It seems,if its not color coded or anodized they just cant use it.
do they have brain damage? I have been climbing for ever on my solid,plain looking nuts with no problem.
its funny how marketing as taken our brain away.
5.14 is not 5.8 if you cant tell the difference from small to big...get out of climbing. this is not for first graders..the square does not fit in the circle!!! what ever happened to size comparison ?..are we doomed?
I can still tell the differance from a penny and a nickel in the dark!!can you ?? ...or are we getting brain washed.....sorry quit smoking a few days ago had to vent..

I always thought it was kind of weird that nuts are color coded. When you are getting one off the biner do you really look at the color? Apparently some people do because I have ABC nuts and more that one person has suggested that we use their Black Diamonds "because I know the colors better."

Maybe it's just because mine aren't BD?

That said, I do like having colored biners on my cams. I climbed for years without them and most of my partners don't have them so it's not a big deal either way but when I had a pro-deal w/ BD I bought the color Neutrinos and like them.

Complaining about the youth is the first sign of old age.

I find colored gear makes life easier.

You would think that color coders would use a better system. For example, lighter to darker. I don't use the color coding because I can't remember what 13 colors represent.

Getting to interact on a regular basis with folks younger than me I've come to this conclusion. I actually had this conversation the other day.

The amount of readily available information via the internet etc. has made the younger generations exceptionally intelligent. What they study in middle school was not taught till college for me it seemed.

This "fast food culture" and the advent of information at their fingertips has ironically made these kids "dumber" or lacking in basic capablilities or common sense that those of us from older generations take for granted. They navigate technology like nothing, but are severely limited when it comes to life skills.

These of course are generalizations, but being a non-traditional student has made me painfully aware of the generation gap in just a mere decade plus. I shake my head quite often...

I have a motley array of nuts purchased/found all over the place. Most of them don't have colors, and honestly I don't notice. I can't tell you a color of nut for a given crack over any other crack. That would be pretty impressive if someone could actually.

The main reason I like the colors is I can blame my partners for losing them.

"Hey! Where's the red nut!?"

It doesn't work well when they are all grey.

To the old duffers out there, lets just admit that many of us have resorted to some form of color coding in the past. Sure we couldn't do it with everything, but those of you who owned first generation Friends (at least when you were eventually able to afford more than one set) didn't you make the webbing the same color for each size? Didn't some of you remember a size of a stopper by the color of the perlon you threaded it with?

How many of you have complained that Camalots are color coded? If you want to complain about something, complain about all those wusses who demand that everything be retrobolted so they can keep their balls in their purse. Now that's a crusty old fart grouse.

I would trade the colors on my BD nuts for giant/readable numbers any day.

Being a young climber (24yr) I was brought up on the color coded stuff, and had no option in the matter. If your first set of stoppers, and cams came color coded you would get used to it just like you got used to using the unfinished protection you were weened on as a youth.

I'd say be worried about the old men such as yourself who have made the switch, and not the young bucks who were born after color coded camalots came out.

keep quittin' icymonsters, its worth it

steve

What are these "nuts" and "wires" you speak of?

Off of what Scott said, I would definitely say that "intelligence" has been replaced with "knowledge" or the ability to acquire it. Rather than being able to solve an equation, the "better" student in a class is the one who can look up the formula in their perfect handy dandy notebook and plug and chug the numbers the quickest. This leaves out a severe amount of critical thinking, hence the lack of common sense you were referencing.

That's just my 2 cents, although I'm only 17, I feel like I don't belong in this generation sometimes....

i dont see anything wrong with coloured nuts, tricams and cams ...

hmmmmm ....

I rather enjoy matching neutrinos on my cams; both BD and TCU. It just makes cam selection much easier. I also have my draws color-coded for long and short. I think whining about color-coded nuts is just ridiculous. Just put large ones on a biner and small ones on another...easy.

Good luck with the quitting smoking.
Do it, be strong, it's worth it.

As for your original question, I think all generations think this about the new one. Every generation has strengths and weaknesses, imho.

Guessing this post is not about color-coded gear. It's more about climbing maturing where we are now tinkering around the edges. Sometimes it is an improvement, sometimes it's just marketing, and usually we'll all have different opinions.

I'm in the "good enough is good enough" camp and don't feel a need to "upgrade" from my older uni-colored nuts, hexes, and biners. Yeah I've got active pro too, but with all pro I'm not smart enough to know which color or number I need, I'm just thinking "the crack is yay big so I think I need a nut yay big". Maybe it's just me, but sometimes fumbling with pro while you're many feet above your last seems to be part of the experience and I love seeing people with franken-racks where everything is well-worn and nothing matches!

I once (and only once) climbed with a partner du jour and we used his rack. We rack differently; I have mostly 2-footers tripled up. This guy had sport draws and a few longer slings that he bandoliers over the shoulder. One biner per sling and no extra biners.... WTF?

Swinging leads, I took the 2nd pitch. As I come to a placement, I reach for a dr....awww, crap. Dog bones, and I am on a wandering traverse section.

I quickly grab a piece of gear; a blue Camalot. I need a biner, and figure I'll use the racking one for the cam and clip the cam to ne of the others.


"What are you DOING!?" he yells from the belay.


"Ummm...placing gear?" I reply.



"But you took the blue biner off the blue cam!"


oh dear....

i take it all back .. all that anodizing can kill you ;)

www.totemcams.com/blog/?p=738&preview=true

It has been brought to our attention regarding the Totem Cams sold prior to 31 December 2010 that the color anodizing of the cams gives them a surface hardness that may affect their holding power in certain areas of polished limestone and when the cams still retain their layer of anodizing on the area in contact with the rock.

This anodized layer gradually rubs off with use and may even be removed by hand with sandpaper. However, when used exclusively on low-adherence rocks this anodized layer is not easily removed, which means that the Totem Cam may have a diminished holding power, even when it has been used for some time. The Totem Cam’s grip is suitable for all areas once the anodized layer on the cams on the surface in contact with the rock has been completely rubbed off.

The new model of Totem Cam has microblasted cams instead of anodized ones, which ensures they have a suitable holding power right from the start, on all kinds of rocks and in all placements.

We deeply regret the inconvenience this circumstance may cause you.

We are extremely grateful to the climber who alerted us on this matter. The feedback we receive is essential for helping us to continuously improve our products.

I really like my new set of color coded BD express screws, don't know how I lived with out them.

Pink tricams!

I have looked at placements and said "that would be perfect for the pink tricam." I've done the same with the green and blue camalots. But never with stoppers, hmmmm.

And another thing! Why is everything so damn expensive these days and what can I do to keep those damn hippies off my lawn!?!?!

Actually all that color is not for deciding what size go in to what crack. BUT it is used to spot noobs/gumbies.
Depending on the % of shiny gear a climber has I know weather or not the pro have been placed and used.
consider it a noob-o-meter. a rough example

100% shiny; be waery of this climber, chances they have more money than experience and you might not want to climb with this person. Hang back untill they have to bail and then go up and claim some new booty.

50% shiny; proably good to go, have some new stuff but half and well used. Shows they know the working of the gear and replaces what need to be.

0% shiny; you what to follow this climber, chances are they were once a hard man, and there gear is 100 years old. It may be questionable weather the gear will still hold a fall any more. you can learn a lot form said climber.

Color coded stoppers are cool and all, but one thing to keep in mind is that they are pretty much useless if you are climbing in an area where the cracks haven't been painted yet.