UKC

Hi
I am thinking of buying a clipstick but I have seen 2 other items of interest.
One was a thing that yo can pop on the end of a walking pole and it acts like a quickdraw, the other was a Krab that when loaded auto closed that you could use on a stiffened extended quick draw, anyone know if these are available.
Cheers sjc

In reply to sjc:

I have a pair of Trail Poles like these: http://www.raidlight.com/boutique/178-byatons-trail-pole-pliables-longueur-... Also a plastic thingy made by EPIC called Stick Clip(!) It fits easily onto the end of one of the poles - as long as you don't put a basket on it - and you push fit the top krab of a quickdraw into it. it automatically holds the gate of the krab open. The poles break down like tent poles, but into 30cm length overall and you can hang it on the back of you harness of put it in a small lightweight sac for long bolted routes. Only 110cm when assembled though, but often that's enough.

In reply to sjc:
>the other was a Krab that when loaded auto closed that you could use on a stiffened extended quick draw,

If you find any I'll have two please. When I was strictly trad they seemed lethal but now I'm doing lots of sport and getting increasingly chiecken in my old age I'm desperate to find one but so far no joy.

In reply to Wiley Coyote:
Hi, do you know what they are called or who makes/made them please.

In reply to sjc:
Sorry. No. A mate had one 20 years ago but I always laughed at it as a potentially lethal bit of kit. After all, who wanted a krab that stayed open back then? Over the last year or so I've asked in virtually every climbing shop I go in and people just look at me as if I'm making it up.

In reply to sjc:

I think the crab thing you're talking about is called a 'Frog' and was made by Kong or someone like that

In reply to groovy_nut:
Thanks Kong does sound familiar

In reply to groovy_nut:
Looking at their website it looks a though they don't make them any more. There is a smaller version of something similar but not sure it would do the job, The Frog is a different concept. Thanks anyway.
The search goes on!

In reply to sjc: I shall get a photo of my mates when he returns from spain and post it on here, I think the Frog is the other thing

In reply to Wiley Coyote: Kong frog for sale here: http://www.abaris.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=38...

Also, Trango make a stock clipping attachment called the Squid which can attach to walking poles.

In reply to Lemony:
Thanks for that Lemony but the Frog is not what I'm looking for. What I'm after is a krab that has a gate that stays open so that with a stiffened quickdraw cowards like me can clip bolts above their head. A sharp tug on the draw, by some mechanical magic I don't understand, than snaps the gate closed. Can't find one in any shop so I suspect they don't make them anymore

In reply to sjc: I bet with an elastic band, or some duct tape and a sling, you could bodge this really easily...

for kayak rescues, paddlers often use a "paddlehook" whereby you tape a krab to a paddle (or other stick), in such a way that when you pull the stick away, the krab remains attached, and closes.
its definitely in franco ferrero's book "whitewater safety and rescue (pesda press, 2006 i think) but should be online aswell.

In reply to Wiley Coyote: The way it works is this. There is a thin sleeve/channel attached to the inside of the Krab at the top and it comes down the opposite side of the gate just far enough that when the gate opens it hooks under this sleeve, when the krab is placed and slightly loaded with a gentle tug, it releases the gate, very simple and very effective.

In reply to sjc:
...the other was a Krab that when loaded auto closed that you could use on a stiffened extended quick draw, anyone know if these are available.

A Panic Clip - My mate has one. Mike in the climbing shop in Sisteron makes them but I haven't ever seen them elsewhere. Sorry.

Chris

In reply to sjc:
http://www.mammut.ch/en/productDetail/221000540_v_4002/Brenta+Via+Ferrata+K...

Mammut do this via ferrata locking crab. I think you can lock this open, but not sure, so check before buying.

To stiffen the quick draw, the method I have seen used in the Czech Republic, is to encase it in heat shrink.

Andy