Which small cam to use ?

Hey guys ! I have a complet rack of c4 from .3to4. Now i doubled the number 1 one with c4 and doubled .4 .5 .75 with the WC friemds ,that i really appreciate. Now its time for me to buy some smallest one . And im pretty confuse on which one to choose. Heard of drangonfly , or kailas cam and the z4. Someone have use this cam and can tell me what the tought about it ? Thx

 FrankPS wrote:

https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118600086/micro-cams
https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118637577/have-you-whipped-big-on-tiny-gear#ForumMessage-118637625
https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/116973010/new-bd-cams
https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118311681/the-small-cam-rankcomparison-page
https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/117101072/new-black-diamond-z4
https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118260653/dmm-dragonfly-review-problemsflaw#ForumMessage-118289208

This should keep you busy until the quarantine is over.

Find some TCUs or powercams for cheap (25-35/cam) and use those until you feel like you need something different. I like mine a lot more than c4s up through the .4 C4 size.

The black totem (about a .2 c4) is one of the most confidence inspiring cams on my rack. The holding power especially in less than ideal placements is pretty impressive. That said, it depends on how small you wanna go. If you need anything smaller than a black totem I would go with the z4s. 

Andrew Schafer wrote: The black totem (about a .2 c4) is one of the most confidence inspiring cams on my rack. The holding power especially in less than ideal placements is pretty impressive. That said, it depends on how small you wanna go. If you need anything smaller than a black totem I would go with the z4s. 

Yes but its impossible to find this black totems hahaha

Julien Alarie wrote:

Yes but its impossible to find this black totems hahaha

They have them on the totem website

Andrew Schafer wrote:

They have them on the totem website

With the shipping in canada the black one cost me 160$ haha

Didn't I see some TCUs in the FS forum a few days ago? Cheap too IIRC.

Mikey Wally wrote: (but i don't climb hard enough to really need anything smaller than a black totem).

Can you explain what this means?  Not understanding what climbing hard has to do with cam size.

Kevin Mokracek wrote:

Can you explain what this means?  Not understanding what climbing hard has to do with cam size.

The harder the crack the thinner they tend to be I think is what he meant 

Andrew Schafer wrote:

The harder the crack the thinner they tend to be I think is what he meant 

There are loads of easy routes that you can use smaller cams on.  A tiny crack may be the only option for gear regardless of how difficult the route is.   Why limit your options.   Small cams are the most useful cams, you can never fit a larger cam in a small crack but you can sometimes fit a small cam in the back of a large crack.   I’ve never understood the mentality that ”I don’t climb hard enough to use micro cams”.  It means you don’t have a good imagination when it comes protection.

Kevin Mokracek wrote:

There are loads of easy routes that you can use smaller cams on.  A tiny crack may be the only option for gear regardless of how difficult the route is.   Why limit your options.   Small cams are the most useful cams, you can never fit a larger cam in a small crack but you can sometimes fit a small cam in the back of a large crack.   I’ve never understood the mentality that ”I don’t climb hard enough to use micro cams”.  It means you don’t have a good imagination when it comes protection.

I agree, but how many times have you placed a 00 or 000 c3 on a 5.10?

Andrew Schafer wrote:

I agree, but how many times have you placed a 00 or 000 c3 on a 5.10?

Quite a few times.   I’d rather be able to place a 000 C3 than nothing.   People seem to think that it might not hold a fall so why place it?  It just might hold your fall so why not place it?   Larger gear is great if you can get it but sometimes micro cams or wires are all that is available so why not use it?

Andrew Schafer wrote:

I agree, but how many times have you placed a 00 or 000 c3 on a 5.10?

Shoot I climbed 4 routes in a row one day where the first two pieces were 00 and 000 to protect the first 50ft. These were 5.8 lines. Slabby. Fun, not bolted

Metoleus TCUs.

I  just got a full set of z4s (and the offsets).  Even though I've only used them once, they were awesome and a great addition to my rack.  Prob won't ever leave home without some of them ever again.

the new BD z4s are pretty sweet. I have then down to a .3 but i've played around with the .2 and .1, Very nice cams

The new generation aliens are the ideal small cams to me. Very flexible, small head width, and the fact that they offer the doubled sling makes them my first choice.

If you need anything smaller than a black totem, ball nuts are pretty great. And they are stronger than equivalent sized cams

Julien Alarie wrote:

With the shipping in canada the black one cost me 160$ haha

https://shop.climbonsquamish.com/totem-cam.html?id=12220919

.1 size or smaller: I've only used for aid. Haven't needed for free climbing. Harder to place correctly due to small range, and sometimes not as strong or pulls out easier than bigger cams.

.2 size. (The Smallest the Totem comes in, the Black one)

Totem: holds very well. Good in parrelel and flared cracks. Expensive. Bulky.
The following are all inspired by CCH Aliens:
BD Z4 (replaced the X4). New. Not a lot of reviews on Z4s yet, mixed reviews on X4s.
Metolius Master Cams. Best Value. Inexpensive. Lacks a tumb loop.
DMM DragonFlies, a favorite of some people
Fixe Alien Revolutions, a favorite of some people

All of the above applies to .3 to .5 or.75 as well.

Go to a good gear shop and play with all of them. Everyone has different preferences. Of course climbing with them is even better if you have partners with different brands.