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9-Ring
Figure 9
Long Big Dipper S
Long Big Dipper L
Long Big Dipper XL
Short Big Dipper S
Short Big Dipper L
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| 9-Ring | Figure 9 |
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| Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL |
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| Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L |
[ Top | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired my Xinda 9-Ring from Chinatera Limited in 2020.
My Xinda 9-Ring is 78 mm. tall, 235 mm. wide, 16 mm. thick, and weighs 194 g.
The 9-Ring is made from a forged aluminum alloy body with a 135 mm. long, 13.8 mm. diameter, 1.85 mm. wall tubular handle riveted in place. The large opening is 50 mm. in diameter, and the smaller eye is 18 mm. wide and 15 mm. high.
The front is printed with a book-with-an-"i" icon, the Xinda logo, "Xinda," a rigging illustration, and an up-pointing filled arrow. The rear is printed with "20349300X113," "CE", "EN 15151," "8mm ≤ ROPE Ø≤ 12mm," "MAX:150kg," and "MADE IN CHINA."
CommentsThe Xinda 9-Ring has the distinction of apparently being the first device in my collection that was originally designed in China as opposed to being a Chinese copy of another design. The photos that showing the device on the eBay listing suggest that device was intended as an emergency descender in urban environments rather than a climbing or caving descender.
The concept is that of the alternate figure eight rigging (found, for example, in the 1989 Kong-Bonaiti catalog) that provides an auto-stop feature. Be sure to rig with the twist to ensure that the standing line presses the trailing line against the body of the 9-Ring. failure to do so will defeat the auto-stop function. Pull the handle down to descend, and raise it to stop, while always keeping the braking hand on the trailing line.
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[ Top | 9-Ring | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired two Xinda Figure 9s from Wisstone Technology Co. in 2021.
My Xinda Figure 9s are 229 mm. tall, 78 mm. wide, 28 mm. thick, and weighs 182 g.
The Figure 9 is made from a forged aluminum alloy body with a 124 mm. long folding plastic handle. The large opening is 50 mm. in diameter, and the smaller eye is 18 mm. wide and 15 mm. high. The handle has a spring-loaded latch that holds the handle in the folded and extended positions. Folding the handle requires operating the latch, but opening the handle to the extended position does not.
The front is printed with a book-with-an-"i" icon, the Xinda logo, "Xinda," a rigging illustration, and an up-pointing filled arrow. The rear is printed with "20349300X 151," "CE", "EN 15151," "8mm ≤ ROPE Ø≤ 12mm," "MAX:150kg," and "MADE IN CHINA." The handle has the Xinda logo and"Xinda" molded in raised relief on both sides
The Xinda Figure 9 is an upgrade to the original 9-Ring. The folding handle adds little complexity, but makes storing the Figure 9 more flexible. It adds weight, but in the intended urban escape environment, who cares?
I like the feature that allows opening the handle without needing to operate the latch under what might be a slightly stressful time when trying to emergency evacuate a burning building, but I suspect that anyone too panicked to operate a simple latch would probably not be able to properly rig a descender.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired this Xinda Long Big Dipper from e4store in 2024.
My Xinda Long Big Dipper HH9776ASB105 is 38 mm. tall, 168 mm. wide, 24 mm. thick, and weighs 207 g.
The Long Big Dippers are handled descenders. There are three sizes, as follows:
This is the small version designed for 10 to 11.5 mm. rope.
Each Long Big Dipper consists of a handled descender body with a pivoting arm. These are made of stainless steel. The body has a vertical channel for accepting a bight of the main line, and cutouts on the side to reduce weight. The pivoting arm holds a brass roller that turns on needle bearings. This reduces the heat put into the roller, limiting its temperature rise and making the more massive body responsible for absorbing more heat.
The front of this Long Big Dipper is printed with "CE1019," "EN 15151-1," a book-with-an-"I" icon, "ROPE Ø 10–11.5mm," a rigging illustration, and "HH9776ASB105." The rear is printed with the Xinda logo, "XINDA," some Chinese characters, a rope loop illustration, a hand-holding-a-rope illustration, and a filled up-pointing arrow.
Using the Long Big Dipper is simple: pull the handle down to descend faster and let it rise to slow the descent.
This version is designed for 10.5 to 12 mm. rope. I wish the range included smaller ropes as most of the ropes that I use are in the 9–11 mm. range.
Each Big Dipper came with a locking screw that can be installed to keep the roller arm closed. Since this prevents attaching or detaching the descender to or from the rope, I chose not to install the screws on mine.
Each Big Dipper also came with a shackle for the distal end of the handle. While not strictly necessary, the shackle provides a convenient point for hanging the descender from a carabiner when not in use. I installed mine for safekeeping.
Do not confuse the Long Big Dippers with the superficially similar Krok Автоблокант R2D2 D8. That is a different device designed for an entirely different application.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired this Xinda Long Long Big Dipper from e4store in 2024.
My Xinda Long Big Dipper HH9776ASB12 is 43 mm. tall, 174 mm. wide, 26 mm. thick, and weighs 249 g.
The Long Big Dippers are handled descenders. There are three sizes, as follows:
This is the large version designed for 10.5 to 12 mm. rope.
Each Long Big Dipper consists of a handled descender body with a pivoting arm. These are made of stainless steel. The body has a vertical channel for accepting a bight of the main line, and cutouts on the side to reduce weight. The pivoting arm holds a brass roller that turns on needle bearings. This reduces the heat put into the roller, limiting its temperature rise and making the more massive body responsible for absorbing more heat.
