So after free climbing for a year I've been busted and pressured into getting some gear. Week by week I can afford a little more but today I thought I would have a go at my first top rope solo.

Very keen to get as much advice, criticism, etc as possible. The guys at my climbing store have shared some great tips and the guys I bump into at the climbs have been very sharing with their experience although none I've met have actually done it before.
I lack friends who are enthusiastic about climbing and the guys I do climb with I barely trust to belay me!

Today I anchored my 60m dynamic half way with a fig 8 through the opposing biners, so I had 2 ropes to play with. (These anchor biners were each slinged to anchor ring bolts ie: \/
I pre-tied fig8 loops down one rope for backup, which I alternated quickdraws into as I climbed.
On my climbing rope I used a Micro-traxion attached to my harness with a belay biner to prevent cross-loading etc. which ran really smoothly (first time I used it...)
I carried a gri gri up with me to self-belay back down.

Main issues I found with today's experience was the back-up rope system was a pain in the ass to keep fumbling with. It also posed a threat of getting caught as I took my next move, thus pulling me down and off balance.
The micro-traxion became an issue when the rope became too tight to move (lack of available slack..)
I also felt really uncomfortable self-belaying with the gri gri. I don't know why but it felt unreliable. It also kept twisting the rope over or under the brake.

I'm thinking next time, to wait until I can afford a second traxion for backup, possibly a mini-traxion, and run both at once - doing away completely with the second rope backup.
Otherwise maybe using the gri gri underneath the micro-traxion and just feeding the slack through as I go.

Still... Any recommendations for another method of self-belaying?
Any criticism / advice at all would be most welcome.

Cheerz!

So after free climbing for a year I've been busted and pressured into getting some gear.

Today I anchored my 60m dynamic half way with a fig 8 through the opposing biners, so I had 2 ropes to play with. (These anchor biners were each slinged to anchor ring bolts ie: \/

I pre-tied fig8 loops down one rope for backup, which I alternated quickdraws into as I climbed.

On my climbing rope I used a Micro-traxion attached to my harness with a belay biner to prevent cross-loading etc. which ran really smoothly (first time I used it...)
I carried a gri gri up with me to self-belay back down.

Main issues I found with today's experience was the back-up rope system was a pain in the ass to keep fumbling with. It also posed a threat of getting caught as I took my next move, thus pulling me down and off balance.

I'm thinking next time, to wait until I can afford a second traxion for backup, possibly a mini-traxion, and run both at once - doing away completely with the second rope backup.

If the anchor is above the edge and the route you are climbing is traversing even a tiny bit there is a real risk of major rubbing of the slings when you fall, so make sure to protect the slings/rope going over the edge with the rope bag / mat / rope protector.

I suggest tying alpine butterfly knots instead as the figure-8 is not optimal for taking a sideway load. Quickdraws are generally not considered safe in this configuration, so autolocking lockers would be much better. You need two, so that one is always locked.

Good. Do you have a plan what to do in case you get stuck midair and can't get higher?

There are climbing operations that offer courses on top-rope soloing, you may be best served by taking one of those. Petzl recommends using two ropes/devices when self-belaying. Typically, I'll just use an isolated strand of climbing rope with a series of loops that I clip with a locker as a backup.

If you're going to buy a device for roped soloing, then you may as well get a device designed for the purpose. Like the Soloist. http://www.rockexotica.com/.../all_solo_belay.html

Having a complete plan in place before you leave the ground is essential. More than a few would-be soloists have died or become permanently disabled because they a) didn't use their systems properly/at all, b) experienced system failure, or c) injured themselves and were unable to call for help. Maybe think about getting a SPOT to go with that solo device.

Choosing what to climb is also important. Your new redpoint project may not be the best place to start. I mostly use mine on easier routes when I'm trying to build endurance and nobody wants to belay me up 20 pitches of 5.8.

Finally, roped solo climbing involves advanced rigging and self-rescue skills. You should, for example, at least be aware of how much force a fall will put on the device, and how the device will behave when it is overloaded (shredding vs. chopping vs. sliding.) Taking the time to be thorough in your preparation and finding good instruction will pay off.

Not sure why you posted all that, since you seem to be talking about solo lead climbing, something else entirely than top rope soloing.

The soloist is way overkill for top rope soling. Also all that rigging stuff only applies to lead soloing.