Climbing

Summary: Flex Cams (different from the similarly named C.A.M.P. models) boast a long, flexible stem, narrow head width in the small sizes, a smooth-action trigger with independent cam manipulation, an extendable sling, and cam stops in all sizes. Whew! All this for $40 each. The only real drawback is a narrow head on the largest size, #8, that makes it unstable.
Pros: Great handling at an affordable price; long stem; extendable sling; nice trigger; cam stops; light.
Cons: Largest..." go to full review

Summary: The most noticeable thing about the DMM 3CUs and 4CUs are their bright colors, which makes picking the correct size from a crowded rack a breeze. Each unit's cam lobes, trigger bar, and thumb bar are anodized to match, and, yes, the doubled sling blends right in too. The trigger bar allows for a bit of independent cam manipulation -- rare on a U-stem unit. Another unique feature are the cam lobes (with integrated cam stops), which are wide when fully retracted and taper to a..." go to full review

HONED AXLE LENGTH
On all sizes, Trango carefully calibrates axle length to maximize the cam’s in-placement stability, reducing any unwelcome walking.
LIGHT MAKES RIGHT
Trango is able to offer some of the camworld’s lightest units (1.8 to 8.5oz for this year’s size range) by using such weight-savers as milled-out lightening holes in the cam lobes.
ULTRA TAPE SLINGS
FlexCams clip at three different lengths: a direct clip to the loop, the UltraTape sling doubled (4..." go to full review

ust when it seemed like thin-crack pro couldn’t get any sleeker or more specialized, the innovators at Metolius Climbing introduced Offset Master Cams, an update to the single-stem units that tweaks them perfectly for flares, pin scars, and other singular placements. The Offsets come in six sizes — No. 00 through No. 5 — and offer the same narrow head profile, Metolius’ Range Finder, custom-molded thumb piece, flexible single stem (for deeper placement and to minimize walking), and space-age..." go to full review

This year, the British manufacturer Wild Country has unveiled the second major change to Friends since they were introduced way back in 1977. (The fi rst was the switch from rigid to fl exible cable stems.) Although the company said the new Helium Friends should be on sale in the U.S. by mid-March, production samples were not available in time for our testing. We’ll do a full review as soon as we can test the fi nal product. The nine Helium Friends have the same numbering and approximate..." go to full review

These new cams from Spain’s Basque Country cover five sizes, ranging from fingertips to small hands. The radical feature of their design is the way a load activates the cams: Instead of the stem and axle bearing the load, as in most cams, each Totem lobe is attached to an individual spring-action cable extending to the clip-in sling. This allows more secure two-cam placements for aid climbing, and the unique cabling and lobe design give the Totems more holding power in downward flaring..." go to full review

These cams were introduced last year, but we hadn’t used them extensively at the time of our last Gear Guide and wanted to report on our findings. Plus, since the middle of last year, Colorado Custom Hardware’s Alien Hybrids have been very difficult to obtain, making the Metolius Offset the only one you can find outside of Ebay. By pairing two different sizes of Master Cam lobes in a four-cam head—and keeping that head narrower than the vast majority of other four-cam units—Metolius has..." go to full review

Ask any seasoned Valley climber to name his favorite small-crack cams, and more likely than not his response will be the Alien. The super-narrow heads and unique cam shapes helped them slip into piton scars and other awkward placements like a hand in a silk glove. When Colorado Custom Hardware ceased production of the treasured piece in 2009, climbers everywhere gasped. But now Spain’s Fixe Hardware has bought the machines and relaunched the Alien with virtually the same design. Meanwhile,..." go to full review

The Friend, introduced way back in 1977, has been completely revamped for the third time in its illustrious history to create Wild Country Helium Friends ($65 to $75, wildcountry.co.uk). The new units retain the single-axle design of the Technical Friends they replace, but their hot-forged cam lobes are a bit lighter, and each unit has greater overlap with its neighbors—a full set is nine cams, versus the old 11. In the most notable change, the Helium’s stem has grown by as much as 2.5 to 3..." go to full review

Nut tools of yore had one main goal: remove stuck gear, specifically passive gear like nuts, which rely on wedging and being somewhat “stuck” for their strength. After several decades, though, it’s clear that we climbers uses these little sticks for far more than just taking out nuts, but their design has not updated along with their usage. Omega Pacific stepped up to the plate by making the Solution, which features a flat end for hitting nuts, a small nub that fits into the slots of a cam..." go to full review