just as easily as through a device.