New Climber: Gear shopping
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Hey everyone! I'm a college student just getting into climbing. I'm looking at getting some gear for sport climbing/top rope. i.e. harness, belay tool, quick draws, rope. I was wondering if there are any brands to swear by or any brands to avoid? Trying to stay within a reasonable budget too... |
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Backcountry and gear express both having sales currently. |
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I got pretty much everything I needed on sierratradingpost.com. when they have a coupon code they have some great deals. |
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Luke, buy the best gear you can afford, it will save you money in the long run. If you skimp now, you'll end up upgrading in the future. The best thing to do if you're college-aged is get a job at a gear shop, or gym and buy gear on a pro deal. |
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Petzl makes nice reasonably priced harnesses. |
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I'd recommend getting a harness, shoes, and chalk/bag before anything else, and climb with others on their gear until you can slowly build up the stuff you need. |
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I'd add that if you're gonna get an ATC get one with a guide mode right away so that you can lead multi-pitch more easily. |
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Gavin W wrote:I'd add that if you're gonna get an ATC get one with a guide mode right away so that you can lead multi-pitch more easily. And look for sales on gear from reliable brands, like Black Diamond or Petzl. Start with shoes, a harness, and a chalk bag, and climb with friends who have gear until you've slowly built up your own set of gear. And if you're buying Black Diamond gear, you can use the code bdwelcome15 on their website for 15% off. This would be a good harness (I use another version of the exact same harness and love it) blackdiamondequipment.com/e…BD makes really nice harnesses and great hardware (biners, draws, pro). |
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The BD cheap stuff is high quality and when it comes time to replace my $40 Momentum harness and $10 Freewire quickdraws I will buy the same. |
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Don't get a ATC. Get a Mega Jul. |
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Belay Device: +1 for either petzl reverso, atc guide, or mega jul. you'll want a belay device that can be used in guide mode. sooner or later you'll want to do multi pitch or need to belay from above. |
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not a bad gig |
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If you're in college I'd also see if your school has a club that does any climbing. I started learning with a club and then bought a harness, shoes, chalk, and ATC. Then I just kept climbing with them learning what gear I needed and slowly bought it. |
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Joel Allen wrote:If you're in college I'd also see if your school has a club that does any climbing. I started learning with a club and then bought a harness, shoes, chalk, and ATC. Then I just kept climbing with them learning what gear I needed and slowly bought it.Colorado School of Mines and CU-Boulder both have climbing/outdoors clubs that will provide gear & I'd guess many other schools do the same |