Introducing the Longhorn Zenith Hitch, a Novel Friction Hitch

JRB's Longhorn Loop can be fashioned into the Longhorn Zenith Hitch, a novel Friction Hitch which (in normal conditions) is breakable under the load of our body, making it possible to execute SRT and DSRT climbs on nothing but a Friction Hitch. JRB plans on using it in DSRT systems, replacing the Agile Hitch. Related Videos:
• Tying the Longhorn Hit...
• Tying the Agile Hitch
• Tying the Longhorn Agi...
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DISCLAIMER: Viewers assume responsibility for their own safety. This video is provided for demonstrational and informational purposes only, and is not considered advice nor instruction. Climbing and related knot tying activities are dangerous and should be performed only with appropriate training, supervision and protective equipment. The author disclaims responsibility for the clarity, comprehensiveness and accuracy of the content, as well as all liability for accidents or injuries incurred. - JRB Tree Climbing LLC
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[@maxvarjagen9810]

Hey john, just want to say that i made it my resolution to teach myself to climb this year, and your channel is by far the most detailed, comprehensive and beginner friendly channel I could find on youtube. I have no idea how good your knots are compared to traditional methods, because I don’t know any traditional methods. Ive taught myself to climb using your system purely because of how good you are at explaining what to do and how it works at every step of the process. It would have taken me a lot more time and money to build up the level of skill and confidence ive gotten in the last few months if i all i had were a bunch of isolated videos about blakes hitches and friction savers from different channels. Thanks a lot, really.

[@jrbtc]

@maxvarjagen9810 Your comment is appreciated more than you know. We are building something here, and it's not just about me and its not about money... it's about strangers acting like brothers and helping each other out for the right reasons. I get a ton of motivation from you and our friends... the support, the thanks, the questions and even the constructive criticism. All I ask in return is that if I helped you, you pass it along and help someone else. Friends don't let friends fall out of trees! Please take a look at the new page on my website which has information for new saddle hunters. If you have any comments, you can always send me those via Facebook if you are in my group: JRB Tree Climbing. Cheers. jrbtreeclimbing.com/

[@Paul-l3d]

Hey John! I wanted to say thank you for your research and congrats on the new knot. I'll stick with the LA for now, as I really like the auto-tending feature. In my climbing setup (tree climbing with a sports climbing harness) I'm using the LA as a chest and foot ascender (with a carabiner and a cow-hitched footloop). Way easier than using Prusiks! I also incorporated a LA one into my cowstails to form an adjustable lanyard. Love the fact that it replaces some expensive metal, while also being more quiet! Keep it up!

[@jrbtc]

Thanks. I don't always have time to respond to all the comments but I do my best

[@Simon-80]

Hi John! Today my webbing arrived and I just build your garda hitch footloop. With the best friend. I don’t bought it because the shop not ship to Germany. Anyway to build it by myself was fun and I learned a lot . I Hope I can try it on the weekend now. So far I can see that it is a great progress capture device. And lotion for my nerves to have redundancy. Thank you 😊

[@jrbtc]

@Simon-80 in my experience, especially when we climb high, we have a strong confidence in our system because it has redundancy. It's a wonderful feeling to have, especially for a hunter who is in the woods far from anyone who could help us if there was a problem. Danke!

[@Simon-80]

@@jrbtc Danke :-) Yes without Redundancy i would not gonna try this, because of my fear of hight. i can´t stand on a ladder 4th step, because in my mind something go wrong and i cant even see it if something else is doing it. But when the ladder is secure, there is no big problem for me to go further up. Now i trained your system with all the knots and hitches over a year (i dont know exact, but it quite a timespan) or so and i can build the knots and hitches from the scratch. Sometimes i dont get the lenght spec´s right but all is readable agai and again. Now i think i have the confidence to climb on a small tree and look how hight i can go. The redundancy for me is the gamechanger, because i dont want to hang my health or life on one possiblity. And i trust a hitch more than i can trust any device. Thanks John, for all i learned from you till now. That is awesome and much more! Best wishes and always good climb

[@kennethrogers1129]

Oh wow, did a test climb on a 4-2 Zenith, and am very pleased with the better grip upon breaking commencing rappel, no sudden drop of a frightening length, apparently with my rope and cord combination (Sampson predator 11mm and Sampson hitch cord 9mm) this variation seems to work better . Ascent is nice, maybe a tad more effort to slide the 4-2 up but insignificant, on rappel break is still easy but the 4-2 hitch retains slight grip and without ANY slip will engage to back up the munter. Thought y'all might find this info useful as there are so many combinations of rope and cord we climbers might be using

[@jrbtc]

Thanks for the feedback on that combination.

