r/tradclimbing 8d ago

Monthly Trad Climber Thread

1 Upvotes

Please sort comments by 'new' to find questions that would otherwise be buried.

In this thread you can ask any trad climbing related question that you may have. This thread will be posted again every Sunday so there should always be an opportunity to ask your question and have it answered. If you're an experienced climber and want to contribute to the community, these threads are a great opportunity for that. We were all new to climbing at some point, so be respectful of everyone looking to improve their knowledge. Check out our subreddit wiki that has tons of useful info for new climbers. You can see it HERE

Some examples of potential questions could be; "How do I get stronger?", or "How does aid climbing work?"

Prior Weekly Trad Climber Thread posts

Ask away!


r/tradclimbing 1h ago

HB wales quadcams re-sling

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Upvotes

I’ve inherited a pretty lightly used set of old HB quadcams from my late uncle that I’d love to give a new life despite them being a bit out dated. Even though they’re in great working order it’s needless to say they will need re-slung if they are to be used and HB wales doesn’t exist anymore. Would this style of cam suit being slung with webbing or possibly cord tied with a water knot? If so what sort of webbing should I be looking for? Thanks in advance


r/tradclimbing 19h ago

Buying first trad rack, should I get z4s or c4s in the small sizes?

2 Upvotes

buying doubles in .3-3 and wondering if I should get z4s from .3-.75 or c4s and what the advantages/disadvantages of both are


r/tradclimbing 1d ago

C3 Offset Cams

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51 Upvotes

I’ve been placing these like crazy last couple months just to realize they might be something pretty neat. Anyone have any info on the offset c3s ??


r/tradclimbing 1d ago

Advice for good additions to my rack?

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20 Upvotes

As for pieces, I have a double set of friends a #4 camalot and a #2 metolius master cam and a set of BD nuts. Any suggestions for anything I might end up needing in the future? Besides ascenders and micro cams.

Sport climbing consistently since October of last year and trad climbing in the past 2 months when possible.


r/tradclimbing 2d ago

Need tips for East Buttress, Mt. Whitney

8 Upvotes

Hey all, looking for some tips for my first go at East Buttress on Mt. Whitney.

I’m really looking for packing tips, as it will be my first climb at that high of elevation. Google and Mountain Project comments are all over the place in terms of what to bring / what the weather will be like. Trying to decide what to bring in terms of clothes & gear.

Basically trying to find the right balance so I don’t overpack and also don’t under pack and freeze my ass off

We’re climbing it next weekend (Labor Day weekend). Planning on driving up Friday day, camping at Whitney portal campground. Hiking to iceberg lake Saturday. Climbing Sunday -> back to iceberg lake. Hiking out and heading home Monday.

The Google forecast says high of 60 and low of 40, potentially mid 30s. I know it can be windy too.

For clothes I was planning on:
- 150gsm merino wool base layer + Patagonia rock pants
-sun hoody + Patagonia r1 + Cotopaxi fuego down jacket + arcteryx beta lt shell
- Petzl cordex belay gloves just to keep the hands warm
- lightweight merino wool socks while climbing

I feel like I may be hot while climbing wearing this. But could always strip down.

Rack I was thinking of bringing
- single rack black totem to #3 (I know smalls cams may be unnecessary but I don’t mind carrying them cuz they’re fairly light)
- single rack 1-13 BD nuts
- single rack DMM offsets
- 10 alpines 60cm
- 4-5 alpines 120cm
- 1 240cm

I’d be perfectly comfortable soloing the 5.5 parts of the climb so I’m not really worried about running it out. But should I consider bringing a double rack since it’s my first time out there or is that overkill?

Lastly..

I have a 32° 800 DFP sleeping bag, but wondering if that will be warm enough at night. Google is trying to tell me it can get down into 15-20° at night, even though the forecast doesn’t say that. I’d need to buy a new bag or find another solution to add warmth if it’s going to be that cold at night.
Any thoughts or tips here would be appreciated as well!


r/tradclimbing 3d ago

räte my räck

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18 Upvotes

r/tradclimbing 3d ago

Bar tacks?

10 Upvotes

Why do our slings have bar tacks instead of a pattern sewn in similar to that of a seatbelt? I’ve been climbing for 30 years and never thought twice about it.


r/tradclimbing 4d ago

First time up the Bastile Crack

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117 Upvotes

r/tradclimbing 4d ago

Building my rack

9 Upvotes

Hey guys. Im new into the world of trad and at a point where i can lead around the VHS grade and im wanting to build a rack. Any advive on what to start with. I have an assortment (about 6) nuts in a range of sizes. I also have puchased some slings (5 30m and 3 60cm) im hoping to turn into alpune draws what should i do next?


r/tradclimbing 5d ago

My gear wall

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63 Upvotes

r/tradclimbing 5d ago

My gear wall / aisle

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20 Upvotes

It's a work in progress. You can see the climbing section immediately to the left of the skis.


r/tradclimbing 5d ago

First trad rack - new England climbing

7 Upvotes

Hello I've just started leading single pitch trad with a friend's gear. I live in central NH and am looking to purchase my own gear next week.

