Gear4Rocks Cams: anyone have experience with these

[chubler]

Came accross this site on some very inexpensive cams:

 

Gear4Rocks

 

Normally, you get what you pay for and I'll continue to trust my life to my proven rack. Anyone have any experience with these?

[G-spotter]

Those are the same Ukranian guys who make the sketchy plastic nuts.

[chubler]

Plastic nuts? Sounds lightweight.

I've never seen a standard in place for composite protection....wonder how they get away with it in the U.S.

[chubler]

Googled them and read some review over the last couple of years. Yikes!! Enough said. Thanks!

[OlympicMtnBoy]

...wonder how they get away with it in the U.S.

 

There aren't any requirement to have things "certified" here, only in the EU. Anyone who gets CE/UIAA certified here does it for other reasons.

 

There are lots of folks who climb hard stuff in eastern Europe and Russia and trust their lives to that gear, I don't think most of it is super unsafe (check the BD QC lab test on some). My first four cams were like that, bought while I was living in Russia for $12 each. That being said though, other options are far more polished in design and manufacture, easier to use, and probably more quality control. Mine are on the last chance aid/indian creek 5th set rack now.

[bgratias]

The first cam I bought was a Gear4Rocks cam. I used it for awhile. Then I realized it was a piece of crap. I think it would probably hold a fall, but it is difficult to place. The cable is pretty flimsy, and I can't even fit my pinky into the thumb loop. It is not nearly as burly as it looked online. The thing that bothers me most about it is that its edges are all really sharp, so I don't like to have it rattling around in my pack. I've found that used cams can be just as cheap, are easier to handle, and seem more trustworthy.