Author |
The end of an era: no more stuck cams. |
|
|
1-Feb-2020 7:37:45 AM
|
Omega Pacific is closing down. We are going to need a new primary source of fixed gear.
https://www.climbing.com/news/gear-institution-omega-pacific-is-closing/
|
1-Feb-2020 8:00:33 AM
|
On 1-Feb-2020 phillipivan wrote:
>Omega Pacific is closing down. We are going to need a new primary source
>of fixed gear.
>
>
>https://www.climbing.com/news/gear-institution-omega-pacific-is-closing/
What, not enough crims to continue their cheap production eh bro?
If it’ll keep them afloat I vote we round up the Gramps spurt bolter crims to replenish their supply.
|
1-Feb-2020 8:23:09 AM
|
Perhaps they can assist on the Boeing production line now.
MUSA FTW.
|
1-Feb-2020 11:56:41 AM
|
On 1-Feb-2020 phillipivan wrote:
>MUSA FTW.
?
|
1-Feb-2020 12:43:07 PM
|
Pi wrote:
>The end of an era: no more stuck cams.
I’m saddened to hear of this, and would have thought the percentage of gym climbers taking on the great outdoor challenges would have been an expanding market for gear manufacturers.
Their karabiners were a bit heavy but filled a price-point niche for many I guess. Personally I like their Link Cams, and have never had a problem with any of them ever becoming stuck.
The only potential issue I’ve noticed with the largest size of them is that they can tend to ‘roll’ in some flare type placements if not placed carefully with that possibility in mind. It doesn’t seem to be an issue with the smaller sizes.
Link cams are an excellent piece of kit in my opinion and the two larger sizes that I carry on my rack I generally try not to use during pitches, due husbanding them for belay construction due to their versatility.
I'm not a great fan of the smaller sizes because I use much lighter tri-cam nuts for pro in those situations.
I guess those on my rack just went up in value due to now becoming collectors items!
Heh, heh, heh.
|
1-Feb-2020 6:09:19 PM
|
On 1-Feb-2020 White Trash wrote:
>On 1-Feb-2020 phillipivan wrote:
>>MUSA FTW.
>
>?
Made in the USA. The sign of quality that isn’t.
|
2-Feb-2020 2:46:03 AM
|
Sad days for Spokane. I bought 5 Doval krabs specifically for glacier travel. They are nice and red and show up well when I (invariably) drop them in the snow while faffing around at anchor. I also have their locking D's and ovals. Maybe not the lightest gear but always bomber.
|
2-Feb-2020 8:36:45 AM
|
I still have my first set of draws made by OP. Not for the minimalist. On the plus aide I suspect they’ll be available in the chains and fasteners section at Bunnings for many years yet
|
2-Feb-2020 2:30:07 PM
|
Good fuching riddance!
It blows my mind that anyone can be ok with prison slave labour. Imagine how annoying it was for other gear manufacturers trying to compete with a company which paid its production line staff two dollars an hour (plus kickbacks to the corrupt prison officials).
|
2-Feb-2020 9:45:26 PM
|
On 2-Feb-2020 One Day Hero wrote:
>Good fuching riddance!
>
>It blows my mind that anyone can be ok with prison slave labour. Imagine
>how annoying it was for other gear manufacturers trying to compete with
>a company which paid its production line staff two dollars an hour (plus
>kickbacks to the corrupt prison officials).
That's a bit of a twitter-reaction isn't it?
Read the articles:
"Inmates employed by Omega Pacific were paid from minimum wage—$7.16 an hour at the time—to over $9 an hour for a variety of jobs,"
"inmates who participate in this program were 87 percent less likely to re-offend than inmates who didn't. Besides learning how to become metalworkers, machine operators, clerks and assemblers, these men were able to remain a viable and integral part of the lives of their families on the outside."
|
3-Feb-2020 8:21:54 AM
|
On 1-Feb-2020 phillipivan wrote:
>Omega Pacific is closing down. We are going to need a new primary source of fixed gear.
Okay now I’m intrigued. Please tell us of your experiences of fixing, or finding fixed, Omega cams, and why you think this is so.
In my experience bumblies might buy and lose them because they were more affordable but this certainly wasn’t the case with high cost Link Cams, and I think bumblies are also equally adept at fixing/losing other brands of climbing gear as well.
|
3-Feb-2020 8:35:58 AM
|
On 2-Feb-2020 martym wrote:
>On 2-Feb-2020 One Day Hero wrote:
>>Good fuching riddance!
>>
>>It blows my mind that anyone can be ok with prison slave labour. Imagine
>>how annoying it was for other gear manufacturers trying to compete with
>>a company which paid its production line staff two dollars an hour (plus
>>kickbacks to the corrupt prison officials).
>That's a bit of a twitter-reaction isn't it?
>Read the articles:
>"Inmates employed by Omega Pacific were paid from minimum wage—$7.16 an
>hour at the time—to over $9 an hour for a variety of jobs,"
>"inmates who participate in this program were 87 percent less likely to
>re-offend than inmates who didn't. Besides learning how to become metalworkers,
>machine operators, clerks and assemblers, these men were able to remain
>a viable and integral part of the lives of their families on the outside."
Facts aren't woke.
|
3-Feb-2020 2:51:43 PM
|
Chloe,
Experience climbing with them is limited to a few pitches with a Canuck at Araps a decade ago, and Angels with a Scandinavian at Buffalo marginally more recently. However, for a relatively uncommon cam they have made up for more than their fair share of fixed cams I’ve found. I don’t recall any of these being retrieved, they were well stuck. Not sure it’s that interesting really.
pi
|
4-Feb-2020 6:26:24 AM
|
Yes I've owned 3 of these for a while and not found them to be prone to getting stuck any more than normal cams.
That said, did lose a green one at Rosea once ..
|
4-Feb-2020 1:42:58 PM
|
On 3-Feb-2020 phillipivan wrote:
>(snip)
>Not sure it’s that interesting really.
>
... Other than the catchy thread title that alludes to potentially interesting campfire yarns.
The master storyteller is still priming us for the punchline that’s coming?
~> Channel your inner ODH and unleash the beast of embellishment to spice up our jaded appetites!
Heh, heh, heh.
|
5-Feb-2020 9:13:42 AM
|
I've had a couple of Link Cams for years, and apart from being a little heavier, I love them. Never had a problem with getting them out, either.
But... I can imagine how it happens. Normally if you misjudge the size of a crack and the nut or cam you grab is too big, you simply grab something smaller. With a Link Cam, usually you just pull the trigger harder! With that mindset, I can see people becoming fixated on getting the cam they are fiddling with to fit instead of simply grabbing another piece like they should.
|
6-Feb-2020 7:18:52 AM
|
I've used a link cam from my brothers rack off and on - it just never seemed to provide the security which a good Camelot or other does. Those itty bitty little metal bits just seems like they are ready to snap at any moment.
|
6-Feb-2020 7:20:15 AM
|
On 6-Feb-2020 Olbert wrote:
> Those itty bitty little metal bits just seems like they are ready to snap at any moment.
And indeed, they are. Not good for any kind of twisting or off-axis force.
|
20-Feb-2020 5:39:30 AM
|
Thank you pi for elaborating, and you are right about your experiences with stuck cams not being that interesting, though your thread title, like some book covers, implied more!
|