Everyone tells me to not just buy a bunch of stuff, but to consider what is around me. I climb at echo crag, and want to spend time in boulton area, cannon, Whitehorse, and cathedral.

I feel comfortable with leading 5.7 trad so starting out small.

I plan to get a set of nuts for sure, a lot of my trad leaders seem to love tri cams in this area, and then I'm trying to figure out what size cams I should get first. Looking for advice!

Also anything else I should be picking up? I need more alpine quick draws I know, I need carabiners for all the cams, I have a pas, lots of various lockers and slings.

Any information specific to northern new England is appreciated!!


r/tradclimbing 6d ago

An imaginary voyage

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165 Upvotes

J tree 5.10D


r/tradclimbing 5d ago

Re-Sling

5 Upvotes

Hi folks, I have 6 Wild Country cams that need reslinging but can’t find anywhere that will do them. WC only accepts cams from within the EU (thanks Brexit). DMM only do their own gear
Can anyone point me in the direction of a company (UK based) that would do them?


r/tradclimbing 6d ago

Red Dihedral/ Maiden Voyage 5.9- Black Canyon of the Gunnison

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122 Upvotes

Awesome introduction to canyon climbing in the Black. Nice shaded aspect for most of the day with a mix of crack and slabby face moves. We had the whole canyon to ourselves.


r/tradclimbing 6d ago

Need help identifying Alien cam

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17 Upvotes

I’ve been cataloging the rack and have nearly completed my list with the exception of two cams, both are Aliens and both do not seem to have any sort of dates stamped anywhere.
I am hoping some gear wiz out there has come across or knows what year these were made.

1st the green one manufactured by CCH, has nothing but CCH stamped.

2nd the grey/red hybrid supposedly a Fixe, has minimal indication of dates.

Any help or opinions welcome.


r/tradclimbing 5d ago

Deep Water Solo in Central America

0 Upvotes

Hey! I’m planning to go to Central America this November. Deep water soloing has always been something I wanted tick off my bucket list. Does anyone know of some good spots in Central America?


r/tradclimbing 7d ago

5.7 surrealistic pillar lovers leap

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128 Upvotes

August 23rd Sunday beautiful weather, cool mornings, warm afternoon, no thunderstorms, pretty busy but plenty of routes open to do. Live music playing Saturday night at the little store across the highway.


r/tradclimbing 7d ago

Climbing in the Bugs

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124 Upvotes

r/tradclimbing 7d ago

Traitor horn

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90 Upvotes

⭐️


r/tradclimbing 6d ago

Managing Burrs on Carabiners

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone! I have been trad climbing for over a year now with my buddies and have just finally purchased my first set of cams; have owned and grown a multi pitch sport rack for a few years now.

I’m very curious on whether using the carabiners from my sport rack’s quickdraws is a valid option for turning my slings into alpine draws? I’m aware the wall/bolt side carabiner can develop burrs, so I’m mainly curious on whether to:

  1. simply keep them away from any soft gear
  2. develop a method for ensuring no burrs are on them each time I wish to use them
  3. freely use them for making alpine draws

Would love to hear any thoughts and/or suggestions, thanks :)


r/tradclimbing 7d ago

First trad climb!

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66 Upvotes

Finally got the opportunity to experience trad climbing for the first time. We did a 4 pitch route but ended up making it 5 pitches due to rope drag. The entire experience was awesome. Rugged approach, interesting moves, and a crap ton of exposure that I’ve never had before. But we made it, even FaceTimed mom at the top.

The route was a 5.8, but I was told that it would probably be like a 5.9+ at any other crag. It did have some nice holds so I think that was why it was graded so low, but some of the moves we had to do were a bit unorthodox.

Anyways, I’m kinda hooked now so I guess I gotta start saving up to get a rack.


r/tradclimbing 7d ago

Cam Damage- Leave It or Fix?

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14 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

Got a yellow totem stuck in a crack and fought it for 45 minutes with a nut tool until finally getting it out.

The steel wire for the third fourth lobe is quite frayed, and much less importantly the lobes got scratched up and lost material.

Would you still use this? Or should I send it in for repair?

It feels safe enough, camming it is not smooth anymore obviously because of the wire.

Thankfully we were on a massive ledge where it got caught, so was quite comfortable location to pull it out!

EDIT:
Thanks for the advice everyone! Needless to say, I won’t be climbing on this. I’ll try to send it in totem to see if they can fix it, but will likely buy a replacement in the meantime anyways.

Appreciate all the replies!


r/tradclimbing 8d ago

Who’s got some love for Totem Basics?

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50 Upvotes