Have used this biner for about a year now, totaly worth the price paid. It's not too bulky, but is nice and big for belay duty. My rope feeds nicely over it, it's secure and I've never had problems with it not locking (as I have with the ball lock model, after a little bit of abuse... I also have the screw gate model which I use as a back up, but the Tri-Act is the one I grab first. Nice peice!

I love my PAS. I gave my daisy away once I got the PAS. Simple, smart, strong. Get one if you plan to climb outside ever, sport or trad.

I'll admit. These bottles are kinda a staple for the outdoors. But let me point out a few things that may have gone unnoticed... First of all, why is it that when normally sane people get their hands on a Nalgene, they suddnely become super retarded? I've never seen so many cases of things getting "dropped" from the top of climbs... Are people TRYING to break these things? I've also noticed that people swear by these things. Well, so do I. But not like it's religion. A few of the reviews have mentioned this already, but these things are needlessly heavy. I'd never take one on a long climb or a long approach where weight was a factor. Maybe a trip to the crag, or to work (since I work indoors), but NEVER to, say, a multi-pitch or multi-day outing where I needed to carry a lot of other essential gear. Last time I went out on a long trip, I took a standard gallon apple juice bottle, sans the juice. I reinforced it with duct tape on the bottom and it still weighed less than the Nalgene and held WAY more water. It was just as strong and believe it or not, with a loop of emergence webbing gitrh-hitched around the handle (which was built into the bottle itself), it could be held by a single biner without any fear of the "loop" breaking (a problem I have had with Nalgenes before...). Yes, they're hard to break. Yes, they're good at holding water. Yes, they don't hold flavor that much. And Yes, they're not that expensive. They're "trendy" cool, they are almost a symbol of climbing and the outdoors (like the ice axe or a biner, but more universal...) but are they really worth all the hype they get? I don't really think so. I'll admit that I have one and it gets daily use. I fill it with hot tea, chocolate milk, soup, water, heck, I've even pissed in it before on a cold night to stay warm as I cursed my decision to bivy in the snow... But most of these applications can be performed by a cheap Evian bottle or a gatoraid bottle. Yeah, they're not as durable, but what the F? Do you HAVE to throw your water bottle off the top of the climb? Is it REALLY just too hard to descend with it in the pack or clipped off to a harness (by the way, to people who clip Nalgenes to their harnesses, WHY?) or simply leave it at the bottom of the 45 foot climb and get a drink when you're done? For longer trips or serious multi-pitch, it's simply not worth it in terms of weight. For daily use, it's just fine. It's a great bottle, I just think it gets too much praise that it really hasn't earned... I'd rather use mine at the office and bring a gallon of apple juice for the real stuff.

hosh.

Well, I've only used these and the WC micro rocks, but I like the way these handle as small nuts. I've set and removed the smallest aid size (#1) and it cleaned easily (though I could envision it getting REALLY stuck). I like the shape...

Yeah, the sissy palm padder is just an extra source of weight, but this nut-tool has a thinner head than any other tool out there. I've got a BD tool and one of those chincy free Mgear sends you if you spend too much money... The Metolius tool gets the most action on my rack, just because it's the most effective at removing gear due to the thinner profile of the tip. I think (though you really don't need the "protection" it offers) it's an excellent tool. Just get the other Metolius tool, it's a better deal.