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Old Stoppers - Chouinard


Blake

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I think curves came in in the early 80's wasn't it, so it's older than that. Didn't the swaging with wire start in late 60's early 70's, so it must be in there somewhere.

 

Thing might be older than you Blake. Course, I have some on my current TR rack that age I bought new.

 

Totally guessing BTW, no flames, I'm old, but my memory sucks.

 

Healyje would know all that stuff. Click this link:

 

Healyje typical display of brilliance

 

Nut Museum

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Straight sided Chouinard stoppers were sold back in the mid to late seventies. I bought mine then and still use them today. If they are wired, they probably would benefit from re-swaging, I read somewhere that you can send them back for that (new wire). I'm still using the old wires because I've never fallen on them and the wires look perfect.

 

I met Chouinard at the bottom of Manure Pile buttress in the Valley back in 82, he was cool guy, just another old climber leading a 5.9.

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Wild Country Rocks were the first curved stoppers, came out in '81 if I remember correctly. Chouinard followed with curved stoppers the following year. Chouinard/Frost introduced their original wired stoppers about 1973, so your booty was born sometime between 1973 and 1982. I still carry these as aid pieces, have never replaced a wire - I just throw them out if/when the wire goes bad. Not worth the hassle of re-wiring a piece that is for all intents and purpose obsolete.

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I can tell you since I still have several. Chouinard first started the nut craze in 1972 with his introduction of the origional stopers and hexes. Yours is in the 1972 - 1978 or so range. The very first stoppers didn't have the "C - diamond" stamped on them.

Edited by still_climbin
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Hi Blake:

 

I recall reading that one of the first pitons used in the North Cascades - and probably America for that matter - was by Wolf Bauer on Mt. Goode. Because it was used on rappel(?), it would be the first piece of booty gear ever left up there! I don't recall if it was the SW couloir or the Bedayn, but probably worth poking around for...

 

I'll bet Lowell or one of the other eminent scholars that frequent this board could fill in the details.

 

-t

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Most of the replies are about half right. I have several sets going back to the original stoppers. All are now down at BD as they are making a display of Chouinard gear.

 

1. Chouinard marked all of the gear he made with a Diamond C - the exception being biners which said "Chouinard" and even then some biners did have a Diamond C on them. If you find something without a Diamond C it means it has been used enough that it is gone or was made by another company. Marking gear was very important as Chouinard wanted other climbers to know that he made the gear.

 

(BTW Chouinard was not the first to mark gear using the Diamond C another well known climber used a Diamond P)

 

2. Chouinard started making stoppers in '72. For the first few years they did not have shrink wrap on them. The first curved Chouinard stoppers 7-12 where made in '81. 1-6 remained straight sided for several more years.

 

3. After the number change from 1-8 to 1-12 in 1980 it was very hard to tell the difference in the smaller sizes. Although I seem to remember that an old 2 and new 3 were similar or something like that.

 

4. In the early 80s Chouinard started putting little stickers on the swage that said "Tested" (White paper with red ink). If it has something else then it would be mid/late 80s. This was under the shrink wrap.

 

5. Because there is no shrink wrap then it will be hard to tell as any markings could have worn off. Also given that it was bootty there is a good chance that if it did have shrink wrap that it came off long ago.

 

Best guess: more than 20 years but less than 30 years old. If there is no rust on the cable, wrap the swage and wire together with duct tape, stick on your rack and go use it.

 

For those know want to go nuts here is a link to the Nuts Museum

 

http://www.needlesports.com/nutsmuseum/nutsmuseum.htm

Edited by ScaredSilly
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No. 4 Chouinard stopper and a piece of cord has been my key ring for many years. Bought several between '75-'79.

 

No. 5 & 6 were my favorite pieces. I've still got the original perlon cord on some - anyone want to test them?

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Scared Silly, do you still think in original stopper sizes, with the half sizes thrown in? I know I still do, and a buddy still hordes his old half sizes and hardly dares use them for fear of having to bail with them.

