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magpie
Nov 11, 2004, 4:49 PM
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I can't get the search function to work, so feel free to re-direct me to a previous thread if this has been asked recently...
I wanted to get some ideas on what you think are the best smaller-end cams, as we need to add some to our rack. (Still newbie trad climbers.) I know everyone seems to love aliens, but wanted to get some different opinions (and everyone always seems to have strong opinions on every topic here). I know that some folks overlap their gear, and like certain sizes of aliens but not others, etc. I'd be interested in any of that info as well.
Thanks in advance...
Erica
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loren
Nov 11, 2004, 5:13 PM
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aliens are it man. lots of people double up with metolius tcu's and other metolius small gear. Had I to do it all over again though, I probably wouldn't waste my time/money. buy aliens.
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angelaa
Nov 11, 2004, 5:36 PM
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I'd have to say Aliens all the way!
Honestly . . . If I could only have one cam. . . it would be an Alien. . . I have never had one walk on me!
although . . .I don't have any offset Aliens yet. . . I am sure once I add those to my rack they will move up to the top
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rockgoat
Nov 11, 2004, 5:52 PM
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ALIENS GREEN TO RED. GREAT CAMS! :D
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loren
Nov 11, 2004, 5:57 PM
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In reply to: ALIENS GREEN TO RED. GREAT CAMS! :D
Green to red??!! The smaller cams are at least as good as the green. In fact, I have 2 blue, on which I have fallen many, many times with no failure, as well as one of the smallest (black with purple webbing), on which I have taken both long falls as well as short hard falls with no failure at all. However, I have had metolius four cam units fail on me. placing an alien in a hard crack gives me one of the greatest feelings in trad climbing; complete confidence. In fact, if anyone from CCH is out there and reading this, pleas email me because I want to be your rep (seriously). I love you guys!
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taino
Nov 11, 2004, 6:00 PM
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Aliens. Search no further.
I have: 1 blue, 2 green, 2 yellow, 3 grey, 1 red. I use them Every. Single. Time.
T
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caughtinside
Nov 11, 2004, 6:04 PM
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I've used aliens, Metolius TCUs and DMM 3CUs. They all work.
However, I prefer the aliens, because the stem is much more flexible, the narrow head, and the good action.
Tai--That's a lot of small cams! How many you carry total? :P I've got one blue, one green and one yellow. From there up I've got Camalots and DMMs. Although, I'd rather have red aliens than .5 camalots.
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rockgoat
Nov 11, 2004, 6:12 PM
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Sorry Loren for not thinking about the blue and black alien. I do have a blue one and it rocks. I love all my aliens..... :lol:
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phile
Nov 11, 2004, 6:18 PM
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Interesting that so far the clear preference is Aliens--my understanding is that a lot of people like Metolius TCUs in the small sizes. Does anyone climb with Wild Country Zeros?
phil
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the_pirate
Nov 11, 2004, 6:25 PM
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I like Aliens as well, but I also find a lot of useful 3CU placements.
If you have a small crack with a little divot or irregulatity on one side, a 3-cam unit will sit better than anything. I don't really like the Metolius ones; they just don't fit well with my hand and therefore are awkward to use. YMMV. I prefer the DMM 3CUs and the (sadly no longer made) Trango 3CUs.
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basecamp
Nov 11, 2004, 6:27 PM
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I like my Aliens, those things could hold an elephant on 30 foot fall!! Hypothetically of course. My entire Cam set is mixxed from (Small)Aliens(Medium)Metolious (Large)Black Diamond Cams. I really like them all, but if I had to buy another set of smaller cams I would go with Alien again.
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vegastradguy
Nov 11, 2004, 6:27 PM
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my personal preference is aliens as well (blue through gray, doubles of each) for general trad climbing. hybrid aliens also are nice for routes that are listed as difficult to protect.
metolius are nice as well (i own some tcu's that i use mostly for aid), i'm not a huge fan of the double stem, but tcu's fit nicely in 'pods' and the like.
i had heard that the zero's were becoming more popular as they filtered into the racks of various climbers. i havent heard a whole lot about them in a while, but they're a good cam from what i understand.
theres always bd, which, suprisingly has a narrower head width than an alien in the smallest sizes, but isnt as flexible. personally, i'd take flexibility (for horizontal placements) over head width. i've actually never had a placment i couldnt get because my aliens were too wide.
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forkliftdaddy
Nov 11, 2004, 6:34 PM
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Aliens -- black through red. Nice flexible stem, but no cam stops and a few gaps in the range.
TCUs -- fit better (than Aliens) in some places. A bit stiff, but no gaps in the range.
Zeros -- tiny, tiny, tiny. A friend has a couple of these. Trigger design sucks, but nice otherwise.
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euroford
Nov 11, 2004, 6:39 PM
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zero's are my favorite, just a killer little cam
i also like aliens allot, and also have tcu's and dmm 3cu's.
they all work very well, and all have diffrent strong suites.
if you had to have one set, i'd say zero's or aliens, if need more get some tcu's. if you already have the best midsize cams out there (dmm 4cu's) and want to have a full matching set you won't be disapointed with dmm's 3cus.
