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I acquired this eight from John Gardner in 2005.
The Fisher, Version A is made from a length of quarter-inch (6.45 mm.) steel rod bent into shape and welded, then plated. Mine is 138 mm. tall, 59 mm. wide, and 9 mm. thick. The rope hole is 53 mm. high and 46 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 6 mm. The shaft length and width are 36 mm and 12 mm., respectively. The eye measures 38 mm. by 33 mm. My eight weighs 92 g.
There are no markings on this eight.
This
is one of the few commercial welded
steel rod figure eights. I think that this is a Fisher Eight,
since (1) it matches an old
advertisement that I have and (2) I know it was originally
purchased retail in the U. K. at the same time as Version B. Still,
there are no markings to prove this. The advertisement
came from the June 1963 issue of Mountain Craft. Many thanks to
Stèphane Pennequin of Corsica for sending me this.
The Fisher was one of the earliest figure eights. My Fisher,
Version A is lighter than most figure eights. The welded-rod
construction has fallen out of favor, and I wouldn't use this
eight at this time. The back side of mine is rusted, indicating
that it was stored sitting on a damp surface, but it still appears
strong enough. I just don't like the thin steel construction -
it places too sharp a bend on the rope and lacks sufficient heat
dissipation capability for my taste.
[ Top | Version A | Version C | Return to Figure Eights ]
I acquired this eight from John Gardner in 2005.
The Fisher, Version B is made from what appears to be a piece 8.8 mm. of bronze plate. The cut and finish are imprecise, indicating that it may have been hand cut. Mine is 107 mm. tall, 73 mm. wide, and 9 mm. thick. The rope hole is 36 mm. high and 58 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 9 mm. The shaft length and width are 35 mm. and 16 mm., respectively. The eye measures 19 mm. by 19 mm. My eight weighs 143 g.
There are no markings on this eight.
I'm
fairly certain that this is also a Fisher Eight, since (1) it
matches an old photograph (shown here) that Stèphane Pennequin
of Corsica sent me, and (2) I know it was originally purchased
retail in the U. K. Once again, though, there are no markings to
prove this. The picture came from Mountaineering, from Hill
Walking to Alpine Climbing by Alan Blackshaw, 1968.
The Fisher, Version B Fisher is a usable eight, although
it is small for my taste and the bronze construction makes it
heavy for its size. The rope hole is shorter than normal, so it
may provide too much friction on stiff or muddy ropes. Its heat
dissipation capability is good, but the small size leads to too
much friction on dirty caving ropes. The eye is too narrow to
accept two full size locking carabiners.
[ Top | Version B | Version C | Return to Figure Eights ]
Andrzej Mistela donated this figure eight in 2006.
The Fisher, Version C is made from steel, perhaps in two pieces. The upper rope hole may have been a piece of 5/16-inch steel rod that was bent into a "C" shape and welded to the shank. The cut and finish of the shank and eye are imprecise, indicating that this portion may have been hand cut. Mine is 128 mm tall, 130 mm. wide, and 10 mm. thick. The rope hole is 38 mm. high and 114 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 9 mm. The shaft length and width are 58 mm. and 16 mm., respectively. The eye measures 20 mm. by 20 mm. My eight weighs 210 g.
There are no markings on this eight.
This
is another one of the few commercial welded
steel rod figure eights. This eight matches the "rope
brake Fisher" shown in figure 3 of Tomaz Planina's 1976 article
(Obraba vrvi pri spuscanju z vrvnimi zavorami, Nase
jame, 17, 1976, pp. 15-22; "Climbing ropes wearing out with
rope brakes," Nase jame, 19, 1977, pp. 15-22) ending my earlier
speculation as to whether Mr. Planina's "Fisher" was
an original or a copy. Incidentally, the double wrap shown in
the figure was a nonstandard rigging designed to help keep the
eight from slipping in Tomaz Planina's tests. Don't take this
as a rigging suggestion.
This eight is slightly heavy for my taste. Steel will wear
well, but does not conduct heat as well as aluminum does. It also
rusts. The apparent welds do not appear to be sound enough to
elicit my full trust.
The rod forming the rope hole is a bit thin for my taste, and it bends the rope accordingly. The rope hole is shorter and wider than normal, but it sits at an angle. The asymmetric rope hole is interesting, but I find that it helps exaggerate the tendency that all eights have to induce spinning on free drops. The eye is too narrow to accept two full size locking carabiners.
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