I'm sure this has been brought up before but I couldn't find it on here anywhere. I'm also sure the responses will be 6 and a half dozen...but, anyone with experience with both of them have a preference? Pros and cons?
Gracias.

C3's

Mastercams are good, they place nicely, and they are safe too. No questiosn with them.

I own and use C3's though.

I've used all of them....Nothing works in all of the same places an Alien will. There is no question.

Sure those other cams are good in specific placements....but their triggers, rigidness or dual stems(C3's) create a fulcrum point that just doesn't allow them to work in the same places an Alien can.
Especially for aid climbing there is nothing better.

With the patent about up and the passing of Mr. Wagooner(sp?) RIP.
I curious to see who will pick up the design.

Something that makes me laugh about the master cams is the 2 wires used on the trigger. Metolious claims that the sheath CCH uses isn't "strong" enough so they put the wires in....BUT!! Then Metolious turns around and uses little pieces of cord for the connection between the cam lobes and the trigger....Hahaha....hypocrites!

josh

Aliens

I own and use a set of C3s, which is why I didn't list them...I'm just looking for a set of "doubles" and figured I'd branch out for versatility and range.

I have used both the master cams and aliens and I still like the aliens better. Whenever, I am sketched out and looking for gear placements I will reach for an alien first. They seem to have a larger caming range than the corresponding mastercams. Which means I am more likely guess right on which cam I should use.

Aliens , master cams not even close, C-3's whole different ball game


Nothing works like an Alien period......And this has to do with the softness of the cam lobes and the arrangement of the trigger.


Some Aliens have issues I can only speak for mine when I say they have NEVER EVER FAILED TO HOLD A FALL OR MY SORRY ASS , You must decide for yourself if you wish to use them or not as it has been shown that some can and do fail however IM quite suspicious of some of the failure claims floating around out there pictures or not and this has to do w/ the FACT that none of mine or any of my friends Aliens have ever failed on us.

primo, if you climb in areas with a lot of tricky/difficult placements, offset aliens would probably help you add some versatility to your rack. or maybe offset tcu's or offset master cams. i prefer the offset aliens though.

Aliens have a greater camming angle than Metolius cams (16 degrees for Aliens, 13.25 for Mastercams). This means that Aliens have a greater effective range, while Mastercams generate more outward force, which would give them greater holding power.

Aliens use a softer aluminum alloy (6061) than Mastercams (7075) in the cam lobes. I would think this would make Aliens grippier, but the lobes certainly wear down faster.

Aliens have had multiple documented cases of cam failure due to faulty manufacturing, and to my knowledge, Metolius has not.

-Scott

Can't beat aliens for difficult placements. Nothing else compares.

I've heard from someone that spoke with CCH that it is business as usual and aliens will continue to be made. Hopefully they can sort out their production issues.

C3's, I have a set for free climbing but tend not to use them much.

Mastercams, I really have tried to like them but I don't. TCU's, I use these all all the time. Great cam.

Thanks for all the input, fellas. I believe it's aliens for me. I was already leaning towards them, but just wanted to hear what other have to say.
I think the offset aliens would be best for me. I use my C3's quite a bit, but don't do any aid climbing so my 000 and 00 are rarely used. That being said, I have definitely placed them on lead as "mental pro" to get to the next good placement. I think the comparable alien sizes are rated stronger, so that could help.
Thanks again!

I have 2+ sets of aliens. For free climbing, I’d go with master cams.

Good luck finding hybrids, especially smaller sizes.

i used to be an alien guy but i ended up switching to master cams. They seemed similar but after using them i really want to go back to my aliens. The master cams get stuck in all kinds of placements due to (i think) the lack of cam stops. So when you pull the trigger the lobes cross at the bottom. Pretty annoying. Nothing places like an alien