I am thinking of adding some of the lifelines to my hang-on stands as I am getting older and after my Cervical neck surgery I want to be very careful
when climbing into my stands. I know there is no money value you can put on safety, but i am kind of cheap and I don't want to fork out 40 dollars a piece for the HS Lifelines. I was wondering if anyone had some information on some rope to where a guy could be thrifty and make my own for cheaper. I seen how to tie a prusik knot on youtube. I want to make at least 3.

Thanks

Checks Menards. They have some on sale right now. Not sure of the brand but cheaper than $40. Probably cheaper than you can make your own?

I have been buying all of my static line products from Jim Jacques of http://safetreehunt.com for the past 10+ years. Great guy who makes his own products.

Thanks for the info fellas.

Parker - I go through this every year. I have found that MOST of the stuff at Lowes or Menards are NOT for lifelines.

I looked at the site (again) that DEC posted and will be ordering either, a set or stuff to make my own. In the end the price difference is minimal.

This debate starts this time every year about this, and for us, we will be buying static lines. Not a huge difference in price IMO.

Keep us posted on what you settle on. I use a tree tether, but they're awkward to shuffle up the tree with a climber. And even more so with a portable stand & steps/sticks.

Parker I see you are from Mt. Pleasant. Is that outside of Muncie? If so that is where I live, if you need help I can show you how to tie a Prusik knot ( we use that type of knot to repel). Just send me a PM.

Appreciate the thought tattoo, but the Mt. Pleasant I live in is in Perry Co. Way down south.

Parker - menards has lifelines on sale for $25 I don't know the specs but that is pretty good.

That is a pretty good deal, I will have to try and get over to one of them. The bad thing is I seen a decent ladder stand on sale for $89 bucks that i will probably have to get too, So there goes my lifeline savings. LOL

+1

my emergency room copay is the cost of 3 of these....

stay safe guys....


https://www.menards.com/main/p-2789756-c-13896.htm?tid=-1086785440305831569

I just bought one. It is from X-stands and seems pretty nicely made. The Muddy was $40.

There's gotta be a way to buy a quantity of rope cheaper, for both the lifeline, and the prussic. The D-ring would be where the cost is. I could make a bunch of them up for those who need them, but the liability for me would be too great.

and I don't even need the d ring. I have a climbing quality carabiner on my harness all the time.

http://www.rei.com/product/783147/black-diamond-neutrino-wiregate-carabiner#tab-specs

Got to be a cheaper route. Buying the good rope in quantity is pricey and I only need a couple.

The one I bought included a heavy-duty locking carabiner. For $25 that price will be tough to beat when buying a good quality rope.

If used properly you should not fall very far anyway so a possible lesser quality rope could be used. I have looked on amazon and eBay. You could save a few bucks in buying rope in quantity but after shipping and carabiner cost the cost is not that much.

I plan on getting 3-4 more of the one I bought.

I bought my rope from these guys last year...

www.castotrade.com/
Wade Casto is who I spoke with, great guy and a deer hunter as well. He sells a lot of this rope for lifeline construction. Also has the prussik cord. Spent just over $20.00 / lifeline.

ropes were already cut to the length I wanted. Wade told me I would get them in longer lengths and would have to cut them to the desired length myself but he must have decided to help me out. I do know that he said for best results when cutting to use a sharp knife and not scissors, something to do with the scissors fraying the ends where as the knife would make a cleaner cut.

Yes. Very easy to make. Here's another video...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLGG21taT2A&feature=player_detailpage

Helpful hint: Even though each HSS Lifeline comes with a carabiner, I do not leave them at the tree. They tend to rust and lock up if you do that. I always just leave one on my vest and use it each time. I normally loop the prussic knot around a screw-in step or a ladder stick rung at chest level when I leave the stand.

All good thoughts and I am thrilled to see so many taking the time to consider or use a lifeline. They are invaluable and the only sure way to insure you don't fall is to stay connected from the time you leave the ground.
IMO..if you consider your time and materials needed, you are better off to buy a professionally constructed, tested lifeline. The actual savings from making your own is minimal. I know.
I will be buying a couple more from HSS soon.

Good Luck this fall guys.

A Prusik knot is easy to tie here is a link to tieing one.

http://www.animatedknots.com/prusik/

Another thing is most hunters I see climbing to their stands using a lifeline are holding the Prusik knot as they climb. The right way is to push the Prusik knot up the rope as you climb up & to pull the knot down the rope with two fingers coming down.
If you fall with your hand around the Prusik knot your hand will tighten on the knot & the knot will not grip the main life line.
So it will slide down the rope with you.

When you guys make these, how long of a piece of rope do you start with when making the prusik loop? I would think they would be pretty short for a lifeline.

It's been a minute since I last thought about this but i think it was around 30". Get yourself some cheap "practice" rope to figure out the length.

I also made a much longer one that I carry in my cargo pants pocket as a rescue prussik. In the event of a fall I could use that one to put my foot in and work my way down the lifeline.

Thanks HuntMeister

Also these are very nice and easy to use.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVSf4cvsg1U

Is it possible to descend the tree in the event of stand failure?
If so how?

Rope Grabs and Ascenders work great also....There used everyday in construction work.

for sure, I use with my viper climber. Connected from feet up to feet down on the ground....

I've used lifelines since '08 and become so reliant on them it nearly freaks me out to leave the ground without one.

Invested about $500 in rope....have a dozen or so lines in service and plenty more rope left.

I have them on all my stands......3 packs are cheaper on amazon:)

wadecasto@castotrade.com

Wade Casto
Casto Trading Co.
770.725.2424

FYI.
If anyone wants to make thier own lifelines this guy quoted me $75 dollars including shipping for:

4- 30 ft black 7/16" Kermantle static lines and 15 ft of 7mm prusik cord in olive drab. Heck of a deal if you ask me considering you would pay almost $200 dollars for 4 HSS lines.

I agree with you Parker, I odered 5 Fri should be here today or tomorrow...

Very good deal with the shipping included.

Here is the 3 pack on amazon with free shipping $93+change.....fyi.....glad to see us addressing stand safety:)Hunter Safety Lifeline System Safety Harness (3-Pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00806A54M/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_RIU9vbMD7DE1Q