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Climbing Gear |
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So you've started climbing, your tendons are toughening up nicely and now you want some kit. Jon Kirk, climber, news hound and former Chalk magazine editor, picks the best of the essential equipment you'll need Click to view Top 5 Climbing Gear.
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Buyers Guide and Overview |
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 Whether you've just caught the climbing bug and want to buy your own kit for the first time or you're planning to replace existing equipment, the main points to consider remain the same. You'll be faced with a vast choice - including an abundance of useless tat at exorbitant prices. So it pays to know what to look for.
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Buying the right gear at the outset to suit your requirements and goals is a necessary evil. Without quality equipment, you simply won’t perform at your best, or get the most out of the work you put in. It’s like playing tennis with a wooden racket. Sure, you’ll hit the ball, but the power of your stroke and the accuracy of your serve will be impaired, putting you at a disadvantage.
Wherever possible, try not to skimp on essentials like rock shoes - many brands offer "beginner" ranges but these are often as useless as they are cheap. Paying a bit extra for a decent pair will aid your climbing and give you confidence on harder routes.
Equally, though, there is little point of splashing out on top-of-the-range gear after a single visit to an indoor wall, so take your time and consider the options. |
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 And so it is true with climbing kit. Wherever possible, try not to skimp on essentials like rock shoes - many brands offer "beginner" ranges but these are often as useless as they are cheap. Paying a bit extra for a decent pair, like the Scarpa Vantage (pictured) will aid your climbing and give you confidence on harder routes.
Equally, though, there is little point of splashing out on top-of-the-range gear after a single visit to an indoor wall, so take your time and consider the options. |
Safety First |
All climbing equipment sold in the UK is rigorously safety tested. However spending a little more on a good rope, harness, belay-plate (for the uninitiated, that's a little friction device to break a fall), karabiner and helmet will boost your confidence and give you that extra peace of mind.
Thoroughly check the suitability of anything you intend to buy in the shop - use common sense before parting with any cash.
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| Ropes |
You might like to check the number of "UIAA falls" a rope can withstand before buying. The UIAA or Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (The International Climbing and Mountaineering Organisation) rates ropes by the number of falls they can absorb before failure - though a rope should, of course, be checked after any fall.
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 Fall factors are a useful way of gauging how the force generated by a fall will be absorbed by the ropes and runners you have in place. Fall factors are calculated by taking the length of a fall and dividing it by the amount of rope available to absorb it. For example, if you were 30m up and your last runner was at 28m, a fall would result in a 4m drop (you are 2m above the fixed point and will fall to 2m below it) with 30m of rope to absorb it – thus producing a fall factor of 4/30 = 0.13: a very low impact.
For more information about the methods used to safety-test products, contact the British Mountaineering Council (BMC), the sport’s UK governing body.
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| Quick-draws |
 Most walls now provide in-situ quick-draws (the linked snapgate karabiners used to secure ropes to bolt points and so on), and are not covered in detail in this guide for that reason. For the walls that don’t have them, or for more experienced beginners wishing to lead bolted routes outside, try Clog’s lightweight quick-draw set (pictured).
Dubbed "the workhorse" of beginners’ racks, the 10mm karabiners are easy to clip and at just £9.50 including the sling, are a bargain to boot. The company also produces an affordable range of nuts, cams and other items needed for traditional lead climbing. |
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| Non-essentials |
 Non-essential extras like chalk bags (and chalk) can be found easily online, or at most outdoor shops.
For a quick fix, you can’t go wrong with Moon Climbing’s small chalk bag, which comes in an assortment of colours for £10 (pictured). The company’s own brand chalk – Moon Dust – is also a good buy: £5 will buy you 300g; enough for several visits to the wall. |
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| And finally ... |
| Have a clear idea of what you want before you go into a store. Don’t let a fast-talking salesman talk you into buying unsuitable or unreasonably priced products. |
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