R320 Rock Climbing Harness - Mens

The idea is great, but...

1. The elastics lost their power very soon and partly ripped off. This is especially annoying at the leg loops, their fit became too loose.

2. The tie in loops show significant tear and wear after one year of occasional (1x every 2 weeks) use.

3. The warp webbing does not "breathe". Your sweat will be caught under it. When you get rid of the harness, you will feel wet in your back.

a lot of people tell me that they would never be caught in a harness is paper thin but it's solid and it won't break, and the obviously great thing about it, it is so light and not bulky and take sup no room in your pack! i will never climb in another harness and thats quite a statement to male on my part. i can't recomment this harness enough and it's just the sh*t! i would give it a 7 and more if i could!

You will pay a lot for it but it is worth every penny. This harness is ridiculously light and surprisingly comfortable. The most revolutionary harness design I've seen.

I work at a climbing wall, so I was in the market for a new harness to replace my BD Momentum, which tends to start getting rather uncomfortable during 8- to 10-hour climbing/route-setting/belaying marathons. After reading the review of the R320 on RC.com, I decided to give it a whack. I was a bit offset by the price, but I've found this harness to be well worth it.

My first impression on taking the harness out of its stylish metal tin was one of sheer terror: I'm used to a pretty beefy-looking harness between my Momentum and my friends' Petzl harnesses, and the R320 looks positively anorexic next to all those. Of course, the drastically reduced size makes this harness extremely light and unencumbering, but it's a bit of a shock to read about how thin it is, and then to actually see it. All raving about the size aside, I found the overall aesthetics very pleasing.

I was a bit concerned about the non-adjustable leg loops, since I have pretty big upper legs and I have to wear long pants to work; my fears were allayed when the leg loops fit perfectly over my pants. They're very snug, but not so snug that it's ever uncomfortable. However, if you have smaller legs, you might have a little more play in the leg loops than you like. For me, though, they work awesome. Hopefully the elastic will hold up, but only time will tell.

I really love the auto-double-backing buckle. I've found the buckle can be a bit tough to unlock when the harness isn't on your body, but aside from the first time I wore it and the handful of times I've let my friends try it on, it hasn't been a problem.

The gear loops are nice and roomy. Just to test it out, I loaded the loops up with quickdraws and I was able to get twelve BD Quicksilver draws on each loop. The gear loops are sewn-on cloth with a reversible plastic cover that can sling your gear forward or backwards, depending on your preference (they come slung forward by default); I'd imagine if you took the cover off altogether you could get a few more pieces of pro on your loop, but I didn't bother trying (48 carabiners is plenty enough for me). The gear loops lay flat against your body (unlike some other harnesses I've seen that have hard-plastic gear loops that stick out to the sides), which I've found quite nice when there's nothing actually racked on them, but not an inconvenience when actually grabbing stuff off of them.

But how does the R320 actually perform when it comes to super-long usage sessions? In short, excellently. I've had a couple 6- to 8-hour days with this harness at the gym so far doing everything from belaying for three hours straight for birthday parties to hanging on the wall for an hour setting a route, in addition to just sitting around killing time, and I've never once felt the slightest bit of discomfort or desire to take off my harness. When you're off the wall, the R320 is barely noticeable (and only then because the leg loops are as snug around my legs as they are). When you're loaded up, either hanging on the rope or belaying, you can actually feel how spread out the pressure is on your back and legs, and because of the huge area bearing the load, it's extremely comfortable. If I could give six stars in the comfort department, I would do so in a heartbeat.

I can only think of a few downsides to this harness: First and foremost, this is a ridiculously awesome harness in every regard, but all that awesomeness doesn't come cheap. Compared to other very highly-rated harnesses like the Petzl Corax, the R320 costs over 75% more, which will likely be a major turn-off to budget-conscious climbers or anyone who doesn't spend a lot of time in their gear. And while the gear loops are reversible, I found the plastic cover pretty damn tough to get off to switch the direction of the loop. The one other small complaint I had is as stylish as the tin the R320 comes in is, it's not very practical as a way of transporting your harness - I think a smallish mesh bag would've been a great addition, much like Black Diamond and (I believe) Petzl package their harnesses in. Fortunately, I have the bag my other harness came in that I still use to carry my gear in, and I'd imagine most climbers that like to carry their stuff in such a bag either have one from an old harness, or can think of some clever way of packing it up.

Those very few gripes aside, this harness is an absolute must-check-out for anyone who plans on spending a lot of time in their harness, or just someone looking for the most comfortable harness available.

Vegastradguy reviewed the new Arctryx 280 just as I was looking for a new harness. I had been thinking of jumping into a Petzl Adjama, but was hesitant, having a hard time with sizing and gear loop sizes keeping me happy at the same time (for some reason the harness that fit me had really, really small rear gear loops). Having rushed in to a few expensive purchases recently I decided to wait untill the right harness presented it self, and I am so glad I did.

I chose the 320 over others in the line due to the number of gear loops it sported. The harness had to be special ordered through REI (I work on building a nice inflated dividend check every year) which meant waiting a week. It came in a tin box that wasn't even big enough to hold an reasonable amount of girl scout cookies, much less a harness, with their beautiful logo embossed on the lid. I've seen wrist watches come in bigger boxes. A+ on presentation.

This harness is much lighter and thinner than it looks, uncomfortably so, but absolutely solid. The review mentioned that you almost forget that the harness is there, and that has definitely been my experience. The auto lock is smooth, and doesn't bind like the other harnesses that I have used. Tie in points are bomber. I am a little worried about the elastic on the fixed leg loops, but for now they feel great and stay in place. Gear loops are appropriately sized, and conveniently positioned (my last harness had off-set gear loops????). I am sure the reversibility of the gear loops will be useful to someone, but not me.

The other concern I had was comfort. This is where this harness steps up to bat. For its weight, it is extremely comfortable. When I hang in it, I can feel the support of the WARP webbing through out the entire width of the harness along my lower back. It is far from the piece of 1" webbing that wraps around your waist every other harness offers. Honestly, I was expecting hanging to be a little more uncomfortable. I still feel the harness after a longer hang, just as you do in any harness, but it doesn't leave the same "impression" my last harness did and my kidnees thank me every climb.

I dont expect to ever switch harnesses again. 5 stars. Worth the price, even though its a little steep.