NOTES: Information Booklet 3 Basic Pioneering Compiled For Cambridgeshire Scouts September2013 12 Basic Pioneering It is important that you read this before attempting any should be protected by means of a safety belt and fixed loops on to the main tree. You should also be careful Pioneering Project. when using tools on the platform so that those on the ground are not injured from items falling on their heads. Pioneering can be both enjoyable, and rewarding, learning the different knots Once the platform is constructed you can then consider and lashing can be daunting at first. Once learnt the number of things you can do building the rest of the structure. with this new found skill is almost endless. Remember before you start any pioneering project, no matter how small, you must first consider all the SAFETY aspects ; Now for the next stage. Is your equipment in good condition and suitable to your project. With your confidence growing you might like to try your hand at the following Are you competent enough to do the job, or do you need someone better trained to help Out Back Bridge Although pioneering is fun, it is not without risk and should always be undertaken with proper supervision. You must never start any pioneering project with out do- ing a doing a RISK ASSESSMENT. HOW to START. Firstly, it is necessary to know how to tie the required knots and lashings; sec- ondly, you must have spars or poles from which to build your project. The next consideration is ropes and pulleys to bridge and secure your project and lastly Friction Bridge some know how and loads of common sense. Each project should be ap- No lashings are used in the construction, you rely proached in a logical way rather on the friction and tension of each log in the What are we trying to do bridge to hold the structure together What equipment do we have What is the best way to use this equipment Square Tower Designing the project Planning the steps to complete the project Testing and safety Dismantling the project Every project should be approached in this way. The designs suggested are tried and tested however you rarely find a level river bed or trees in the right places for rope bridges etc. so each of the basic designs suggested will have to be modified to suit the conditions you encounter. THE BASICS—Ropes Ropes come in many types and sizes and to simplify matters you should use the following as a guide. 75mm rope (25 mm diameter) or larger, certainly no smaller than 75mm, should be used whenever it is intended to hold weight such as in the case of a monkey bridge - foot and hand rails, aerial runways, and commando rope bridges. 50 mm rope (16 mm diameter) should be used for ‘reeving’ up pulleys and an- 2 11 stable. These pyramids are then locked together to chors and for rope ladders, 25mm rope (8mm diameter) should be used for guy make more complex structures. It is important how- ropes in general, on large structures this size would need to be increased. ever that you maintain the pyramid shape in your de- sign as it adds stability to the final project. It may also Knots you should know be necessary to peg down the structure to the ground The Reef Knot in case of windy conditions. The Clove Hitch Why not try some fun Projects first The first step in building a tree house or The Figure or Eight sleeping platform is to find a suitable tree or collection of trees growing in a group. Look for a tree that has branches which are strong and suitably spread apart so that a platform can be con- structed. Gather together all the equip- ment you will require - tools, timber, pal- The Round turn & two half hitches lets or plywood sheeting, ropes and safety equipment. The design of your tree house will be determined by the shape of the tree you select, as a result many designs are possible. Start off by making a simple sketch taking into account the branches available in particular the ‘branch elbows’ where the branch at- taches itself to the main trunk. Use pulleys and ropes to lift logs up to Tree houses and raised sleeping platforms the platform area. This should be done carefully so as to avoid any unnecessary acci- dents. The base of the platform can be constructed using spars to get a rustic feel or you can also use a number of pallets or a sheet of shuttering plywood. Be prepared to cut any sheeting to shape. Anyone working up the tree 10 3 The Timber Hitch , For securing logs normally for pulling out or as an alterna- spar you should be careful not to damage the bark. This can be done by using tive to a clove hitch for starting a lashing. some sacking or old canvas to protect the bark from friction. It may also be necessary to use sacking or padding on a structure if the rope will be subject to excessive friction, particularly in the case of a monkey bridge. This is par- Lashing you need Lashing use a method of 'wrapping' the rope around the spars, this 'wrapping' ticularly important when using synthetic ropes as they are prone to melt if in a is called binding. The binding of the spars coupled with frapping - binding be- friction situation or if two ropes are rubbing off each other. tween the spars so as to tighten the bindings - create the lashing. There are four types of lashing - square, diagonal, sheer, tripod. Each lashing has a spe- cific use and its strengths are best realised by using the correct lashing at each stage of the project. When lashing spars together it's important to use ropes of the correct thickness and length. For staves and spars up to 30 mm in diameter, use sisal. For spars up to 75mm in diameter use light rope. As to length, 1 meter of rope for each 25mm of the combined diameter of the spars. For example, when using timbers of 75mm - 100mm spars you will need approx. 7 meters of rope per lashing. Square Lashings The square lashing is used whenever spars cross at right angles to each other. There are three common types of lashings used in this way. The tradi- tional square lashing, the Japanese square lashing, and the Norwegian square lashing. Traditional Square Lashing What happens next? This lashing is started by tying a clove hitch to the Before you venture to the next step take some time out to practice the knots upright spar under the spar crossing it. The lashing and lashings shown. Consider using models or try you hand at bamboo and is then bound as shown completing 4 - 5 turns and elastic band pioneering, this can be used to practice with smaller material and with the bindings side by side. Frapping should then to see what the problems are before moving on to the ’Heavy’ equipment be applied between the spars so as to tighten the bindings. The lashing is finished with a clove hitch Simple and elaborate structures can be built using bamboo canes and elastic around the cross spar. bands. The secret is to construct small pyramid shapes which are strong and 4 9 Reeving a simple single & double pulley system Diagonal lashing The diagonal lashing is used to 'spring' two spars together that do not touch where they cross. Be- gin with a timber hitch around both spars. Tighten it to draw the two spars together. Three or four Cats Paw binding turns are made around one fork, four more around the other fork. The turns should be beside each other not on top of each other. A number of frapping should be made between the spars to tighten up the lashing bindings. Finish the lashing with a clove hitch. Sheer lashing The sheer lashing is used to lash to Pickets & Anchors spars together that will ultimately be If at all possible you should anchor your ropes to a fixed object such as a 'big' spread apart to form a shear legs tree or rock. However, they are rarely available in the right places so we have which are used in a number of pio- to create our own anchors. There are three possibilities the 3-2-1 picket, the neering projects. This lashing can picket and log anchor and the dead-man anchor. They are illustrated below; in also be used to join two spars to- each case the pickets should be at least 160cms long and put in position with a gether so as to give you a longer sledge hammer or large mallet. If the ground is soft they may need to be spar. When the lashing is used in longer. The pickets should be set in the ground at 60 degrees and the bindings this way you need to tie two lashings between pickets should always run from the top of one picket to the bottom of one at each end of the joint. The as a rule of thumb Pickets should be positioned in the ground approx. 3 times lashing is made by making a clove the height from which the main rope leaves the structure, i.e. if the main rope hitch around one of the spars and passes over the sheer legs at 3 metres above the ground then the pickets then binding the two spars together should be set in the ground 9 meters from the base of the sheer legs.