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Cam failure discussion 21-Apr-2015 At 7:07:19 PM Wendy

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On 21/04/2015 One Day Hero wrote:

>
>The placements are great but a lot of the rock at Frog is glassy as hell,
>hence the number of people who hit the ground because their cams slide
>out. Same with Araps.

Just run a few examples by me again? I can't remember ever actually taking a big winger at Frog, but this theory about friction apparantly applies regardless of the force. If it's going to go, it'll go with a tug as much as a fall. Which I assume is the reason for thinking a tug is a somehow sufficient test as well. In the light of that, I have slumped onto plenty of gear at Frog. None of them moved. I have screamed onto more than my fair share of pieces at Araps. Nothing that I expected to hold moved. So that leads me to conclude that either:

A: I am very lucky
B: The rock isn't really that slippery
C: People just aren't "placing" (not setting!) their cams well

I am going with option C - Australia's crags aren't exactly bristling with this problem. Maybe other crags are (and I haven't been to Bungers since the 90s, so I can't comment on there). When you have a choice (like No Future, or Trojan), place something else other than the cam in the glassy slot. Make sure any glassy slot you do have to use is not the only thing between you and the ground. Or revert to the leader shall not fall mantra.

I shall be at Frog in 5 weeks (not that I"m counting down at all) - I shall do some experimental "setting" of cams in varying degrees of smooth rock and report back if any of them move. I'll do the same at the Mt tomorrow. I'm quite curious if I can make a perfectly good looking cam come out with a little Wendy weld. And my cams are much nicer than that horrible old one in the video. I think his main mistake was climbing on old metolious cams!

Very few people seem to hit the ground with cams
>sliding out at Buffalo, Booroomba, the Blueys, etc.

Very few people actually go climbing at Buffalo, Booroomba or Blueys trad ...