UKC

Hi, can someone explain the advantages/ disadvantages of a ziplock harness. Is one type more suited to different climbing environments/styles?

Thanks,
BR

In reply to blackreaver:

Basically, you can take a threadback harness apart so it can be put on around skis/crampons/snowshoes without taking them off, but this can be avoided with a bit of planning. You can actually do the same thing with a ziplock harness but it's more fiddly.

In reply to blackreaver:
depends on the ziplock, my black diamond ziplock unthreads completely very easily.

some people like the feeling of security with threadback,
I like the easy adjustment of ziplock.

In reply to blackreaver:

Ziplocks presume climbers are thick - will forget to thread their buckle back, and kill themselves.

Personally cannot stand ziplocks - on multipitch trad when your harness is loaded with a rack and being pulled in different directions on a stance, a ziplock can tend to loosen so that I have to hoik up my harness and retighten during my day.

A good solid simple threadback buckle for me every time

In reply to stewieatb:
Stewie, I think you might be confusing an alpine harness with non alpine.
A lot of harnesses have fixed leg loops and are are either threadback belt or ziplock. This type would be a challenge get into with ski's on. A good winter/alpine harness allows you to easily drop the leg loops for gearing up or a poo ...without having to untie...obviously these are just threadback.

My current harness a BD is threadback and the belt webbing has shredded where it was hot knived which is a bugger since you have to thread that bit everytime.I've never used a ziplock ...dunno why seem to be to harnesses what the boxer shorts are to undies.

In reply to simondgee:
I think he's not...

when you have adjustable legloops, you can completeley undo the buckle, and re do it round your leg - so you dont have to step into it. (obv. better for skis/crampons)

depending on the design, it is often easier to completely open the legloop with threadback buckles.

In reply to Steeve:
>A lot of harnesses have fixed leg loops and are are either threadback belt or ziplock.<
A threadback can have fixed leg loops, or adjustable leg loops.
Adjustable leg loops can be threadback or ziplock.
Only those harnesses with threadback waist and legs are friendly on top of a schrund.

In reply to David Hooper:


What harness are you using David? I've never noticed that with my harnesses and I've been mainly using zip lock ones for years.

In reply to blackreaver: I have a wild country helix and have never experienced that problem.
Thanks for the replies everyone.

BR

In reply to blackreaver:

I've found Ziplocks can work lose too, although not enough to be a problem. For personal use I'd rather have the convenience of being able to quickly adjust as layers go on/off than have to unthread and rethread everytime.

For teaching use though, we use basic Centre Alpine Harnesses with Ziplock and they seem to work lose on the kids a lot (albeit with a bit of 'help' sometimes). Double back ones I've used at other centres don't seem to have this problem.

In reply to blackreaver: There has been an incident, when abseiling, of a ziplock buckle on the leg loop working loose when a prussik has been attached, due to the angle that the karabiner pulls on the buckle. This could cause the prussik to ride up against the belay plate, rendering it useless, and no longer protect the abseil.

I shall be sticking to thread back buckles! The other alternative would be to attach the prussik to the abseil loop, and extend the belay plate from the harness using a sling.

In reply to blackreaver: I just don't trust zip-locks. Had to use one in a climbing centre once and spent the entire time worrying it was going to slip.

In reply to blackreaver: ziplocks seem to wear the strap running through the buckle a lot faster than a threadback as there's invariably some load on it when you tighten it. That's comparing a wild country elite (ziplock) with my old troll mk7 vario (which was excellent)

In reply to TobyA: Top end |Petz - Caladris or something?

I will be going over to BD next I think

In reply to blackreaver:

I reciently got a BD Aspect harness, it has ziplocks.

In use I find that the legloop buckles creep slightly, due to them being slightly loose and not under tension. I think some sort of elastic retaining loop may solve this, although haven't done this yet?

No problems with waist belt, step in, re thread, tighten, tuck excess through retaining loops. Much easier than trying to re thread the buckle, cold fingers, under bunching jackets!!

The solution IMO, traditional leg buckles, ziplock waist (does anyone make these?)

Stuart

In reply to David Hooper:


I had that problem with earlier generations of ziplock buckles (in fact, one almost fell off on a glacier once), hence when I last replaced my winter/trad harness I got a DMM Renegade with proper buckles. However, I also have a Wild country harness with ziplock buckles, and so far it has never worked loose. I will be tempted next time I replace my winter harness to go for a good stiff ziplock. What model do you find works loose, and does it get worse with age?

In reply to David Hooper:

I'm also one for threadbacks, although my current harness is a combination of the 2 (ziplock waist and threadback legs) I had wondered about ziplock leg loops and prussics and I'm not surprised that there has been an incident of one working loose during an abseil. I had one of the very early ziplock harnesses from a certain manufacturer and the harness actually dropped off my waist whilst on a route due to working loose whilst heavily laden. The current harness is one they replaced it with, but I shall be replacing this one with threadback buckles for exactly the reason you describe- my own personal lack of trust in this system.

In reply to David Hooper: I have a WC ziplock harness and have found it to work loose when thrutching up chimneys etc and when worn in winter with full rack and a full run out it has slipped.

I have gone back to my threadback harness - I fear change.