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jomagam
Apr 5, 2012, 6:49 PM
Post #1 of 13
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Bluewater Dominator 9.4 or Sterling Evolution Velocity 9.7 ? Both 70m and dry. They're close enough in price that it's not an issue.
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lena_chita
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Apr 5, 2012, 7:05 PM
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They are both really good ropes. Comes down to personal preference.
Have you ever held them in hand, or can you go somewhere to look at them? Anybody you know has one or the other?
Bluewater is more stretchy (dynamic elongation), and has lower impact force. I personally really like their ropes, I've had two different Bluewater ropes in the past, so I would probably pick this one.
But several of my friends have complained that it is "too soft and floppy". They are Sterling fans. And Sterling you are looking at is a little thicker, might last longer. Good reputation, too. I haven't heard of anyone complaining about their Sterling ropes, regardless of the model, you generally can't go wrong with Sterling ropes.
So really, it would be a hard choice for me... toss a coin?
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caughtinside
Apr 5, 2012, 8:58 PM
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I've owned both of those ropes, and they are very different ropes.
The Velocity is much heavier than the Dominator at 70m, which may or may not be an issue for the climbing you are doing.
That said, the Velocity will wear much better and last way longer.
My Dominator wore pretty well, but at the end, it was hardly dynamic at all. You would take, the climber would sit, and there would be zero stretch in the rope. By contrast, my 1st velocity, which I trimmed probably 6 times and is now a 120' gym rope, is still springy and dynamic there.
I would get the Velocity if I only owned one rope. They choice for you might be different if you 1) are doing long approaches or 2) weigh less than say 150lbs.
Good luck. The truth is that you really can't go wrong.
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jomagam
Apr 6, 2012, 4:40 AM
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Thank you both for the beta. I'll go with the Sterling rope for extra durability. I'm not 150 pounds, even if I carry around the extra training weight of a heavier rope :)
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j_ung
Apr 6, 2012, 11:13 AM
Post #5 of 13
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caughtinside wrote: I've owned both of those ropes, and they are very different ropes. The Velocity is much heavier than the Dominator at 70m, which may or may not be an issue for the climbing you are doing. That said, the Velocity will wear much better and last way longer. My Dominator wore pretty well, but at the end, it was hardly dynamic at all. You would take, the climber would sit, and there would be zero stretch in the rope. By contrast, my 1st velocity, which I trimmed probably 6 times and is now a 120' gym rope, is still springy and dynamic there. I would get the Velocity if I only owned one rope. They choice for you might be different if you 1) are doing long approaches or 2) weigh less than say 150lbs. Good luck. The truth is that you really can't go wrong.
What he said. Also, consider the kind of climbing you're doing. If you need this rope to be a bit of a workhorse, the Velocity is probably a better option. Long routes of strung-together pitches? The Dominator. Consider your belay device of choice, too. If you're still using, say, a standard ATC, it won't work well on either rope, but it will work horribly on the Dominator.
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ptlong2
Apr 6, 2012, 3:38 PM
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caughtinside wrote: My Dominator wore pretty well, but at the end, it was hardly dynamic at all. You would take, the climber would sit, and there would be zero stretch in the rope.
Even though its dynamic elongation is ample, the Dominator has a low static elongation (4.2%), a little less than half as much as the Velocity. I wonder if that played into it seeming "hardly dynamic" (in a static situation). Did actual falls seem to feel a lot harder?
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caughtinside
Apr 6, 2012, 6:15 PM
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ptlong2 wrote: caughtinside wrote: My Dominator wore pretty well, but at the end, it was hardly dynamic at all. You would take, the climber would sit, and there would be zero stretch in the rope. Even though its dynamic elongation is ample, the Dominator has a low static elongation (4.2%), a little less than half as much as the Velocity. I wonder if that played into it seeming "hardly dynamic" (in a static situation). Did actual falls seem to feel a lot harder?
I don't know. Catches didn't feel noticeably harder, but my belays and belayers were all pretty dynamic. Good question.
I can say that several partners noticed the zero stretch on takes immediately without me telling them what I had observed.
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j_ung
Apr 6, 2012, 7:39 PM
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robdotcalm wrote: j_ung wrote: If you're still using, say, a standard ATC, it won't work well on either rope, but it will work horribly on the Dominator. Please explain. Cheers, r.c
Old-school devices won't work well with new-school ropes, specifically considering small diameters and reduced friction. You might not notice much of a difference toproping or cragging, but several people I interviewed for an article a couple years ago expressed serious doubts about any person's ability to hold, say, a factor-2 fall with an older style of device and a thin cord. I'd be especially wary of a Reverso 1 or 2, but the their warnings extended to un-notched ATCs, figure 8s and several others.
In fact, some them also expressed concern about many of the newer device styles, too, but I think belay-device tech has begun to catch up to rope tech.
Still, considering the inversion of any device in an f2 fall and the in some cases greatly reduced friction... I felt a friendly "be careful" was in order.
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robdotcalm
Apr 13, 2012, 4:57 AM
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j_ung wrote: robdotcalm wrote: j_ung wrote: If you're still using, say, a standard ATC, it won't work well on either rope, but it will work horribly on the Dominator. Please explain. Cheers, r.c Old-school devices won't work well with new-school ropes, specifically considering small diameters and reduced friction. You might not notice much of a difference toproping or cragging, but several people I interviewed for an article a couple years ago expressed serious doubts about any person's ability to hold, say, a factor-2 fall with an older style of device and a thin cord. I'd be especially wary of a Reverso 1 or 2, but the their warnings extended to un-notched ATCs, figure 8s and several others. In fact, some them also expressed concern about many of the newer device styles, too, but I think belay-device tech has begun to catch up to rope tech. Still, considering the inversion of any device in an f2 fall and the in some cases greatly reduced friction... I felt a friendly "be careful" was in order.
I've found that using 2 carabiners in attaching the belay device increases friction enough so that older belay devices work OK (obviously not referring to figure 8 here).
Rob.calm
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rockdude808
Apr 28, 2012, 2:54 AM
Post #11 of 13
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Registered: Apr 27, 2012
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try kite string. you all try to sound like you are such pros. A bunch of novice climbers at best. ever been hanging off of something over 1500 feet. doubtful.
get your mommy's laundry line from her kaimuki shack house. Take on that.
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jt512
Apr 28, 2012, 3:54 AM
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rockdude808 wrote: try kite string. you all try to sound like you are such pros. A bunch of novice climbers at best. ever been hanging off of something over 1500 feet. doubtful. get your mommy's laundry line from her kaimuki shack house. Take on that.
*plonk*
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USnavy
Apr 28, 2012, 5:05 AM
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The Dominator is noticeably lighter, so if you like hard sport climbing on rope stretching pitches, I would go with the Dominator. But its a pretty skinny rope, if you climb with a lot of noobs, or you are a noob yourself, dont get it. Its pretty easy to loose control of a small noodly rope if you are not on the ball. Also, being that the 9.4 is so small and skinny, you must keep it away from sharp abrasive rock at all costs! So if you are into climbing on sharp limestone or the like, I would steer away from something that skinny. Granted I did climb a 1800' face climb in Canada on the Dominator and there was sharp rock everywhere, but I sure as hell wasent happy about it, I was doing everything I could to keep the rope away from the sharp rock, it was a full time job.
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