|
brucemcdonough
Sep 15, 2005, 2:32 AM
Post #1 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 15, 2005
Posts: 38
|
I've heard, and i think(?) i recall seeing old Chouinard Hexentrics in sizes #12 and #13. I've always wanted to get my hands on them, if in fact they exist. Anyone?
Barring those, I've definitely seen some old round/tube shaped chocks that were also bigger than the #11 Hexentric. Anyone know much about such things, or, better yet, have some they'd consider selling or trading? I mean the bigger the better...
thanks for any help.
Bruce
bruce_m_temp@yahoo.com
|
|
|
|
|
gunkiemike
Sep 15, 2005, 9:36 PM
Post #2 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 1, 2002
Posts: 2266
|
No such thing as a Chouinard or BD hex larger than #11. Tube chocks are real though and came in 4, 5, and 6 inch lengths. They're hard to find; keep an eye on EBay. My opinion - if you need pro in the 4-6" range, buy a huge cam.
|
|
|
|
|
angry
Sep 15, 2005, 9:48 PM
Post #3 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 22, 2003
Posts: 8405
|
I've seen hexes larger than the BD 11, don't know where you'd find them. Maybe they were homemade.
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Sep 15, 2005, 9:49 PM
Post #4 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
you could always call climbing shops like Desert Rock in Vegas and Neptune in Boulder and ask if they'll sell you their museum pieces...
barring that, the only person i know that still owns and uses tube chocks wont part with 'em....even though he'll take a cam 90% of the time!
|
|
|
|
|
brucemcdonough
Sep 15, 2005, 9:52 PM
Post #5 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 15, 2005
Posts: 38
|
6" lengths? but how wide?
actually people in the SW deserts sometimes use slung pieces of wood, which grips the sandstone well.
i wish that Hexes went up to size 20 or so....there's gotta be a market for such things...i mean a #6 Camalot (was a #5 roughly) weighs like a ton and a half! imaging climbing with 10 of those bad boys! ugh!
there is that thing they call "goldmember" that just cam out, an 18" Big Bro, but you know, i think Big Bros kind of suck, they are funky and don't inspire confidence like a Hex. the big TriCams don't either, and they are heavy.
if/when i'm rich i'm going to talk to an engineer about designing large chocks....any engineer types on here wish to say something about this topic????
it's a glaring hole in the market if you ask me.
|
|
|
|
|
mrtristan
Sep 15, 2005, 10:13 PM
Post #6 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 21, 2002
Posts: 596
|
I've been thinking the same thing--huge hexes would be sweet. If you made them I'd definitely buy them.
-Tristan
|
|
|
|
|
dudemanbu
Sep 15, 2005, 10:15 PM
Post #8 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 3, 2005
Posts: 941
|
screw big cams, go with big bros. Best large pieces around.
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Sep 15, 2005, 10:29 PM
Post #9 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
In reply to: 6" lengths? but how wide?
mmm...inch and a half maybe...two inches. sort of like a bro, just not expandable. theres also giant titons laying around in different places if you can find 'em.
In reply to: it's a glaring hole in the market if you ask me.
well...not really. hexes have their place, but when you get up into cracks of that size, a cam is going to be your best bet for versatility(and, no offense to others, but they really arent that heavy. just make sure to retract 'em with a stick or they get caught on everything!), although a bro will also work depending on what the crack looks like. frankly, even my partner, who uses those giant chocks occasionally (and is about as old school as it seems to get these days) isnt all that inspired by them.
anyway, good luck in your search for the giant hex...
|
|
|
|
|
brucemcdonough
Sep 15, 2005, 10:51 PM
Post #10 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 15, 2005
Posts: 38
|
in my experience, in places like Joshua Tree, and other areas of pretty eroded/weathered/decomposing rock, you get a lot of situations where active units simply fall out if they stick at all. sometimes you can lose gear this way too.
the perfect chock (nut) placement looks a lot different then the perfect parellel sided crack that cams like, would you not agree? a constricting "bottleneck" situation is dangerous for a cam, and perfect for a Hex. also, flaring cracks are another example where cams are insecure but chocks can work perfectly...and don't forget that Hexs are passive CAMMING units, if you know what you are doing...like a horizontal.
my #10 slung (not wired..the only reason they sell larger wired Hexes is because of their lawyers, you know...) Hex is the most heavily used piece on my rack. let's also not forget that if you have to leave gear a large cam costs over $100US, and chocks are cheap.
