UKC

I've been looking to do some serious rack-lightening, and these are the lightest biners I'm aware of:

Screwgate: Grivel Plume K3N (37g)
Wiregate: Edelrid Nineteen G (19.5g)

Are they the lightest, or is there something out there I've missed?

In reply to Rapsling:

yep thats about it,i prefer petzl attache 3d for big screwy wild country neon for small screwy and petzl ange finesse for everything else,. balancing weight and usability.
The nineteens actually feel quite good if you have small hands like me.

In reply to cliff shasby:

Thanks for the advice

In reply to Rapsling:

I have a couple of the Edelrid 19G's. I basically bought them as a semi joke to frighten my mates, they're tiny.

Personally I would go for a more normal size unless I were packing for a high altitude expedition. Even Phantoms are a bit small for my taste; my trad rack is mostly Spectre 2's which are full sized, reasonably priced and reasonably light. I saw some Camp Photons in a shop recently: they might be worth a look too. Big but impressively light for their size.

In reply to Rapsling:
DMM phantoms seem to get the balance of weight 28g , size and strength about right - for me anyway

phantom gate open strength 9kn, gate opening 22mm
eldrid 19g - gos 7kn, go19mm

In reply to Rapsling:
Hi,
Consider the ballence between light and usable. The 19g are tiny, too small for me. Phantoms work well for me in both wire gate and screw gate, plus are a little cheaper. The pure slider is also a consideration as a locker. That said you may want one larger screw gate for some belays especially is using a single rope. Always worth bearing in mind that a lot of folk carry too many screwgates, you can always use a pair of snap gates if you run out. I Don't have any, but alpha lights look to be a good full size option.
Lighter carabiners will dramatically lighten your rack, though it's part of a bigger picture of carrying just what you need for a particular route.

Wayne

In reply to Rapsling: The Grivel Plume screwgates are ace. Highly recommended.

Not so sure about the 19s. I think they are probably a bit small for general cragging use. Good for scrambling or alpine stuff where you carry a small rack but probably won't actually place much gear.

The new DMM Chimera? (keylock version of the Phantom) when it is available would probably be my top choice for new wiregates that are going to get heavy use.

In reply to Wayne S:


I'm after a couple of those for a "crucial situations" quickdraw. For building belays I have some Phantom screwgates.

In reply to AlanLittle:

I'm using one as a trial, same weight as a phantom, bigger to handle and can can more easily operated one handed. So thinking a good option with slings en route or as you say crucial runners with gate opening possibilities.

Didn't know about a up revised phantom, will keep eyes open for that.

Wayne

In reply to Rapsling:

The edelrids are tiny. Usually fine for me (girl, small fingers) with the exception of at my limit placements when they even get fiddly for me. My climbing partner (man, bigger fingers) can't use them and they've caused him problems seconding if I've placed them.

In reply to Wayne S:

>I Don't have any, but alpha lights look to be a good full size option.

I've got the Alpha Lights -- they're actually the same size as the Phantoms, sort of a "three-quarter size" relative to the Alpha Trads or Spectres.

Slightly heavier than the Phantoms, but with a clean nose (and the bent back that people either like or think is weird and pointless).

In reply to The Ex-Engineer:

I really rate the 19Gs. I purchaced three of the longer 19G quickdraw sets thinking they would be good for light trad use.

Having got them they have been used for sport climbing and been fine on difficult clips, not as good as my sport draws but good enough.

They have also gone on two trips to Patagonia and have been used for both rockclimbing and on ice/mixed routes using gloves. They were fine when wearing dextrous gloves and no worse than most of our other kit.

I have a few more now.

In reply to Rapsling:
Also i failed to mention,that the petz ange have an easy clip angle(look at one and you'll know what i mean)some wiregates are almost vertical clipping angle, and they are snag free i.e. clean nose,there is no wire indent at all to catch on a sling/gear etc,this makes them feel like a bigger crab when clipping because you dont have to be as exact with them.