Pete04 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 (edited) Yesterday my buddy managed to extricate an old, stuck BD C4 #1 cam from a climb we were on. Later in the day, he coincidently bypassed my BD C4 #1 I had placed but later unclipped to ease rope drag. Thinking it wasn't mine he shook it once or twice and moved on. What is the consensus on using found cams? I would never use webbing or the like, but a cam seems like a mechanical device that is good until it shows cracks. Am I being stupid, cheap, or all of the above? Along those lines, there is a perfectly good cam on the first pitch of The Farce at Lover's Leap in Tahoe. It's there for anyone who wants it. Edited July 9, 2014 by Pete04 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
num1mc Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Use at will without a second thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drederek Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 As long as it doesn't look to be in any worse shape than the rest of your cams its probably ok, but I wouldn't place it anywhere its failure would mean certain death. The real question is, is your buddy going to buy you a new cam or will you accept a bootied one in its place? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete04 Posted July 9, 2014 Author Share Posted July 9, 2014 thanks. I'll use it but not at any dangerous crux, as a first piece, etc. Before I climb, I'll discuss who's going to buy what if a piece gets stuck. My rule is if you place it you buy it. That way if I overcam the heck out of one of my cams my partner's not out $60 and there can't be any hard feelings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-spotter Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Why I think it's booty, booty, booty, that's what it is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rad Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 My rule is if you place it you buy it. That way if I overcam the heck out of one of my cams my partner's not out $60 and there can't be any hard feelings. Might want to re-think this as it could lead to conflict. What if the leader places the cam fine, but it walks and/or the second botches cleaning it? Or the second drops it? Maybe just have an agreement to split the cost of any gear lost/left/dropped and if someone wants to take full responsibility they can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Splitting the cost of a stuck cam can help keep a good partnership positive. After all, even well placed pieces can walk. There are plenty of folks out there who will sell a perfectly good climbing partnership for 30 bucks, though. They tend to self identify pretty quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonG Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 You drop it, you buy it- otherwise split it. But agree that if a cam looks good, it probably is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 (edited) You drop it you buy it seems like a no-brainer. It's all you in that scenario. Stuck cams often have damaged wires from previous removal attempts. Check and replace as needed. If the sling looks funky - it's only 6 bucks to replace it at Yates and other places. Edited July 9, 2014 by tvashtarkatena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bedellympian Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 I've used a found #2 and used .5 and .75 cams in my rack since day one. I did the inspection, consulted other climbers I trust and started using them at the end of pitches and in anchors (where a failure is not certain death as mentioned above). They have never failed me, I have whipped on them and I trust them just as much as my other pieces... I consider them time tested Make your own safe evaluation... and yes I agree, they are pieces of metal, either they work or they don't, it's usually pretty obvious when they don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Beckerich Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 I think I would tend to be sort of indignant if my climbing partner asked me to split the cost of a stuck/dropped/lost cam with him, if I wasn't directly to blame for it. BUT.... since it was his, and it was getting us BOTH up the route, it makes a lot of sense that everyone should be willing to fork over to recover losses incurred for everyone's benefit. Glad this question came up! Better to have a position ahead of time. I doubt I would ever ask someone to split a cam cost with me... unless they just plain blatantly lost/dropped it or got it stuck in some irresponsible manner. I think I'd probably wait for an offer to pay for it or at least split the cost. If I dropped/lost/irresponsibly got someone's cam stuck, I'd just buy 'em a new one. Who WOULDN'T make the offer?? $60 is a lot for a little piece of springy metal, yea, but not when we're talking about making something right, especially for a good friend/partner. Even if I was broke (which happens- I ain't rich), I'd still come up with $60 to take responsibility for myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obwan Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Stoppers/nuts/slings and biners are obviously no BD; but you all have covered an issue on Cams that maybe should be kicked around in the beginning - full racks can get expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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