Climb Tree using Gaffs and Flip Line

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16:25

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Introduction to Climbing gear, ropes and knots for tree work

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What happens here

Keith demonstrates the process of climbing a tree using gaffs (spikes), a harness, and a flip line. He dons an orange hard hat and confirms all his gear is checked. He initiates the climb by taking controlled steps with the gaffs and flipping the steel-braided flip line around the tree trunk. The goal is to reach a suitable crotch point to set the lifeline. Before cutting any branches, he emphasizes the importance of calling 'Clear!' to ensure no one is in the drop zone below, a critical safety measure in tree work.

Goal: Ascend the tree safely using climbing gaffs, harness, and a flip line, reaching a point to set the lifeline.

Tools and materials

Climbing Gaffs — Aiding ascent by gripping the tree trunk
Climbing Harness — Supporting the climber and attaching safety lines
Handsaw — Trimming small branches (optional for climbing demo, but shown in video)
Hard Hat Firestech — Head protection
Safety Glasses — Eye protection
Steel-braided Flip Line — Securing the climber's position on the tree

What they say

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a lot of work a lot of work all right ready to go up the tree got my safety gear on uh hard hat spikes saddle everything's checked and i have a flip line and a buck strap just to be safe i have two straps on the tree and i have two lifelines and a work line step step flip step step all right i've come to the sucker in the tree pulling out my hand saw and making sure this never touches this if a saw or knife even touches this it could just split under pressure now you're going up to set the lifeline right yeah okay right here this branch right here yeah even though it's a small branch before i cut that i'm gonna yell clear because there's a drop zone and nobody can be in it clear clear is that is that the right response all clear all clear right i throw it down away from the ropes into a drop zone how far up do you gotta go to set a lifeline in most cases as high as you safely can clear clear all clear and i've seen keith up at the tops of some pretty scary trees wow you're up there there is not a chance i'm going up that high that's just not for me it's definitely going up that high i am not going up that high side it's not happening i would never get myself back down again [Music] so i went up in the tree okay and i threw the lifeline around the crotch of the tree and i tied off a blake's hitch how do you tie that knot you should know this knot but then you can upgrade into mechanical ascenders and zigzags and petzl hardware and all these fancy things but you should know how to do this because if you go buy some fancy 300 mechanical ascender and it gets broken or compromised in the tree

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