Outdoor & Alpine Gear: Self-made or Improved

Here are some of my ideas for improving or improvising Outdoor Equipment for 
special purposes, that should be in some form better than what you would regularly use:

• Solo-Climbing Tool: Modified GriGri  

• Ultra-light Sleeping Mattress

• Short (Approach) Skis 

• Leashless Ice-Tools improvised

• Marking the middle of the rope (German)

NOTE: Warning ! This is NOT a recommendation. Whatever you do is at your own risk !

Solo Climbing in General

The topic of solo climbing as such and it's Pro's & Con's of having a 'live' partner instead 
is nothing I want to discuss here. This article is meant for people who know what they are 
doing and why. Here is a good link to learn more about all this if you are just interested:
TradGirl.com Solo Leading

The GriGri Modification

The GriGri to soloist modification is about turning your standard Petzl GriGri into a decive
that allows you to climb solo while leading on a rope. (Versus ascenders which require a
toprope set up, which makes it useless for multi-pitch climbs) Note, that Petzl will of course
strictly claim that their GriGri is not intended to be used like that. The modification will void 
their warranty.

The modification is nothing I invented, and I don't know who was the first who had the idea.
I found the discussions around this soloing device on many newsgroups - you can read the 
discussions on Google yourself and form your own opinion:  Google discussions :
http://groups.google.com/groups?q=grigri+soloist&hl=en

What I want with this page is to provide you with my personal experience in building and use of
this tool, that could help you if you have decided to build such a device. There was already a
page on that on the web, that I used for my start, but I have some slight enhancements to that 
and some better pictures that give you more hints on what to do. You can read the original 
page by Nathanial Beckwith (now broken link so here is a local copy) to get an intro.

The basic idea is to use the GriGri in a way that ensures it locks when the rope
comes from above, while allowing the rope to pass through freely when it comes
from below. (In case of a fall, you would drop past the last protection, which means
the rope comes from above.) You will have to climb as a leader like with a normal
belayer, then fix the top of the rope to the next belay station when you reach it,
descend on the rope and climb the pitch again.

There are some commercial tools made explicitly for this purpose by a company that 
specialized on soloing devices : http://www.wrenindustries.com/  
The modified GriGri compares best to their 'soloist'. 

Reasons why one would still consider using a homemade tool instead are:

Plus: 

• As Nathanial said: This is probably the best soloist available because of 

  • cost

  • reliability

  • weight & size (compared to Wren-Soloist & Silent Partner)

  • ability to lower off without re-rigging

  • ability to use on aid or free because of rope feeding.

• You can test the whole setup without permanently modifying
  your GriGri by leaving out Step 2 below !

Minus: 

• Modifying gear voids the warranty and, according to the UCC, 
  releases the manufacturer from liability.

 Pictures, Step by Step:  (Click on thumbnail for bigger image.)

