Shibari Suspension Frame: How to Choose One

You tie, or you are learning to. Now you want shibari suspension at home, and you need something to suspend from.

There are two ways to get there: a hard point in the ceiling, or a free standing frame. That choice comes first, then the five things to check in any suspension frame before you buy one. It is written from the equipment side. It does not teach rope. Suspension is learned from an experienced teacher.

The short answer

• You rent, or you cannot drill: a free standing frame. Ours has no bolts or brackets in the ceiling, floor or wall.
• You want a hard point in your home: You’ll want a professional contractor who understands load dynamics and how to properly install a hard point for suspension.
• Comparing frames: check five things. What dynamic load it is rated to hold, how much ceiling height it needs, how much floor space it needs, how much room it gives you within the frame, and how easily it assembles and breaks down.
• Our three: the Tetruss Rig for smaller rooms and travel, the Tetruss Maxximus for dynamic suspension bondage with room to work inside the frame, and the Tetruss Bamboo for a static bamboo suspension.

Hang from the ceiling, or use a frame

A hard point is a fixed forged weight-rated eyebolt professionally installed in the ceiling that you do rope suspension from.

Whether your ceiling can take suspension is a question for a builder who can look at your house.

A free-standing, portable suspension rig eliminates the challenges of professional hard point installation.
Here is what a free standing frame changes:

• Nothing has to be altered in your home structure. Our rigs are free standing, with no bolts or brackets in the ceiling, floor or wall. No hooks, no holes, no nails. It works if you rent. It works if you cannot drill.
• It’s portable and lightweight. Take it anywhere – home, hotel, office, dungeon or outdoors. A fixed hard point stays in one room, in one spot.
• It is load-rated. The Tetruss Rig, the Tetruss Maxximus and the Tetruss Bamboo support up to 300 pounds dynamic load.

A portable, free-standing suspension frame requires adequate floor space, a few minutes to put it up, and somewhere to keep it when it is down. The five checks below are how you size those up.

If you own the house, you have a room suitable for rope suspension, having a professionally installed hard point may suit you better. If any of the points above matter to you, a free-standing frame is the best answer that does not require the cost of professional installation.

What to check in a shibari suspension frame

Consider these five key checkpoints for any shibari frame or stand you look at. Each one ends with how our rigs answer these key points.

What it is rated to hold

Start here. A suspension frame should specify a dynamic load rating, on the product or specification page. If you cannot find one, ask.

Ours:

• Tetruss Rig and Tetruss Maxximus: rated up to 300 pounds dynamic load.
• Tetruss Bamboo: up to 300 pounds dynamic load.

How much ceiling height it needs

A frame is a fixed height, and it has to go up under your ceiling at the spot where it will stand.

Our rigs are made for a standard 8 foot ceiling.

Measure before you buy. Use a tape measure, not a guess, and measure where the frame will stand, not in the middle of the room or the doorway. Ceilings are not always level. If you are choosing between two rooms, measure both. Then check what eats into the number:

• Ceiling fans. A fan hangs down in the middle of the room, which is where a frame goes.
• Light fixtures. A flush mount is usually fine. A pendant or a chandelier is in the way.
• Smoke detectors and sprinkler heads. Small, but you do not want to hit one.
• Sloped and vaulted ceilings. Measure at the lowest point the frame will stand under, not the peak.

Under 8 feet. Two products are made for lower ceilings.

• The Custom Height Option: place your order, then email us the exact height of your ceiling, and we make a custom height Tetruss to fit your space. The choice if you have one room in mind.
• The Tmax Extra Lower Leg Set: an extra set of three shorter lower leg segments, for more versatility setting up in rooms with lower ceilings. Tell us the ceiling height you want to fit under and we make the segments for you.

Taller ceilings. The 2 Foot Height Extensions are a set of three 2 foot extensions. They fit the Tetruss Rig, the Tetruss Maxximus and the Tetruss Bamboo.

