My top rope soloing setup

Any feedback is appreciated.

[@AlpineLifeProductions]

Highly recommend the Camp Lift in place of the prusik. Is has a toothless camming action so less likely to de-sheath your rope. I use that as a main clipped to my chest harness and a nanotrax as a backup off my seat harness. I usually connect the two harnesses as well with a sling. With that combo you barely have to manually pull rope through.

[@garymccreath2773]

Well I for one thi k you have done a great job of making your own system that works for you, good job, Gary in Scotland

[@martinm931]

Thanks for making this video. I tried it. Great option. Moves freely. Feels super safe because the Traxion captures all progress. I only have a dynamic rope. Good to know I have extra “suspension” should I slip. When you climb a route with an overhang at the top, make sure you have the ability to switch to descend safely while suspended away from the face. Take several options. You don’t want to drop your only descender. Having a second rope gives you more options and peace of mind as well I find. Cheers.

[@adrobotics]

Glad you like the setup. I started with a dynamic rope as well but switched to static, am very pleased with it. You don't actually "fall" with this setup, if you happen to slip off the wall, the microtrax immediately catches you in place if you use a static rope. We a dynamic rope, because of it being more elastic, you can drop several meters depending on the full length of the rope. When doing 2 pitches in one go, a 60-70m rope will stretch 2-3m, which is more than your height. I also didn't like how the sheath stretches around the teeth of the microtrax. I recommend switching to a static rope and maybe use the dynamic one just as a backup.

[@martinm931]

@@adrobotics you are 100% right about the dynamic v static rope. If you climb easier stuff, the rope chose seems less important, but yesterday I needed to ascend with a toothed ascender several times due to my skill gap 😂. Will need to get a static rope for sure. Q: Is it possible to have too many ropes or carabiners?

[@adrobotics]

@@martinm931 Haha, you can get as many as you can carry 😂.

[@thomaswillmann296]

Really good setup, I use almost the same (double-strand "Solo Top Roping" with a Micro Traxian and Nano Traxion). That said, the Prusik should ideally be below the GriGri on the break-side of your rope. To set it up like this you'd need more distance between your rappel loop and nano-traxion. For more detail see the 'Swiss method' for rappelling ...

[@adrobotics]

Thank you. I'll check it out.

[@Salmontemaki]

It works with the grigri though, but yes if it were an atc or anything else the third hand is on the break hand

[@monsterlynx2473]

Id recomend changing the prusik to a toothless ascender id recommend the paspov 3 because you can repel on it but there are plenty of more affordable devices, i modified my microtraction so it couldn't lock in the open position, if you want to do that theres just a little pin that must be filed off. I also have seen people modify there gri gri as an alternative to the paslov but i haven't tried that. Overall thought i like your setup

[@die_hertz]

Nice setup!
Doesn't this route need a little directional to avoid rubbing the rope over the edge?

[@adrobotics]

@@die_hertz No, the route is pretty straight, it might just look a bit off because of how I recorded it.

[@die_hertz]

@@adrobotics fair enough, action cams make rock look weird

[@GRAMANATOR1]

Mount MacDonald? Anchors are far back. Wouldn't be a bad idea to have a ridirect after the first bolt from the anchor- could be another figure 8 on bite. Otherwise ur gonna have a single strand running over the edge when u fall.

[@adrobotics]

@@GRAMANATOR1 Good advice, will try it out next time I go there

[@chance6952]

I like the setup. Seems much cleaner than mine really. I've always used a Grigri and micro traxion as a backup but it doesn't seem to flow as easily. Maybe I'll try the micro traxion with a prusick backup.

[@AlpineLifeProductions]

One thing I had to learn the hard way with the grigri for TR solo is that if the route is steep enough (as in the rope tension is straight up), the rope can actually get super jammed in the metal plate since it is not a straight through device like a nano trax. I had to jumar my way off of it and get it unstuck half way up the wall 😅.

[@hanshansli2238]

I like this setup

[@anviksiki108]

Is possible to use a Jumar in the place of micro traction, along with the prusik?

[@adrobotics]

@@anviksiki108 Technically yes, but in practice the rope doesn't feed very well through it. You would need a lot of weight on the end of the rope to make it work. The Jumar is more bulky and will prevent you from getting your chest close to the wall. All you really need is the mechanism at the end, the handle is just extra and in the way.

