Anyone have a good experience with Black Diamond ropes recently?

K Dubwrote:

Before I had this coupon, I was thinking of getting a Sterling rope next. Now not so sure... I had always heard good things.

Based on all these reviews, thinking it's going to be a roll of the dice with this BD rope. May not even be worth it.

I've climbed on, and destroyed, pretty much every major brand of rope (except edelrid) and sterling is definitely my favorite and I keep going back to them. Only had one sterling fall apart with quickness, a 9mmx70m that coreshot going over an edge.

I have a Sterling Aero that is on its 3rd year and has been used as my primary that's still totally solid. 

Take into account some people are just harder on their ropes. It's not always about the manufacturer.

ryan climbs sometimes wrote:

i have 9.2 rope all yellow or gold that just won’t die. more like a 9.4/5 though 

Their 9.2 mm rope is now orange. Have to assume a downgrade I imagine.

Meh, my sterling Evo lasted forever and handled well and I'd say it gave the best bang for the buck of any rope I've owned, though I've got high hopes for a Beal unicore that I'm about to start using as my skinny, short primary.

Number of pitches and falls, terrain (amount the rope rubs on the rock and how abrasive the rock is), and terrain of falls (probably most important) all matter a ton! Plus, sometimes a damaged rope is just a random occurrence - you wouldn't blame your car manufacturer if someone rear-ended you a week or two into ownership.

My favorite rope was my old partner's Petzl 9.2, which handled like a dream and never seemed to lose its smooth handling the season we used it taking long, repeated falls on our sport project every weekend, but it also retails for 300+. 

I've never spent more than 200 on a rope and have never had a major issue, but also never found one that handled as nicely as that Petzl did for as long as it did. My BD 9.4 still runs smoothly (no fuzz factor) but some ropes keep that smooth 'new rope feel' for longer than others. I'd say it's been about average in that regard.

They used to be made by Roca (Spain) and now made by Lanex(Czech). Lanex white labels for quite a few brands, Tendon is "their" brand, BD, OCUN, Trango, and maybe some more.
I agree with what OP states about quality diving off in 18-19 when they switched production to Lanex. I've heard people experience similar to Slims, inconsistent. Buy one and fall in love, buy the next its garbage.

BTW, if you've never tried Roca made ropes, I think they're absolutely top tier and worth trying. Moved to them after using a friends when in spain. Will be buying another for sure. On par with Mammut and Edelrid ropes I've had. I will say Mammut has never disappointed me. Edelweiss by far has made the worst rope I've ever bought, might have been just that one model, or rope, but so bad I'm scarred for life.

Edelweiss by far has made the worst rope I've ever bought, might have been just that one model, or rope, but so bad I'm scarred for life.

that’s interesting..I’ve had super good luck with their ropes and I’m on my 3rd. Care to elaborate on what went wrong? Are they known for being a cheaper rope brand? I’m not very “in the loop” with ropes, but like sterling for ice and edelweiss for trad and the occasional sport route. 

PB Jellywrote:

I have a BD 9.9mm from last year and it stood up fairly well. I used it as a workhorse for trad, sport and top rope with the kids. It saw some pretty nasty edges and I'm pleasantly surprised.

However my trad partner has a 9.4 (non dry) that got frayed after lowering at some popular anchor, he was unpleasantly surprised.

Honnestly, I will probably go back to Mammut for the next one anyway beause of the handling. It is not a bad rope (mine), it is just ok, not outstanding. The only reason I would buy another BD rope is the -25% they offer on gear sometimes.

mammut is now made by lanex. pick up the crag rope, it feels nothing like the older infinity or tusk (which i really liked). on the other hand if you like the crag rope, it is very similar to the cheaper bd ropes. 

petzl logicwrote:

mammut is now made by lanex. pick up the crag rope, it feels nothing like the older infinity or tusk (which i really liked). on the other hand if you like the crag rope, it is very similar to the cheaper bd ropes. 

Isn't Mammut owned by Teufelberger, thought that was in 2016? Did they sell again to Lanex?

And my edelweiss rope just basically fell apart, Threads sticking out all over after one use, crazy fuzz after only a few lowers, the slightest abrasion seemed to destroy the sheath, mediocfre at best hand feel... just such a bad experience I never revisited. 

Had a BD rope that didn't even last a full season. Never again. You get what you pay for!

