I have five vertical rigs:

1. A Cuddington Three-Phase for its speed and unmatched versatility
2. A Gibbs Ropewalker, not the double bungee but the older shoulder-Gibbs style with the excellent rest position
3. A Frog rig. The Frog is a good system but it is relatively slow. I use it for teaching and for when I'm forced to climb Frog.
4. A 3-knot “Prusik” rig with home-made Salewa-type ascenders replacing the knots, and
5. A lightweight short-drop rig that fits in a half-gallon Ziploc, ideally suited to the many, many 22-foot (never 23-foot or 21-foot) West Virginia drops.

Each of these has its purpose, and it would be absurd to say that one is best for all occasions. Perhaps the most interesting is #4, since many people don't know about Salewa ascenders.

I acquired my first Salewa Ascenders while visiting Switzerland in 1982. The Salewa is a small ascender, and not as massive as the huge Tibloc, which weighs more than three Salewas combined. It provides a fast means of tying a self-tightening helical knot. They are attached to a 5- or 6 mm. sling rope by a simple overhand knot (which could be glued on for security).

While the traditional three-knot system uses Prusik knots, I prefer helicals, but going semi-mechanical has real advantages. The helical knot is one of the best ascender knots, and the Salewa ascender improves on it by allowing the knot to tighten under load.

Attaching the ascender to the standing line involves nothing more than making the proper number of wraps (usually 2 to 4) then hooking the sling rope. Detaching merely reverses the process. Carrying a fourth ascender on a spare sling makes crossing rebelays with the “three-knot” (now a “4-knot”) easy.

Sadly, you cannot buy Salewa Ascenders anymore. I now mill my own, and occasionally hand extras out to my friends.

Technical Details

I acquired three Salewa ascenders from Eiselin Sport in 1982, and two more from Bill Edwards in 2016. Raúl Macia Sanchez sent me another in 2022. I obtained six more from Miles Bradshaw in 2024.

The Salewa is 31 mm. tall, 27 mm. wide, 8 mm. thick, and weighs 11 g. It is stamped from aluminum alloy. A 6.5 mm. hole provides an attachment for the sling rope, and a 5 mm. slot connecting to a 9.5 mm. hole provides a hook with sufficient room for the sling rope to slide freely.

One side of is marked "SALEWA" and "W-Germany." The other side has a number of striations that are probably incidental marks left by a clamping mechanism used in production.

Comments

The Salewa ascender provides a fast means of tying a self-tightening helical knot. The ascender is exceptionally small and light. They are attached to a 5- or 6 mm. sling rope by a simple overhand knot (which could be glued on for security). Attaching the ascender to the standing line involves nothing more than making the proper number of wraps (usually 2 to 4) then hooking the sling rope.

The helical knot is one of the best ascender knots, and the Salewa ascender improves on it by allowing the knot to tighten under load. The slot is narrow enough (4 mm.) to keep the sling rope from coming out accidentally. Needless to say, I like this device.

History

Salewa introduced this ascender in 1973.