i've been in dicey situations (dangerous downclimb, getting dark, etc.) where we decided to take big risks instead of leaving possibly several expensive cams. quite a few times. yeah, i know it's stupid, but if you are the typical dirtbag climber, or on a long remote trip, or whatever, you sometimes place a very high value on your cams.
there is no doubt in my mind that for these reasons there are a lot of hurt and dead climbers out there that would still be healthy and/or alive if they had had a few cheap, expendible pieces to leave behind.
yet another issue is cleaning. try cleaning a overcammed friend that has walked back an inch or two..particularly smaller units! bloodied hands, $60 fixed gear, and time and energy wasted, screams of frustration...
so many reasons to keep using chocks. so many "modern" climbers that carry none bigger than a #8 Stopper or so.
i've climbed for 22 years, i know what i'm talking about here.
|
|
|
|
|
brucemcdonough
Sep 15, 2005, 11:07 PM
Post #11 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 15, 2005
Posts: 38
|
oh, by the way, that last post about the virtues of chocks can and should be reposted to a more appropriate venue on here or elsewhere. this is serious stuff, and let me tell you right now: nearly every busy weekend in Josh during the season someone gets airlifted out.
a lot of beginners go to Joshua Tree, weekenders from L.A. and like that. they all have their shiny new gear, they all crank 10a in the fucking gym, and they all have their modern gear... so they get on an "easy" 5.6 in the desert...where's the bolts? where's the parallel cracks? where's the belay anchors? where's the next jug? where do i go? oh you mean i gotta stratch up my hands jamming them in a crack? i gotta stem? chimney? how come my $100 Camalot just fell out of this crack? oh, but 5.6 in the gym is kid's stuff, but now i'm 100 feet up, shaking uncontrollably, the rock is grainy,.........and so on and on it goes...
then here comes another chopper up from Palm Desert to pick up their sorry ass out of a fucking cactus..sorry folks this is Josh, a TRAD AREA. and 5.6 is serious. DEAD serious.
|
|
|
|
|
billcoe_
Sep 15, 2005, 11:11 PM
Post #12 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 30, 2002
Posts: 4694
|
Don't the #9 WC rockcentrics go to 149cm, or @ 5"?
http://www.wildcountry.co.uk/wcsite/frameshardware.html
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Sep 15, 2005, 11:13 PM
Post #13 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
In reply to: oh, by the way, that last post about the virtues of cams can and should be reposted to a more appropriate venue on here or elsewhere. this is serious stuff, and let me tell you right now: nearly every busy weekend in Josh during the season someone gets airlifted out. a lot of beginners go to Joshua Tree, weekenders from L.A. and like that. they all have their shiny new gear, they all crank 10a in the f---ing gym, and they all have their modern gear... so they get on an "easy" 5.6 in the desert...where's the bolts? where's the parallel cracks? where's the belay anchors? where's the next jug? where do i go? oh you mean i gotta stratch up my hands jamming them in a crack? i gotta stem? chimney? how come my $100 Camalot just fell out of this crack? oh, but 5.6 in the gym is kid's stuff, but now i'm 100 feet up, shaking uncontrollably, the rock is grainy,.........and so on and on it goes... then here comes another chopper up from Palm Desert to pick up their sorry ass out of a f---ing cactus..sorry folks this is Josh, a TRAD AREA. and 5.6 is serious. DEAD serious.
how many noob's actually own and use a #6 C4? i didnt buy my first big cam until i had been trad leading for well over a year.
i was talking about the versatility of cams in wide cracks, not noobs climbing 5.6's that are spanking them and then they fix a #1 camalot or something. noobs dont climb offwidths (although they should!) as a general rule.
at any rate, while i am in no way an expert or a lifelong climber (as of yet, anyway), my impression is that when it comes to the wide stuff, most old school folks are plenty glad to have cams, as the previous generation of wide crack protection was less than stellar....so, there must be a reason for that...otherwise, folks would have #20 hexes....
|
|
|
|
|
brucemcdonough
Sep 15, 2005, 11:54 PM
Post #14 of 14
(2331 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 15, 2005
Posts: 38
|
yuppies have money and climbing is the new cool thing to do. i see tons of people with full racks of shiny new gear, with little idea or experience in these matters.
re-read all those reasons i wrote about.
as i said i've climbed since about 1983. cams are not the end all. or go ahead, dude, leave big chocks off your rack. you'll learn, and the time will likely come where a rainstorm will cost you $400 in left gear, and the time WILL come where you're going be freaking out on a big runout because the cams simply won't safely work. even a minorly flared crack often won't take cams, at least not safely.
|
|
|
|
|
|
