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blakegt
Aug 2, 2007, 2:36 PM
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So I know this comes up a lot but I did a search and didn't really find what I wanted to know. I'm in college and I just got married 3 months ago, so long story short I'm pretty much broke. I've been climbing about a year and I really want to start building a rack, but like I said I don't have any money. Does anybody have any suggestions for putting together a rack on a really tight budget? I'm from Atlanta and climb in GA, TN, and NC.
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caughtinside
Aug 2, 2007, 4:19 PM
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You can get new cheap biners from climb axe and acme for like 5 bucks each. You might be able to do better on used biners on eBay.
For slings, buy 9/16" webbing, 5' lengths, and tie your own slings. very cheap.
nuts, try ebay or some off brand like smileys.
Cams, you can buy cheapo rock empires (maybe check acmeclimbing.com or pagangear.com?) for larger sized cams, forged friends are pretty good at $35 each new. I got a set of 6 DMM cams on ebay a few years ago for $110, not bad.
Best of all, find partners who already have racks and just use their stuff. good luck.
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dingus
Aug 2, 2007, 4:27 PM
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blakegt wrote: So I know this comes up a lot but I did a search and didn't really find what I wanted to know. I'm in college and I just got married 3 months ago, so long story short I'm pretty much broke. I've been climbing about a year and I really want to start building a rack, but like I said I don't have any money. Does anybody have any suggestions for putting together a rack on a really tight budget? I'm from Atlanta and climb in GA, TN, and NC.
google 'forged friends for sale'
http://www.carolinaclimbers.org/...6fc808af77204a765951
That's a cheap starter rack if its still for sale!
And these boys seem to be running some clearence sales on older designs of more popular cams
http://www.mountaingear.com/...%7C0%7C%7Cp_name%7C0
I would not personally payu 'full retail' for forged friends, but then again I wouldn't do it for any cam less I needed it RIGHT NOW.
They go on sale at least once a year if you're patient and you can expect to pick up a rack of 9 brand new for in the neighborhood of 30 each.
Some will tell you rigid stem cams suck. A lot of those people never used them and don't know cock-all about it.
But you can find deals on lots of different cams if you're willing to be patient.
DMT
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mistajman
Aug 2, 2007, 4:44 PM
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You can get a full set of ABC Huevos (equivelent to BD stoppers) for about $50. You should probably get some tri-cams for the area you are climbing in. Tri cams are relaively cheap. TCU's are on sale for $37 on mgear.com. And then you can find a few mid sized pieces. It's pretty easy to find wild country tech friends on sale online for around $44. With all this and some extendable quickdraws your are still going to be under $400, which imho is a pretty cheap starter rack
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barefoot_utah
Aug 2, 2007, 5:16 PM
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When money is tight go slow. I bought 1 piece on every pay day that I could for quite some time. Combine that with the other suggestions on where to find better deals and you may have a workable solution.
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markc
Aug 2, 2007, 5:55 PM
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barefoot_utah wrote: When money is tight go slow. I bought 1 piece on every pay day that I could for quite some time. Combine that with the other suggestions on where to find better deals and you may have a workable solution.
While it will get you a rack eventually, you're talking a couple of pieces a month that you can't really use until you've acquired enough of it. I say start saving a certain amount each month, and prioritize your shopping. A piece at a time doesn't afford opportunity for discounts on a set.
If you're going to go piecemeal, look for cosmetic seconds from companies like Gear Express in the Blowouts section. That can be a great way to get batches of biners or individual pieces. Watch for sales and discounts on multiples.
If you have another friend getting into traditional climbing, talk about going halves on a rack. If you're climbing with an experienced partner, you can start by filling gaps in her rack. Remember that you can cannibalize biners from your quickdraws and put them on longer slings, hand-tie slings if you're really poor, and rack cams on more than one biner. If you decide to get hexes, look on ebay or post a note in your gym. Some climbers are bound to be sitting on hexes they don't use and may regret ever buying. They'll give you some protection in larger sizes while you're still buying cams. (Replace any tied cordage to be on the safe side.)
Make the most out of every gift-giving holiday, requesting the specific gear you want. If you stress how much safer X will make you feel, it might give you the edge. Ultimately, starting cheap may cost you in the long run. If it's sufficient to get you on the rock sooner, it might be worth the cost. If you throw out a rough budget and what gear you already have, you might get a couple specific suggestions. Good luck and have fun.
