Big Bros vs big Cams

New to trad, so this may be dumb.

I've got a x3 rack up to #3 cams. Obvious next step is #4s? Or big bros? I've never seen them placed or climbed with anyone who has placed them... Would love some comments from experience! 

#4 cams
#5 and #6 IF the route specifies it

EDIT: Don't even consider getting Big Bros unless you get hooked on offwidth (same for cams larger than BD #6).

I’d make the decision primarily based on weight of the piece with price as secondary. 

Big bros are primarily for offwidths.  They are slower and more awkward to place.  A cam you can walk up the crack.  To some of us Big bros rarely feel completely secure.  They usually twist and turn easily making you wonder if they'll stick.  I have a set but only use one every few years.

It seems like money isn’t a barrier or problem, just buy everything and play around with it until you get bored, end up actually using it, or selling it. You’re considering to buy something you have never even seen used, might as well do it lol 

Cesar Cardenaswrote:

It seems like money isn’t a barrier or problem, just buy everything and play around with it until you get bored, end up actually using it, or selling it. You’re considering to buy something you have never even seen used, might as well do it lol 

Ha! My income in February was for sure less than the amount I spent on trad gear. But I'm in Utah, what else am I supposed to do? I didn't consider big bros until I saw 3 of them and 5 quick draws for less than my budget for 2 #4s and a #5.

Yea 

You get what you pay for 

there’s a reason the bros are much cheaper

Save money for the 4,5,6 

Then go doubles small to 4.

only need doubles in 5,6 and up if you are hella stoked on offwidth. 

What the hobo said. Number 4, 5, and 6 for cams. Big bros for bigger than that if you feel you need them. And even then, I’d rather have big cans.

Just think about how cam lobes have a lot more freedom of movement due to the individual lobes, esp the bigger ones, and imagine how rare it is (except for super splitters!) to have perfectly smooth sided cracks. I've never owned any big bros but have heard more than one person gripe about fiddly placements that take a while to have confidence in, although maybe part of that is user error/learning curve. Pretty easy to fire in a big cam though. Every so often you see a used BB come up so if you really want pick one up and play with it before committing to a whole rack. I'll bet the used one will feel like brand new.  And, although still bulky, the newer lighter big C4s are way less of a beast to haul up than they used to be. 

I have doubles+ up to #4.  I look at BIg Bros for wider protection, but have not bought any yet.  You need to be solid placing passive pro, because that is essentially what Big Bros are.  They are much more reliant on orientation and alignment in the crack, because once it is placed, you have to lock it, and if it walks at all, you have the potential for failure.

I play around with the idea of getting something in the #5/6 range as an insurance piece, not as something I would expect to set.  I tend not to climb really wide stuff, and if I do, it is featured enough that there are smaller cracks I can use for protection within or adjacent to the wide one.

New to trad? You don't need them. You probably don't need big cams past a #4 either. If you end up wanting to climb some wide cracks, get a set of big cams first, as needed. Consider big bros as pro to leave behind as you bump your big cams up the crack with you. They can also occasionally work to keep the rope from getting pinched or dragging cams into the lip of a roof crack.

I have placed one big bro on lead, and I hope I never have to do it again.  

If you are doing offwidths it is common practice to bump cams up as you climb. You can't do that with BigBros. 

I wouldn't recommend getting anything bigger than a 4 until you have doubles below that, unless you are really stoked on offwidth. 

Thanks for the overwhelming opinions and clarification. Looking at 2 #4s to start. I've only TR soloed an off-width and it was DUMB. Can't say it's my thing, but it was definitely and adventure. I feel like it would be more fun to lead it on gear. Heading to Zion. Hope it dries quickly!

Preston