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crankincraig
Jan 29, 2004, 3:14 PM
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I am looking to purchase a new harness and was looking at the Metoulis Safe Tech , does anyone have any input on this harness. I like the list of features such as reinforced haul loop , adjustable leg rise , reinforced tie in points to name a few. I currently have a BD Bod and being tall with no adjustable rise , well lets just say it hurts like hell when I have to hang in it let alone take a fall. Any suggestions?
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headwaller
Feb 4, 2004, 7:39 AM
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I'm not exactly tall, but I'll agree that every second spent in the BOD is a second I regret not shelling out a little extra $ for my harness. I've got the Petzl Corvus, as my free climbing harness anyway. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I've used the safe tech but it's not as comfy on me as the corvus. If you plan to spend some time hanging in the thing, I would just say go try them on at your local shop. You should take a hang in any harness before you buy one. The safe tech is certainly a nice harness but if it dosen't fit you well then it dosen't matter how well it was made.
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ricardol
Feb 4, 2004, 7:42 AM
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Registered: Nov 11, 2002
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Yates Astroman .. best harness i've ever owned..
-- ricardo
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hema
Feb 4, 2004, 10:01 AM
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Depends whgat you like to climb: Trad, Sport, Ice, Aid or all plus a ton more.
For sport you need harness that has, say four gear-loops, but mainly the harness has to be comfortable to hang or fall.
For trad gear-loops are essential, as you have a lot of gear, but still the harness should be comfortable, but not too bulky.
For aid millions and millions of gear-loops, plus haul loops. And has to be super comfortable while doing that 6 hours belay duty for your partner on that horrific A5 pitch.
For ice and mountaineering you generally don't need that much padding as usually its kinda cold so you should have enough clothes on to give the padding.
That said get a harness that fits and has everything you need (usually 4 gear-loops and a haul loop plus jada jada jada). A cheap harness could be as good as a really expencive one (ie Singinrock and Rock Empire harnesses are great bargains).
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racoon
Feb 4, 2004, 11:53 AM
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safe tech is great.
no probs at all.
a pain to adjust the 1st time
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dc
Feb 4, 2004, 12:41 PM
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i've used the BD Bod before.. and lets just say i'm now glad with my BD Momentum AL...
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vegastradguy
Feb 4, 2004, 11:51 PM
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I second the Yates Astroman for long free routes. Best harness for the application on the market. God bless Yates Gear.
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sandbag
Feb 4, 2004, 11:56 PM
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YAtes Shield and the Alpine ice
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ricardol
Feb 5, 2004, 12:06 AM
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In reply to: I second the Yates Astroman for long free routes. Best harness for the application on the market. God bless Yates Gear.
after doing 1 too many hanging belays i ran out and bought the astroman ..
you pretty much can't go wrong with anything from yates..
-- ricardo
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tucsonalex
Feb 5, 2004, 12:16 AM
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In reply to: while at the U of Oregon gym last weekend, one of the supervisors and i started talking harnesses, i mentioned one with the buckles which you don't double back and he said if you ever "bumped", fell down rock and hit the buckle or anything, that it could fly open. friend of mine has one of these and one filck of the buckle pretty much showed me what he said. it didn't fall off of him but it sure is unsafe to me. anyone know more about this? Christian
I have a Petzl harness with the buckle that does not need to be doublebacked. I think you would have to try pretty hard to hit the buckle on something during a fall. Try to imagine the position your body would have to be in during a fall for that to happen. I've taken plenty of sport whippers without any problems.
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vegastradguy
Feb 5, 2004, 12:25 AM
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The Shield is an excellent harness, but probably a bit to 'beefy' to free climb a long multipitch..its really better suited to aid climbing.
ricardo- you're right...you cant go wrong with yates..everything they make is amazing. the only time i ever put on my bd momentum is when i'm sport climbing, which is almost never!
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boss
Feb 5, 2004, 1:24 AM
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I have a BD Chaos. Very good for longer routes, multi-pitch and hanging belays. Leg loops are not adjustable though.
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coylec
Feb 5, 2004, 6:41 PM
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Petzl's Pandion (I think that's the one you refer to) has the "no double-back" buckles. Personally, I don't trust them. It's also a little skimpy on padding I've heard.
I've heard nothing but good things about the SafeTech harnesses in terms of technical performance and safety, although, harnesses are completely individual choices. Find what you need and then find one you like to wear.
