BD C4 development

[thin_air_aaron]

I'm looking to buy a set of some lightly used BD Camalot C4's (0.5-3)and am trying to figure out how much has changed in the last 5-7 years in terms of their development. Has their been significant development in terms of extended range, weight reduction, reliability, etc. that a version from 5-7 years ago wouldn't have capitalized on? How much should any of these issues determine how much to offer?

 

Thanks

[TrogdortheBurninator]

C4 refers to only the most recent version of the 4 lobe camalot. They are easily recognizable from the molded thumb loop compared to the metal stub and u-stem of the earlier generations. I think c4s have been available for around 5 years. The previous generation are slightly heavier and handle slightly worse in my opinion. I'd say that C4s in good USED condition should fetch around 55-65% of retail. Previous generation (metal thumb stub) are probably more like 45-50% of retail. I wouldnt bother with the much older U-stem cams. I also probably wouldnt buy used gear that doesnt appear to be in goof condition.

[Coldfinger]

There has been a VERY significant development in Chinalots, er Camalots, in terms of weight, cam angle, quality of finish and slings--it's called a DMM DRAGON!

[boadman]

actually, the slings on the dragons are the skinny ones that will wear out pretty quick. It would annoy me to have to re-sling my cams every couple of years.

[Coldfinger]

Huh? It annoys me to have to carry a boatload of draws, but to each their own, can't go wrong with either really.

[grinter]

I also probably wouldnt buy used gear that doesnt appear to be in goof condition.

 

 

The gold standard in climbing gear.

Edited December 1, 2010 by grinter

[thin_air_aaron]

Thanks for the advice. It looks like the cams I'm looking at are in fact the older version with the metal stub. Are the weight/angle issues significant or would they be alright to use as a beginner set until I get more experienced using cams?

 

 

[genepires]

they are probably fine. You may want to have new slings put on which runs about $5/cam from BD warranty dept. Just reslung mine which were a generation older than the ones you are looking at.

[thin_air_aaron]

Awesome, thanks everyone for the help.

[Jens]

There has been a VERY significant development in Chinalots, er Camalots, in terms of weight, cam angle, quality of finish and slings--it's called a DMM DRAGON!

 

Amen to that.

[Lodestone]

I wouldn't buy the Dragon cams for a few reason:

They don't have a thumb loop (my biggest gripe).

They don't cover the range I want so I'd still have to buy C4's at the small and big end of the spectrum.

The small ones are expensive.

 

 

Chad

 

[Coldfinger]

I hear ya on expense, but I'm using TCU's to cover below .5 (and eventually to double the .5 and .75) and they are both way lighter and way cheaper than C4's and especially c3's.

 

The new stem works just about as well as a thumb loop, I was really surprised by that, since it is WIDE.

 

I'm not touching offwidth so I'm fine with 3.5 and 4 Tech friends which are cheap and light.

 

Love those doubled slings and 13.75 cam angle.