Edelrid Mega Jul

sanz wrote: This has definitely happened to me. The autolock on the device is good but not nearly as reliable as a grigri.

I spent some time with this guy at the Red, and I still like it. It has see shortcomings and a little learning curve, but it does what it's intended to do for me.

So far I like the Black Diamond Vapor Lock the best. Tried a Rock Lock, cross section is too large to allow smooth lowering, same for an Attache. The Edelrid HMS is nice, but I've grown fond of the Vapor Lock.

With the Vapor Lock and a 9.5, the rope will creep after locking up, not a problem with the larger cross section biners for that rope size. That was taking my hand off when locked up though.

With the Vapor Lock and a 9.8, the device locks solid with almost no creep if you take your hand off.

Feeding rope is good, as long as you stay ahead of your climber. It's a bitch when it gets locked up trying to feed though. If you keep your thumb in the loop it's easy enough to over ride though.

All in all I like it. I'll stick with it for a while.

It's light, simple, and effective with the ropes I use and the proper carabiner.

UPDATE:

The vapor lock was slipping pretty good with some slick ropes so I switched to one of the new Petzl Attache 3d biners. That's the ticket.

This is my favorite biner for the device:
scarpa.com/edelrid/hms-stri…

No unwanted rotations with that one!

I've been using the MegaJul for a couple of months now and love it. It doesn't do everything well. As others have noted, in guide mode it is too hard to pull rope through. The fact that it is going to lock off if my belayer gets knocked unconscious by a falling rock or lets go for some reason is enough reason for me to want to use it. We did some tests with one of my hefty climbing friends jumping off a top-rope with slack to simulate a trad fall and it locks off with no problem every time. It even slips just a little rope through providing some dynamics in the catch which is critical in trad. If they could refine it to work better in guide mode it would be the best thing since sticky rubber.

What size rope were you using

Moritz B. wrote:This is my favorite biner for the device: scarpa.com/edelrid/hms-stri… No unwanted rotations with that one!

Sam Stephens wrote:What size rope were you using

I have been using the Pirate Wire Eye, it's the same concept as the Edelrid FG.
rockexotica.com/products/ca…

I would not use a Vaporlock. The device was designed for an HMS carabiner.

Hey Brian, have you tried the MegaJul with this kind of round biner in guide mode?
rei.com/product/782742/meto…

Moritz B. wrote:Hey Brian, have you tried the MegaJul with this kind of round biner in guide mode? rei.com/product/782742/meto…

Hi all,
I tried the Mega Jul with a bunch of carabiners before ordering the one that Edelrid recommends for this belay device, the Edelrid FG. It´s availible in a several versions, all having the same cross-section geometry: FG slider
Without this specific carabiner I couldn´t get the Mega Jul to lock single ropes even when using an old fuzzy 11mm rope. With the FG-carabiner, I like the device a lot. I mostly use it for multipitch trad climbing.

Cheers,
Mats

Boulders at Outdoor2014 - The New Edelrid Jul2: youtu.be/QJXTVhouTcM

Looks like single rope design, but probably addresses the wire breakage and biner wear. Maybe they'll make one with 2 slots.

I think that these assisted locking belay devices for alpine/trad use are the wave of the future.

I have to believe that the folks at Black Diamond and Petzl are both working on prototypes.

They are only going to get better as competition and innovation keep pushing the performance forward.

Mats,
Have you tried rapping with that biner and your fuzzy 11mm? I'd be very surprised if you didn't get a lock up that wouldn't release.

Kai Larson wrote:I think that these assisted locking belay devices for alpine/trad use are the wave of the future. I have to believe that the folks at Black Diamond and Petzl are both working on prototypes. They are only going to get better as competition and innovation keep pushing the performance forward.

I have, for 340 meters to be exact. It locks up, but it does release fine when I use the thumb thingy. I wouldn´t say rapping on a fuzzy 11mm rope works well, but I rarely do it and the advantages outweigh the drawbacks in my opinion. I usually use a 9.8mm rope and most of the time I rap using the device in lock-up mode.

Mats Isaksson wrote:I have, for 340 meters to be exact. It locks up, but it does release fine when I use the thumb thingy. I wouldn´t say rapping on a fuzzy 11mm rope works well, but I rarely do it and the advantages outweigh the drawbacks in my opinion. I usually use a 9.8mm rope and most of the time I rap using the device in lock-up mode.

This was rapping on single rope, and in lock-up mode I had to lift the rope to make it slide through. I wouldn´t say it works ideal, but I had no problems getting down. Also, I rarely use fuzzy 11mm ropes.

Also: I weigh 202 Pounds + the term "fuzzy" is not clearly defined here.

Ah ha ... the lock ups I encountered were with two ropes through the device. I'm 165lb. A lighter weight and greater friction probably did it.