[@anviksiki108]

@@adrobotics Thanks for the prompt reply. I will give it a try. Don't have a micro traction. That's why I was asking.

[@hummerchine]

As others have stated, it’s simple and clean but personally I’d feel far more comfortable using two Microtrax….oh wait, I do!

[@Doblef99]

It would probably be wise to use a rope protector. It looked like your rope was going over an edge although I couldn't judge how sharp it was. Anyways It would make me feel much safer, especially when using a single rope

[@adrobotics]

Good idea. I experimented with a tshirt some time ago, but couldn't get it to stay where I wanted it to. Still a good idea I want to find a solution for. Thanks :D

[@shatter98]

@@adrobotics Perhaps a chunk of hose that could slip over the rope with a klemheist attached to it to hold it in place - just spit balling here.

[@ryanstewart1521]

After rappelling this one time I checked my rope and there were only a few strands left holding it together. It was rubbing back and forth on a sharp piece of rock, I almost died and didn’t even know it. I always put a towel or blanket down now for protection now.

[@carldrew]

Add a “camp lift clamp” in place of the prussic. You can drop the traxion down to you waiste harness belay loop, then add an extension/draw to you belay loop and add camp lift, then add bungee accessory cord (that goes around your chest or neck/back) to camp lift to keep it separated from from micro traxion.
Very important to have camp lift above the micro traxion as it works like a prussic, so reversing it could lead to traxion disabling lift and spell disaster.
As alway, test/test/test and research, so you know all the ways the system could fail. Otherwise it may and likely will fail when most needed, and that will spell the end of your climbing.

[@KlausJorgen]

Is it possible to use the same setup, but use only grigri and prusik for climbing up, just pull in the slack in rope by hand while climbing ?

[@adrobotics]

I wouldn't do that. Neither the Grigri nor the Prusik will catch you 100% for sure in this setup. The Grigri has failure modes like the weight of the rope below you not being big enough to engage it, and the Prusik can fail to catch if at any time it became too loose. All of these are things you would need to focus on every second move you make, which will distract you from climbing. Best to use at least one device (like the nano-trax) that will catch you no matter what and have a backup in case of some sort of malfunction of the first.

[@christineholmberg7431]

Shouldn't the friction hitch be below the rappel device?

[@adrobotics]

Good question. If you've rappelled with an ATC before, it would make sense to tie the prusik below the ATC in case your hand come off the rope. I haven't seen people do that with a GriGri since it is "good enough" on its own. I tied the prusik on top as a failsafe in case my GriGri detached from my harness, then the prusik would be my second connection to the rope. I wasn't comfortable enough rappelling down just on the GriGri back then and tried to back it up with anything I had on me. Nowadays I rap down just on the GriGri alone and feed the bottom end of the rope through a carabiner attached to my harness, this adds enough friction for the GriGri to engage under almost any circumstance. But of course never let go of the bottom end of the rope.

[@Tommy-jc6bk]

Very nice setup: I'm scared about prusik also :/

[@andrewhunter6536]

Your initial rappel set up looks pretty annoying so I would switch that up. Also you should think about edge protection if only using a single strand. If the pitch is short enough I personally make tie both ends using an eight or EBSB to a locker on one bolt and then an alpine butterfly to make a y to the other bolt. Then my rope makes a sort of big U shape and I have one device on each rope. If the alpine butterfly on each is slightly different then the rope path is different. I don’t tie to the middle of the rope in case it rubs so I can just chop the damaged part off. You could instead extend your anchor past the edge with static materials or make a little rebely off a lower bolt. Rope rubbing is a big concern for top rope solo

[@mikekelly6603]

I wonder if the rope got cut/shredded somehow by the mini-traction if your prussic would engage fast enough or just slide off the end of the rope?

[@adrobotics]

Lot's of people are afraid of progress capture devices like this one from shredding their ropes. But when they engage, they fully stop the decent, meaning that those metal teeth don't drag across the rope, they immediately dig in deep, so from as far as I can tell the rope isn't damaged at all.

[@felixbub7922]

@@adrobotics it wont be seeing any damage if the forces are below 4 kn after that there is a severe risk of sheath damage

[@MrJohnthec]

@@felixbub7922 yes - MT good for TRS (Top Rope Solo) only w/ not much distance/force...not good for lead soloing

[@allaprima]

Simple, clean, redundant.

[@jansveen]

It is a good set up for sure. I use almost same. It is too much with all the tach focus. A prusik works 100 %. It has been used for about 100 years in all kind of climbing. Keep it up, and enjoy.

