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VF649
(#1814)

Front	Rear

Side	Open for Rigging

Technical Details

I acquired my Gemtor VF649 from Brian Kallfelz in 2013.

My Gemtor VF649 is 109 mm. long, 109 mm. wide, 45 mm. high, and weighs 712 g. The VF649 is designed for use with 5/8" (16 mm.) or 3/4" (19 mm.) synthetic rope. The body consists of a 3.0 mm. stainless steel plate bent into a rectangular channel. A 63 mm. by 45 mm. by 6.3 mm. plate acts as a rope support. This support fits into two vertical slots in the side plates. An actuating lever pivots on a rivet set opposite the cable support. The lever actuates a 19 mm. cylindrical roller that presses the rope against the support. The roller slides in slots in the body plates and the lever, so the roller motion is linear, not circular. A 1.5 mm. stainless steel cable acts as a keeper for the rope support and a retaining clip. A 6.4 mm. stainless steel split pin welded across the channel provides a path for the keeper cable.

The front of the VF649 is stamped with "UP," an up-pointing arrow, "1 PERSON PER ROPE GRAB," "GEMTOR INC.," "MATAWAN NJ," "MODEL VF649," "NYS APP. #9048," "SERIAL NO. 01E413," ’USE 5/8" OR 3/4" SYNTHETIC ROPE ONLY,’ and PAT. NO. 4,542,884."

Comments

The cam action is interesting, since it involves a roller (much like a pulley) that presses the rope against a flat plate. This arrangement looks like it was meant to allow slippage under high load.

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VF275
(#3981)

Front	Rear

Top	Open for Rigging

Technical Details

I acquired two Gemtor VF275 rope grabs from Mike Gerbman in 2025.

My Gemtor VF275s are 176 mm. long, 154 mm. wide, 51 mm. high, and weigh 1257 g. It is designed for use with 5/8" (16 mm.)nylon rope.

The VF275 has a U-shaped frame made out of 5 mm. aluminum. Inside is a sliding block with a U-shaped groove to fit the rope as well. The sliding block rides on the diagonal aluminum block seen at the middle of the device. This diagonal block goes through to the other side, and is removed top open the rope grab for inserting the rope. As the sliding block descends relative to the frame, the rope is squeezed over much of its circumference and over the entire height of the device.

Naturally, the sliding block must press against the rope with enough force to generate enough braking friction. This is ensured by the lever which pivots on an axle running through the sliding block (the center of the sliding block is hollow so there is room for the lever to move). When the lever is pulled down at the attachment point (the hook), the opposite end presses against the bottom of the diagonal block, which forces the axle and sliding block downward with respect to the diagonal block and the U-frame. A small spring helps to pull the lever upward to release the device.

The front is stamped with "UP and "THIS END" near the top, "ROPE-GRAB," GEMTORO,INC.,"and "MATAWAN,N.J.07747" above the block, and "THIS END" and "DOWN" near the bottom. A sticker reads "MEETS ANSI A 10.14 1975." The rear is stamped with "UP and "THIS END" near the top and "THIS END" and "DOWN" near the bottom. The rear has the following message stamped above the block:

CAUTION

DO NOT USE WITH LANYARD
OVER 2 FEET LONG
CHECK FOR WEAR ON ROPE
& GRAB BEFORE USING

ROPE-USE ONLY
5/8 NYLON
1-GRAB PER PERSON

MAX LOAD 350 LBS.

The rear has the following stamped near the bottom:

MODEL NO. VF275
PAT.NO 3,811,155

The end of the sliding block is stamped "03 -79." One side of the hook is stamped "BOURDON" and "1210," the other "FORGED & TESTED."

Comments

The VF275 is descended from the Atlas Kwik-Stop Model 6275.

The VF275 is a large, heavy rope grab. It can be used as an ascender, but who would want to? The operating principle is interesting because of the unique way that it spreads the load out on the rope. I think that this idea could be used to make a better ascender for rescue situations where rescue crews like to shock-load the rope by dropping the stretcher team (why they do this escapes me, but it seems to be a major factor in their thinking).

I think that a much lighter and smaller ascender could be built to work on the same principle. The attachment hook and cold shut would not be desirable on an ascender because of their size and weight.

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VW651
(#1652)

Front	Rear

Side	Open for Rigging

Technical Details

I acquired my Gemtor VW651 box from East End Pawn Shop in 2009.

My Gemtor VW651 is 104 mm. long, 119 mm. wide, 33 mm. high, and weighs 1034 g. The VW651 is designed for use with 5/16" (8 mm.) wire cable. The body consists of two parallel 2.7 mm. stainless steel plates held together with two steel rivets. A 70 mm. by 32 mm. by 6.3 mm. plate acts as a cable support. This support fits into two vertical slots in the side plates. An actuating lever pivots on a rivet set opposite the cable support. The lever actuates a concave roller that presses the cable against the support. The roller slides in slots in the body plates and the lever, so the roller motion is linear, not circular. A maillon connects a snap hook to the other end of the lever.

The front of the VW651 is stamped with "UP," an up-pointing arrow, "GEMTOR INC.," "MATAWAN N.J.," "MODEL VW651," "USE ONLY WITH 5/16 WIRE ROPE," "CAUTION USE ONLY WITH ENERGY ABSORBER," and PAT.NO. 4,542,884." The maillon is stamped with "TAIWAN," "9N," and "SWL2200LBS." The hook has "FORGED" and "5M" forged on one side and "D1" and an H-inside-a-square logo on the other.

Comments

Allowing slippage between the roller and plate is a particularly good idea when subjecting low-stretch cable to shock loads.

I don't know whether the Taiwanese maillon and the hook are original or not, but the maillon does not open far enough to remove it from the arm, so I suspect that they both are original.