Grigri+

Well I gave it my all, did my best to get used to it. Going to YouTube, comments from this site talking to climbers, decided to give the grigri2 and had no problem what so ever loved it.

wat?

A clearer explanation of your thoughts would be appreciated Rudy. I am struggling on which to purchase so I would like to hear some opinions. 

Doug Chism wrote:

A clearer explanation of your thoughts would be appreciated Rudy. I am struggling on which to purchase so I would like to hear some opinions. 

Yes Doug i took the grigri+ to gym i understand this sweet spot, but it was annoying for me personally,  while lowering off of top rope it kept locking no matter how careful i was. Gym personnel  tried it and didnt seem to like it.I am selling it but purchased the grigri2 and am very happy with it. This is my personal opinion

GriGri 2 for the win

Rudy Chavira wrote:

Yes Doug i took the grigri+ to gym i understand this sweet spot, but it was annoying for me personally,  while lowering off of top rope it kept locking no matter how careful i was. Gym personnel  tried it and didnt seem to like it.I am selling it but purchased the grigri2 and am very happy with it. This is my personal opinion

So the device seemed to engage the cam to easily while lowering at the gym? I'd guess the gym might be using pretty fat/stiff gym ropes, 10.5 or thicker. For those climbing outside on 10.5 and skinnier ropes the GriGri+ is awesome, especially because it can handle skinnier ropes that the GriGri 2...

My in depth review of the GriGri+ is here:

https://northeastalpinestart.com/2017/05/18/gear-review-petzl-grigri/

Rudy Chavira wrote:

Yes Doug i took the grigri+ to gym i understand this sweet spot, but it was annoying for me personally,  while lowering off of top rope it kept locking no matter how careful i was. Gym personnel  tried it and didnt seem to like it.I am selling it but purchased the grigri2 and am very happy with it. This is my personal opinion

I replaced my grigri2 with a grigri+.  It's not really an issue of "being careful" or not, it's just geometry.  If you pull the lever past a certain angle, the cam locks back up.  That's it.

With the 2 the comfortable method is to grasp the brake strand, release the lever, and when you feel the cam disengaging (the rope tries to move), you gradually release your grasp so the rope feeds through the device.  If you try to do this with the grigri+ you'll cause it to lock every time.

Instead, pull the lever to where experience tells you is before the "lock" re-engages.  Then gradually release your grasp.  Finally, through combination of fine-tuning the lever and grasp you control how fast the rope feeds.

It's different for sure, but after a short period of acclimating to the change I find the + feeds rope significantly more smoothly when lowering both on top rope (with rope wraps increasing friction at the top) and on lead.

Is the above too much effort?  Well, just crank the lever back, let it lock, and crank it back some more and you've got classic grigri2 behaviour.

YMMV of course.

I realize this is an old thread but PSA: you can override the anti-panic on the GriGri+ so it lowers just like a GriGri 2. All you have to do is continue to pull back further on the handle and voila! I do this every time I lower on gym ropes.

Technology is progress real quick even in rock climbing equipments. No doubt grigri is a good belay device. I owned a first generation grigri. 

It could be dangerous for beginners not in terms of safety but the lost of knowledge of using a ‘traditional’ belay devices. I noticed in forums there’s many questions were asked like: 

1. How to use an ATC belay device

2. How to abseil with ATC

3. How to top belay with ATC & etc

grigri indeed a very convenient device but less versatile compared to a more traditional devices like figure 8, ATC & etc. When I climb with newer climbers I’ll make it a point that they start with ATC before using a grigri. I do not wish the newer generation of climbers lost the essence of how to operate a basic belay device. 

Just sharing my thoughts. 

I used a new grigri+ today for the first time, I think the only thing that makes it better than the 2 or original is that a hundred pound climber will have a much easier time lowering a 200lb climber. I'll be wearing out my current grigris before buying a +.

 YGD.

T Roper wrote: I used a new grigri+ today for the first time, I think the only thing that makes it better than the 2 or original is that a hundred pound climber will have a much easier time lowering a 200lb climber. I'll be wearing out my current grigris before buying a +.

 YGD.

Why is that any easier?  Just curious, aren't the mechanics of it the same? 

Brad Johnson wrote:

Why is that any easier?  Just curious, aren't the mechanics of it the same? 

It only lets you lower someone at about 1/2 speed, after you get used to it you can finesse it into lowering faster but never as fast as the originals let you. I can see why many people said its perfect for gyms and new climbers. It didnt feed rope any better IMO, just smoother lowering.

T Roper wrote:

It only lets you lower someone at about 1/2 speed, after you get used to it you can finesse it into lowering faster but never as fast as the originals let you. 

Totally wrong. See above (or the Petzl documentation) for instructions on overriding anti panic. 

Aidan Raviv wrote:

Totally wrong. See above (or the Petzl documentation) for instructions on overriding anti panic. 

like I said, perfect for gyms and new climbers

As a person who has exclusively used an ATC up to this point, should I get the 2 or the +?  The reviews seem pretty split on the +, with a number of people saying get the 2 instead.  But is that just because the + is a little different technique than the 2 that they were all accustomed to?  

I love the plus. I went from ATC to gri gri two and sold the two and continued to use an ATC for about another two years. I then decided to go back and give a gri gri a try again and went with the plus. I find it is a little easier to feed on lead. Enough so that I have kept it and use it exclusively now. Its not hard to find the sweet spot for lowering like some have suggested and also it can be overridden if you continue to pull back on the lever. Since most gri gri accidents I have heard of are because of panicking and continuing to hold the lever down I think the added function of the plus is a big plus.

Also it has a smaller lip for your index finger that has less purchase but I find with the easier feeding of the + it works well. I think they wanted it this way so that when a climber does fall your finger will slip off easier letting the cam engage. just and extra design feature I found that could prevent something unlikely but still was addressed in this design. 

Matt S. wrote: As a person who has exclusively used an ATC up to this point, should I get the 2 or the +?  The reviews seem pretty split on the +, with a number of people saying get the 2 instead.  But is that just because the + is a little different technique than the 2 that they were all accustomed to?  

I'd vote for the + and if you haven't already see my detailed review here: northeastalpinestart.com/20…;

Thank you for the quick replies!  I figured I should pick one up since they're on sale for 25% off on backcountry and another 8% back with Active Junky.