The front of this Long Big Dipper is printed with "CE1019," "EN 15151–1," a book-with-an-"I" icon, "ROPE Ø 10.5–12mm," a rigging illustration, and "HH9776ASB12." The rear is printed with the Xinda logo, "XINDA," some Chinese characters, a rope loop illustration, a hand-holding-a-rope illustration, and a filled up-pointing arrow.
This version is larger and heavier than the small version, but the design rope range is only 0.5 mm larger. I don't often use battleship mooring hawsers over 11 mm., so the small version is a better choice for me.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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| Rear | Bottom |
I acquired this Xinda Long Big Dipper from e4store in 2024.
My Xinda Long Big Dipper HH9776ASB12 is 43 mm. tall, 174 mm. wide, 26 mm. thick, and weighs 249 g.
The Long Big Dippers are handled descenders. There are three sizes, as follows:
This is the extra-large version designed for 13 to 16 mm. rope.
Each Long Big Dipper consists of a handled descender body with a pivoting arm. These are made of stainless steel. The body has a vertical channel for accepting a bight of the main line, and cutouts on the side to reduce weight. The pivoting arm holds a brass roller that turns on needle bearings. This reduces the heat put into the roller, limiting its temperature rise and making the more massive body responsible for absorbing more heat.
The front of this Long Big Dipper is printed with "CE1019," "EN 15151–1," a book-with-an-"I" icon, "ROPE Ø 13–16mm," a rigging illustration, and "HH9776ASB14S." The rear is printed with the Xinda logo, "XINDA," some Chinese characters, a rope loop illustration, a hand-holding-a-rope illustration, and a filled up-pointing arrow.
This version is much larger and heavier than the others. This will please the "bigger-is-better" crowd.
The handle on this one does not droop downwards as much as the handles on the small and large versions. This is more cosmetic than functional.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper L | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired this Xinda Small Big Dipper from e4store in 2024.
My Xinda Short Big Dipper HH9776B105 is 38 mm. tall, 69 mm. wide, 24 mm. thick, and weighs 121 g.
There are two sizes, as follows:
This is the small version designed for 10 to 11.5 mm. rope.
Each Short Big Dipper consists of a descender body with a pivoting arm. These are made of stainless steel. The body has a vertical channel for accepting a bight of the main line, and cutouts on the side to reduce weight. The Short Big Dippers lack handles; Instead, they have stubby tails. These have four flat surfaces at 120° angles, with shallow ribs on each side.
The pivoting arm holds a brass roller that turns on needle bearings. This reduces the heat put into the roller, limiting its temperature rise and making the more massive body responsible for absorbing more heat.
The front of this Short Big Dipper is printed with "CE1019," "EN 15151–1," a book-with-an-"I" icon, "ROPE Ø 13–16mm," a rigging illustration, and "HH9776B105." The rear is printed with the Xinda logo, "XINDA," some Chinese characters, a rope loop illustration, a hand-holding-a-rope illustration, and a filled up-pointing arrow.
How does one descend if there is no handle to reduce friction?. Unbelievably, you need to carry a 10 mm open-end wrench to use as a handle. I kid you not. Kinda even supplies a wrench. This is ridiculous, even if it works. Maybe I would choose this in an emergency, but for normal use, no. Just no.
The Short Big Dippers resemble the Petzl Progress Adjust and Camnal’s copy, so naturally they can also function as adjustable cows’ tails. Being stainless steel, the Short Big Dippers are a bit heavy, but they will wear well. The handles on the Long Big Dippers make them less suitable for cow tail use.
The Short Big Dippers also come with locking screws. I installed one on my Smooth Short Big Dipper. I recommend using the screw if you plan to use your Short Big Dipper as a cows’ tail, and leaving it out if you expect to be using the Dipper as a descender.
The small Big Dippers also come with shackles that the user can install, if desired. While not strictly necessary, the shackle provides a convenient point for hanging the descender from a carabiner when not in use. I installed mine for safekeeping.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Return to Misc. Descenders ]
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I acquired this Xinda Small Big Dipper from e4store in 2024.
My Xinda Short Big Dipper HH9776B12 is 41 mm. tall, 77 mm. wide, 26 mm. thick, and weighs 164 g.
There are two sizes, as follows:
This is the large version designed for 10.5 to 12 mm. rope.
Each Short Big Dipper consists of a descender body with a pivoting arm. These are made of stainless steel. The body has a vertical channel for accepting a bight of the main line, and cutouts on the side to reduce weight. The Short Big Dippers lack handles; Instead, they have stubby tails. These have four flat surfaces at 120° angles, with shallow ribs on each side.
The pivoting arm holds a brass roller that turns on needle bearings. This reduces the heat put into the roller, limiting its temperature rise and making the more massive body responsible for absorbing more heat.
The front of this Short Big Dipper is printed with "CE1019," "EN 15151–1," a book-with-an-"I" icon, "ROPE Ø 10.5–12 mm," a rigging illustration, and "HH9776B12." The rear is printed with the Xinda logo, "XINDA," some Chinese characters, a rope loop illustration, a hand-holding-a-rope illustration, and a filled up-pointing arrow.
This version is much larger and heavier than the small version, but the design rope range is only 0.5 mm larger. Stiffer ropes run more smoothly in the large version, but it provide a bit less friction. I don't often use battleship mooring hawsers over 11 mm., so the small version is a better choice for me.
[ Top | 9-Ring | Figure 9 | Long Big Dipper S | Long Big Dipper L | Long Big Dipper XL | Short Big Dipper S | Short Big Dipper L ]
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