Supplementing TCU's

I'm gradually doubling up my rack, and right now my small cams are 0-3 Ultralight TCU's. I climb mostly in the Gunks so I'm looking for something with a more flexible stem for horizontal placements.

I was thinking of Aliens until the latest mess about their QC. So that leaves me with C3's, Zeros and Mastercams.

Any recommendations?

well i still really like aliens, and they do a great job of filling the void imbetween the tcu sizes. as for the master cams they are great, but its not gonna help in supplementing between sizes. the c3's i have very mixed opinions on. they fit where no other cam will, but i've noticed they tend to walk quite a bit. i also had a red c3 that had never seen a fall only a couple of hangs and one of the outer lobes got stuck and could not be fixed... not to mention they are $65 a pop. sooooo to answer your question, love em hate em but aliens would be your best bet.

I have brand new aliens dated between January of 2009 and April of 2009. Four of the five have the axles holes drilled in the wrong spot on the lobe. If they can't even get the correct spot on the lobe, how can you possibly trust the company to build an otherwise proper cam?

I think you should try all the different brands on a couple different types of rock. Everyone has their own opinion on which are the best, but the fact of the matter is that they all have their advantages and disadvantages. Its kind of like picking out shoes. Lots of people hate on the C3's. I love them.

The important thing is to get the ones you like placing the best and get used to them.

Joel Andersen wrote:I have brand new aliens dated between January of 2009 and April of 2009. Four of the five have the axles holes drilled in the wrong spot on the lobe. If they can't even get the correct spot on the lobe, how can you possibly trust the company to build an otherwise proper cam?

Supplementing TCUs? RPs and ballnutz.

I would still recommend the aliens if you're at the gunks. I have a set of TCUs that rarely get placed. I find better placements with my aliens than my TCUs. I've recently tried some friends' mastercams and don't think they are at all the same. I haven't had much experience with the C3s but if you're happy finding placements for TCUs, you might as well stick with the 3 lobe option.

As to the QC issues at CCH, The braising issue has been addressed. I don't know what effect an uncentered/inconsistent hole drilling has to do with cam safety, but it give people something to spray about online. I'm sure next week people will be saying it's not the center hole but the cam angle that's off. Oh, wait, that already started.

vanishing spy wrote: I don't know what effect an uncentered/inconsistent hole drilling has to do with cam safety, but it give people something to spray about online. I'm sure next week people will be saying it's not the center hole but the cam angle that's off. Oh, wait, that already started.

yeah, a mis-drilled hole isn't a good thing. the alien fiasco is definitely a bummer. i usually carry a mix of metolius tcu's and offset (hybrid) aliens. this seems to cover the bases pretty well. ballnutz will be marginally helpful for wierd vertical placements. i just got back from a trip to the gunks and i had accidently left my ballnutz at home, and was kicking myself on a couple routes. they won't be as useful in the horizontals though.

i have talked to a few gunks climbers who seem to like the c3's. like tom said, try a bunch of things out and see what works best for you.

good luck!

I am going through a similar issue...just sold off my aliens (blue through orange) and looking to replace them. I was thinking mastercams originally since I have used my partners, but I wanted some different cams that have a different range so I could go more variety. I was interested in the wild country zeros and also came across the trango splitter cams. I ordered one a piece to see how I like them. They just came in the mail yesterday but they both appear to be great looking and functioning cams. I'll get back to you about placement, etc in a week or two.

these would compliment them well...

mountainproject.com/v/for_s…

I just want to give background so as to put my suggestion in context. I've only been to the Gunks once for a three day trip.
Also, you may only be soliciting suggestions for small cams (read SLCDs) not other types of protection. With that said, my partner and I found Tri-Cams to be indispensable in the Gunks horizontals. I just saw that no one had mentioned them, and thought I'd throw it out there. For whatever it's worth, as you may already own a full set for all I know.

TRICAMS are definitely worthwhile at the gunks and probably better than cams in some placements (especially those horizontals that have lots of pebbles often found around the ubberfalls area). I have to admit I don't carry mine anymore; if your partner doesn't have experience removing them it can be a big time suck. When I started climbing at the gunks and had a smaller rack I placed tricams all over the place.

For horizontals, go with C3s over the Master cams. The master cam trigger wire will often run right over a horizontal's lip and you'll probably kink it if you fall on it.

Of course, not all placements at the Gunks are horizontals... but I'm putting the tricams back on my rack.