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thatclimberguy
Aug 30, 2009, 12:47 AM
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I'm beginning to start trad climbing and am going to start getting my own rack together.
I have a full set of Nut's and Hex's, slings, biners... but i would also like to start acquiring some Cams.
So 2 Question:
What brand of Cams people prefer?
What size Cams would be good to start out with?
Thanks!
P.S. Any other advice is appreciated
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gmggg
Aug 30, 2009, 12:57 AM
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thatclimberguy wrote: I'm beginning to start trad climbing and am going to start getting my own rack together. I have a full set of Nut's and Hex's, slings, biners... but i would also like to start acquiring some Cams. So 2 Question: What brand of Cams people prefer? What size Cams would be good to start out with? Thanks! P.S. Any other advice is appreciated
http://lmgtfy.com/...+cams+for+a+beginner
My advice would be to send me your cams for testing after you buy them so that you can be assured of their quality.
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acorneau
Aug 30, 2009, 1:01 AM
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thatclimberguy wrote: I'm beginning to start trad climbing and am going to start getting my own rack together. I have a full set of Nut's and Hex's, slings, biners... but i would also like to start acquiring some Cams. So 2 Question: What brand of Cams people prefer? What size Cams would be good to start out with? Thanks! P.S. Any other advice is appreciated
Answer:
#1: I prefer Metolius.
#2: A full set.
Really, you have to figure out what you want to climb, what sizes will be most useful, and get those. Then fill in the rest as you can afford it.
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coolcat83
Aug 30, 2009, 1:04 AM
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thatclimberguy wrote: I'm beginning to start trad climbing and am going to start getting my own rack together. I have a full set of Nut's and Hex's, slings, biners... but i would also like to start acquiring some Cams. So 2 Question: What brand of Cams people prefer? What size Cams would be good to start out with? Thanks! P.S. Any other advice is appreciated
I'd advise you do a search on the topic you will find a ton of threads on the subject.
As for brands and sizes, that depends on the person and the place you climb, try out friends gear see what you like. I have cams predominately from Trango and metolius. Because I tried and liked them, and they fit my budget, don't go for the cheapest or you will regret it. i also have bd c3's and tcu's for small cams. so really all over the place but it leaves little gap in the things i can protect except really wide stuff but there's not much of that where I climb.
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thatclimberguy
Aug 30, 2009, 1:05 AM
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A full set would be greeeattt, but i'm a broke ass college student, so i can't afford a full set right now.
Thanks for the input. That true, what i want to climb and what will be used most are good things to consider.
I'll have to check out the Metolius cams. i checked out the BD cams which i liked and have heard good things about.
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uni_jim
Aug 30, 2009, 4:01 AM
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get metolius from size 1 (blue) to 5 (black) and you should be happy for a while.
I went with metolius tcu's from 0-4 and dmm 4cu's for the larger sizes, I am happy with the dmm's, but might as well keep with the same brand right?
(This post was edited by uni_jim on Aug 30, 2009, 4:42 AM)
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northfacejmb
Aug 30, 2009, 5:11 AM
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BD Camalots is where its at..
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i_h8_choss
Aug 30, 2009, 5:28 AM
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Yeah BD's are the shit, but I have a few Mets and Trangos too. I like the BDs .75 & 1s but I don't like big hands, fists, or offwidths. If you like big cracks (OP), then get some big cams.
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scottydo
Aug 30, 2009, 5:43 AM
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If you can, get a full set of BD C4s up to #3 or #4 (#5 if you can swing it). Those are pretty much the gold standard.
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c4c
Aug 30, 2009, 10:55 AM
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Black diamond C4 start with .75,1 and 2 (green,red,gold) and add on from there.
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Lazlo
Aug 30, 2009, 1:39 PM
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c4c wrote: Black diamond C4 start with .75,1 and 2 (green,red,gold) and add on from there.
ditto.