The only rope I've had core shot was a BD

Easy Cheesewrote:

Had a BD rope that didn't even last a full season. Never again. You get what you pay for!

Is that a reflection of the rope or of how you treated it?

I have mostly used mammut ropes the past 10 years but the last few haven’t been quite as nice, but no big deal.  I have a couple of Edelrid ropes I got on pro-deal (a 60m and a 70m) that I’ve used a ton over the past year.  They’ve been good but nothing too special.

I used to get Blue Water but they’ve been expensive lately and I can’t usually find them on sale.

I basically buy whatever is on sale in a diameter/weight range I like.  It all evens out in the end.  Some are great , some aren’t, but they all work just fine.  When I’ve core shot ropes it’s usually my fault or bad circumstances, can’t really blame the rope I don’t think.

I’ve had dozens and dozens of ropes over the past 44 years of climbing and I just don’t think it matters much.

Mr Rogerswrote:

Isn't Mammut owned by Teufelberger, thought that was in 2016? Did they sell again to Lanex?

And my edelweiss rope just basically fell apart, Threads sticking out all over after one use, crazy fuzz after only a few lowers, the slightest abrasion seemed to destroy the sheath, mediocfre at best hand feel... just such a bad experience I never revisited. 

i don’t think it was an ownership change but just to save them some money. i’ve been told not every lanex rope is the same quality but on the low end they seem pretty stretchy and more supple and the expense of “toughness”. my friends that have had them and climb a lot seem to replace those lower end ones faster than i have had to, that’s all. i’d like to try some of the higher end ones but i’m good for awhile. 

K Dubwrote:

Their 9.2 mm rope is now orange. Have to assume a downgrade I imagine.

kind of annoying that they switched colors.  in the past the orange/red was the 9.6'ish and yellow was 9.2 to 9.4.  i have 2 of the red 9.6's and 3 of the yellow 9.2 to 9.4.  not sure why they felt a need to throw a wrench into things, but BD seems to like to avoid keeping things simple.

At what point are these complaints just whining?

I had just retired a BD rope after ~2.5 years of use. Would be happy to have another. It handled very well, and the wear was not excessive for the use it was put through.

I wish I could tell you for sure which one it was, but I didn’t buy it, it was one of those raffle things, and I no longer have the rope in my possession, I donated it it.

100% sure that it was green, and 60m.

99% sure it was 9.4 and dry-treated. 

I have a red 70m 9.6 for almost 2 years that I like just fine. It's taken a beating, with plenty of falls, top rope soloing, rain and mud, etc, and is pretty fuzzy but still going strong. I kinked the hell out of it pulling through a poorly set up anchor and its mostly returned to normal.

I've used my friends 60m 9.6 that was of identical quality 

Kyle Elliottwrote:

I've climbed on, and destroyed, pretty much every major brand of rope (except edelrid) and sterling is definitely my favorite and I keep going back to them. Only had one sterling fall apart with quickness, a 9mmx70m that coreshot going over an edge.

I have a Sterling Aero that is on its 3rd year and has been used as my primary that's still totally solid. 

Take into account some people are just harder on their ropes. It's not always about the manufacturer.

How'd you decide among the Aero, Quest, and IonR? They all look good. For sport, I couldn't really decide. Based on these reviews, I may just keep my coupon and buy Sterling.

MattHwrote:

Meh, my sterling Evo lasted forever and handled well and I'd say it gave the best bang for the buck of any rope I've owned, though I've got high hopes for a Beal unicore that I'm about to start using as my skinny, short primary.

Number of pitches and falls, terrain (amount the rope rubs on the rock and how abrasive the rock is), and terrain of falls (probably most important) all matter a ton! Plus, sometimes a damaged rope is just a random occurrence - you wouldn't blame your car manufacturer if someone rear-ended you a week or two into ownership.

My favorite rope was my old partner's Petzl 9.2, which handled like a dream and never seemed to lose its smooth handling the season we used it taking long, repeated falls on our sport project every weekend, but it also retails for 300+. 

I've never spent more than 200 on a rope and have never had a major issue, but also never found one that handled as nicely as that Petzl did for as long as it did. My BD 9.4 still runs smoothly (no fuzz factor) but some ropes keep that smooth 'new rope feel' for longer than others. I'd say it's been about average in that regard.

Which Evolution? There was Evolution Velocity, Aero 9.2, VR10, even Duetta 8.4. I'm guessing the Velocity.