Step1: Upper Attchment This is already the first difference from Nathanials Design. I didn't drill a hole, but simply used a thin but strong nylon string and looped it around the axle that holds the two halves together. This is already sufficient, but it can be enhanced a bit more by threading another string through the other side between plastic and metal (loosen srew for that) The  benefit compared to drilling a hole in the side is that the point where you pull is higher up on the GriGri, which allows it to position better.
Step2: Modify the 'Flap' This step is not really necessary for the first tries. It only smoothens the feed. If you are uncertain if you want to use a solo-tool often, try it without this modification first. But don't worry: Sawing it off does not impact the regular use for belaying, actually it improves the handling: You can hold the grigri down and simply pull the rope upwards. The Flap is the part you can see in the red circle on the photo.
After using my solo-grigri for some time, I found a warning on Nathanials page added the in 1999 where he recommends not to use the device any more. The problem with sawing off the flap is, that this theoretically allows the rope to slip under the handle in a fall and then the rope would be stopped by the relatively sharp edge of the handle, possibly cutting it. To avoid this, I found a proposal on another good page, that just files the flap instead of cutting it off. I recommend to do this! The edges of the groove have been carefully smoothed down. The groove in which the rope runs does not extend below the actuating arm on the left so as to minimise the chance of the rope getting caught behind this arm which has quite a sharp edge. As can be seen on the second picture the modification allows the rope to run though the GriGri in a much straighter line.
Step 3: Basic Rigging Attach the GriGri as seen in a vertical position. Put a standard sling around your neck and clip it with any small biner to the little string you attached at top. The length of the sling can be adjusted by making knots into it, so that the GriGri ideally sits in a straight line between your head and the harness. (A little bit of slack is OK, and makes is a bit safer, see Tips below) If this feels too uncomfortable, try a longer sling and put one arm through it along with your neck, so the sling runs diagonally in front of your chest.
Step 4: Start Climbing Now take your rope (regular 10-11mm, no statics of course) and fix it to your belay station with a locking biner. Make sure that it can be weighted in all directions, but especially the upwards direction is important. The rope enters the GriGri from the bottom and leaves it at the top, and then simply hangs down with the loose end. Make sure you have a (figure 8)  backup knot at the end of the rope, and ideally also a couple of them in between.
Step 5: Clipping Pro This step is a big possibility for making mistakes: When you come to clipping pro, make sure you clip the right end of the rope. The right end is the one coming out of the bottom of the GriGri ! This might look a little strange, while your waist is below the pro, but everything looks just fine when moving over it. -> Try this out a couple of times, until it becomes a habit.
Step 6: Reach the Belay,  Rapell, Reclimb When you reach the next belay station, take out the GriGri (!) attach the loose end of the rope securely, and rappel down to the start again with your favorite method. Using your GriGri for that is just one alternative, but nice, because you can stop easily while cleaning the pro. After removing your lower belay gear, you have to climb the second time, using an ascender (like the Petzl "Basic") or again your GriGri (manual feed necessary for Toproping!)

Tips:

- for Step 4: Rope weight, loose end:  The way it is described above works well at ground level, when the weight of the rope is still on the ground. As soon as you are 10m up or start the second pitch, the weight of the loose end of the rope is going to cause more and more friction making it uncomfortable to continue. This can be prevented by taking a 10 m loop of rope and attaching that to your harness before you climb. (Either with a knot, putting it 'on slip' or using a small string as a prussik around the rope, see next Tip) This must be repeated as you go.
- Rope weight, fixed end: As you climb further away from your belay,  the weight of the fixed end of the rope will get heavier and heavier. At one point it can cause the rope to feed through the GriGri automatically, which gives you mucho slack in the system. This can be prevented by using the small string from the last tip and hanging the weight of the rope to a pro that you pass. Both problems are the same with the soloing tools from Wrenindustries mentioned above. Please find more details on these 2 Tips there in the downloadable manuals, even with pictures.
- for Step 4: What to do if I start a climb at the ground, and there is no belay where I stand ? This is simple: Rig everything as if you would fix it to a belay, then climb up to the first bolt where you can clip the locking biner there. Take a short rest there to check everything. Ideally, you should also clip the next bolt with a knot, so you have 2 pieces as a belay station.
- Force on Pro, the GriGri's static locking. As you know the GriGri has a rather static locking behavior in case of a fall (meaning: there is no rope slipping when it locks) This can put very high forces on your pro. If you need to prevent this (e.g. Ice-Climbing) use a metal 'friction-plate' or 'shock-absorber'. Here are some examples.
- WARNING: Possibility for failure: Upside-Down falls: The modified GriGri won't stop you, when you pull it down with your head first in an Upside-Down fall.(Same as Wren-Soloist!)  There is 2 ways to react to this this:  Leave some slack in the sling around your neck, or attach it so lightly (e.g. Velcro or tiny string) that it will break loose in case of such a fall. As soon as the GriGri can orientate freely it will stop you. This is not a 100% solution, but it helps to reduce the chance. Make sure you always have (a) backup knot(s)  that stop the GriGri if everything else fails. The best thing is, if you try yourself, how your setup reacts, by attaching the rope low on the ground and then start leaning backward as if you did that type of fall. You will see that this happens pretty late.
P.S.: No I am not sponsored by Petzl (or any other company) I just noticed that most gear on the pictures is from them. Sorry, but I seem to like their stuff ;-)

