Starting trad in Boulder - What would my ideal rack look like?

I am fairly new to trad. Having recently moved to Boulder I feel that this is the perfect time to lean into it. I plan to start on super low grades and work my way up.
As a beginner I am pretty scared and I want to make sure that I have the right gear (and at the same time I am quite price sensitive).

Any advice would be much appreciated: what to buy, where to but it, price estimates, etc.

Thanks!

Just buy a double rack of tricams.

Just kidding, snag a single rack .3-3, a set of nuts (whatever’s on sale) with a nut tool and some alpine draws. Pretty sure REI is doing their annual sale soon and others often follow... you should be able to put a starter rack together for $600-750

Hey Jared,
What do you think about buying second hand cams?
I found these on Facebook, and from the research I've done it seems as though cams are okay to buy second hand if they look good.
I managed to get the price down to $450 for the set of 9 - which seems great.. But I wanna be able to trust them... Any thoughts?

Hey Rick! Those cams look good too me, but remember YGD! Keep everything smaller than the .3 off of your harness and get some nuts. You should know how to place cams really well before you start placing tiny ones. My starter rack was a .4-4 C4 and a set of bd nuts. This was good enough for me to climb a bunch of stuff in Eldo.

Thanks C No. But I'm not sure what you mean by "YGD" if you said they look good to you? Doesn't YGD mean the gear looks dangerous/dodgy?

I am keeping an eye out for some nuts, I feel much more comfortable with second hand nuts than second hand cams.

Go climb some trad with someone and I bet youll figure it out quick.

TBH, I'd highly recommend climbing with someone who already has a rack. 

A) generally, experienced folks already have a rack with what they like, 

B) you get to use other stuff and find out what you like/ don't like without having to shell out for stuff that you end up not liking/using.

Also, second-had gear is fine, cams or not.  If it looks good, it is good.  Cause if that weren't true, how you gonna size up your partners rack (or your own beat up stuff, after a while).

That set on FB looks basically new and isn't a bad deal.

My two cents:

A single rack of BD's .3-3 (or equivalent manufacturer/sizes). Single set of nuts. 10-13 alpine draws (two or three double length for wandering routes). That will get you going. Having a double rack of cams is great later, which allows for options for routes. I personally find more use of smaller cams than larger ones, but i eventually broke down and purchased a 4,5,6 for those days in Vedauwoo. 

You can do a lot with passive protection for sure and its great to learn before just plugging cams. Personally, I always feel limited by how many alpine draws i have vs how much protection i have, so be aware of that. Most of my gear is second hand and i personally trust it and have fallen on it. Some people i know however, will not climb on second hand gear at all. To each their own i guess. 

Sorry Rick YGD was meant in jest. Trad climbing  is dangerous! If you aren’t already climbing with someone else’s rack you could/should search for a friend or mentor who can show you the ropes. Or hire a guide for the same purpose. Best of luck!

Thanks everybody! - all great comments.

Boulder sports recycler (northern edge of Boulder) and Wilderness exchange (a few steps north of the main REI shop in Denver) occasionally have good deals on used gear (consignment).

Standard rack that works well for me in Eldo/Flatirons/Boulder Canyon:

• Single set of nuts
• Doubles of Black Diamond Z4s 0.3 and 0.4 (or equivalent brand)
• Doubles of Black Diamond C4s 0.5 to 3 (or equivalent brand)
• 10 alpine draws
• 7mm nylon cord for cordelettes

Swap whatever brand/version of cam you want in for the above. Here's a good site that compares the sizes of cams from different manufactures: https://cam-parison.com

I'd vote doubles on the cams b/c as a new trad leader you're gonna wanna over protect and sinking in your only #3 cam down low not knowing if you'll need it higher up kinda sucks. Also if you need to build anchors for multi-pitches in Eldo a single rack of cams could be rough. Finger size cams can be much more finicky to place so make sure you know what you're doing before whipping on one.

The above poster has good points. Doubles would be sweet, but they aren’t needed. Start with climbing trad routes that have bolted anchors. Also a single rack is ample gear to build anchors with, you just might need to get super creative and pitch things out like the days of old. Short pitches to get your stuff back.

Cory Nwrote:

a single rack is ample...you just might need to get super creative and pitch things out

Rick, if you’re a new trad leader without a mentor, I would say that the above doesn’t apply to you yet.  Go doubles in at least .75 - 2 to start.

Hexes will be vital. The echo of the larger sizes is said to attract local trad legends from miles away. 

Jim Twrote:

Rick, if you’re a new trad leader without a mentor, I would say that the above doesn’t apply to you yet.  Go doubles in at least .75 - 2 to start.

I would agree with this, or better yet buy a single rack and climb with someone that has a single.  Also I didn't see anyone mention offset nuts, but I use those a lot at Edlo, I actually double up on a couple of sizes (DMM 7, 8, 9).  I also climb with a green DMM wired torque nut, and place it often as well, although I have been trying to only use a single rack of cams, I don't bring it with double C4's.

Single rack BD 0.3-4 or equivalent, doubles in 0.75-3, and a double set of stoppers, 5-10 alpine draws, 20' of chordalette. That way you can sew pretty much anything up in the Front range and still have gear left over for an anchor

Tim Fleegerwrote:

Also I didn't see anyone mention offset nuts, but I use those a lot at Eldo

Second!! Offsets are crucial for Eldo and the flatirons