Flint Locker (Soft-8) Canopy Anchor: What It Is and How to Set It Up

Quick Answer: The Flint Locker also called the Soft-8 is a stationary rope system (SRS) canopy anchor built from a large ring, a small ring, and a webbing sling (or an adjustable friction saver). The climbing rope is knot-blocked at the small ring, sent aloft, and retrieved from the ground, reducing throw line entanglement and protecting your rope.

Anchoring to a tree has always and will always incorporate cordage, at least in the tree care industry. It is how we configure this rope or sling to the tree that defines what kind of anchoring system is created. Stationary Rope Systems (SRS) offer the climbing arborist a variety of anchoring methods, as opposed to the traditional Moving Rope System (MRS), which consists of installing the tree climber's rope around a suitable branch union. A unique and simple SRS anchor to apply is known as the Flint Locker. This blog will cover what it is, how to configure this canopy anchor, and why it may be a suitable anchoring method for you!

What Is a Flint Locker?

The Flint Locker is an SRS canopy anchor that also goes by the name Soft-8, and to our knowledge, it was first introduced to the tree climbing community by Mr. Flint Anderson. A Soft-8 can consist of the following components:

• Large anchor ring

• Small anchor ring

• Webbing sling

• Friction saver

• Notch Quickie(s)

The short webbing sling unites the small anchor ring and the large anchor ring; in some cases, the webbing sling is the tether between two Quickies. An adjustable friction saver such as Bartlett's Adjustable Friction Saver or Teufelberger's fImblSAVER can also be used to deploy a Soft-8.

How to Set Up a Flint Locker

Setting up a traditional Soft-8 is pretty simple. For the following steps, a ring-to-ring friction saver with a webbing tether is used:

1. Use a throw line to isolate your desired tie-in point.

2. Feed the climbing rope through the small ring.

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3. Pull the rope up and around the branch union.
4. Once the rope is back on the ground, feed it through the large ring.
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5. Tie an Alpine Butterfly on the small-ring side to knot block.
6. Spike the Alpine with a carabiner and capture the retrieval leg.
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7. Send it and begin climbing!
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As we all know, those in the tree care industry find a way to take something, modify it, and make it even better! For example, Mr. Jake Riggs created the Limitless Crown Anchor, which is a Flint Locker piggybacked onto the back end of an adjustable friction saver, a pretty genius concept! And as you can guess, there are other ways to replicate that friction saver using the equipment that may already be in your kit.

How to Create an Advancing Flint Locker with an Adjustable Friction Saver

There are two ways to pull this off: one utilizes the fImblSAVER and the other Bartlett's Adjustable Friction Saver. This first version uses the fImblSAVER and follows steps one through four above, with the following modifications:

1. Shift the adjustable thimble toward the larger thimble the closer, the better.

2. Rather than tying the knot block onto the small-thimble side, tie the Alpine Butterfly onto the larger-thimble side and spike it.

1. The fImblSAVER can be spiked on either side thanks to the smaller thimbles used in place of traditional anchor rings.

3. Send the Soft-8 into the crown and begin climbing.

4. After reaching the primary suspension point (PSP), use your work positioning lanyard for securement.

5. Untie the Alpine Butterfly and advance it to the higher PSP.

Adding a Second Rope

Just when you thought that was it it gets better! The following modifications allow for tagging on a second rope and leaving the original Soft-8 as an access line. The fImblSAVER is still used for this further modification, and isolating the final tie-in point from the start will serve you best.

1. Knot block onto the larger thimble.

2. Marry a second rope with a climbing system to the knot block.

3. Send it aloft.

4. Once at the PSP, stay on rope and set your new climbing anchor with the additional gear that was sent aloft.

5. After transferring over to the new anchor, either:

1. Send the knot-blocked leg of rope to the ground, or

2. Untie the knot block, flip the fImblSAVER around the branch union, and set it as a traditional friction saver.

This leaves your second climber with the option to configure either an MRS or SRS climbing method.

Final Method: Bartlett's Adjustable Friction Saver

The final advancement method follows the same steps as above and utilizes Bartlett's Adjustable Friction Saver:

1. Feed the rope through the small ring.

2. Pull the rope up and around the branch union.

3. This is where things get interesting: pass a large bight of rope through the large ring and block it with a Figure-8 on a bight SPIKE IT.

1. Not recommended with 11mm–11.4mm rope.

4. Send it aloft and follow steps four and five from above.

Why Use a Flint Locker?

The short answer: to reduce throw line entanglement and protect your investment in your arborist climbing rope. Beyond that, this is heavily preference-based; you will always encounter those who say, “just get up there and cut it” or “you are doing too much” do what you are proficient in and let that negativity flow in one ear and out the other! However, knowing when to deploy a technique versus when not to is important.

Some have asked, “why not install the friction saver as normal from the beginning?” The answer: less entanglement. Think about it: to install a friction saver from the ground, the throw line typically must pass through the large ring first, and once the shot goes airborne, the risk of entanglement goes up exponentially. Any little bit of debris in the way can spell disaster; not to mention flipping the friction saver around the branch union if it is not long enough, tough luck! The Flint Locker is the answer to eliminating the majority of these setup issues, and the climbing arborist ascends with ease.

My Experience on a Flint Locker

Climbing on a Flint Locker canopy anchor has the ability to bring joy and pain! A well-thought-out plan will always pay off; when planning the route from the ground, think about the direction of the redirects. Configure the Soft-8 in a way that the climbing rope does not create a harsh bight on the large ring of the friction saver. Think of a Running Bowline choked on a limb, arborists emphasize loading the bight; however, in this case, we want to load away from the anchor ring. This is done deliberately.

To retrieve the Flint Locker, pull down on the retrieval leg. The locker will float in limbo while the rope comes out of the redirect. If you just go without thought and some redirects are taken, it might turn you away from giving this anchoring method another try.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Flint Locker in tree climbing?

The Flint Locker, also known as the Soft-8, is an SRS canopy anchor credited to Mr. Flint Anderson. It joins a small anchor ring and a large anchor ring with a short webbing sling or uses an adjustable friction saver and the climbing rope is knot-blocked at the small ring so the whole anchor can be set and retrieved from the ground.

What gear do I need to build a Soft-8?

A large anchor ring, a small anchor ring, and a webbing sling are the core components. Alternatives include a ring-to-ring friction saver, Notch Quickies tethered by a webbing sling, or an adjustable friction saver like Bartlett's Adjustable Friction Saver or Teufelberger's fImblSAVER.

What knot is used to block a Flint Locker?

An Alpine Butterfly is tied on the small-ring side and spiked with a carabiner that captures the retrieval leg. In Bartlett's advancing method, a Figure-8 on a bight is passed through the large ring and spiked instead though that version is not recommended with 11mm–11.4mm rope.

Is a Flint Locker better than installing a friction saver from the ground?

It solves a real problem: installing a friction saver from the ground means passing the throw line through the large ring first, which raises the risk of entanglement exponentially once the shot goes airborne. The Flint Locker eliminates the majority of those setup issues but like most anchoring choices, it comes down to what you are proficient in.

Can a Flint Locker be used for two climbers?

Yes. With the fImblSAVER modification, you can tag on a second rope, leave the original Soft-8 as an access line, and give the second climber the option to configure either an MRS or SRS climbing method.

Conclusion

Climbing anchors remain the same in the sense that we always utilize a branch union within the tree unless a crane is present. What changes is the climbing method and the hardware used to create an anchor. We would like to know: do you utilize a Flint Locker, and what are your thoughts? Drop a comment below!