[@kennethrogers1129]

@@jrbtc after further testing, went back to the 3-2 zenith. The 4-2 turned out to be too hard to move. The 3-2 performs best, perhaps this was due to my cord and rope breaking in and setting the hitch properly

[@JohnKlopp]

Wonder how it would perform compared to his recommendation of 65% or 7mm on the hitch rope?

[@jrbtc]

@@JohnKlopp if our cord is too thick, we need to add wraps. I had more luck with going to a 3-3 than a 4-2.

[@philosborn1840]

Maybe consider a technical video to explain to us subscribers how and why the Longhorn hitches release on SRT compared to arborist hitches that don’t. 👍🏻

[@jrbtc]

@philosborn1840 in my mind, there's no such thing as an "arborist hitch". There's a lot of hitches which are described that way because they were designed by arborists or are primarily used by arborists. If I was a full-time arborist, then my hitches would be considered Arborist Hitches. My goal is to simply call it what it is: a Novel Friction Hitch and let it find its home. As for WHY they are breakable under load, this is difficult to explain, but I will think about it. Thanks for the suggestion. Cheers

[@Simon-80]

Congrats to this cool hitch! I Just tied it and it’s easy! Holds great 👍

[@jrbtc]

@@Simon-80 excellent!

[@Simon-80]

The Longhorn iam using with Paracord as a softshackle, just as a carabiner with cord...this thing is so usefull!!!

[@jrbtc]

It's handy for certain... and of course you realize that that combination would be inadequate for life safety.

[@Simon-80]

@@jrbtc it holds- mostly …when the cord was getting longer I replace it 🧗

[@maxvarjagen9810]

I was wondering why my zenith wasn’t working, then i measured my rope and cord and it was 11 and 8 😅. I think i’ll stick with the agile

[@jrbtc]

@maxvarjagen9810 that's 73%. 7mm will work better. You can also tie a 3-3 variation but it doesn't move as freely

[@kennethrogers1129]

Great, so I can switch to the Zenith and not have to carry my hitch rope with any metal, no rings or carabiners. Two Zeniths on my rope and a Garda with two carabiners in my pack or on my saddle and I’m all set. But of course I will carry couple extra Longhorn loops just in case. So climb with the Zeniths on my hitch rope, but switch to a Longhorn Agile while sitting for a hunt as adjustment to tether would be easier with the auto tending option and both are so easy to tie. Awesome,

[@jrbtc]

@@kennethrogers1129 LA and LZ will both work with a 6mm cord on 9.5mm rope. So tie a couple of Longhorn Loops and try em out side by side. The LZ requires a load on the knob to keep it from getting tighter. I am using it for DSRT only

[@rpaulwaddington1858]

Hi John. It is fun, and instructive watching you develop 'design' variations on your previous work. I would also like to know what your view would be of your friction hitches tied around both accending rope as I have done. I have found it very reliable. However, I don't know if I am missing something. I.E. is a single ascender LonghornAgile hitch less safe than using two as you do? Many thanks for you effort.

[@jrbtc]

@rpaulwaddington1858 I think you are saying that you have a rope up over a crotch and back down to you... Aka a DOUBLED Rope.... and instead of putting a friction hitch on each side you put one friction hitch which goes around both ropes and you climb on it. That does work, but you will eventually experience this situation: the branch forming the crotch is thick and you wanna climb up close to it. But as you approach it, your rope strands want to be pulled apart and basically you'll get to a point where your friction hitch just won't hold anymore. You won't fall through... it will just stop holding in slide gently back to the highest position in which it will hold. As a saddle hunter, we usually want to get pretty close to our crotch and that's the main reason I don't like that method. Ok now, I have NOT tried that recently on the LZ or the LA... the last time I did that test had to be over 5 years ago on a Double Meech... and it was kind of uncomfortable when it started slipping!

[@rpaulwaddington1858]

Yes John your are correct, and I see your point about the slipping. I did identify that as an issue when I first tried using your hitches when climbing the 'conventionaly' branched tree I practiced on. Nice thing, though. I had always set out to climb my palms and their fronds are around 100mm (4") in section, and so, have found I can reliably get the hitch right up close to the frond at the anchor point. Your LonghornAgile has proven very, very reliable for what I am doing. Having tried many other ways before settling on yours, I truly do appreciate what you have done, achieved, and shared selflessly. Thank you. PaulW.