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james481
Jul 5, 2009, 12:07 AM
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Registered: Aug 10, 2007
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Hi all,
I'm moving to Boulder in 4 (!!) short weeks, and I'm a total noob at trad climbing, which is a problem I mean to remedy. I've begun assembling a rack which will (initially) be used for 5.easy (maybe 5.8 and below) climbs in the areas immediately around Boulder (Eldo, Boulder, Flatirons). Obviously, once I have the skills for tougher stuff, I'll have a better idea of what I need and want in terms of gear, but for now I'm looking for some guidance as to what I'll need (if anything) to fill out my rack for climbing in these areas. I did do a search, which yielded some good results, but most of the stuff I found was several years old, and I figured I'd start a thread and get some updated info. Here is my rack thus far:
Stoppers 6-13
Wallnuts 1-6
Peenuts 1-5
Tricams .5 and 1
C4s .5 - 3
Link Cam #1
Single draws x4 (thinking about 4 more?)
Double draw x1 (maybe 1 more?)
Sport draws x8
I'm guessing that what I'm mostly lacking are small cams, but I'm not sure how necessary those really are for the grades I'll be messing around on, or how many of them I might need. The budget is getting a bit tight (Boulder ain't cheap!), so I'd like to not buy more than I really need (if I haven't already) to keep things safe and avoiding running it out too much while I'm learning. Any help and suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!
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acorneau
Jul 5, 2009, 12:19 AM
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james481 wrote: I'm guessing that what I'm mostly lacking are small cams, but I'm not sure how necessary those really are for the grades I'll be messing around on, or how many of them I might need.
I can't speak to a Boulder-specific rack, but when I bought my cams I got the whole set: Metolius TCU's #1-4 and FCU's #5-10.
I've used every size I have about the same amount, so I can see where smaller and larger cams could come in handy. I'm not saying you need to get into the micro cams or huge ones, but filling in with a #0.3, #0.4 and a #4 might fill out the missing spaces.
Congratulations of your move!
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guangzhou
Jul 5, 2009, 2:14 AM
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Registered: Sep 27, 2004
Posts: 3389
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I carry only 24 inch runners on trad routes. I have a binner at each end and I triple them to keep them short. You can always shorten the 24", but you can extend the shorter ones.
Over all, you rack list looks goo. The #2 link cam is more useful than the the number one. You can also get two camolts for the price of one link cam. Yes, the range is the same, but two camolot can be placed at two different places, one link cam can only be placed in one place.
Cheers
E
Enjoy your new life in BOulder. I'll be back in Indonesia by the time you arrive, but I'm enjoying my month in BOulder for sure.
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robdotcalm
Jul 5, 2009, 2:24 AM
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Registered: Oct 31, 2002
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I'd agree with Acorn. You're pretty well set to start and maybe add some small cams in the #.3-#.4 Camalot size. Climb a bit before adding more stuff, and you'll have a better idea of what you want to get.
Welcome to Colorado.
Cheers,
Rob.calm
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james481
Jul 5, 2009, 5:49 AM
Post #5 of 8
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Registered: Aug 10, 2007
Posts: 201
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acorneau wrote: I can't speak to a Boulder-specific rack, but when I bought my cams I got the whole set: Metolius TCU's #1-4 and FCU's #5-10. I've used every size I have about the same amount, so I can see where smaller and larger cams could come in handy. I'm not saying you need to get into the micro cams or huge ones, but filling in with a #0.3, #0.4 and a #4 might fill out the missing spaces.
Yeah, I'm thinking that a 0.3 and 0.4 C4 would be a good idea, as I already know that I like the way that C4s place. Hopefully once I'm there (trad climbers aren't easy to find in Albuquerque, at least for me) I can find someone to climb with that has a larger selection of small cams, and I can figure out where I want to go in that direction. Between TCUs, Mastercams, C3s, and Zeros, I'm just not sure which ones I want...
In reply to: Congratulations of your move!
Thanks!
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james481
Jul 5, 2009, 5:55 AM
Post #6 of 8
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Registered: Aug 10, 2007
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guangzhou wrote: I carry only 24 inch runners on trad routes. I have a binner at each end and I triple them to keep them short. You can always shorten the 24", but you can extend the shorter ones.
You don't carry any double length runners? I was probably going to get three or four more single length and just switch the biners between them and my sport draws depending on what I'm climbing, so hopefully that should give me enough slings.
In reply to: Over all, you rack list looks goo. The #2 link cam is more useful than the the number one. You can also get two camolts for the price of one link cam. Yes, the range is the same, but two camolot can be placed at two different places, one link cam can only be placed in one place.
True, and if I was doing it again, I would probably have just gotten two C4s (or something else). The red Link Cam was actually the first piece of trad gear I owned, both because I wanted to start playing with gear placement and figured it would go in more cracks, and because it looked so damn cool (I know, noobs...  ).
In reply to: Enjoy your new life in BOulder. I'll be back in Indonesia by the time you arrive, but I'm enjoying my month in BOulder for sure.
Thanks, and enjoy the rest of your trip!
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james481
Jul 5, 2009, 5:57 AM
Post #7 of 8
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Registered: Aug 10, 2007
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robdotcalm wrote: I'd agree with Acorn. You're pretty well set to start and maybe add some small cams in the #.3-#.4 Camalot size. Climb a bit before adding more stuff, and you'll have a better idea of what you want to get.
Yeah, I'm thinking you're right... Hopefully I'll find some people to climb with so I can try out a wider variety of gear and get a better idea of what I want on my rack.
In reply to: Welcome to Colorado. Cheers, Rob.calm
Thanks, I can already tell I'm going to love it there!
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bill413
Jul 5, 2009, 9:38 PM
Post #8 of 8
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Registered: Oct 19, 2004
Posts: 5674
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Have to throw this in....when I saw the title my thoughts went to
Bouldering area trad rack
and I wondered if crash pads were suddenly out of vogue.
Enjoy Colorado!
(This post was edited by bill413 on Jul 5, 2009, 9:38 PM)
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