Mountain Project Logo

Dumbest outdoor gear purchase

Ball · · Oakridge, OR · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 70

Never bought one, but absolutely refuse to lead with someone else's gear if they use these:



(can't easily manipulate the gate with a thumb as it slips off the one wire/nail)
Alan Doak · · boulder, co · Joined Oct 2007 · Points: 120

I was in Peru and went big on a commiting and rarely done route on Chopicalqui.

I was pretty psyched when I first got back to the states and picked up a top model down suit at a North Face outlet sale for 75% off. Once I got the pictures developed though, I remembered how scary it actually was up there and haven't been back in the big peaks since. The suit has been in storage the entire time. Who knows, maybe the fire inside will spark back up.

gavinsmith · · Toronto, Ontario · Joined Feb 2014 · Points: 86
Ball wrote:Never bought one, but absolutely refuse to lead with someone else's gear if they use these: (can't easily manipulate the gate with a thumb as it slips off the one wire/nail)
Hah, that's every one of my slings and trad draws. I actually don't find any trouble with them, to be honest. I just like that they're tiny, key-locking (I think they can be referred to as key-locking, but certainly notchless), virtually weightless little things. I usually do a 'full hand' clip when clipping the rope on them, but it's not troublesome.
runout · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2013 · Points: 30

Metolius rope hooks.

metoliusclimbing.com/rope_h…

Ball · · Oakridge, OR · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 70
gavinsmith wrote: Hah, that's every one of my slings and trad draws. I actually don't find any trouble with them, to be honest. I just like that they're tiny, key-locking (I think they can be referred to as key-locking, but certainly notchless), virtually weightless little things. I usually do a 'full hand' clip when clipping the rope on them, but it's not troublesome.
I will NOT be climbing with your rack. Ever :)
Ball · · Oakridge, OR · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 70
caughtinside wrote: I don't own any of those Anges but I can say that after climbing on a friends, they are the nicest quick draws I have ever used. Prefer the larger ones (blue anodized) for clipping the rope, but man those things are light.
Light is the only good thing you can say about them. I don't even use nanos (despite having bootied a dozen of them). Prefer a nice big gate for clove hitches.
EricF · · San Francisco · Joined May 2012 · Points: 120
Ball wrote: Prefer a nice big gate for clove hitches.
Just wondering why you would be clove hitching into a wire gate? I have one small locker that I use to anchor in almost every time, is this an aid thing or useful to use the rope to build an anchor or for an equalette or something similar?
Larry S · · Easton, PA · Joined May 2010 · Points: 872
Eric Fernandez wrote: Just wondering why you would be clove hitching into a wire gate? I have one small locker that I use to anchor in almost every time, is this an aid thing or useful to use the rope to build an anchor or for an equalette or something similar?
People often build anchors by cloving the rope in series into 2 or 3 pieces with non-locking carabiners and only use a locker at the master point (if they have one)

Not the best illustration of it as all the pieces here are horizontal, but see this classic picture
Dale Bard 5 rurp belay.
Rob D · · Queens, NY · Joined May 2011 · Points: 30

I got one of those weird petzl carabiners at rock and snow annex for something like $3. It's fine. I think I racked my tricams on it for a while, now it lives on my #4 and will probably only touch a rope a few times this season. Not the worst carabiner I've ever owned, but far from the best.

jmbrower brower · · portland, or · Joined Mar 2013 · Points: 35
Locker wrote:Everyone can post all they want and it's still not going to come close to this winner. What were they thinking? LOL! EDITED: "My body feels great, but my arms just snapped off from being FROZEN".
finally a solution to the age old problem of cold chest hot hands and forearms
doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

Crack Gloves. I'm still mad at myself for getting persuaded into getting a pair - that POS fell apart after a couple of uses. For the amount of money I spent on them I could've bought a lifetime supply of Eurotape.

Bill Kirby · · Keene New York · Joined Jul 2012 · Points: 480

Club Intrawest timeshare if you take the words outdoor gear outta the title.

Ball · · Oakridge, OR · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 70
Eric Fernandez wrote: Just wondering why you would be clove hitching into a wire gate? I have one small locker that I use to anchor in almost every time, is this an aid thing or useful to use the rope to build an anchor or for an equalette or something similar?
I clove hitch into wiregates all the time. Using the rope for an anchor is fast and strong—really makes multi-pitch go fast IF you're swapping leads (otherwise I use cord or slings which eats up a lot of time).
Ball · · Oakridge, OR · Joined Jan 2010 · Points: 70
Larry S wrote: People often build anchors by cloving the rope in series into 2 or 3 pieces with non-locking carabiners and only use a locker at the master point (if they have one) Not the best illustration of it as all the pieces here are horizontal, but see this classic picture
Wow, that's a *terrible* example!

I'll at least pseudo-equalize my anchor. If the pieces aren't in a line I'll use slings to make the biners offset (often the anchor is made with nuts/tricams anyway) or if they're really far apart I'll do something like a bowline (or 8) on a bite.
Christopher.D.Thomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2014 · Points: 150
FoamFinger wrote: +1 for a dumb piece of gear! For me its probably... those stupid yellow egg carriers that let you take eggs camping with you. Who the hell takes eggs with them backpacking?!
I do!! They last longer than you think!

Especially since I winter camp.... :-D
Stephen Burns · · Telluride, CO · Joined Jul 2010 · Points: 25
Garret Nuzzo-Jones wrote: Three rules of climbing are: 1. Look Good 2. Have Fun 3. Be Safe
If you're not doing the first two you have no business even being there. That's why safety is third.
Kurt G · · Monticello, UT · Joined Nov 2012 · Points: 156
Gold Plated Rocket Pony wrote:Alpine Up. Just horrid
Gold Plated why is this horrid? I have the "click up" version and its my go to for lead belay, I love it. I was actually looking to upgrade to this to consolidate my belay devices, I'd love to hear if theres something wrong with the Alpine Up.
Gold Plated Rocket Pony · · Colorado · Joined Jul 2007 · Points: 96

Might just be me. Others seem to like it just fine. I thought it'd be easier to use and not so big.

Tradster · · Phoenix, AZ · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 0

The first 30 below synthetic bag REI offered. Weighed 6 pounds and took up 2/3 of my backpack. I used it once. Dumbest purchase I ever made. :(

Sam Spuds · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2014 · Points: 65

they are too small, the lock sucks but hey i got them with my BD .5 i bought off my roomate for 30

climbx biner

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Climbing Gear Discussion
Post a Reply to "Dumbest outdoor gear purchase"

Log In to Reply

Join the Community

Create your FREE account today!
Already have an account? Login to close this notice.

Get Started.