offset nuts: brass vs aluminum and bd vs dmm

opinions for brass vs aluminum and bd vs dmm for aid. my goal to be climbing in yosemite, so i would like to start building my rack for that when i see sale opportunities. thanks

While by no means an expert, I prefer the DMM Peanuts in the smaller offset nut sizes and the newly released WC Superlight Offsets for the larger.

I have several other options including the much-loved DMM offsets in the larger sizes.

Small Brassies: Good and do stick a bit better in the really marginal placements BUT they get the sh*t tweaked out of them. The DMM Peanuts do almost as well and are MUCH more burly.

DMM Large Offsets. Maybe I just haven't climbed at a place where these are a perfect match but in the PNW, I never really fell in love. They're straight taper on BOTH sides which makes them "meh" in the more rounded granite placements. People seem to really love them in Red Rocks though which makes sense as I like the straight-taper Metolious nuts in the sandstone a bit more.

I recently got a set of the WC Offset Ultralights and they've impressed so far. Nice offset taper with the versatility of a regular Rock as well.

I have both the DMM brass and BD Steel in both micros and offset micros. The brass are part of the rack that always comes with (along with single set TCU's/Powercams 00-8, optional Camalot 4,5,6, BD nuts, 7 alpine draws, 10 QD, and 2 locking draws,... to give a feel for what I like). The steel live in the gear closet. In small placement I almost always reach for the offsets 1st. Have not made it to Yosemite yet so my opinion is worth about $.02.

Edit: This is for free climbing not aid. However I have only ever placed the smallest of the offsets while aiding free routes to practice aid and gain experience. Thus ease of use and functionality are higher on my desirable trait list than durability.

I bought a set of the BD offset micro-nuts as my first pro specifically bought for aid climbing. Since then I have bought multiple sets of DMM alloy offsets and brass offsets. The DMM nuts are far superior on Yosemite and Zion walls, in my opinion. I also have a double set of the DMM aluminum Peanuts (offset). They're OK, but I haven't become a big fan of them. All the BD nuts I have sit in a box at home, I only carry DMM offset nuts now.

I highly recommend you go with any/all of the DMM nuts for Yosemite walls. As another person stated, the brass offsets will get tweaked quickly, but it's not a huge problem. Just try to clean them with a nut tool as often as possible, not by yanking them out (although we all get lazy/tired and just resort to yanking them up and out). My recommendation is based on my experience on 2 El Cap routes, 2 other Valley walls, and 3 Zion aid walls.

Thanks for the responses guys. I think Ill start with the DMM alloy offsets and get the brasses in the future when Im not just learning aid.

My next question is, would you suggest the set that is #7-11 or would I want to go with smaller nuts? I know this will be dependent on where I climb but maybe just overall which will be more useful.

Thanks!

Get the 7-11 set of alloy offsets, then double up on the small gold and small blue offset (or just buy a double set). Then take "big blue" out, because you'll most likely place a cam for that size. When you're ready for more, buy the 3 or 4 biggest sizes of brass offsets individually (or just go ahead and buy doubles of each). I'm willing to guess you'll never place the smaller 2 sizes of brass offset nuts because they're crazy thin. You also should pick up the "narrow" camhook from Moses and 6-8 inches of 1/2 webbing for it. When you can't get a nut or cam to stick in that thin, almost parallel crack, or pin scar, and you're sure you won't deck if you manage to blow it... place that camhook and marvel at how easy and fast it was to place and how solid it is.

Good luck. Go find a thin 5.11 or 5.12 crack to practice this stuff on. Do the whole MacNamara thing by timing yourself and counting your placements. See how few placements you can do it in and how efficiently (equals fast) you can get up. I'd also recommend teaching yourself to aid solo on clove hitches during this process (assuming you're competent at anchors and general "not dying from stupidity" skills). That way you aren't subjecting anybody to slow aid practice, you learn a valuable rescue skill, and the importance of organization when aid climbing.

I hope I didn't offend you with unsolicited advice.

Jake wander wrote:Thanks for the responses guys. I think Ill start with the DMM alloy offsets and get the brasses in the future when Im not just learning aid. My next question is, would you suggest the set that is #7-11 or would I want to go with smaller nuts? I know this will be dependent on where I climb but maybe just overall which will be more useful. Thanks!

I think the size #7-11 DMM alloy offsets are amazing for yosemite and wouldn't want to do an aid intensive wall without them. They can be really confidence inspiring in the big pin scars and leaving them as pro will allow you to back-clean your precious offset cams.

That said I wouldn't want to do an aid intensive wall without micros either, especially offset ones.

One option that I haven't seen mentioned for the smaller nuts are the Wild Country Superlight Rocks. They don't get super small, but small enough for intro aid walls in my opinion. What makes them shine is that they are bomber offsets, but when turned sideways they are doubles for your normal small set of nuts. I believe that if you play with a set long enough you will start to realize the wizardry they are capable of.

If you are decided on only getting one set for now, but really want to be aiding, I say get the small ones now, whether they be peenuts, HBs, or what have you. You will likely encounter something aiding where they will come in handy, and the #7-11 DMM alloys can be substituted with a (slightly less confidence inspiring) standard nut turned sideways. Not true when a micro is needed. But again, I'd say get both if you can afford it.

And I second becoming very familiar with camhooks. They can save you much time and frustration.

For aid, the DMM offset brasses are the best IMO. I use them all the time in Yosemite and they are great.