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taino
Nov 11, 2004, 6:42 PM
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In reply to: Tai--That's a lot of small cams! How many you carry total? :P I've got one blue, one green and one yellow. From there up I've got Camalots and DMMs. Although, I'd rather have red aliens than .5 camalots.
I carry those Aliens, and singles in BD cams from .5-2 (4 more). If I'm onsighting something, or I remember what gear a route takes, I can add the 3-4 (3 more).
Of course, I ALWAYS carry two full sets of nuts, hexes from 5-10, and tricams from pink through blue.
T
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petsfed
Nov 11, 2004, 6:42 PM
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Aliens up to red, orange if I need doubles of that size.
I like the zeros too, but they aren't "butter smooth (TM)"
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adamd
Nov 11, 2004, 6:55 PM
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Like everyone else I love my aliens and I carry a lot of them. I was suprised though when I got a Metolius 00 TCU how much I liked it. I'm not a big fan of the other sized TCU's...but the 00? so sweet. of course I haven't fallen on it yet.
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crackmd
Nov 11, 2004, 6:58 PM
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My only gripe with aliens is they are a bit floppy in the stem and can be tough to "slam" in when the clock is ticking. For desperate placements I prefer a cam with a stiffer stem like the Metolius or BD cams. For bizarre and shallow placements though, the Alien can't be beat. They always seem to sit better in the crack than other cams and inspire more confidence to pull hard moves above it.
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cracklover
Nov 11, 2004, 7:04 PM
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In reply to: Interesting that so far the clear preference is Aliens--my understanding is that a lot of people like Metolius TCUs in the small sizes. Does anyone climb with Wild Country Zeros? phil
Metolius TCUs - don't like them - only use them as doubles. They're literally and figuratively less flexible in what you can do with them. But then, I tend to dislike all cams with U-stems.
WC Zeros - I have just started using them regularly, and like them as well or better than the Aliens in the smallest range. Some are rated to hold more force than the comperably sized Aliens.
CCH Aliens - The standard by which other small cams are measured. Most of my small cams are Aliens. They rock.
Camp/Trango Ball Nutz - When nothing else will fit, you need Ball Nutz! These are surprisingly powerful and stable pro. Use for the smallest of placements - only in very hard rock!
So here's my recommendation for micro to small cams:
Micro (0-15mm): Definitely Ball Nutz! # 1, 2, and 3
Very small (10-20mm): WC Zeros. # 3, 4, and 5 (or black, blue, and red). You may also choose to go with Aliens in this range.
Small (12 - 30 mm): Aliens # 3, 4, and 5 (or green, yellow, red). You may also go one or two sizes lower in place of the Zeros.
Medium-small (25-50mm) - your choice. At this point we're really talking about mid-sized cams, and it's anybody's game. Personally, I like BD Camalots from around # .5 or .75 up to #3. But there are so many choices here, it's really up to you.
To compare sizes, check out this awesome link: http://www.tradgirl.com/...sizechart_active.htm
Cheers!
GO
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thedesertnomad
Nov 11, 2004, 7:43 PM
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ALIENS ALIENS ALIENS.... say no more... search no farther !!!!
I also tried (and have a full set of the splitter gear 2 cams)
Those suckers are really tiny, work quite well, but it's tough to find a spot where an alien won't fit (unless we are talking pin scars)
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timstich
Nov 12, 2004, 12:30 AM
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In reply to: WC Zeros - I have just started using them regularly, and like them as well or better than the Aliens in the smallest range. Some are rated to hold more force than the comperably sized Aliens.
Zeros also have the added benefit of being in stock. Try and find aliens sometime. They are usually backordered six months or more.
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omeier
Nov 12, 2004, 2:34 AM
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I'm also new to tradding, but have a decent rack going. I stock aliens yellow through clear and BD C4's 1-5 (waiting on my #4) which i should get next week. I would also say the aliens just seem to be the standard.
The aliens just seem beefier. The purple alien (I know its big for an alien) next to the red camalot, 15.6 kN vs 14kN respectively. the red camalot seems to be a little easier to place given the firmer stem, but the alien just seems to be a more solid piece. This could be due to what seems to be a firmer spring and the beefier lobes. At the end of the day it comes down to what you prefer. I was kinda lucky. I got some cams based on what i heard and what i thought would be cool, and tried some friends' gear out. For me the aliens are awesome and the new C-4's are cool. Try some friend's gear out if you can, you'll definitely find out what works and what doesn't. Don't let price play to big a role, you'll have your gear for a while and you really want something that works for you, whether it be C-4's or rock empire pieces.
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cjstudent
Nov 12, 2004, 2:43 AM
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Aliens or Metolius TCU
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climbs4fun
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Nov 12, 2004, 2:43 AM
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ALIENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
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csgambill
Nov 12, 2004, 3:56 AM
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Yep, the consensus seems to be on aliens. I have to say I didn't know much about climbing when I bought mine, but I just got lucky when I was at REI and said, "ooh Aliens, cool name, I'll buy a bunch of those." ...Needless to say it was a while before I actually put them to use. Those buggers never walk, they're great!
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