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andrewG
Aug 30, 2009, 3:17 PM
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thatclimberguy wrote: A full set would be greeeattt, but i'm a broke ass college student, so i can't afford a full set right now. Thanks for the input. That true, what i want to climb and what will be used most are good things to consider. I'll have to check out the Metolius cams. i checked out the BD cams which i liked and have heard good things about.
Me too. You just need to get your priorities straight... I think it's pretty easy for a college kid to get a credit card. Christmas is kinda closing in too.
I'd also have to say that bd is my preference for the most part. I really like metolius tcus for the really small cams, then c4s from .3 on up. Haven't used the larger metolius cams. Like my friends (WC) pretty well. Didn't like my friend's DMM or rock empire cams.
I'd recommend saving up until you can get a set that gives you a decent discount, like bd .5-3 or something like that.
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koepkeca
Aug 30, 2009, 5:17 PM
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Lazlo wrote: c4c wrote: Black diamond C4 start with .75,1 and 2 (green,red,gold) and add on from there. ditto.
This is how I started. You also might want to get a few and try them out, or find someone that has some different kind of cams and experiment and see which ones you like the best.
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tedman
Aug 30, 2009, 5:31 PM
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start with a few BD c4s in the .75, 1, 2 and 3. you already have nuts that can cover the small sizes. From there start working down in the the finger sizes in whatever brand feels best. mastercams, aliens, tcus, whatever.
it also really helps if you have a partner who is building a rack too. then you can combine and have a fullish rack. you can also coordinate on getting stuff so you dont double up.
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nhgill
Aug 30, 2009, 8:54 PM
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Well if you are really on a budget and understand their limitations... WC forged friends are cheap and work in a fair number of situations. When I started putting my rack together I bought used cams from my local climbing shop and got whatever size was the least sketchy looking. I lucked out and wound up with a decent assortment of sizes. That being said, life got a whole lot easier when I got a set of C4s, .5 through 3. I would say beginners could probably get away without the 3 though.
just my $0.02
HTG
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TarHeelEMT
Sep 2, 2009, 2:44 PM
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I started a couple years ago with a set of C4s from 0.5-3.0, with Ultralight TCUs from 1-3 to cover the smaller sizes. It worked great for single-pitch in North Carolina, but a lot depends on where you'll be climbing.
If money is a concern, Trango Flex Cams are a good bargain. I use those for doubles in the smaller sizes.
(This post was edited by TarHeelEMT on Sep 2, 2009, 2:45 PM)
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thaiclimberdude
Sep 8, 2009, 3:19 AM
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I prefer BD cams, the thumb catch is super comfortable, and I find metolius tend to walk and over cam more often, as for how many, it depends on what you climb, a good start is medium stuff. .4 or .5 BD through 2 or 3.
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TarHeelEMT
Sep 8, 2009, 11:55 PM
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Another tidbit of advice for somebody building a new rack is that (depending on your area - ask around), a small set of tricams are pretty cheap and will cover a fairly wide range of sizes. If you know how to use them properly, they're a great way for a beginner to get "doubles" at a particular size without breaking the bank.
Again, that will depend on where you're climbing. Around here, they're great.
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cilohabmilc
Sep 9, 2009, 1:48 AM
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If you're on a budget I'd suggest Metolius. Everyone's great guns for BD cams lately, and while they are good they are also considerably more expensive. Metolius has a good product and I've been using their super-cams for the last few months and really like the range that they have been able to give me and the superb stability with the U-shaped stem. The only complaint is that they have a short-ish stem which can make placing and retrieving from deep placements a problem.
As far as size, I started out with sizes 3-6, but was a little disappointed because most of the 5.7-5.9 cracks that I wanted to climb required larger hands/fist gear. So I'd recommend starting with a 7 & an 8 and working in both directions from there as your budget allows. Also, watch eBay and classifieds for used Metolius cams. I know, I know, everyone says don't buy used gear, BUT, for only a few bucks you can send the cam to Metolius to have it inspected and re-slung which will save you a bunch.
Good luck, and start easy, learn to place gear well before you test your climbing ability with harder grades.
Mark
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