Final solution to what?

The equallette was as complicated as it needed to get, and many times it's more complicated than it needs to be. Luckily, it's as versatile as it is potentially time-consuming. Occasionally I'll use it to rig pro. More often, I'll tie it off around a bigass tree, or tie it off short to clip two bolts on a high-traffic route.

Now you've gone and added rap-rings and other additional shit. More weight, more complication...

Let's be clear about something: The equallette is a few years old. It's nice in certain situations. I carry one with me on most climbs and love it.

But climbers were anchoring for decades before it showed up and coming home just fine. They had the horse in front of the cart because they understood that super-bomber gear placements came above EVERYTHING, and that no wizard-rigging would ever make up for poor placements.

With some of today's elaborate spider-webs, I wonder...

Keep it simple...if you don't need more than slings or the rope to rig the belay, then don't use more.

We need to get past this idea that in climbing there's a holy grail anchor system that works for everything. There isn't...and trying to achieve that actively undermines your safety acumen with the gear because you're more focused on "THE" method rather than the options and why some may be better than others.

Hi everybody,

Since 2006 I followed that long debate regarding anchors with sliding X, cordelette, equalette, quad and triplette. By mixing the best ideas provided by many of you, in particular asdf, trenchdigger and mhabitch, I worked out something based on the Quad power point, but with the advantage of using a self equalizing and perfect load distribution on 4 pro as proposed originaly by mhabitch. I would like to know what you think about that Quadralette.

The four arms might look a bit short on the picture as I used a 21ft rope. A 27ft would give a better range.
http://PB Quadralette .jpg

But the point with that Quadralette, it was intended to solve two problems encountered with the equalette i.e.
1- the master point witch require 2 to 3 biners (auto-lock mode) and its 1 load bearing strands and 1 capturing strands.

2-it's uncapability to equalize more than two pieces at a time.

Hi everybody,

Since 2006 I followed that long debate regarding anchors with sliding X, cordelette, equalette, quad and triplette

I would like to know what you think about that Quadralette.

final solution? Not. It can't even pretend to equalize three pieces.

That paint can isn't going anywhere... what kind of screws did you use on the coat hanger? That's the real question.

I think that we most definitely over complicate things... what happen to SRENE and "good enough"? I'm sure that anchor is truck but I don't think it's worth the effort, weight, time, and cluster... no offense of course, that's just too much for me.

Speaking of which...a AMGA certified climber (not climbing with my party) criticized my equalette off two bomber glue ins because of the extension and was adamant on having an figure 8 in the system which I said thank you, noted, and I am happy with my anchor.... any reason for him to be so forceful with his advice?

It was a TR anchor...I don't have access to my anchors book to look it up but I don't recall any advice not to use it as a TR anchor...

Where did he want the figure eight? At the rope connection point, thus defeating the equalization?

In the worst-case scenario--i.e., 3 anchors failing--, you're on ONE
strand; that doesn't qualify one for the grand prize.

(That center part of your powerpoint triangle should not be of equal
length as the tensioned half (between limiter Overhand knots), but
more nearly half as long, limiting extension that much more.)

It was the same problem with the cordelette and the equalette. 3 pieces gone and you are left on 1 strand. Unless you use a 3 "V" configuration system with dyneema runners, how can you do different or better?

Nothing does, really; but what's magic about three?
The quad set-ups ideally start at 25% per anchor, and become
25-25-50 on a failure, or if employed one anchor short;
but even perfect 3-arm equalization of 33% needs anchors
able to hold 50-50 if one fails, so ... .

Nothing is magic about three. It's probably the most common number of pieces in a trad anchor so any gizmo that claims to be the "final solution" ought to be able to handle that number gracefully, as well as two, four, and more pieces. When you're in a situation that calls for one of these partially self-equalizing rigs it's not as if you can just add in another placement if what you've found isn't an even number.

Suppose all you get are a few questionable placements, there's no jesus nut in sight, it's non-trivial climbing off the belay, no way to relocate the belay to a better spot, and retreat is not a viable option. You'd best do what you can to spread the load over those junk pieces.
...
But 50% ("ideally") of the load on one piece is pretty crappy. Not much better than a cordelette, maybe no better given the potential for extension.
...