Climbing spikes vs. spikes plus a flip line: which one actually keeps you calm at 40 feet?
Spent Saturday removing a dying silver maple out in Beaverton, and I ran the whole upper section on just my climbing spikes, no flip line, for the easy limbs. Then I strapped the flip line back on for the sketchy side over the fence and the difference in how steady I felt was night and day. Spikes alone are faster and let you reach out farther, but that flip line is like having a second hand on the trunk when you go up top. Curious how other folks split it, do you run the line the whole climb or just on the back-lean stuff?