No response from Fixe Hardware support

Thanks for the update, Greg.

Greg Barnes wrote:

Powers stopped making the 5-piece in carbon steel, it is only made in stainless steel. The new bolt (Power-bolt+) should not be called a 5-piece. It has a smaller bolt core (1/4" instead of 5/16") and is half the strength of the tried-and-true 5-piece (Power-bolt+ is around 4000 lbs shear vs nearly 8000 lbs for the 5-piece aka Power-bolt). The 3/8" size is marginal on strength and really should not be used for climbing at all (just like 3/8" Powers Lok-bolts and plenty of other manufacturer's 3/8" sleeve bolts). Also the torque specs have changed, actually if you follow the link to the Powers site and check out the guide torque it is 20 for the 3/8" and 40 for the 1/2".

Greg,

What bolt are you recommending now?  What is your opinion of the 3/8 wedge in dry desert environments?

Stainless steel only.

Stud bolts are marginal in medium/softer rock, so it depends on the rock.

With the new spinning techniques, stud bolts are more removable than in the past - still the ASCA stopped using them 15+ years ago since they are not easily removed. Having said that I'd much rather that people place good quality stainless stud bolts than any non-stainless bolt (assuming the rock quality is good enough, at some point you have to move to something with great expansion like a 5-piece, and then if the rock gets really soft then nothing will last except long glue-ins).

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Maintenance for Classic Aliens
Use & Placement Instructions

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