Outdoor Gear Lab

The Vapor is a very well ventilated helmet that sacrifices durability and adjustability for weight savings. It is expensive and offers almost no advantage over other slightly less expensive helmets.go to full review

If you are in the market for a new helmet, we suggest trying this one out. Since it is pricey, it may not be worth upgrading from your unisex helmet unless you want to trade in a hard plastic helmet for a light foam version.go to full review

The Vector is a solid, light foam climbing helmet that has all of the necessary features. This helmet would be great for any climbing application from big walling to cragging. The Vector scored just behind our Editors' Choice, the Petzl Meteor in every test. While the Meteor has some subtle qualities that we think make it slightly superior, the Vector may be more visually appealing to you. We think either helmet will get the job done...." go to full review

We give the Calidris our big wall harness Best Buy award because it is tied for least expensive harness with the Black Diamond Big Gun. However, unlike the Big Gun it also makes a great free climbing and all-around trad climbing harness. You are likely to get a lot of use out of it when not on a big wall.go to full review

It is toward the lighter end of big wall harnesses we tested (but heavy compared to a standard climbing harness). The harness vents reasonably well considering how thick the padding is. The gear loops are easy to clip gear to with their rigid plastic. At first I was not a fan of two belay loops but now I am a convert. You just have more options for clipping stuff. Even though I don't love adjustable leg loops, at least these tuck away nicely if you have medium to skinny legs for your..." go to full review

This is the burliest harness we know of. When you look at Ammon McNeely's Yates Shield harness after over a hundred days of big wall punishment, it is still going strong. This is because the webbing is two inches wide when many manufacturers use one-inch. Everything that can be reinforced is. The harness is also nearly as comfy as they come. We think the Metolius Waldo is a little more comfortable, but not by much. With two waist buckles, you can always get the belay loop centered...." go to full review

The Metolius Safe Tech Waldo is our current favorite big wall climbing harness. It is the most comfy harnesses we tested and is also ideal for rigging, course setting or any application where you are going to hang around a lot. This is the most popular harness among climbing gym course setters, which says something. This harness used to cost $130, which made it $30 more expensive than the Petzl Calidris and Black Diamond Big Gun. Recently they dropped the price to $109, which makes price not..." go to full review

The Selena is best suited to sport and gym climbing, styles that don't require a lot of gear. The The Luna, with the adjustable legs, works best for ice climbing or mountaineering since the leg loops can more easily accommodate thicker clothing and two layers of pants...." go to full review

If you are looking for the lightest, smallest harness you can find, this is the one. We find it to be surprisingly comfortable for its size and particularly love to wear it sport climbing.go to full review

The Mammut Zephira harness is surprisingly comfortable given its lightweight design, and if you hate having a sweaty back and climb in warm places then this could be the harness for you. We didn't really like the design of the gear loops, as they made it difficult to find our clips on steep routes, but if you're always clipping fixed draws or only climbing at the gym then this wouldn't be an issue for you...." go to full review