kicks BD ATC's but. same design. no plastic covered wires to come uncoated and slice-and-dice your rope. thick side walls! makes you feel very safe, whether your belaying or climbing.

I actually found one of these and have not used my Jaws since. I like the shorter metal keeper loop as it doesnt allow it to sag as much making each slack pull more efficient. as others have said the thick walls have not polished down as quickly as the jaws.

Like an ATC, but the metal retainer is more durable. Very good device.

Good rappel/belay device, but like many have said, nothing special. I have used mine for the past 3 years and my main complaint is that is that is isn't as smooth as other devices I have used.

Another standard Tube style belay device. As such it performs better than many, particularly the ATC. It has two main advantages over the ATC, it has thicker side walls for greater heat dissapation, and it has a stiff metal keeper loop, which is more durable, makes handling easier and does not get sucked into the device. The rubber coated cable on the BD ATC and most other tube belay devices often gets sucked into the device, a potentially very danderous situation as the rubber is stripped off and the rope rubs aggressively over the twisted cable. Other than that it is unremarkable, is anodized for durabilitly. The metal keeper loop can heat up a bit on long rapels, but i have never had it so hot i could not comfortably grab the loop. This could occur in very long, fast decents (but then you would be using a more specialized device anyway)
Pros: Thick sidewalls for heat dissapation, stiff keeper loop, more durable than other tube style belay devices, anodized. A significant improvement on the BD ATC.
Cons: just those associated with all tube style belay devices.