UKC

Having lost an original No 1 Friend in a crack at Chair Ladder this week, I had a look and tried to date some of my gear. I still have a couple of original  Chouinard  stoppers from early 70's and 3 of the smallest hexes on rope which pre-date the Friends. There must be people carrying original MOACs lurking out there somewhere.

I have 2x MOACs that I inherited, they were a staple of my gear as a poor teenager, and whilst I have upgraded some of my rack, they still have a place.

I also have 3 different generations of a size 9 wallnut, all being found in the pass, again climbing as a teenager.

oldest that I can date are some hexes & stoppers I bought in 1974 (I think) although I also have a MOAC which was given to me which is probably a little older (although the rope has been changed a few times)

On a related note, I've just thrown out a Pinnacle rucksac which I think was bought in 1973 - been kept for sentimental reasons but its not usable as a sac anymore and we are moving soon

I have a 40 year old screwgate carabiner, used in anger at Bosi a couple of weeks ago, that I bought at Pindisports in Bristol, the shop that used to feature in the opening credits of Eddie Shoestring. It has outlasted the Whillans harness, the EBs and the purple Alpiniste that I bought around the same time.

Still using two MOACs and a Clog hex I bought in 1967/8 Keep changing the string, but they are very useful pieces of kit and I rarely trad climb without them!

I have moacs and an original stitchplate.

Me.

Good to hear I'm not the only one with "heritage" gear. Question now is are the MOACs rounded corners or sharp? And what did MOAC stand for?

2 MOACs, no. 3 rigid stem friend, 2 spuds on bandolier in case I run out of other gear. I never throw much away so have got loft full of H section large nuts, original hexagonal nuts etc (wires, old krabs often useful for various DIY purposes).

I clicked on this thread thinking "great - I've got some old stuff" but it's in the mere whipper-snapper class compared to some of the gear above.  But I do have a MOAC original that I found somewhere - was it on the Grochan?  Anyway, it still sees action along with plenty of 30-odd year old Clog krabs.

Oh and didn't MOAC stand for MOuntain ACtivities?

Not Mother Of All Chocks then? 

I've still got (and use occasionally ) a couple of the Camp snap gates that came out in about 85, the ones where the gate opens offset to one side and stays open until you flick it shut, it's handy if you're vertically challenged like myself for clipping out of reach bolts, 

A bunch of rigid stem Friends which are approaching their 40th birthday, bless them!

I'm not old enough to contribute I'm afraid, although I have a few bits of older 'liberated kit' including a ridgid friend that's in perfect nick.

Taking about changing the ropes on MOAC's over a period of 40 years though does remind me of Trigger's Broom.

Couple of moacs and very useful they are too, nicely rounded off which often helps with placement. I’ve also got some weird old clog nut on the most stiff wire imaginable - pretty useless as the slightest flick of the rope will lever it out.

Some old fashioned hexes too, I used to cam them into gritstone breaks before I could afford friends. Try Hargreaves Original using them - good fun!

If you are not deriving much 'pleasure' from them any more, you could always donate them to the Mountain Heritage Trust. That's where I sent most of my old stuff when I had a clear out, including Terrordactyls, prototype Clog ice-axe, Whillans sac, etc.

I kept the first Hexentric 9 I bought in 1975 as it's still useful. The rest of my original rack was given to me by the parents of a lad killed on Nuptse in the early 70s. The No9 Hex was bought in Joe Browns in Capel Curig on my first visit to N Wales as it seemed to offer the best 'value for money' addition and took my rack up to 5 items plus a selection of hawser rope slings, complete with leather wear patches.

Like many others here, I still have a MOAC. Mine dates back to 1967, I think. I also have a no.3 hawser-laid sling, which dates back to 1966 -it's very stiff and furry from wear, and I think I might get it strength tested just to see how much it has really deteriorated.

I've a 43 year old climber attached to my harness if that counts.

Also like others I have a couple of MOACs which I try to use on many climbs - especially the classics. The standard shout of 'you could hang a house of that' always brings relief to the nerves. Obviously re-threaded but I love them. Also have a size 5 chouinard nut that seems to fit every crack!! a lovely piece of gear.

Me!

I have a rather boring policy on this which I formulated when buying second hand gear as a skint teenager. 

Metalwork: If it could buy a pint, I'm not interested. 

Nylon: If it's ready to go to high school, it doesn't get to play anymore. 

Utterly dull, but does rather ensure that you don't end up sentimentally using potentially dangerous kit, and it's very comforting on lead knowing that you can have absolute faith in your gear. 

Fair enough for slings, etc but why would a old hex or peg not be safe ?