Suspended gralloch.
- Thread starter RM100
- Start date
geoffw
Well-Known Member
Agree re Silverline, consider swapping out the polyprop cord they supply for proper paracord and your problem will be halved. Braid the hanked cord when not in use and you'll never have a tangle drama. (If you;re looking to rehabilitate your kit that is)I've tried the silver line pulley and found it got tangled up too easily with the length of rope required plus it took a few minutes untangling the actual pulleys and getting them the right way up.
I like the napier auto lift but too pricey so looked at alternatives and found this self retractable ratchet:
I also bought a webbing sling from the same place:
1000kg Webbing Sling (30mm wide)
Meets the performance requirements of BSEN 1492-1:2000. 1000kgs SWL, with a minimum breaking load 7 times the W.L.L. Manufactured from 100% high tenacity polyester material. Resistant to oil, grease and most acids. Colour coded as per latest EN standard. Soft sewn eyes. Marked with size...www.theratchetshop.com
Haven't used it yet on deer but overall looks like a more compact system than using the pulleys.
Ive done it with rabbits but be never with deer
why do you use it that way up and lose one factor of force multiplication
I assume you mean the rope being below. That’s already been pointed out. But I hadn’t appreciated that it reduces a factor. Could you explain how?
Freeforester
Well-Known Member
If you follow the rope from fixing to the end in hand, when hung the correct way up you gain the advantage of pulling downward on the final pulley:
Ah, thank you.
If you're intending to skin the deer straight away anyway, that would be a much better and cleaner way of doing it. I do sheep and cattle that way, as is done in abattoirs. And rabbits too.
But not really appropriate for in the field, unless you're packing the meat out from some remote spot.
If you're gralloching at the larder anyway it would be ideal.
geoffw
Well-Known Member
Which strength/model of Seeley strap did you use @RM100 ? I liked the look of it, so I bought one last week having seen it in this thread. It was ok on the first beast of 40kg, but the ratchet mech rode over the top of the teeth (rather than engaging) on the second (50kg). Returning it this morning, although it was well within the stated tolerances- pondering getting a stronger one, or do I give it up as a bad job.
I’ve got the same strap - prob ok on fallow but not great on reds. As mentioned above, the ratchet mechanism rides over the teeth unless everything is perfectly lined up. Also, the handle isn’t big enough to give enough leverage for larger deer. I had a spiker was about 65kg larder weight and gave up with it.
The other thing you can do though is use it upside down from the way in the picture - means the ratchet end isn’t as high off the ground and stays at the animal end not tree end - your securing point / branch can be a bit higher then without you needing to be 7 feet tall to operate the ratchet!
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Look forward to watching you when we next meet.
Update as I like to be honest and helpful: My rig or perhaps I should say paracord let me down today when attempting to raise a surprisingly heavy young fallow buck so it’s only correct to say the above is really only good for roe or lighter beasts.
But as promised here’s a picture of how use of a freshly cut & notched chestnut spreader works after you have removed the rear legs at the knees and taken the the fur below the split for threading the paracord and clips:
That I skin and butcher most of my deer in the woods hopefully explains why I find it helpful to drop the fur below the hanger.
K
Antonyweeks
Well-Known Member
I'm a novice too and really appreciated RM's post. I've been out with experienced stalkers who have all used a variety of methods to gralloch - a few on the ground and also a few suspended (in a farmyard on one occasion off a tractor). I went out last week on my own for the first time and had a roe sack, hooks, various hygenic things etc. Gralloched on the ground but the ground was wet and so probably should have suspended the carcase from a tree...except I didn't have any straps. I did, however, have a plastic roll up sled that was superb and enabled me to easily get the carcase out of the woods to the car. By the time I unrolled the sled and realised it came with straps I'd already gralloched the deer! Been looking this morning at the Napier ratchet thing and also their Auto click bar that works off the boot of the car. As a novice I had assumed there was "one" way of doing everything. However, from reading the comments and seeing different people's approaches in the field I suspect there are a bunch of ways and that it pays to be flexible and find something that works for you. Certainly the fallow bucks I've taken so far and the sika stag last week, were too heavy for me to lift on my own hence the looking at the Napier/pulley system. Not least in the field but also getting them suspended and hanging once I get home (had to enroll my son to help me lift a red pricket onto the hooks in my barn!). I'm just loathe to carry tonnes of stuff. I've spent years getting my 'bushcraft' camping kit down to a minimum so I'm hopefully I'll do the same eventually with stalking! Anyway, big shout out to everyone who has offered their helpful opinions. It's what I really like about this site. No shortage of good advice/opinion. 
Yes, they are not a lot of fun and it won't improve with age but you will find you become far more selective in what you shoot and where it is dropped as the years roll by! Even to the point of taking the crosshair off that monster fallow buck and placing on a nice wee Sorel!
K
8x57
Distinguished Member
Update.
I previously mentioned that I had bought a Sealey auto retract ratchet strap for suspended grallochs in the woods. The model that I bought was the lighter version.
www.demon-tweeks.com
Well while it works well with medium sized fallow, it just doesn't work for me with large fallow bucks.
Reminder to self leave the big boys alone, they're bloody hard work if dealing with them on your own especially if you then have to drag them 460 metres uphill to get to the transport.
I previously mentioned that I had bought a Sealey auto retract ratchet strap for suspended grallochs in the woods. The model that I bought was the lighter version.
Sealey Auto Retractable Ratchet Tie Down 25mm x 3mtr - ATD25301
The Sealey Auto Retractable Ratchet Tie Down is suitable for securing of loads and tarpaulins onto flat-beds or trailers.Secure loads and tarpaulins onto flat-beds or trailersManufactured from polyester webbing with stitched reinforcementHandles and release mechanism are rubber coatedAuto rewind...
www.demon-tweeks.com
Well while it works well with medium sized fallow, it just doesn't work for me with large fallow bucks.
Reminder to self leave the big boys alone, they're bloody hard work if dealing with them on your own especially if you then have to drag them 460 metres uphill to get to the transport.
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