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Is the Mammut Infinity worth the extra money?

Original Post
James1987 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 0

Hi all, new to the forum and appreciate any advice.

After 6 months of climbing I'm looking to buy my first rope. Mainly I will use it for indoor leading at first, with winter coming up, but will get the occasional outdoor sport route too. In the Spring I hope to do much more outdoor sport and maybe the odd trad climb when I'm with people with gear :-p.

The ropes I have been looking at are the Mammut Tusk 9.8mm or the Mammut Infinity 9.5mm.

Because I have found a good price on the Tusk it means the Infinity will be about £40 more ($60-ish?). Just wondering whether the extra cost will give better durability/performance to justify the price? Some people say to stay away from the Tusk but others say its great, and I have never heard anything but good stuff about the Infinity.

Any other ropes in this size range (9.5-10mm)that anyone can recommend.

Thanks a lot,

James

Callum Douglass · · Boulder, CO · Joined May 2013 · Points: 233

I would stay away from an expensive rope at this point. You won't really see the benefits of a thinner, lighter rope until you are climbing really hard or have very long approaches. I would go for a cheap 9.8mm rope. I personally prefer the Sterling Evolution Velocity 9.8.

James1987 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 0

The Mammut Infinity is £10 cheaper than the Sterling Evolution Velocity. (remember I am in the UK).

I can indoor lead a 6b, not sure of the comparative grade but think thats about a 5.10c/d? Dunno if that would impact the decision?

Thanks for the quick reply!

James

doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

Yes. Also, Mammut measures their ropes under tension, so the 9.5 Infinity feels the same if not fatter than Sterling Velocity. Tusk becomes stiff as an electric cord very fast.

Larry S · · Easton, PA · Joined May 2010 · Points: 872

James - I love the infinity, it's the best rope I've owned - handling and durability to size/weight are great. That said, for your first rope, get one that's cheap and decent that you don't mind beating up with gym climbing. Personally, I use a cheap 10+mm rope for the gym, top ropes, and most sport climbing.

Chris Schmidt · · Fruita, CO · Joined Nov 2012 · Points: 0

get the cheapest 9.8-10.2 you can find
but the infinity is absolutely amazing

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

James-- english 6B ??? that's more like 12B here or French 6B ?

The mammut Galaxy 10mm is a great all around rope, but pricey for sure

James1987 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 0

Yeah that would be French grade.

So if I was to go for a cheaper rope what would be some good options?

Thanks

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

There have been ads for Edelweiss 9.8 here for around US $110, don't know about UK pricing though

bearbreeder · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 3,065

for your experience level ... simply no ... youll be wasting the extra moola IMO

as a new climber youll be doing a lot of TR and moderate leads ... you dont need a thinner rope at this point and youll wear it out quicker than something like a galaxy or supernova

for your purposes simply get the cheapest 10mm rope that you can ... if you prefer to stick with mammut the supernova/vertex works fine and often go on sale for around 100-120$

as you can see i have some experience with mammut ropes and 2 infinities ...

gear ...

;)

Forthright · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2011 · Points: 110

I <3 my infinity

doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

They don't top rope in UK. So all these arguments against getting a nicer rope are kind of pointless.

bearbreeder · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 3,065
doligo wrote:They don't top rope in UK. So all these arguments against getting a nicer rope are kind of pointless.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7dPa2MGqhE

"top rope ... im on top rope ... TOOOOOPPP ROOOOPE ... top rope top rope top rope"

the brits i suspect TR as much as anyone else out there ...

;)
cnadel · · San Francisco, CA · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 5
doligo wrote:They don't top rope in UK. So all these arguments against getting a nicer rope are kind of pointless.
Except that the OP mentioned that he was going to use the rope primarily for indoor leading... If you plan on taking lots of falls and want your money's worth you should probably just spring for a cheap 9.8-10.2.
Eric G. · · Saratoga Springs, NY · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 70

FWIW, I don't know how you'd even really be able to appreciate the niceness of a skinny line if you never owned a fatter line.

My first rope was at least a 10.5, maybe thicker. I remember when I eventually bought my second rope - a 10.2 - and my girlfriend and I just couldn't believe how thin it was! SO FAST AND LIGHT!

Cue passage of time and several other rope purchases...

That 10.2 is now sits in a bin and is called The Furry Blue Monster.

doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

Ok, I'll bite then. Since the OP is across the pond, maybe you can get good prices on Millet ropes? I've got their Rock Up 10mm rope and it feels and handles skinnier than my Infinity. It retails almost $100 less than Infinity (in the US at least). Has held pretty well through the whole summer of almost daily sport climbing and a few trips to the Creek.

redlude97 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2010 · Points: 5

If you want a cheap skinny mammut, I've been pretty happy with my Mammut Climax 9.6 I got for $125 at the beginning of the summer. Its soft and supple unlike the Infinity but the wear isn't too bad so far.

bearbreeder · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 3,065
redlude97 wrote:If you want a cheap skinny mammut, I've been pretty happy with my Mammut Climax 9.6 I got for $125 at the beginning of the summer. Its soft and supple unlike the Infinity but the wear isn't too bad so far.
note that the climax weights MORE than the 10mm beal tiger

its often better to look at rope weight rather than diameter

;)
Paul H · · Pennsylvania · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 5

I would say go for the cheapest rope you can get in the 9.5 to 10.2 range - especially if you're going to be using it in the gym. I ended up buying a 30m 10.2 for $55 to use exclusively for the gym/shorter outdoor climbs. I save my nicer rope for outdoor leading.

redlude97 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2010 · Points: 5
bearbreeder wrote: note that the climax weights MORE than the 10mm beal tiger its often better to look at rope weight rather than diameter ;)
I don't know about you, but I use skinny ropes because they feed better and pack down smaller than fattys. Weight isn't the hugest concern, and I have my Infinity for multipitch
bearbreeder · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 3,065
redlude97 wrote: I don't know about you, but I use skinny ropes because they feed better and pack down smaller than fattys. Weight isn't the hugest concern, and I have my Infinity for multipitch
my 10.2mm tendon ambition feeds much better than my 9.5mm infinity in grigris and smarts

diameter is only one part of the equation of how a rope feeds ... anyone who has handled a slick beal/tendon 10.2 or a 10mm elderid python vs a stiff mammut tusk 9.8 can tell ya that

;)
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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