Outstanding belay device

By Stephen Koch Ranked #19 - Big Wall Climbing October 10, 2008

This is a great belay device for belaying the leader and/or the second. I love belaying the second off the anchor so I can be hands free! What an amazing concept that is available to the masses through the use of the Petzl Reverso 3. There are other devices out there but they don't work as well. The BD ATC Guide is heavier and tends to twist the rope more by having the clip in hole (the one that you clip the device into from the anchor) is turned 90 degrees from how the ropes feed. The Reverso 3 clips in at the same angle that the ropes are fed through the device, causing no twist in the ropes! One thing about using these devices to belay the second from the anchor...Obviously your anchors have to be BOMBER for you to belay off of them, but they better be BOMBER anyway! I use thin cords in the mountains for Alpine and 9.6 mm singles through this device for rock climbing and all are smooth belaying and catching falls. If you are old school and use over 10.5 mm cords, I don't recommend this device. Why are you using such large and heavy cords? The smaller diameter single ropes are strong, and LIGHTER! Get rid of your fat ropes and get a nice 9 mm single and stop carrying all that extra weight around and start climbing easier and harder! Hands free belaying of the second (or third!)on multi-pitch routes is awesome! This device works great for belaying a leader as well. So you can have it to belay the second just in case and not be bummed you are carrying it. Oh yea, this thing rappels way better than the old Reverso. Nice improvement by putting the teeth in there! Way safer!

View Details: Petzl Reverso 3 Belay and Rappel Device

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