Sharpening the "tooth" on your tri-cams.

Sharpening the point on tricams for a little more "bite" in soft sandstone - anyone try it? Was it worth it?

Most of the smaller sizes have pretty dull, rounded points. The larger sized ones have a point constructed out of the metal pieces, but never thought of trying to sharpen them up. With force of placement, they bite in pretty good, especially in a softer sandstone. Don't want it so pointed that it works its way deeper, and thus creates a poor fit of the cam.

This seems like a bad idea. Good though just feel like sharpening it may cause the unit to deform enough to pull... Feel like in sandstone it would have sufficient dig even with the dull point in the smaller sizes

In "soft" sandstone such as Navajo or even Wingate, I would think a sharper point would be damaging or create a tendency for harder to clean placements.

On "harder" sandstone such as that here in the SE, I have never encountered a problem with the factory points. Placements are typically firm if correct and have held big falls. Same experience in granite.

I am a firm believer in tricams and probably place the pink on 90% of the pitches I lead.

The sheet that comes with tricams says:

"Keep the cam rails of your TRI-CAM smooth with an emory cloth or light filing, and when the fulcrum point becomes dull, file it to factory fresh condition."

I wouldn't file it much sharper than that because it may focus the load on too small a point and cause the rock to fail. I think you would be better off looking for a feature that will hold the fulcrum in place.

I would think the exact opposite, you would want the tip to be sharper on very hard rock, no sharper than factory sharp. of course mine are still factory sharp cause I never use them.

more surface area=more bite on the rock. i wouldn't do it.

austin luper wrote:more surface area=more bite on the rock. i wouldn't do it.

Experience and common sense might lead one to conclude that a sharper tooth would be less likely to skate - it seems to me it would be more likely to dimple soft rock making for a more secure placement. In granite tricam placements, I look for a dimple (recess) to place the tooth.

I bet a sharper tooth would be better in soft rock and that the factory tooth is designed for hard rock or at best is a compromise for a variety of rock types. I think you are onto something and that, especially in marginal aid climbing situations, a sharper tooth could be a brilliant solution.

Great question.