This 200′ Mammoth Deluxe kit was installed over a large pond in early 2008, right here in our beautiful hometown of Grants Pass, Oregon. The kit was slightly customized to fit the location; the bungee stop was removed since we could drop into the water or coast to a stop before reaching the far end, and a full line of attachments were added to allow multiple types of riding.
The zip line starts about 20′ above the surface of the water. The Mammoth Deluxe kit uses an 8′ cable sling to wrap around the tree on each end and connect to the cable with a 12″ turnbuckle.
The cable ended being far too slack for the first run, and the first ride ended abruptly, with our test rider drenched and sitting on the seat in about 10 inches of water in the middle of the pond! We tightened it up a bit and tested it again- standing on the seat this time!
We eventually tuned it to where the seat would hang above the water, just high enough to reach down and skim the water as we zipped across.
We put the younger kids in a climbing harness and swung them around over the water with the return line (3/8″ braided nylon rope), before pulling them back to dismount at the top.
The 20″ straight bar was great for dropping off- it’s weight (about 5 pounds) keeps it from bouncing around too much when someone lets go. Even so, our favorite was the dual handlebar; it doesn’t rotate like the straight bar does…
…and you can ride it upside down and backwards!
We also found that having a lot of slack in the cable allowed us to swing people side to side over the water, using the return line. This ends up being even more thrilling than the straight ride down- it’s a giant swing over the water.
One of the guys finishes a back flip off the zip line seat.
Have you ever tried tying a knot with steel cable? If you haven’t already- don’t bother. Tying off a steel cable requires the use of cable clamps, otherwise known as wire rope clips. The cable is folded around something called a thimble, or a tree in some cases, and is clamped back to itself with three of these nifty clamps. It goes something like this:
Step 1:Turn back the specified amount of cable from the thimble. Apply the first clip one base width from the cut end of the wire rope (U-bolt over cut end – live end rests in clip saddle). Tighten nuts evenly to recommended torque.
Step 2:Apply the next clamp as near the loop as possible (when using a thimble). Twist on nuts firmly but do not tighten.
Step 3:Place the third clamp equally between the first two, take up the slack, and tighten all nuts evenly on all clamps to recommended torque.
Step 4: Perform a weight test on the cable and retighten all clamps to the specified torque- cable will stretch and shrink slightly when tension is applied.
The following table provides the recommended torque for each size cable clamp; if you don’t have a torque wrench, just keep them tight and check periodically for slippage.
Clip
Size
Inches
Minimum
No. of
Clips
Amount of
Rope to
Turn Back
in Inches
Torque in
Ft. Lbs.*
3/16″
3
5-1/2″
4.5
1/4″
3
7″
15
5/16″
3
7-3/4″
15
3/8″
3
9-1/2″
30
Cable clamps can also be used to create a loop around the entire anchor, instead of just a small loop for hardware connections. It’s pretty straight forward- I think the only concern is to make sure the cable loop doesn’t come out from the first clamp at too large of an angle (keep the first clamp a reasonable distance from the tree/pole).
We’re excited to announce the launch of our ZipLineGear Blog! This area of the website is designed to be a place to share stories, pictures, videos, product reviews- everything related to zip lines and outdoor projects.
To submit your own content, please send an email to blog@ziplinegear.com, we’d love to hear from you!