More Links

• http://www.tradgirl.com/climbing_faq/advanced.htm#leadsolo
• http://www.thebikezone.org.uk/therockzone/selfbelay.html
• http://www.rockclimbing.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=599626
• http://www.rockclimbing.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=49121

Finally my last Disclaimer: 
As Nathanial said:  If you don't understand something here, then you should probably not consider this modification. 

This is even more relevant for my page, because it seems like a 'foolproof' cooking recipe when you 
follow the steps above. Don't be a fool and be sure you know what you are doing with this.
Testing this without permanent modification at your local crag could make you certain  if this is 
meant for you or not. 

At the office I had this nice idea for a cheap and ultra-light sleeping Mattress: 
Simply use one of these Air-Bubble packing foils as a sleeping Mattress.
The one I use has 15mm thickness, which is enough for most purposes.
You should sleep on the non-bubble side if you are on a flat surface.

Plus: 

• Light (very!) 

• Cheap

Minus: 

• Durability: Many of the chambers will pop when you move at night, making 
  this a one- or two-times-use-item, and you might wake up because of the noise ;-)

• Bulk: The packing size of this thing is not ideal of course.

• A little bit of a 'bubbly' feeling on your body (You can slightly notice individual bubbles)

 Some Pictures: (Click on thumbnail for bigger version.)

Compared to AA-Battery	Compared to AA-Battery	Simulation with finger

Because I hated to carry my heavy full-size skis on my back while climbing steep North-Faces,
I looked for alternatives.  The most ideal ski for that is probably the Rossignol 'Freetrek Venture'
(now sold as STC) which I have bought in the meantime. But they are still heavy and expensive (see at link)

Here is my intermediate solution, that I have tested for one day only  -  I was far from happy with the results:

Plus: 

• Lighter than full-size Skis

• Cheap (free ;-)

• Can be worn with several shoes (Leather, Double Plastic, Ski) 
  without using a screwdriver, changeable in seconds.

Minus: 

• Going uphill: no "free heel" movement. This is the biggest problem I thought
   it wouldn't be so bad, but it is not acceptable this way.

• Going uphill: Stepping Aids (improving the angle your foot goes back to)
  I will have to find some clever solution here and have some plans in my 
  mind already, but they won't be as convenient as the ones  from my Fritschi binding.

• Control downhill: The skis are shorter  and the usual shoes are not very stiff.
  The binding itself is pretty stable - I was surprised to see that.

• Reliability: This is old material, and could possibly break.
  The good thing is: Everything could be fixed on the tour, if you choose
  the right spare-parts to take with you.

 Some Pictures: (Click on thumbnail for bigger version.)

ShortSki with  standard Plastic mountaineering Boot	Detail: Binding & Shoe	with  Leather Shoe

Here is a great idea from a friend, John Scoles for waterfall climbing: He used the parts that are usually put at the end of Metal cables to form a hole to form a 'trigger' (that's what these parts are called on the Grivel tools). With two of these you should be able to make your leash obsolete and climb more freely like with all those new bent toys (Ergo, ...) Check the picture on the right for details. The German word for the little metal part is "Kausche" (see google for Kauschen) you can usually buy it at your local Hardware store (Baumarkt) or at a sailing shop. Needless to say that you can remove them in spring for alpine climbing...

Gen....

Plus: 

• Lighter

Minus: 

• ...

 Some Pictures: (Click on thumbnail for bigger version.)