Is Texas rope trick safe?

For those climbers who adhere strictly to the ethic of “Death before loss of gear or ego”, here is another old trick from the files of “Yer gonna die” that has more benefits over the “Texas rope trick”…just need a fifi and a shoelace.

Easy as pie:  rig a block rappel (either with knot or biner) and friction hitch Fifi to pull side of rope.  Important to only weight the rap strand and not the pull strand for obvious reasons  

Pros:

1. No damage to sling (just microfractures on the hardware after pull down)
2. 1/2 rope rappel length vs 1/3 rope rappel 
3. Less likelihood of hang up when pulling
4. You have a fifi hook on your harness, identifying you as an established hardcore climber ( just don’t hang it next to your belay cert card)
5. It has nothing to do with Texas

Cons:

1. You’re probably not qualified to own a fifi hook
2. Yer gonna die

Mark Pilatewrote:

For those climbers who adhere strictly to the ethic of “Death before loss of gear or ego”, here is another old trick from the files of “Yer gonna die” that has more benefits over the “Texas rope trick”…just need a fifi and a shoelace.

Easy as pie:  rig a block rappel (either with knot or biner) and friction hitch Fifi to pull side of rope.  Important to only weight the rap strand and not the pull strand for obvious reasons  

Pros:

1. No damage to sling (just microfractures on the hardware after pull down)
2. 1/2 rope rappel length vs 1/3 rope rappel 
3. Less likelihood of hang up when pulling
4. You have a fifi hook on your harness, identifying you as an established hardcore climber ( just don’t hang it next to your belay cert card)
5. It has nothing to do with Texas

Cons:

1. You’re probably not qualified to own a fifi hook
2. Yer gonna die

Swing, wiggle, DEATH.  

Chad Millerwrote:

Swing, wiggle, DEATH.  

While I officially “don’t recommend” you try to kill yourself this way, I also would bet anyone $50 that they couldn’t “swing, wiggle, or lurch” their way off when weighting (vertical rapping) only the rap strand.  

Experiment with it (just for fun and perspective) Rig it in a tree or off a beam at home when you’re only a foot off the deck and attempt to shake it loose.  You’ll be impressed. 

I've hung my fifi hook on bolt hangers before and regretted it - its material turned out to be very soft and the hanger left nasty burrs in the hook.  I filed them off but still..

Mark Pilatewrote:

While I officially “don’t recommend” you try to kill yourself this way, I also would bet anyone $50 that they couldn’t “swing, wiggle, or lurch” their way off when weighting (vertical rapping) only the rap strand.  

Experiment with it (just for fun and perspective) Rig it in a tree or off a beam at home when you’re only a foot off the deck and attempt to shake it loose.  You’ll be impressed. 

Yeah, I am thinking the bigger issue is actually getting that to release from 30 meters down  if the bolted hanger is back from a ledge, has a long bolt  or not perfectly sited In someway.

The rope weighs 10lbs.  Is adding 100lbs or weight going to spin the fifi in a way 10lbs doesn’t.

Do you move the rope to climbers left or right?  

Cool, but I still say leaver carabiner. 

Live Perchedwrote:

Yeah, I am thinking the bigger issue is actually getting that to release from 30 meters down  if the bolted hanger is back from a ledge, has a long bolt  or not perfectly sited In someway.

The rope weighs 10lbs.  Is adding 100lbs or weight going to spin the fifi in a way 10lbs doesn’t.

Do you move the rope to climbers left or right? 

I know I’m going to regret explaining this, and I would hope anyone who ever actually attempts anything of this sort is a hardcore savvy expert who has all their affairs in order, kids out of college, and nothing else to live for.  
But…the rope is essentially equally weighted on both sides…so even sitting idle with no climber attached, there is no effective net pull on either side. One really wants to ensure rigging the rappel on the left side (as shown in pic) and performing a nice steady rappel. Once weighted, it is surprisingly “solid” (relative terms here). Connecting to the right side results in a much faster descent, but should be avoided.

Once on the ground, it really is very easy and simple to pull it free (maybe that doesn’t sound reassuring).  I’m totally sure there are configs, situations, etc in real life that will F up the best plans, and methods, but also sure that this releases way easier and more consistently than the TRT 

 

Cool, but I still say leaver carabiner. 

of course.  Like I said on page one, leave the biner!    That’s the smart money.  You’ll be down, have done a lap on another climb, and be comfortably swilling beer while watching “the other guy”  trying to unclip their PAS/tether without upsetting the apple cart on whatever complicated, hairbrained scheme they chose.

Mark Pilatewrote:

While I officially “don’t recommend” you try to kill yourself this way, I also would bet anyone $50 that they couldn’t “swing, wiggle, or lurch” their way off when weighting (vertical rapping) only the rap strand.  

Experiment with it (just for fun and perspective) Rig it in a tree or off a beam at home when you’re only a foot off the deck and attempt to shake it loose.  You’ll be impressed. 

I know.  Just following along with the 'yer gonna die' direction . . . 

Don't do the TRT. 