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reg
Aug 2, 2007, 6:12 PM
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join the "cam of the month" club
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granite_grrl
Aug 2, 2007, 7:30 PM
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Milk birthdays and xmas.
The vast majority of my rack was built from presents.
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stymingersfink
Aug 2, 2007, 9:29 PM
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are those BD U-stem #2's and #3, or are they some of the original Diamond-C brand?
I might like to pick a couple those up from you if they're the latter...
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sky7high
Aug 2, 2007, 9:45 PM
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If only there was something like a good, cheap trad rack -snif- You have no idea how hard it was for me to stay away from machine nuts... 
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climb_eng
Aug 2, 2007, 10:00 PM
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If you want the minimize cost, check these bad boys out:
1-axle Flexible Friend - 99.00 for a set of five
2-axle Flexible Friend - $150 for a set of 4
Link cam - $10.45
Nuts - 39.99 for a set of 9.
Check out www.petrenkoworld.com
For the record, I'd never buy any of this crap... maybe the nuts.
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blakegt
Aug 3, 2007, 2:09 AM
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Thanks for all the advice, so I gather most of you would be pretty comfortable on used gear? I've thought about ebay but I didn't know if that was a good idea. I asked some of the guys I climb with and they didn't think it was to hot of an idea.
Also, would it be a good idea to buy hexes and tricams, then buy cams one at a time, or is that a waste of money?
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saxfiend
Aug 3, 2007, 2:51 AM
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Blake -- while you're putting together your rack little by little, climb with people who already have gear and borrow theirs. You should hook up with the Atlanta Climbing Club, there's a lot of experienced leaders who will be glad to help you out. Here's a link to the ACC website:
http://www.atlantaclimbingclub.org/
We get out most weekends. PM me if you're interested.
JL
PS -- to answer your question about hexes and tricams: hexes will probably end up gathering dust once you have a real rack. I'd get nuts before I'd get hexes. And tricams are great; for starters, pick up a couple of pinks and a couple of reds, they're by far the most useful. I don't think I've ever done a lead without placing at least one pink tricam!
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flint
Aug 3, 2007, 2:53 AM
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climb_eng wrote: If you want the minimize cost, check these bad boys out: 1-axle Flexible Friend - 99.00 for a set of five [image]http://www.petrenkoworld.com/shop/images/large/KROK/1N12345-1_LRG.JPG[/image] 2-axle Flexible Friend - $150 for a set of 4 [image]http://www.petrenkoworld.com/shop/images/large/KROK/2N1234-3_LRG.JPG[/image] Link cam - $10.45 [image]http://www.petrenkoworld.com/shop/images/large/KROK/RN2-1_LRG.JPG[/image] Nuts - 39.99 for a set of 9. [image]http://www.petrenkoworld.com/shop/images/large/KROK/S9-1_LRG.JPG[/image] Check out www.petrenkoworld.com For the record, I'd never buy any of this crap... maybe the nuts.
First and for most, Don't buy any of this SHIT
Those are bolts and nuts that they are using for cam axles, and is that "link cam" stem a double swagged cable? I would never trust this.
For a good cheap rack that will get you off the ground, ABC's for nuts are cheep. Buy tri-cams, first five sizes and the larger hexes of any brand, normally the top 5 sizes. This will cover a good range and will be easy on the wallet. Also tying your own slings with webbing and using biners from your sport draws is a good cheap trick.
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andypro
Aug 3, 2007, 4:19 AM
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flint wrote: Those are bolts and nuts that they are using for cam axles,
What's that have to do with anything? I know people who are still climbing on their original Friends. Those were put together with nuts. And how do you know they're bolts? Could be a solid axle threaded on the ends.
--Andy P
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flint
Aug 3, 2007, 5:25 AM
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andypro wrote: flint wrote: Those are bolts and nuts that they are using for cam axles, What's that have to do with anything? I know people who are still climbing on their original Friends. Those were put together with nuts. And how do you know they're bolts? Could be a solid axle threaded on the ends. --Andy P
Buy a few, have them shipped to you and do some climbing on them, tell us how they work. I would love to here some info on them. The cam angle looks a little small as well, but the double axle piece should work...... right. They are rated to 15kn, thats better than the C4's I own.
I will climb above my metolius cams till I hear the results.
