RRC Archives

i cant afford a big cam, but i can afford a big hex

that being said, I climb using my partners small rack and i've been able to use them on the few easy trad climbs i have done, enabling me to save cams for when i am getting tired and want to be able to just plug something in.

I'll sell you a set of barely (by barely, I mean the only scratches are from hitting each other) used Metolius hexes... PM me if interested.

Odub is right, Go with cams. Hexes were the first piece of gear I bought when I started, and I have placed them ONCE. Buy a couple of BD's or Metolius units. As you progess into the harder grades, you will begin to appriciate the fast placements of the cams.

I disagree, in part. I have a set of the BD hexes and I've used them so many times over the years, and many times I was very happy to have them as directional pieces at anchors. That being said, I've never placed one hex in the RRG. I guess it is the type of sandstone. I've used them all over Tennessee, at Lost Wall and at Sandrock, all sandstone but different than that at the Red. The majority of my rack is cams though, I have three sets of stoppers and nuts which get used up on longer routes (not at the Red). Oh yes, and hexes. I use mostly cams in the RRG, I guess everyone else here feels the same.

I mostly use the smaller hexes in the south and I've used the larger ones (sometimes as chocks) at Lover's Leap and places like Castle Crags. I've taken the wires off of all but the smallest few and this allows you to place them easier and tie into them in a multitude of ways. Great for rigging a belay. If you are going to be climbing exclusively at the RRG I would have to agree, and say you can probably leave them at home. I do when I climb in the RRG.

In addition, the new BD cams are now awesome for setting a belay. So, your verdict is in. Hexes in the Red are good for 1) letting you know someone approaching is carrying too much gear, and 2) wind chimes.

Pro to Hex
Cheap
Bomber when set right.
old school cool

Con
Slow to set
Worthless unless set right
less options to set compared to cams.

I see them only as an option for filling in a rack of cams. not even close to a replacement.

Hey everybody
thanks for the feedback. I think I'll skip the hexes for now and just bore a set to see if they can earn a place on my rack. The Red is were I spend most of my time, but I all so climb at Seneca and TN a little.
Thanks for the help.

Stoppers still work in the Red, don't they? One way you might want to look at hexes is as Big Stoppers. They have the same (7degree?) taper as stoppers, but each hex fits three different size placements rather than just two, as in the case of stoppers. Hexes suck in parallel or flaring placements, and you can pretty much forget about any camming action, but they work great in "classic" placements. I found that I could keep the bulk and weight of my rack down by carrying hexes from about size 5 to 8 and occasionaly to 9 or 10 rather than multiple cams in those sizes.

Not trying to talk anyone into using pro that they're not comfortable with, but sometimes I find the pictures of climbers toting massively heavy racks of cams rather hilarious. No wonder trad climbing's not so popular today, it can't be much fun trying to lug all that heavy metal up the crag.