Vertex Floating Pin

[base587]

How do Vertex (BR's 2 pin rig) owner's feel about the floating lower pin?

I changed my bridle to a standard format (i.e. lower pin tacked down) because I found it to be a bit of a circular argument as to the benefits of it.

Any thoughts from other Vertex owners?

<<BTW This is not intended to be a criticism of the rig! I love the fit and it's narrow width>>

[imported_Tom Aiello]

I don't own a Vertex, so feel free to ignore me, but here's my thinking on the floating pin.

If you measure pin pull forces on single and dual pin rigs, in various body positions, the pin with by far the greatest variance in tension is the bottom pin of a two pin rig. I suspect that this has to do with harness geometry (the bottom pin is pretty much right in line with the pull forces from the lower harness attachments, and when you tighten the leg straps the force is transferred straight back toward the pin).

I don't know if the bottom pin changes tension when the top pin is extracted. Logic would suggest that the tension of the bottom pin decreases when the top pin is extracted. But, I'm not sure how much, and how much of the "harness tension" would actually be relieved by the extraction of the top pin.

I'm not sure if makes a positive difference or not to extract the pins in a "top first" fashion. I can't think of a downside, though, so why not go with it?

--Tom Aiello
tbaiello@mac.com

[Karin]

>I found it to be a bit of a circular
>argument as to the benefits of it.

Hi Spence,

I'm not sure what you mean by "circular argument", but I personally like the idea of the floating pin. The intended benefit could be significant if & when a situation arises in which you'd need it, and in any case, I certainly don't think it takes anything away from the functional setup of the rig.

Plus, it's fun twirling the pin around the bridle when packing ;)