The reason I gave a skeptical response was if someone is looking to buy there first rack, leading them down a path which could result in saftey issues is not the direction the thread should go. Just my $.02
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AZrockclimber1988
Aug 3, 2007, 5:42 AM
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I would start saving money and just buy a good rack, otherwise you will be investing twice when you find that gear was crap. Also dont buy off Ebay, certainly if it is single cams, because most of the time it is booty gear or gear that has been dropped from a climb. But if some one is selling a whole rack, buy it, it is usually safer. This only applies for active pro, stoppers and hexs are okay to buy on ebay, they last forever.
If you really want to go cheap and dont care about weight, go really old school. Go to a hardware store and buy grade 8 steel nuts and grind the treads out and sling them. Also you can make knots in cord and use that as passive gear. This maybe best to use for aiding cheap, it maybe too much to free with.
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lvpyne
Aug 3, 2007, 6:04 AM
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flint wrote: Buy a few, have them shipped to you and do some climbing on them, tell us how they work. I would love to here some info on them. The cam angle looks a little small as well, but the double axle piece should work...... right. They are rated to 15kn, thats better than the C4's I own.
A bit off topic to the question at hand, but I've climbed on Petrenko gear a bit. (A British friend of mine brought it with him when we were climbing in South Africa.) The gear was, ummm, interesting gear to say the least. It was awkward, manky, difficult to place, and wasn't going to win any Gear Beauty Contests. How much of that was the gear itself and how much of that was my friend's abuse of his gear, is an open question, for sure. To be fair, it didn't disintegrate on touch or turn into a pumpkin at midnight.
I don't feel qualified to really analyze the Petrenko gear from the standpoint of a mechanical engineer. But on simple visual inspection, (i.e. racking up for the routes), I was incredibly motivated to just *not fall* while leading. "It's better than nothing" was my friend's defensive mantra and my response was, "Really? I'm not so sure..." I haven't added any pieces to my own rack...
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stymingersfink
Aug 3, 2007, 6:39 AM
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blakegt wrote: Thanks for all the advice, so I gather most of you would be pretty comfortable on used gear?
YMMV
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wanderlustmd
Aug 3, 2007, 12:41 PM
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Mountain Gear is having a pretty good sale right now, but I'd wait until the end of the season, they usually have a better one then.
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markc
Aug 3, 2007, 12:54 PM
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lvpyne wrote: flint wrote: Buy a few, have them shipped to you and do some climbing on them, tell us how they work. I would love to here some info on them. The cam angle looks a little small as well, but the double axle piece should work...... right. They are rated to 15kn, thats better than the C4's I own. A bit off topic to the question at hand, but I've climbed on Petrenko gear a bit. (A British friend of mine brought it with him when we were climbing in South Africa.) The gear was, ummm, interesting gear to say the least. It was awkward, manky, difficult to place, and wasn't going to win any Gear Beauty Contests. How much of that was the gear itself and how much of that was my friend's abuse of his gear, is an open question, for sure. To be fair, it didn't disintegrate on touch or turn into a pumpkin at midnight. I don't feel qualified to really analyze the Petrenko gear from the standpoint of a mechanical engineer. But on simple visual inspection, (i.e. racking up for the routes), I was incredibly motivated to just *not fall* while leading. "It's better than nothing" was my friend's defensive mantra and my response was, "Really? I'm not so sure..." I haven't added any pieces to my own rack...
For those interested, check out boku's test of a Petrenko cam. They aren't pretty, and I might not recommend them for beginners, but if quality control is solid I'd say they're functional.
Regarding buying used gear, it's probably best to stick with nuts and hexes. It's easy to inspect the cable and make sure there aren't any kinks or broken wires. With cams, I'd want to see it in person first, or at least know returning it wouldn't be a big deal. I wouldn't trust any used softworks. If hexes were slung rather than wired, I would replace. I'd also replace cam slings (either by mailing them away or with cord).
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Rockjunkie15
Aug 3, 2007, 2:06 PM
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Buy a set of standard shape wedges, 5-8 hexes, and throw in the 4 smallest tricams and you'll have a rack that you'll love forever. Once you climb trad on the above gear for awhile you'll figure out what cams you'll really need so you won't end up buying a bunch of extra stuff that just adds weight. Also stay away from cheap crap(cheapo cams), you'll just end up replacing it later.
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