UKC

So foi the third time, a wire has gone on on of my cams.

I'm pretty certain that this is not caused by using it, i.e. hanging on the harness, sitting in cracks, holding falls. etc.

I'm pretty certain its caused by the cams being stuffed in my sack, which will usually mean the lobes are compressed and the wires thus kinked, in which state they will probably get twisted around and fatigued.

In other words, I don't think the wires would deteriorate if always under tension.

Do you agree?

If so, has anyone any ideas to prevent this?

In reply to Fredt:

Out of interest, what sort of cams? I've had the issue with one of my 4CUs, and just resorted to repairing it with wire and tape, but I'm wondering if it's a design problem with that model.

In reply to Fredt:

I put cams and wires into my sack separately from the rest of the rack. It ensures they're packed neatly and don't tangle with the rest of the gear. If you wanted to protect them further, put them in a small bag/stuff sack.

In reply to DBoothroyd:

All mine have been either HB Flexifixes, or WC Friends.

In reply to Merlin:

That's not going to stop the compressing is it?

Maybe I should store them in a solid box in the rucksack?

In reply to Fredt:

It's much less of a problem with dual axel cams as I think much of the damage occurs in transit when the lobes are pulled past 90 degrees.

In reply to Fredt:

I find being a good listener helps.

In reply to Fredt:



Somebody in Langdale was doing just that on Monday. First time I had seen it, good idea.

In reply to Fredt:

There was a discussion along these lines a couple of years ago. Eventually someone suggested storing them in tupperware boxes. I'm sure this was a wind-up, but I still laughed so much that I came close to wetting myself.

In reply to Rob Davies:

I remember that one! God knows I don't laugh at many threads on here but that one was hilarious.

In reply to Fredt:

I don't use a box or bag, but note that cam trigger wires always seem to fail near the swage. Lots of repair option discussions on here, strimmer wire being a favourite.

If you find a way to look after your cams, you will have the last laugh.

In reply to Fredt:

It generally does the trick, even if they're packed in your rucksack they are unlikely to really be 'compressed'. One of my WC Friends wires is just going now, it's nine years old, so I think that's not so bad.

The will go eventually, just taking practical simple steps to ensure their longevity, but a tuppawear box sounds a bit OTT.

In reply to Fredt:

I had a wire/string fray on a metolius cam. I emailed Metolius to let them know, just as a feedback thing really and they sent me a new cam the next day for free. They even let me keep the old (still usable) one!