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trapdoor
Sep 4, 2003, 12:58 AM
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Ok. I'm ready to buy some slings to make some trad draws, for now I'm gonna get 10 24 inchers. My question is should I get spectra or plain nylon. I understand the strength and weight differences but I'm concerned with how well spectra works using a clove hitch, seeing how I've heard it's slippery and all. Also what do you guys think about Dovals for both ends of the draw?
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ropeburn
Sep 4, 2003, 1:06 AM
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Dovals work great for both ends.
I use spectra primarily but carry a few nylon just in case.
:mrgreen:
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arlen
Sep 4, 2003, 1:32 AM
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The spectra slings are great all around except for when you need friction, like a kleimheist or an autoblock. You can always just bring a prussik, but I take at least one sewn nylon sling to back up a rappel--say, if I need to clean a stuck piece.
Dovals are great; the JC has a wider rope-bearing radius. Some shops now carry pre-packaged "alpine draws" with the Doval, JC and a spectra sling, for a few cents cheaper.
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greenpartyclimber
Sep 4, 2003, 3:23 AM
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the dovals are great, all my trad draws are all dovals, I wish I'd gone half dovals have jcwiregates instead, I would also recommend spectra with a few nylon slings
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billcoe_
Sep 4, 2003, 3:31 AM
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It's real nice to be able to untie the occasional sling to add it to a rap station. I like a mix of both sewn and tied for long routes. Short 1 or 2 pitch routes it won't matter.
Regards:
Bill
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pico23
Sep 4, 2003, 4:25 AM
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In reply to: Ok. I'm ready to buy some slings to make some trad draws, for now I'm gonna get 10 24 inchers. My question is should I get spectra or plain nylon. I understand the strength and weight differences but I'm concerned with how well spectra works using a clove hitch, seeing how I've heard it's slippery and all. Also what do you guys think about Dovals for both ends of the draw?
Honestly it depends on your climbing. I made it a few years with all nylon with no complaints until last winter when my nylon kept freezing on the first pitch of every climb. If I didn't climb ice i'd be hard pressed to have justified switching to spectra.
If you are climbing ice and alpine consider spectra as the primary choice. If you just roadside crag then nylon is perfectly good and cost less. A mix works well too.
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pico23
Sep 4, 2003, 4:29 AM
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Forgot DOVALS DA BOMB. those biners are great multipurpose biners and are light and strong. They are also cheap. Can't be that. I have Dovals and Omega 4.0's for my winter setup (bigger clip on the 4.0 for gloves) and Dovals and J.C.s for rock. All doval would work as well and give you a very multifunctional rack.
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coldclimb
Sep 4, 2003, 5:52 AM
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I prefer nylon, just because it's more multipurpose than spectra, but spectra is definately stronger and lighter.
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crackboy
Sep 4, 2003, 5:53 AM
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Don't skimp out or else you'll be buying twice. personally i think Dovals are crap, good concept though. the ones i have used/given away have all had the gates get stuck open with minimal use.
i would get most of the new 8mm dynama slings by mammut, super thin and light. and maybe a nylon sling or two
you can't go wrong with the JC wires, i love them, but i would go with something like the hotwire or double JC's
whatever you do get two different color biners if at all possible, it helps to keep track which is gear side
a neat trick i had read with slings is, say you have ten slings, get like 7 green ones, 2 yellows and then one red.. when you hit the yellow you know you only have a couple left.
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trapdoor
Sep 4, 2003, 10:10 PM
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Thanks for the suggestions everybody. Very much appreciated.
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crotch
Sep 4, 2003, 10:52 PM
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I must put in my props for Trango's lightweight wiregate carabiners. They weigh the same as Dovals, not just by manufacturers specs, but on a scale in my living room. They have a larger gate opening than either the Doval or the Neutrino. In fact, they're about the same size as the Hotwire for the weight of a Neutrino. Great lightweight biner.
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superbum
Sep 4, 2003, 11:52 PM
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I haven't used the Trango LIGHTWEIGHT wiregates, but I do own 18 of their classic wiregates...Love 'em! They are supercheap and the gates run smooth and snap back like a charm...I also have 6 JC's that I keep on the rope end of my sporty quickdraws...for fastclipping action! I use the trangos on both the rope end and the pro end. I also have 6 dovals that are being used now to rack my Rockcentrics on Dyneema...but as soon as I get cams they will switch to those.
Oh, yea, most of my draws are spectra, except for my shorter/sporty ones are nylon.
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imaclima
Sep 5, 2003, 2:20 AM
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recently i have been buying more spectra. i dont have any problems with clove hitching it, but dont use it for any high friction application because of its low melting point. Just for that i carry a couple nylon. Also i like the Black Diamond slings, they have beter QC. I have 3 wild things "24 inch" runners, none of which are the same length.
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alpiner
Sep 5, 2003, 3:42 AM
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Dovals are nice for aid but are only rated to 7kN so a weak choice for trad climbing. Better biners are 9 - 10, which is a heck of a lot smarter.
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ptone
Sep 5, 2003, 4:11 AM
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I don't know how much of a difference it'd make in the end as far as cam walks or anything, but I really like the slinkyness of the spectra slings--they just seem to float around in the biners, so there's less rope movement to the pro, 'specially on the 30 and 60 cms.
When I first moved out of sport, I got some nutrino's, but as I climbed more and built up my rack, I put them on my cams and started using hotwires more for draws. They're a bit bigger than the nutrinos, wider opening, and a little easier to handle for me.
peace,
-p
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puma
Sep 5, 2003, 4:41 AM
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I don't know about those Dovals, they're okay imo. They're funky and sometimes clunky to clip. A few of mine are starting to get sticky gates, and a friend also experienced this too with a bunch of his. Anyone else? One sweet biner that I absolutely love is the DMM Prowire. Now this biner ROCKs :!: 36g, full size, 8kn w/ gate open...
Lg
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reno
Sep 5, 2003, 4:47 AM
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Registered: Oct 30, 2001
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WTF is a doval?
My "Trad draws" are all spectra slings (various lengths) with BD Quickwire biners on each end. I've never run into a situation where this didn't get me thru.
Then too, I've not climbed everything out there... I suppose it's possible where you'd need something else.
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crackboy
Sep 5, 2003, 6:21 AM
Post #18 of 18
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Registered: Jun 14, 2003
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hey crotch
next time you are foundling your gear/organizing be sure to check out the gate hoods on the trango biners. assuming my gf and you have the same biners, the hoods (where the wire gate rests) is pretty sharp edged i doubt it would really be an issue unless the gate was opened in a fall but then you have other things to worry about, but it is somthing to pay attention to.
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