Climbing

POWER AND WATER
Leaving two-thirds of the strands uncolored equates to a 66 percent energy savings, as the rope no longer needs to be dried at temperature and the water used in the process no longer requires treatment. Meanwhile, Millet skipped the HYDROPHOBIC treatment, which requires high-temps (read: energy) to polymerize, too.
LESS IS MORE
Millet eliminated a significant amount of packaging in the Low Impact Triaxiale, forgoing the bag and box used previously, opting..." go to full review

One tester of this rope described it as a “buttered strand of spaghetti or velvet dental floss,” and like it was “dipped in lubricant.” When used for alpine climbing in Colorado’s Indian Peaks, the dry-treated-only Kite ran along snow all day and didn’t soak up water. This rope is a great compromise between sub-9mm alpine cords and heavier and bulkier full-strength rigs.go to full review

As a “Goldilocks rope: not too stiff, not too flexible—just right,” this cord was a crowd-pleaser, earning compliments from belayers and climbers alike. This rope handled nicely, didn’t freeze up in dripping ice and snow, and held up to multiple crampon kicks. (Don’t worry, we checked the rope.) It also didn’t fuzz after multiple high-abrasion toprope attempts on rock (high points from testers for this). Bummer: the Tiger included a rope bag that quickly disintegrated—“good for selling ropes..." go to full review

Despite the thin diameter of the Nano, our testers enjoyed its stiffness-to-flexibility ratio. “Some ropes already feel coreshot when they’re brand new,” said a diehard skinny-rope user. But not so with the Nano. This rope is only available with a dry treatment and, like all ca. 9mm ropes, it has fairly high dynamic elongation (32.5 percent), meaning you could still drop a long way after the
belay comes tight. Do not toprope with this cord—it is best saved for redpoint or onsight..." go to full review

With minimal kinkage out of the box, this rope had a soft feel and managed to maintain smooth operation through a variety of belay devices, including an old-school Sticht plate. Every tester said he or she would definitely buy this rope, including a grizzled veteran bolter who needs a high-performance workhorse rope. That same tester complimented the hard-wearing sheath, which he estimated would take a long time to wear out.go to full review

This rope proved itself again and again as solid for everything from toproping vertical pitches to projecting overhanging sport routes. One satisfied tester called the Xion his “first choice” out of the three cords he tested. It handled easily and was very flexible, especially for its size; other ropes around this diameter were stiffer and a bit more unruly. Nice touch: The rope comes from the shop ready to flake out—no specialized uncoiling or tedious untangling required.go to full review

As the fattest cord in our review, the Cirque had a lot to prove to skinny-rope-loving testers. But while sport climbing in New Mexico and Colorado, and with a little ice climbing on the side, this rope proved to be performance-minded. It managed to be stiff and slick at the same time—“in a good way,” said one tester. It “felt skinnier than its 10.6mm label,” knotted easily, “slithered like an eel” through pro, and stayed dry in wet snow while ice climbing in January.go to full review

Although we received this cord late in the testing process, it scored above-average marks in all categories: It fed smoothly, felt flexible, and handled nicely. It also is rated to 12 to 13 UIAA falls, where many other ropes of similar diameter only rated nine or ten falls, and some as low as seven. Tendon’s Ambition line is designed for beginning to moderate leaders, with beefier sizes
(9.8mm to 10.5mm). All ropes have the option of dry treatment.go to full review

One of our most experienced testers called this rope “one of my all-time favorites, especially for onsight and redpoint attempts.” It rated the highest possible scores for ease of clipping and ease of knotting/untying. Of course, 9.1mm is on the far skinny end of skinny single ropes, and not for beginners or toproping—rope stretch was noticeably long. But for experienced sport climbers looking to redpoint diffi cult projects, this rope was the ticket. Durability wasn’t possible to test in..." go to full review

The brunt of a rope’s strength comes from the core, and while the sheath doesn’t add significant strength, it does protect the core from damage. A sliced sheath will quickly unravel, exposing several feet of core, making the rope unusable. Solution? Beal introduced Unicore technology last year in two ropes; this bonds the core to the sheath via a thin, lightweight filament that’s woven between the two. That means if the sheath is cut from a sharp edge or bad fall, it will stay in place..." go to full review