How much floor it needs

Ceiling is the first question. Floor is the second.

A frame stands on floor, and you need room to move around it. Mark the footprint on the floor with tape before you buy, at the spot where it will stand, then walk around it.

Ours:

• Tetruss Rig: 8 foot triangular footprint.
• Tetruss Maxximus: 9 foot triangular footprint.
• Tetruss Bamboo: 11 feet by 11 feet by 9 feet.

Room to work inside the frame

This is the check that matters most for rope. The top of a frame sets how much headroom and interior space there is inside it.

The Tetruss Maxximus has a 42 inch top section. It offers lots of head room and interior space to work in, and in our own words, “It is perfect for dynamic rope or Shibari style suspension bondage.”

The Tetruss Maxximus set up for rope suspension.

The Maxximus has a 9 foot triangular footprint, and fits under an 8 foot ceiling.

The Tetruss Rig has our standard 8 inch top with an 8 foot triangular footprint and fits under an 8 foot ceiling.

How it packs and how long it takes to put up

• Tetruss Rig: about 21 pounds, up in about 5 minutes.
• Tetruss Maxximus: about 33 pounds, up in about 15 minutes.
• Tetruss Bamboo: about 38 pounds, up in about 15 minutes.

The Rig and the Maxximus break down and fit our heavy-duty canvas travel bag, which is sold separately. The Bamboo fits only the Bamboo travel bag, also sold separately. One customer wrote, “I got to try it out last weekend (in a hotel room!)” One reviewer called it “Dungeon in a Duffel Bag!”

A bamboo top

For a lot of people who do rope, the bamboo aesthetic is an important part of the vibe.

The Tetruss Bamboo is handcrafted to add the bamboo aesthetic to your suspension bondage capabilities. It is a Maxximus with one top strut replaced by the 60 inch Bamboo Extension arm. We like to think of it as a stretch Maxximus.

• The pole. It works with a 5 foot to 8 foot construction grade bamboo pole. The pole is a suggested accessory, sold separately, not part of the rig. We only ship 60 inch poles.
• The room. It is the biggest of the three: 11 feet by 11 feet by 9 feet of floor space. It fits an 8 foot ceiling.
• The weight and set-up. About 38 pounds, and about 15 minutes to put up.

Already own a Maxximus? You do not need a new frame. The Tetruss Bamboo Extension for TMax turns it into a Bamboo: replace one strut of your Maxximus top assembly with the 60 inch extension. Have the best of both worlds!

Which Tetruss fits your room

All three are aluminum alloy, free standing and rated to 300 pounds. What changes is the top, and everything else follows from it.

	Tetruss Rig	Tetruss Maxximus	Tetruss Bamboo
Top	Standard 8 inch top	42 inch top section	One top strut replaced by the 60 inch Bamboo Extension arm (bamboo pole sold separately)
Floor	8 ft triangle	9 ft triangle	11 ft x 11 ft x 9ft
Weight	about 21 lb	about 33 lb	about 38 lb
Set-up	about 5 minutes	about 15 minutes	about 15 minutes
Ceiling	made for 8 ft	made for 8 ft	fits 8 ft
Rated to	300 lb dynamic load	300 lb dynamic load	300 lb dynamic load
Travel	fits our travel bag (sold separately)	fits our travel bag (sold separately)	fits only the Bamboo travel bag (sold separately)

Still deciding?

Check the full specs and read what owners say on our testimonials page.

The same frame does more than rope. If you also want it for a sex swing, read Sex Swing Stand: How to Choose One for Your Room. The Tetruss Rig and the Tetruss Maxximus also work as a BDSM Dungeon Toy serving as a St. Andrew’s cross or a spanking bench and more, and St. Andrew’s Cross: How to Choose One covers that.

Tetruss has been handcrafting rigs since 2000. All three are made in our Oregon shop, with a one-year warranty on all parts. If your ceiling is under 8 feet, tell us its exact height. That is what the custom height option is for.