[@Mitzbergatc]

A prusik can fail/slide if the wraps/width of rope isn't well adjusted. So you can't claim it works 100%. Let's be accurate, please.

[@chasingsunset9801]

Nice location

[@MrHassancehef]

cool video, but you should remove or at least shorten the yellow cordelette use for not loosing the micro, it could get caught easily between the micro and the rope (and it would no catch anymore).

[@carldrew]

Also, previous poster is correct. You can not trust a prussic for this application.
If prussic was on dead end of rope and mainly there as a breaking hand, that could potentially be counted on (if properly spaced from belay device and there were was ZERO potential for topside interference).
But to count on a prussic to be your second main breaking device is dangerous. Especially at the speed of fall at which it would be expected to kick in due to failure of main piece. Do NOT count on it working in that position. Get a camp lift or other reliable device.

[@ewanhibbert6578]

is your rope a dynamic climbing rope or a static rope?

[@adrobotics]

I started with dynamic but switched to static. It used to be too difficult to start a climb considering how much my old dynamic rope stretched. Works much better with static.

[@313365rg]

No redundancy in the anchor?

[@wileycoyote556]

I don't think that I would trust that prussik to do much after tending itself up the rope and possibly getting loose. I'm sure it's fine once it's weighted but probably not the best method for ascending.

[@jansveen]

You obviously have no clue what you are writing about. Please try to learn something, try it out, experience it, and grow your knowledge. The knots are safer than anything if you know what you are doing, either klemheist or the french or the classic.

[@wileycoyote556]

Oh, you don't believe me? Maybe you should ask the very well-established, decades old community of rope soloists what they think of using a friction hitch as your backup device while rock climbing. I promise you, there are much better devices to use for this... especially on a taught rope. A friction knot is commonly used for tree work when you are actually climbing the rope, and is very far from ideal when climbing the rock with both hands free and in awkward, unpredictable positions. Before you bother commenting here again, go do some googling in actual rock climbing forums and let me know what you find.
Just FYI, the best setup that I've ever used which puts this one to shame, is a TAZ Lov3 on one strand, with a camp goblin or other ascender on the other strand. That's a Ferreri, this is a Ford Taurus running on 5 out of 6 cylinders.

[@jansveen]

@@wileycoyote556 you just proved your ignorance. I've used them for 40 years

[@Mitzbergatc]

@@jansveen dude you're the one talking rubbish xD

[@PathofCultivation]

Is it safe to tie rope to a tree at the cliff top?

[@ethanjohnson9425]

There is no redundancy in that anchor.

[@TheKevinFanClub526]

Static rope or dynamic rope? I'm assuming static.

[@adrobotics]

I was using a dynamic rope in this video, but I've switched to a static rope since then.

[@rockklimber]

A simpler setup would be to remove the cordelette anchor and attach the rope directly to the bolts with a bunny ears knot and lockers.

[@PetrFlosman]

At the top, I wouldn't put the ropes through both rings like that, that's called "American Death Triangle". In this exact scenario and for a rapelling it's not a big issue but I would still avoid it. You should probably use just one of the bolts (after inspecting it) for the rappel or if you're not sure you could build an anchor but that would involve leaving some gear up there

[@tannersmith448]

Dude is that a hair tie?

[@adrobotics]

Don't get your panties in a knot 😅 They are just meant to keep the micro-tracks upright so that the rope feeds through it smoothly. There is no intention of it holding any significant weight.

[@tannersmith448]

@adrobotics i see
So are you clipping your chest harness into your micro trax with anything?

[@adrobotics]

@@tannersmith448 That's the thing. The chest harness is only there to keep the microtracks upright. I've seen others just use a carabiner and accessory cord, but that is too static and makes you hunch down all the time. If you use a few stretchy hair ties between the chest harness and the microtracks, then it can extend a bit so your back isn't arched the entire route. You can see between @2:48 and @3:00 how much the hair ties stretch when I'm down on the ground vs on the wall.
The microtracks is hooked up directly into my climbing harness' belay loop. Everything else is just for convenience.

[@tannersmith448]

@adrobotics i see
Thanks for the advice
Your setup seems not only very sound, but very simple. That really makes me like what you've done here

[@darrenmarney8577]

Purchase a Soloist from Rock Exotica & dump all of that complexity Adrian 👌