I just purchased some Rock Empire cams and am going to test them this weekend. Any thoughts on the quality of this product? The kid I bought them from stated that they were Euro and therefore relatively unknown... ??

Fire away...

I believe they received a magazine award for 'Most Frequently Stuck and Abandoned by Gumbies.'

You get what you pay for!!! RE's over cam very easily and don't have much range, I abandonded my RE's after two uses! Quality Pretty Crappy (larger sizes!)!! I believe RE's are made in Russia! I do place the .25-1 sizes from time to time but would rather have a metolious there!

They are actually made in the Czech Republic, but my friend and I call them "Russian Cams" anyway.

I have some Durangos. The middle and larger sizes are just back-ups, but I still use the 3 smallest Durango's frequently. I find them pretty easy to place and I have accidentally tested my placements before...

Enough with the misinformation and conjecture. Just because RE cams don't look as cool or cost as much as other cams (and maybe aren't as good overall), doesn't mean they're crap. I owned 2 sets of the microrobots for 2 years and they held plenty of falls without any issue. Matter of fact, I've never heard of an RE cam failing, unlike another company I know of.

Go to their website for first-hand information. There you'll find that all their gear (including cams) is UIAA and CE certified. The latter isn't a safety cert, but the former is. It means their gear meets the same rigorous standards as any other company (BD, Petzl, Trango).

On this page you'll notice that their company is based in North America, specifically Squamish. I just got off the phone with them (1-888-765-4469) and learned that their cams are made in Czech Republic, not Russia, not some dude's basement in Alabama. Bear in mind that Black Diamond is "based" is Utah and at least some, if not all, of their cams are made in China.

I hope that helps clear things up.

My experience tends to suggest that the most commonly stuck cam is the Wild Country Friend. That's why I'll never buy one, and why if I used someone's rack that has them I groan when I see them hanging there.

My first set of cams was a set RE Robots. Those cams did not even have cam stops back then. Yet, at a cost of under $20 a piece I got a full set which, together with a set of ABC nuts and a few random hexes allowed me to start leading a lot of the routes in my area (Gunks). A couple of them got permanently fixed (not sure if that was due to their design or due to my limited experience at the time or due to a similarly limited experience of my second), a couple of the larger ones I did not like too much and slowly, bit by bit, I replaced them with a more standard "gunks cam rack" (aliens from blue to red and camalots from .5 to 3). I still keep and constantly use the two smallest RE Robots. They are 3-cam, not 4-cam units and compliment the aliens well. I took a few falls even on the smallest one and they always held well.
And to answer you questions:
1. The quality (as in "reliability") is good.
2. They are certified UIAA and CE.
3. They are Euro. (Czech, to be precise)
They do not have the expansion range of BD camalots, they may walk a bit more, but I would not hesitate climbing above one of those pieces.

Thanks for all the imput...I already have a rack but bought some extras so that I can have doubles and triples - doing some crack climbing in Moab this weekend and need extras - I agree that Metolius and BD are quality but I also think some times we are narrowminded and influenced by the "Big Boys" and the quality advertising campaigns that they are constantly engaged in . I personally prefer BD as well as Metolius - Yes Yes the constant debate "what is your life worth..." I get that but if they are quality - they may work for doubles and triples

I will try em out mix em with my Metolius / BD so that I have a back up ... but just wanted to get a conscensous...as usual I found it humerous to hear the obvious remarks that automatically assumed that I was a noob and buying this as my first rack LOL ... Fun for the whole family

Again you guys have been a good help and I will make sure I hide them when I climb so as not to be viewed as a "gumby" - Ow wait I dont give a shit LOL

Gumbies is as gumbies do. If you climb well, that's all that matter.

I'll go out on a silicone limb here and venture to guess that not all of her was made in the Czech Republic.....

Well, Dow-Corning accessories aside, the home grown production process provided an excellent platform from which to work.

;)

Tell me you didn't just suggest that Volkswagon parts are some kind of symbol of quality manufacturing....

Rad! I am glad that I was able to create such a playground out of a stupid question...I took the cams back...It still had the tags on em and got another BD 3 and the .75 which I didnt have.. Now I can fall at leisure...:)

You created?




We control the horizontal.

We control the vertical.

I'd climb above 'em

I have some. The action is a little stiffer than C4's, but I actually find them easier to place than C4's sometimes. I have not fallen on them, but have heard of people doing so. I definitely feel better with C4's below me, but maybe it is just a psychological thing, they have stood the test of time. I haven't heard any stories of cam failures for anything except for Aliens and OP LinkCams. So until a failure occurs, we can't really doubt them. They are tested and certified as far as I know.

I think they are the perfect supplement to a rack of more expensive brand names.

I was given the full set two years ago while in the CZ to try in the High Tatras. I liked them. I really liked the fact that I didn't have to give them back. Anyhow there just fine by me and for sure safe. The Czech's give the Swiss a good run for their money regarding being anal about all things technical.

very interesting and insightful post. more pictures please.