UKC

Hi all,

I realise this topic has been covered several times previously, but equipment changes so I'd like to get an up to date answer.

Having mainly been a trad climber for a long time, I am now taking more regular forages out to sport climbing destinations in preparation for a trip to Verdon, and am getting a bit tired of having to cobble together a sport rack each time I go, out of my mismatched antique trad gear. I'm thinking it is about time I invested in some dedicated sport quickdraws, and wondered what are the best out there at the moment?

A few questions:

* Solid or wire-gate?
* What lengths are most useful? I'm guessing a mixture, with mostly short ones, and a couple of each of the middle and long lengths.
* Any particular quickdraws people recommend?
* Is it a good idea to buy a set with wide slings? Guess that makes it easier to pull on it if you need to aid past a move or hang on it while clipping the rope in. Are those the main reasons for getting a wide sling?
* Anything else to consider?

Thanks!

Chris

In reply to Chris Sansum:

DMM Alpha Sport. All short.

In reply to Chris Sansum:

Second for the alpha's. Best draws to get.

In reply to Chris Sansum:

Another shout for the DMM Alphas here.

In reply to Chris Sansum:


Solid at the bolt end. I use wiregates at the rope end, lots of people prefer bent gates


I carry one long 'draw and one alpine.


Yes, definitely, grabbable slings are important.


Keylock hookless nose on the bolt end is essential

In reply to Chris Sansum:

I personally find the Alphas bent spine quite unergonomic in the hand, I much prefer the Shadow. They still have the exact bent/solid gate found on the Alphas (which makes clipping incredibly easy) but just feel better in the hand IMO. Go down to your local shop and feel a few different biners, I was going to get the Alphas based on reviews but I'm glad I tried before I buyed.

http://dmmclimbing.com/products/shadow/ I have a set of the sexy purple ones seen on their site. The wide tape is marginally helpful, I wouldn't say it makes a huge difference. I would go for a few more longer draws than I bought though as sport routes aren't often straight lines, and often I'm glad of the extra length.

In reply to Chris Sansum:
Another vote for alphas.

I've never understood the obsession with short draws for sport climbing personally. I use plenty of longer draws to reduce drag and would recommend at least half be of the longer variety.

In reply to Chris Sansum:

Personally I would go for the Petzl Spirit, I prefer the action of them and they are allot lighter and there about the same price. If you want something more similar to the Alpha I think the Petzl Djinn is worth looking at as they are about £5.00 a draw cheaper and remarkably similar, that now begs the question which came first?

In reply to Chris Sansum: The gold standard sport draw has always been the Petzl Spirit. They are a lovely ergonomic design and have proved extremely durable and reliable over perhaps two decades. The latest version is lighter but seems to retain the durability of the original.

The DMM Shadow is VERY similar to the Spirit (and both weigh almost the same). They have DMM's new bent gate design for great clipping and will probably be available slightly cheaper than the Spirits. They don't have the same track record as far as durability is concerned but that has never really been an issue with DMM gear.

The DMM Alpha is a rehash of an old design utilised previously by HB and others. They have done a great job BUT the kinked back is still a design that splits opinion. Many really love them, some slightly prefer the more traditional design of Spirits/Shadows.

If money was no object I'd have 20 Petzl Spirits in a variety of sizes, mostly 17cm. However, since that isn't the case I will probably be buying myself around 15 DMM Shadows in the next couple of months. I am not yet convinced by the Alpha Sport so think the Shadow is a superb option and easily the best value for money of the three.

HTH

In reply to Chris Sansum:

Just to expand on my Alpha Trad recommendation...

They work well for me and my local wall, the Beacon has them on all routes so I'm super used to clipping them so it just feels natural to use my own outside.

A clip is a clip at the end of the day though..! Clipping technique is probably far more important than the karabiner.

In reply to purplemonkeyelephant:

I've also been using the Shadows for years - they are fantastic krabs. The original design is absolutely bomber http://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/review.php?id=1140 and the updated gate design just makes them even better http://lightfromthenorth.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/dmm-shadow-dmm-alpha-and-dm...

In reply to Chris Sansum:

It depends on your budget, but Petzl Spirits are the golden standard. That said, I'd never buy them because you can get much cheaper quickdraws that are just as good. See Camp Orbit Express for example - decent quickdraw for half the Spirit's price. You can get 10 Camp draws and a grigri for a price of 10 Spirits. My criteria when buying new: solid straight gate (keylock, hookless, whatever you call it) at the bolt end, bent gate at the rope end (makes clipping much easier). Some say it's better to have wire gate at the rope end because under certain circumstances (if the biner hits the rock) the solid gate can open during the fall and therefore reduces the strength of the biner. It sounds extremely unlikely, but I guess it can happen. I use both solid & wire gates at the rope end. I tried many different brands & models (Cassin, Black Diamond, Edelweiss (those are sweet!), Camp, Petzl, DMM, Salewa...) and I don't think the more expensive models are worth the extra money. I only use 10cm ones and I have never experienced a significant rope drag - but then again, I have never climbed in the UK

In reply to Chris Sansum:

I'm very happy with my shadows. feel nice in hand cheapish. made in UK.