I think that's the Petzl Volta you're talking about. I have a new one still wrapped, waiting for the weather to warm up. I've heard similar reviews. Supposed to be the best. Even the Petzl Contact 9.8 is soft and handles amazingly well. I've seen one on TR in a gym. Thing lasted over a year.

petzl logicwrote:

mammut is now made by lanex. pick up the crag rope, it feels nothing like the older infinity or tusk (which i really liked). on the other hand if you like the crag rope, it is very similar to the cheaper bd ropes. 

This is really disappointing. The Mammut Infinity Classic was a great rope. It was my first one. Still going as a gym rope after it was retired from outdoor use. Won't die. It's about to be too short.

ryan climbs sometimes wrote:

bluewater 

Jeff Gwrote:

I have mostly used mammut ropes the past 10 years but the last few haven’t been quite as nice, but no big deal.  I have a couple of Edelrid ropes I got on pro-deal (a 60m and a 70m) that I’ve used a ton over the past year.  They’ve been good but nothing too special.

I used to get Blue Water but they’ve been expensive lately and I can’t usually find them on sale.

I basically buy whatever is on sale in a diameter/weight range I like.  It all evens out in the end.  Some are great , some aren’t, but they all work just fine.  When I’ve core shot ropes it’s usually my fault or bad circumstances, can’t really blame the rope I don’t think.

I’ve had dozens and dozens of ropes over the past 44 years of climbing and I just don’t think it matters much.

I've heard good things about Bluewater but I've never climbed on one. What are your favorite models?

Mr Rogerswrote:

Isn't Mammut owned by Teufelberger, thought that was in 2016? Did they sell again to Lanex?

And my edelweiss rope just basically fell apart, Threads sticking out all over after one use, crazy fuzz after only a few lowers, the slightest abrasion seemed to destroy the sheath, mediocfre at best hand feel... just such a bad experience I never revisited. 

Mammut is owned by Swiss private equity. I don't think there's any rope manufacturer who could afford them. I think they just contract the labor out. Teufelberger makes a lot of good ropes including Maxim and Petzl (although I've also heard Edelrid makes them for Petzl).

Thanks for all the reviews. Might get a 9.2 or 9.4 non-dry and see how it plays out. Can always chop it and make it a gym rope.

FYI for those interested in trying Bluewater, they are typically discounted on eBay, 30-40% for previous years or discontinued models. I got exceptional life from my 9.2, never got fuzzy or soft spots but eventually started giving harder catches. I've got my eye on a beautiful 70m 9.1 bi-pattern, it's sitting in my cart but I don't need rope at all right now so I can't pull the trigger, lol. 

Doug Chismwrote:

FYI for those interested in trying Bluewater, they are typically discounted on eBay, 30-40% for previous years or discontinued models. I got exceptional life from my 9.2, never got fuzzy or soft spots but eventually started giving harder catches. I've got my eye on a beautiful 70m 9.1 bi-pattern, it's sitting in my cart but I don't need rope at all right now so I can't pull the trigger, lol. 

Good to know! Bluewater ropes are my favorites.  Can’t justify buying one right now, as we have two ropes going at the moment, and one of them has only had 2 days of climbing so far. But I expect to retire the old Bluewater I currently have at the end of spring or summer season, and would be shopping then. 

K Dubwrote:

Which Evolution? There was Evolution Velocity, Aero 9.2, VR10, even Duetta 8.4. I'm guessing the Velocity.

Mine was the vr10 (aka the Kosmos). Cheap 10mm workhorse but felt like a 9.6 and took forever to get fuzzy - after ~3-4 years of weekend use I only had to cut it from 60->50 after stupidly TR soloing on a sharp granite quarry with no rope guard over the edge (developing a DWS cliff). Everyone I've ever run into with it has the same review: 'Yours is still kicking too? IDK how this is 10mm, and IDK how I'm still using it all these years later'. Best $150 I've ever spent on gear, for sure. If the new vr10 is the same as mine, I'd definitely recommend it as a 'beat em up' workhorse or just something you can use as a gym rope for years.

I will say that I also inherited my friend's 9.8 Evo Velocity that he'd used for a season as a bigwall rope before quitting climbing and it handled much worse (stiffer, fatter feeling, etc) but also took a licking like nobody's business, so there's definitely a lot of variability across models in that line of ropes.