On that note, I need an upgrade from my trusty BD Momentum. The gear loops aren't enough for trad/aid and gear slings annoy me. What are your favorite harnesses for trad. I love my gear and take most of it with me every climb, so gear loops and access is essential. Padding is good, because i'm usually hot climbing in teh Southeast and clothing is usually bad. highly adjustable leg/waist is also useful, because i feel tall in the torso and some harnesses (bluewaters, esp.) tend to crush "me parts" when it pulls the top and bottom sections together.
coylec
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lstockett
Feb 5, 2004, 8:19 PM
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Fit, Features, and Price. Mainly fit. Everyone's body is different. Spend some time hanging and bouncing in one before you buy it. Your climbing shop probably has a static line set up just for that purpose.
There probably is no all-around 'best' harness. It depends on the person.
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dirtineye
Feb 5, 2004, 9:06 PM
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In reply to: The Shield is an excellent harness, but probably a bit to 'beefy' to free climb a long multipitch..its really better suited to aid climbing. ricardo- you're right...you cant go wrong with yates..everything they make is amazing. the only time i ever put on my bd momentum is when i'm sport climbing, which is almost never!
I've free climbed 11's in my shield. I've never come off a free climb bacause I was wearing a big harness. It is a GREAT harness for FA work, precisely because of all the loops, and the three hard loops are good for hanging the tools you use most. If you ahve to aid from time to time, yo uare in the right harness for it. The Shield is pretty nice to have on in a fall. If you are going to do any hanging belays and don't have a belay seat, the shield is very good for that too.
I do wish Yates would add an adjustable rise to the Shield, but when I need a new harness, I'll probably get another Shield even if they don't add that.
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cjstudent
Feb 6, 2004, 4:09 AM
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I'll add some questions too, trying not to hi-jack the thread. I have been getting into trad quiet a bit and have found that the 4 gear loops just aren't enough. I am a beginner so maybe i am carrying alittle more gear than others but I lug a set and a half of nuts, some tri-cams, about 10 cams, and sometimes a hex or two along with my trad draws and anchor gear and the 4 loops get too filled.
I was looking at the Yates Sheild, Astroman, and the Misty Mountain Cadillac. I seemed to like all three pretty good, but does the Astroman have more than 4 gear loops? U can't tell from the pics. The Sheild looks like an awesome harness but i too was concerned about the bulk, because I am a small guy (around 5'10" 130lbs) so i maybe shouldn't have a really bulky harness so I thought maybe the Cadillac or Astroman would be a good medium.
Currently i have the Trango Vertical and a BD Bod (for people who climb with me and don't have a harness) but needed something "more". Yea i do hanging belays sometimes and plan on doing 4+ pitch routes. How many of you have the Shield for trad?
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mmckinney
Feb 6, 2004, 4:10 AM
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Registered: Jan 10, 2004
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In reply to: Yates Astroman .. best harness i've ever owned.. -- ricardo |
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dirtineye
Feb 6, 2004, 4:28 AM
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The astro man has six loops as I recall, but I sent it back when I saw the shield on a guy at the crag. Whn I'm not fat I weigh 135 at 5'10" and I have no trouble with the shield.
Lots of people around the south love the caddy.
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vegastradguy
Feb 6, 2004, 6:33 PM
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The Astroman has 7 gear loops plus a fully rated haul loop.
The Shield has 6 loops, plus a hammer holster, a giant loop on the back, and a haul loop.
I'm not saying you cant climb hard in the shield...I've climbed my hardest stuff in it (5.9), but personally, i would feel more comfy in the Astroman...I guess that's just personal preference.
Both of these harnesses are very cozy at hanging belays. If you're on a wall, the Shield is better because you tend to spend time @ belay and has better padding.
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skycat
Feb 7, 2004, 4:13 AM
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Registered: Sep 20, 2003
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In reply to: while at the U of Oregon gym last weekend, one of the supervisors and i started talking harnesses, i mentioned one with the buckles which you don't double back and he said if you ever "bumped", fell down rock and hit the buckle or anything, that it could fly open. friend of mine has one of these and one filck of the buckle pretty much showed me what he said. it didn't fall off of him but it sure is unsafe to me. anyone know more about this? Christian
We use the same kind of hardware on skydiving harness legstrap hardware and it holds better on hard opening or terminal (120mph) openings than standard hardware. As long as the end of the webbing is doubled back and sewn, and the excess is stowed, there should be no way for it to be knocked loose, I mean you never hear about skydivers legstraps coming undone and them falling out of their harness. There can be a lot of grabbing, pulling, and hitting people in freefall.
BTW....the reason you don't double it back is because it's already doubled back, you are just tightening the webbing down.
http://www.jumpergirl.com/rigging/legstrap.jpg
Kelli
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