mtngrrrl Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 buy a rope. you bring the rope, let your partner bring the rack. you can try out lots of different gear that way then decide and make expensive mistakes. Snowbyrd, This gear discussion is all fine and dandy, but you've been climbing for what, 3 months now altogether? Spend more time on the rock, spend more time following and fondling other people's gear and getting to know what the options are and what you like best before shelling out the big bucks for your own rack. Gotta agree with Minx and Dryad on this one. That's exactly what I thought when I started reading this thread. You've already got a rope, so spend the money on a gym membership this winter and become a stronger climber before sinking the cash into gear that you won't be ready to use for a while. Or spend it on gas money to drive your rack-laden partner to the crag. Any good friend / climbing partner would let you try out their rack with the implied notion that if you weld it, drop it or lose it, you'll replace it. Following and building trad TRs are both great ways to learn about gear without the pressure of the sharp end. Trying out other people's gear lets you decide if you like those (damn) curved nuts (that my lame partner bought) or not. For example! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dechristo Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 racks of all descriptions, anatomical and mechanical, grow when you start leading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arlen Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 You could start with supplemental pieces for more experienced partners' racks. Like Camalots hands to fist, and Wallnuts, because they complement Stopperoids. Add ten alpine draws and few will weasel out of climbing with you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 buy a rope. you bring the rope, let your partner bring the rack. you can try out lots of different gear that way then decide and make expensive mistakes. buy nuts first. hard to go wrong there. i like tri-cams, maybe not a good choice for an early piece though. they can be tricky to place. hard to go wrong with hexes either. just my $0.02 learn to place passive pro first. it is more intuitive, I think. Remeber that sport draws are not ideal when placing trad gear. you want to invest in beiners and runners of diffrent lengths. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk Posted September 30, 2004 Share Posted September 30, 2004 oh and buy an anchor book and a knot book. and LEARN the info. you should beable to tie a duble fishermans and a water knot in your sleep. I suck, do as I say not as I do. clove hitch is handy too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texplorer Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 STFU you duct tape wearing wannabe! TriCams don't suck, you do Duct tape is good for holding hooks in place while you climb past them.. . . or do they not do that up there in canada Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 hooks are for sissy in canada we free solo your mother duct tape texan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carolyn Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Im curious after being at both ropeups what your thoughts are now? I took some advice from a well respected climber when I was looking at ropes (and I think I have said this here before). He asked why I wanted a rope. Well, because I want to have a rope, I guess. His response was, "You climb with people who have ropes, right? So what do YOU need one for?" Ba-da-bing! Smart fellow. I bought the rope anyway. WHy? Because it represented a form of independance within climbing (to me). Starting a rack, sloooooooowly, also represented that independance. I figured if I had the gear I would be more likely to use it than if I had to wait around to climb with someone else who had it. So, following "my" logic I understand where you are coming from with the excitement and eagerness to start your own rack. On the other hand, I fully see the benefits in using your partner's gear, especially if you have numerous partners with a wide range of toys. I did this for a few years. As I began to understand (note: I still have a long way to go) what was best for certain situations and what worked best for me I started purchasing my own gear. I dont regret any of my purchases thus far. I think finding that happy medium between educating yourself as fully as you can and taming the eagerness can help you make solid choices. Basically, dont rush yourself...but dont hold back. You will get what you need when you are ready. Until then, enjoy the process of learning and enjoy CLIMBING. Just a general observation after reading this post... Tho I dont know snowbyrd, her experience, research she has done and so forth, I do know that as someone who has asked the same question in the past some of the answers given could be somewhat confusing (jeeezus run on sentence!). I guess in the newbies forum it might be nice to back up your reasoning when using tech talk. For example..."get lots of webbing". Well, why? "slings instead" Why? "Hexes suck" why? "metolius nuts suck" why? I understand and can back up my opinions on all of those statements now. However, when I first asked my "rack" question I remember it just added to my confusion. Just my .02sense Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnowByrd Posted October 18, 2004 Author Share Posted October 18, 2004 Im curious after being at both ropeups what your thoughts are now? I took some advice from a well respected climber when I was looking at ropes (and I think I have said this here before). He asked why I wanted a rope. Well, because I want to have a rope, I guess. His response was, "You climb with people who have ropes, right? So what do YOU need one for?" Ba-da-bing! Smart fellow. I bought the rope anyway. WHy? Because it represented a form of independance within climbing (to me). Starting a rack, sloooooooowly, also represented that independance. I figured if I had the gear I would be more likely to use it than if I had to wait around to climb with someone else who had it. So, following "my" logic I understand where you are coming from with the excitement and eagerness to start your own rack. On the other hand, I fully see the benefits in using your partner's gear, especially if you have numerous partners with a wide range of toys. I did this for a few years. As I began to understand (note: I still have a long way to go) what was best for certain situations and what worked best for me I started purchasing my own gear. I dont regret any of my purchases thus far. I think finding that happy medium between educating yourself as fully as you can and taming the eagerness can help you make solid choices. Basically, dont rush yourself...but dont hold back. You will get what you need when you are ready. Until then, enjoy the process of learning and enjoy CLIMBING. Just a general observation after reading this post... Tho I dont know snowbyrd, her experience, research she has done and so forth, I do know that as someone who has asked the same question in the past some of the answers given could be somewhat confusing (jeeezus run on sentence!). I guess in the newbies forum it might be nice to back up your reasoning when using tech talk. For example..."get lots of webbing". Well, why? "slings instead" Why? "Hexes suck" why? "metolius nuts suck" why? I understand and can back up my opinions on all of those statements now. However, when I first asked my "rack" question I remember it just added to my confusion. Just my .02sense Hey Carolyn, we met! I asked you about your chalk bags I'm the one with short red hair. My thoughts after the ropeups? 1) I am glad that I have a rope as I use it alot. Just this morning I sent my roommate out onto the roof on belay while he cut branches off a tree that kept us up all night...the ladder was too unstable and short and it gave him access to places the laddter couldn't reach. I also have a 10 year old who is an aspiring climber. We go out and set up top ropes. He can belay my and I am learning to lead easy sport routes. So, the rope and the set of Quick draws and a gri gri (which I haven't purchased yet) are all handy and necessary. 2) Rack: The truth is, I'm a gear junkie. I LOVE gear....electronic gear...climbing gear...any sort of gear. So, I must admonish myself often and tell myself that I do NOT need those aliens or those TCU's because I don't know how to use them. 3) I will start small...I plan to buy meself a set of BD nuts for Xmas....and learn how to place them. Friends have also donated user gear to my 'baby rack' as well. Its just nice to have 'stuff' and sometimes it even comes in handy if your climbing partner can use an extra piece here and there. As I don't have a regular climbing partner, I'm all over the place at times. Everyone I have climbed with thus far has been very very good about teaching me the things a newbie needs to know in order to grow into a safe and competant climbing partner. I'm still working on anchors and knots and I don't feel the need to go out and place my own gear just yet. In fact, I'm just getting good at cleaning other people's gear and returning it to them at the end of the pitch. Maybe in a couple fo years, I'll be there...but then again, I'm in no hurry. I'm comfortable at the level I'm at and I still have SO MUCH to learn. Thank You everyone for your advice and criticisms....it all is helpful. And Thank You Carolyn for digging up this thread...it was nice to revisit it and to read what you have to say. You're right on target with your advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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