 

I think I left one of the original very early RP's on the south side of Johannesburg on an uncharted descent. It's about 80' off the snow somewhere on a logical down lead skiers left of a big waterfall. Sounds like a project for John Frieh and his old gear obsession. yellaf.gif

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OK, ScaredSilly, help me with this one:

 

I gave away keyrings that I made with my old Diamond C stoppers (my very first gear) as Christmas presents years ago (like 20 or so??). These stoppers were flat-sided, and were slung with perlon. I kept one of these trinkets that I had made for myself, they were so cool back then.

 

I'm looking at that old keychain right now, and it's a #7, flat-sided stopper, with holes for 5mm or 6mm perlon cord. It says "STOPPER" in all caps across the top on one side, and "USA" vertically down the middle, with a large "7" to the right of that and below the word STOPPER. The "Diamond C" is to the left of the USA, barely visible after all these years. What's the vintage of this one? From your info above (point #2), it must be of the earliest (1972) design, and manufactured no later than 1980, as it's a #7 that is flat-sided, yes?

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Measure it.

If it's the 1st generation it will about 3/8" at the top of the narrow profile. 2nd will only be about 1/4".

1st gen was 1-8 sizes. Then they came out with half sizes.

Then resized and renumbered 1-12. I don't remember the years.

 

chris

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Scared Silly, do you still think in original stopper sizes, with the half sizes thrown in? I know I still do, and a buddy still hordes his old half sizes and hardly dares use them for fear of having to bail with them.

 

Though I started climbing with the whole/half sizes my first set had the new numbers and they were the first curved stoppers. Like your buddy I feared bailling off of them so I quit climbing with them about 15 years ago. By that time I had enough booty stoppers for a pretty complete set of the medium/large ones so I used them. Actually at this point 2/3 of my stoppers are probably booty stoppers.

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I'm looking at that old stopper right now, and it's a #7, flat-sided stopper, with holes for 5mm or 6mm perlon cord. It says "STOPPER" in all caps across the top on one side, and "USA" vertically down the middle, with a large "7" to the right of that and below the word STOPPER. The "Diamond C" is to the left of the USA, barely visible after all these years. What's the vintage of this one? From your info above (point #2), it must be of the earliest (1972) design, and manufactured no later than 1980, as it's a #7 that is flat-sided, yes?

 

Given just the hole size for the perlon, it would be a third generation stopper. Eg. 1-12 made some where around 1980-82.

 

1st generation #7 would have 9mm holes and be 3/4" thick

2nd generation #7 would have 8mm holes and be 7/8" thick

3rd generation #7 would have 6mm holes and be 1/2" thick

 

Hope this helps.

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He's a bit of a stopper of crappy thread drifts, and he's old. Does that count as an Old Stopper? hahaha.gif

 

Old but not that old, I started climbing when I was barely a teenager back in the late 70s so I have seen lots of the gear through the years. And happen to know a few the original folks from Chouinard Equipment who have helped fill in the history.

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chriss sez:

Measure it.

If it's the 1st generation it will about 3/8" at the top of the narrow profile. 2nd will only be about 1/4".

1st gen was 1-8 sizes.

 

It measures 10 mm (~0.4 inch) at the top of the narrow profile (it measures 20 mm (~0.8 inch) at the top of the wide side). It is marked as a #7. Ergo, 1st generation.

 

ScaredSilly say:

Given just the hole size for the perlon, it would be a third generation stopper. Eg. 1-12 made some where around 1980-82.

 

1st generation #7 would have 9mm holes and be 3/4" thick

2nd generation #7 would have 8mm holes and be 7/8" thick

3rd generation #7 would have 6mm holes and be 1/2" thick

 

The hole size for the cord is 6 mm. Thicknesses are as noted above. Ergo, 3rd generation.

 

I am no closer to a definitive answer. frown.gif

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It measures 10 mm (~0.4 inch) at the top of the narrow profile (it measures 20 mm (~0.8 inch) at the top of the wide side). It is marked as a #7. Ergo, 1st generation.

 

I am no closer to a definitive answer. frown.gif

 

I read #4 from the original post. That's what my measurements are about.

 

chris

 

sorry, edited typos

Edited by chriss
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