Beal Opera 8.5mm vs Edelrid Canary 8.6mm (Triple Rated Ropes 8.4-8.6 mm)

Hello to everybody from dirt bags and dirt baguettes to blue collar climbings,

Im looking to buy a triple rated rope that is between 8.4-8.6 mm. I've narrowed it down to the Beal Opera 8.5mm and Edelrid Canary 8.6mm.

The most important aspects/features for me are the following:

• Durability (especially against sheath fraying, abrasions and cutting) 
• Versatility
• Feel (belaying experience & minimizing rope drag)

I will be using these ropes primarily for multi-pitch and big wall climbing, and occasionally for hard sport projects.

I would appreciate it if you could share your experiences with either or both of these ropes and provide me with any recommendations or suggest other similar ropes.

Cheers,

Osama 

I haven’t climbed on the Opera, so count me an ignorant fool. I had 50-100 pitches on my Canary  before I set it down on the garage floor in a new rental and goddam got fuel oil on it. Count me an ignorant fool 2x.

Couple other things cool about the Canary—-47% sheath percentage vs 37 or so for most other ropes. I think it’s also “bluesign” rated, meaning reduced water, chemicals, energy when making it. Also made in Germany. Beal has moved some production overseas...

the opera is a tad lighter and I’m sure is a great cord. Other one to consider is the 8.7 mammut. Gréât cord too!

I have the Beal Opera (regular version, not the extra dry treated) and have been satisfied so far. I've got ~40 pitches on the thing, all multipitch climbing on granite and sandstone. The sheath has been durable, some fuzziness but nothing I would consider beyond ordinary. Initially the rope felt scary small to me, but now that the sheath is a little fuzzed up it handles great and the gri gri bites down no problem. I have whipped on the rope a few times and it is no worse for the wear, and I didn't really notice any exceptional stretch. Falling low on a pitch as a follower though I definitely feel like I fall further than on other ropes--something that can be planned around andthat is to be expected from a skinny cord, but worth noting. The svelte nature of this rope is definitely noticeable on route and awesome. I have the 80m version and the decreased rope drag on humongous pitches is significant to me. 

The one downside to this rope is that in my experience it tends to kink and twist a decent bit. It is getting better as it ages, but on a route this past weekend I had to untie a couple different times to let it untwist, an issue I've never really had before. I definitely unpacked the rope properly and flaked it several times before use, so I don't think its pilot error entirely, but who knows. A friend mentioned that in his experience Beal ropes are prone to twists/kinks when new. Ymmv, but for this reason I'd probably give the rope 3.5/5 stars. 

At this point I would buy this rope again, but when I replace it I will probably try the Canary because of the thicker sheath and just to be able to compare for myself. Also, I've had positive experiences with Edelrid ropes in the past (Swift is a great rope), so that's another reason. 

Hope this helps! Like the previous poster said, I'm sure both ropes are great. If I were buying today though, I'd lean towards the Canary.

Xan, similar experience w/ the Opera, though I've yet to experience any twisting/kinking that I'd classify as "severe," fwiw. Def on the small side but a wonderful rope for territory where there's basically no chance of a fall, and no sharp edges. Wouldn't feel great about dragging it over razors, for sure.

Also running a Serenity 8.7, it looks like a 9+, but has a surprisingly thin feel, though nowhere near as thin as the feel to the Opera. Honestly feels like a beefy 10mm in the hand, compared to the opera, haha...but the serenity is a super smooth handling rope, maybe 85-90% as smooth as the opera, and waaaay smoother than any 9.5-larger cord.

guessing the OP is a bot but I'd shy away from the Opera for any sort of "projecting."...or maybe he's a tech bro and can afford these sorts of ropes for the proj, haha.

I have a super duper dry treated Opera that I use for ice. I can't really comment on the durability, but it handles well and meets my needs for an ice rope.

I have a 90m opera that I do almost all my sport climbing on. Occasionally chop the ends, but it’s been an amazing cord. I do like the idea of the thicker sheath on the canary, so maybe I will try that next. Would totally recommend an opera though, it’s great.

I haven’t noticed any issues with kinking and I think the in hand feel is very supple