UKC

hey has anyone used these pieces of gear?, i met a guy and he recomended i try them out as they're another for our rack?

anyway i just wanted to know ppls thoughts about th useful-ness of them, do they replace other pieces of gear? and what sizes are best to get?

thanks

In reply to mlmatt: Try a forumn search, this comes up all the time. My 2p worth is that the first 4-5 sizes are very useful.

(Search also for The Ode To a Pink Tricam; though I am probably breaking the unwritten rule introducing it into such a thread at this early stage).

In reply to mlmatt:

i thought they were made by Camp.

and yes can be useful in pockets and shallow horizontal cracks.

In reply to Morgan Woods: They are but they were first marketed by Lowe (as in Greg Lowe)...

In reply to mlmatt:
I tend to carry the two smallest sizes (pink and red) and probably use them on one route in every ten leads.
I placed a pink one last night in a small horizontal crack that was not wide enough for the friend I would have put there if it was wider.
They have their uses but it depends if you like climbing with a full rack of gear because you have it or if you want to strip it down to the minimum. I'm already carrying a >10kg beer gut up the crag so a few grams extra for some tricams is not going to change my climbing.

In reply to mlmatt:

I've had them and used them in places where nothing else would work yes.

In reply to mlmatt:
I think they tend to be more usefull on some rock types than others. The medium sizes are very good on granite similar to the cairngorms where nothing else will go, these placements are rarely the bomber ones tho', although they are better than nothing!

In reply to mlmatt:
Pink and Red ones go where nothing else will.

In reply to hindu:
Tricams are a bit fiddly to place when in extremis though aren't they.

In reply to CurlyStevo:

But well worth it once they're in, as has previously been mentioned the smaller sizes (0.5 & 1) are awesome bits of kit.

In reply to mlmatt: I have 0.5 1 2 3 tricams. they are great bits of kit. The big two sizes arn't very usful and i only carry them in winter. they also have a tendancy to flick out. However the red and pink tricam are brilliant bits of kit, often offering bomber gear where nothing else will go. For example they make the bold 5b pitch on central pillar safe. i always carry these 2 in the lakes.

In reply to Tom Ripley:

They're useful for doubling up, ie cams and tricams are lighter than 2 sets of cams. And they do go places where nothing else will. PLus they're weird so I like them

In reply to mlmatt:

Another vote in favour of the smaller ones. They're the best kit on my rack.

jk

In reply to mlmatt:

Agree they are awesome gear, the pink (especially) and the red are indespensible, imho.

Not particularly tricky to place once you get the hang of it, can be multidirectional (in some placements) and inspire confidence when you get bomber placements.

In reply to mlmatt:
I carry the 2 small ones for small pockets and such like.
They are also slightly more static than a cam in some placements, and you can really reasure yourself by giving them a good yank.
You do really need some kind of feature for the skied side though, so not as great in parallel cracks

In reply to mlmatt:

carried my pink one one about ten routes in Wales and never used it!

In reply to Wilbur:
I like my tricams, as people have said the pink and red ones seem to be the most useful, I've placed the 1.5 as well but less often.

Ade

In reply to mlmatt:

just wanna say thanks to all the people who've replied to this, you've sealed the deal and i'm definatly going to try them out

ta

In reply to Wilbur:

I bet you could have used it on all of them though, you just chose not to.

In reply to mlmatt:

I really like them. I find the 3 smallest sizes (pink, red, brown) very useful when nothing else will go.

Fantastic for dodgy little pockets.

In reply to davidbeynon:

Fantastic bits of kit. I wish they'd bring out a smaller one

In reply to mlmatt:

awesome- bomber gear- take a while to learn to place... but well worth the effort, particularly in winter. often worth weighting the heavier ones...

Dave