If can't be talked out of it- and if you happen to carry a VT prusik, 8mm of Aramid sounds better than a skinny Dyneema sling (>500°C melting point, 29.5kN mbs as a basket hitch). This configuration seems pretty clean:

The friction of pulling a rope through a sling can and does weaken the sling (sometimes it cuts through the sling, altogether. Slings are almost expensive as carabiners, normally more if they are stitched. This is a useless technique, but definitely interesting.

Gregger Manwrote:

Don't do the TRT. 

If can't be talked out of it- and if you happen to carry a VT prusik, 8mm of Aramid sounds better than a skinny Dyneema sling (>500°C melting point, 29.5kN mbs as a basket hitch). This configuration seems pretty clean:

Really not any different except a biner has been added in. When pulling the rope there still will be friction in the system. Less so, if pulling on the biner side. But why add wear to an $$$ VT prusik.

Kelty Godbywrote:

The friction of pulling a rope through a sling can and does weaken the sling (sometimes it cuts through the sling, altogether. Slings are almost expensive as carabiners, normally more if they are stitched. This is a useless technique, but definitely interesting.

3ft of 6mm accessory cord is $1.20.  3ft of 5/8" tubular webbing is $1.05. That said, not useless, has its place. 

I’m surprised this video hasn’t come up yet. If you’re already rappelling off a fifi you might as we’ll be able to use the full rope length.

https://youtu.be/b8Ute5c2BVk 

Will Shawwrote:

I’m surprised this video hasn’t come up yet. If you’re already rappelling off a fifi you might as we’ll be able to use the full rope length.

https://youtu.be/b8Ute5c2BVk 

Whoa… That is one of the most sketch rope tricks I have EVER seen. Imagine, your rope magically springs from the anchor the second you unweight it. If there were multiple persons hoping to descend that rope, they’d better be pre-rigged and weighting the rope, or their ride is likely to leave without them.

Not to mention, if you happened to come to rest for a second on a ledge or some other feature on the way down, you’d instantly detach your rope.

Allen Sandersonwrote:

Really not any different except a biner has been added in. When pulling the rope there still will be friction in the system. Less so, if pulling on the biner side. But why add wear to an $$$ VT prusik.

3ft of 6mm accessory cord is $1.20.  3ft of 5/8" tubular webbing is $1.05. That said, not useless, has its place. 

Considering the wear from using it as an auto-block on a double rope rappel, this job looks like a mini-vacation. If the carabiner is on the pull side, pulling 1/3 of an unweighted rope won’t do anything to it. 

Kelty Godbywrote:

The friction of pulling a rope through a sling can and does weaken the sling (sometimes it cuts through the sling, altogether. Slings are almost expensive as carabiners, normally more if they are stitched. This is a useless technique, but definitely interesting.

Obviously, a rope CAN cut a sling, under the right circumstances.

I have used 5 an 6 mm accessory cord, as well as 9/16" webbing for the TRT. You can't even tell where the rope was. Seriously, it's fine. Go watch some How Not 2 break tests of beat up gear.

Dyneema not recommended. In most occasions, I've used my prusik loop. As noted above, it's a holiday for a cord that is used for rap backups.

Pretend the top biner is a bolt hanger. Retrievable full length rappel. Done.

Dr Logic wrote:

Everyone keeps saying this is to save a biner but I think it's really to save an ego. 

I don't disagree, but for me personally, it always felt a little bit more about OCD/mental hangup type of a thing. 

Teton Tomwrote:

If there were multiple persons hoping to descend that rope, they’d better be pre-rigged and weighting the rope, or their ride is likely to leave without them.

Usually with this sort of thing the first N-1 are expected to rappel off something normal (I agree with the rest of your comment)

Jump!

Yoda Jedi Knightwrote:

Pretend the top biner is a bolt hanger. Retrievable full length rappel. Done.

If I get your picture correctly, this seems to be a friction thing, where once arrive at the next station, you'd wank the rope back & forth and this should come undone, I'm guessing?

I followed a mountaineering semester (12 weeks) a decade ago, and some party evening the instructors showed off some YGD, dicey things that one doesn't do unless in case of utter desperation. The older instructor had some carabiner setup (ovals were needed, or at least non-wire gates). There was a way to rig them, which as long as they remained under tension, would act as a biner block. Once untensioned and wiggle enough, they'd eventually fall through.... Dicey, at best. Forgot how he set it up though. Unsure I'd really want to post it anyways.

Teton Tomwrote:

Whoa… That is one of the most sketch rope tricks I have EVER seen. Imagine, your rope magically springs from the anchor the second you unweight it. If there were multiple persons hoping to descend that rope, they’d better be pre-rigged and weighting the rope, or their ride is likely to leave without them.

Not to mention, if you happened to come to rest for a second on a ledge or some other feature on the way down, you’d instantly detach your rope.

Not really to come to the defense of so-called "fiffy hook rappel", but in any dicier rap situation, you'd be backing up the system for the 1st guinea pig with something actually safe. Only the last one gets to try the death rap contraption. Your 2nd point stands though.