UKC

Anybody know of any good offers (including "sets") on cams at the moment? I'm looking to replace a couple of lost ones and looking to extend my range to smaller sizes. First choice would be Black Diamond C4 for the extra range, but open to alternatives. Prices seem fairly uniform across shops (fair enough...) but just wondered if anybody knew of any good deals out there.
Thanks.

In reply to jonny taylor: Joe Browns are doing good deals on all sorts of cams. Definitely the cheapest place at the moment.

In reply to jonny taylor:

Needle Sport look to have some decent offers at the mo, DMM 4CU for £30 and Wild Country Heliums for £35.


Chris

In reply to jonny taylor: Try this: http://www.theoutdoorshop.com/showPart.asp?part=PN31070&product=Black%2...

I got some for 34.19 by price matching at Go Outdoors.

In reply to GridNorth:
Thanks all, those are some good offers that I'll browse through this evening.

Although the advertised colour scheme on theoutdoorshop web page is a bit off-putting...!

In reply to jonny taylor: All Wild Country Helium Friends £31.49 at Go Outdoors after price matching from the Needle Sports site.

In reply to neiloutdoors:

People complain that independents are too expensive and then when one puts a really good offer on the latest cams everyone flocks to go outdoors for the sake of £3.50. I'm generally the last person to say that people should (morally speaking) pay the extra at independents but if one puts on a good offer then pricematching with a big store to save £3.50 seems a little OTT.

In reply to Sharp: ^^. Well said , go outdoors must be killing smaller independent shops, and lets face it , it's not a vary good shop, compared to: joe brown, v12 ,needle sports etc,,,,

In reply to Sharp:

Spot on.

In reply to gd303uk:

It's not nearly as specialist as those are imho.

In reply to Timmd:


I concur .

In reply to jonny taylor: But are go outdoora making a loss on this one?

In reply to Sharp: I agree with you to some extent but in my defense I saved almost £200 on a full set of BD cams. I don't know about you but I can't afford to susidise independents to that extent.

In reply to GridNorth:

The Go Outdoors price match gave you 10% off so you spent ~£2000 on cams?

Crikey, I'm sure if you'd phoned up the Outdoor Shop they'd have offered you a similar discount!

In reply to GridNorth:
you didn't save £200 over buying them from the outdoorshop though did you!

In reply to GridNorth:
BTW I'm not criticising, personally I just buy from where ever is cheaper end of! I will tend to try and buy things from shops that I've gone in to look at / try stuff on though.

In reply to galpinos: Is The Outdoor Shop an independent I've no idea? I just looked for the best deal on line. I don't live near any shops and don't get to visit climbing areas with shops very often.

I assume that those of you who are preaching and moralising about this never set foot in a supermarket because that would make you very hypocritical.

In reply to GridNorth:

Yep, the Outdoor Shop is a one off independent that realised reasonably early on that the only way to maintain the bricks and mortar business when based in the Midlands was to have a half decent internet presence.

They've moved location since I left the area but I assume they are still the same company, staffed by people who know what they are talking about.

Go Outdoors was once a one off independent, CCC in Sheffield. They have since expanded and, imo, reduced the quality of product and service as a result. They are also going the way of TKMaxx, getting companies to manufacture products for them specifically but with lower quality fabrics/manufacture to sell at a price point, making you believe you are getting more of a saving than you are.

As to supermarkets, I shop in a mix of supermarkets (the Co-op) and local independents. I don’t, however, find a product I like discounted in a local independent then go to a large supermarket and buy it from them on a price match.

I still can't get over the fact you spent £2000 on cams, were you off to the States?

In reply to galpinos:

No, I worded the post badly. The comparison was against the full RRP.

In reply to GridNorth:

Fair dos. I'm thinking of treating myself to a big Camalot for the Outdoor Shop now.....

In reply to galpinos: So what is being said here? It's better to shop at a small independent as he deserves to be successful but once he is we should not shop there any more?

In reply to galpinos:



CCC = Camping and Caravanning Centre. They were never a climbing independent. Since it's success, it has added Climbing, Horse Riding, Fishing and Bikes.

It's a bit of a gamble if you need some advice on these because they are mainly retailers not end users. Some times you get lucky though.

In reply to Tommyads:
I think on the whole decathalon is better than gooutdoors. Been in to gooutdoors several times over the last year or so looking for slightly specialist kit (light waterproofs, good softshells, ice climbing gloves, light weight 40 - 50l ruck sacks etc) and left very disappointed.

In reply to GridNorth:

Exactly, I'm British, I hate success.........

No, what I’m saying is shop in stores that stock quality good and provide the service and knowledge that help you make an informed choice.

Don’t patronise shops that were a business as described above but now offer an inferior product range and service in order to chase a “cheap buck”.

In reply to Tommyads:

Well, it was an independant, as it was a one off, and there was a climbing section back in 1998 when I first went there but as it was all connected to the Edge, I guess the climbing part might have been owned but the Edge and not CCC. It was a different store to the Go Outddors that exist now though.

In reply to galpinos: I didn't have a need for any advice, I already had the knowledge and the quality of a BD cam at Go Outdoors is the same as a BD cam anywhere else.

I would agree that if you go into a shop and receive good service and advice that it would be petty to not spend a small amount extra in order to give them your business. Indeed in the past I have done exactly that.

In reply to GridNorth:

Fair point......


But when you'd like to do that in the future, the shop no longer exists because everyone has spent their money in Go Outdoors on a price match and the only place left to buy the product is Go Outdoors which, not only has a poorer selection and service but also can now hike it's prices as the competition has disappeared! (Exaggerated scenario I know but...)

In reply to GridNorth:

No, it's that we should go where the specialism is...