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WANTED - Single Handed Mast Ascension

chrisoelder

Member II
Hey guys!

I was wondering if anyone had a mast ascension system they are looking to get rid of? I have a Bosun's chair but just need something to get me up there.

I prefer single hand so I cannot be held back by waiting for a buddy's schedule to open up.

Thanks!
 

chrisoelder

Member II
If you have any rock climbing experience, I built a self climbing rig based off of what was done in this article on L-36.com.

http://l-36.com/more_mast_climbing.php

I find this setup quick and efficient to get to the top of the mast.


Sadly i dont have a lot of rock climbing experience but i do like this idea. Would you say that this is something I could do without any real rock climbing experience? I am an athletic guy so im confident in my strength
 

Slick470

Member III
He's using readily available climbing gear in each of his setups, and having some climbing experience is helpful (but not necessary) to help understand what the gear was originally designed for and how it works in this application. It also helps give you a level of trust in the methodology of a system that you build up vs buying a pre-made and packaged system like an ATN mastclimber.

I'd read through his series of articles on mast climbing and watch his youtube videos. He has a few different setups that have various pros and cons which he goes through in detail. IIRC he also goes over setups like the ATN and why he doesn't use it. The system he recommends is less complicated than what he personally uses because of a need to re-rig some of the gear at the top of the mast. I don't mind having to do that, and found that needing to re-rig at the top of the mast out weighed some of the cons of the other setups.

One of the nice things about the setup he uses is that you use your legs to do most of the work.
 

Kenneth K

1985 32-3, Puget Sound
Blogs Author
ATN Mastclimber is the modern way to go, but you can do it with Texas Prusiks--using just rope--an inexpensive rock climbing harness, and a couple of climbing carabiners. I WOULD buy specific climbing rope for the prusiks from REI. Many videos available showing the technique online. I strongly recommend one prusik for each foot (though it can be done one foot, you'll have less balance). And, always use a 4th prusik (2 for feet, one for waist, one backup for waist) on a SECOND safety line (another halyard) as a backup.

I went up my mast twice last summer this way. Was even able to get to a height to work on the masthead. Probably stayed aloft well over an hour each time. Practice the system (both ascending and descending) at low heights before you get ambitious with it.
 
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