7 replies to this topic

[floridaskier]

Don't know about how the idea started, but I thought the same thing on my first ride up a Riblet

[Whistler]

Apparently, Habbegger Thun also used a method of where the grip was "woven into the cable", this is what the lift opp. said at Grouse.

[liftmech]

I wouldn't say it sealed the company's fate- there are many people in the industry who are lamenting Riblet going out of business. Unfortunately they aren't the ones making the decisions on which lift to buy. I don't know whre they got the idea for the clip either- it's been around as long as there have been Riblet lifts. Perhaps we ought to ask Jim Ellis, since I seriously doubt that Doug Sowder is answering his business line these days.

[Kelly]

In the 40s and 50s grip attachment and slippage was an issue every manufacturer was struggling with. A lift designer that had a grip with no moving parts and that did not slip was a welcome addition to the industry by area owners and operators who were starting to see grip issues affect their daily operations and insurance premiums.
These new grips did have their problems.
Broken wires caused by the clip being in fixed position for too long. This was addressed by required moving every 2 years.
Clip failures from high hourly and rotational usage. Set times of use for retirement solved this problem (see web site for retirement criteria).
Inability to see critical areas while clip was in service; whether good or bad they did start the grip NDT requirements the codes now have.
Upside down installation: Although not mentioned in any sales brochure a slight redesign of the clip made this problem easier to spot and the clip harder to install in the wrong position.

Alta I would have to disagree with the "un-adaptable" analogy for market failure. Here are some other key issues.
Buyers realizing the price of lift should include installation and yearly preventative maintenance.
Other manufactures stressing installation and maintenance as a package price.
Quality of the product changed so much that a few ex-employees formed a new lift company, Superior Tramway.
Foreign trade subsidies. POMA in general.
U.S. ski area maturity. Not to many new lifts last couple of years, this is especially true in fixed grip category.
Inability to make a reliable clip to be used with larger haul ropes.
Improvement in design and quality of other manufactures fixed grip lifts overstepped Riblet in the same time period.

http://www.superiortramway.com – go to the product page for a list of improved items.

My guess is the early 50s.
Ryan B

[liftmech]

Ryan B, on Mar 30 2004, 03:08 PM, said:

Broken wires caused by the clip being in fixed position for too long. This was addressed by required moving every 2 years.

Inability to make a reliable clip to be used with larger haul ropes.

On the first point- this happened frequently on one of our (Baker's) quads with an old rope- past a certain point in the life of the rope broken wires occurred more frequently.
The second- I rejected an entire batch of clips from our biggest quad after only three years of service because the centrifugal force of a large (78" wide) carrier going around the bullwheel would crack the shank of the clip. This was a clip supposedly designed for that lift- 13' bullwheel and 1 1/2" rope. We suspected that redesigning the carriers to include a rubber dampener between the hanger arm and the bail would have solved that problem, but it would have required a complete rebuildn of that part of the carrier.

[iceberg210]

Well I started a research paperthis week on what it takes to start a ski resort and acccually talked to Jim Ellis today in fact asking him some questions.

The Riblet grip has some advantages i didn't know about for example the haul rope lasts longer on riblet lifts typicly. Also Riblet grips ussually last longer than standard clip grips.