Review > Metolius > Cobblestones 2

Way back... well a year ago we reviewed the Metolius Cobblestones

And our overall comments were this (you can read the old review here):

PROS

• They hold up pretty well in a commercial gym
• Holds get better the more they are used
• Changing a route means rotating a hold a little
  

CONS

• They only come in one color... green
• They do take a few climbs before they get REALLY good
• Depending upon how strong you are will dictate how overhung a wall they can be used on

Now Metolius has extended the line of holds to include some more shapes, rather than the normal Cobblestones we've been climbing on they've made some more:

We have the set of the left, Set A: and this time they're much more incut than what we'd seen before. As we had a pretty big session scheduled the day they turned up we gave them to Eve and she set a route to test herself, and because the rest of us are stronger than her, there was a little added sting in the tail... she put the last hold upside down so we'd all just chuck for it and then get sent flying!

After we'd all had a few go's on that route, we turned the upside down final hold up the right way so people had a chance of finishing the stretchy last move. (Chris and Noodles actually managed to match the upside down hold on their first or second trys) Doing this meant that KC and Seb who came over a few nights later were able to romp across the route without too much trouble, KC is fairly new to bouldering and Seb hates roofs so getting the across the route was pretty cool.

Now that the route was dispatched we grabbed the other Cobblestones we have and we set a route with the entire ensemble... across the 45, the 30, under the box and then onto our stepped feature. The new holds are a nice compliment to the original line, with the jugs being positive enough for the 45 degree wall when set as side pulls (We also set a route on just the new set on the 45 and they're big enough to campus up without worrying too much); they're super positive, but not space hoggers, and for intermediate climbers these holds are going to be good training on steep terrain, for beginners they're going to inspire confidence as they look smooth and shallow but are more forgiving than they'll think. That being said, as the original holds we have range between slim, really slim and slightly incut the traverse that Noodles set had a few people (him included) dabbing the padding on the last few moves.

SUGGESTED USES

As the holds are all pretty incut depending upon your level of climbing you should be able to climb on steep walls or across a roof on these holds, some of the people you saw in the first video are bouldering around the V1 / V2 level and they struggled with the moves to begin with but once they got them dialed in they were able to get across the roof without too much trouble. The holds will teach beginners (especially if mixed with the other Cobblestone holds) that looks can be deceptive and that these are more positive than they're going to expect.

Despite the fact that there is no wow factor with this set, these kind of shapes should be standard on any wall. They're great holds to warm up on and don't take up too much area, you could place them in any problem, they don't burn the skin, there's not much wrong with these holds except the color. Now don't get me wrong, I like the green, but Metolius doesn't offer any other colors and I think that if they had more variety we'd see more of Metolius's holds in the gym.

EVE
It was my first time playing with any holds in this collection. Noodles asked me to set with the 'juggy' ones and so I did. Off of the feature, into the roof and... Since I like to cause a little trouble for the boys, final move onto the opposing wall, on a hold which I cleverly set upside down. As the video depicts clearly: many triers, zero success. So, we placed the hold back up just to realize that it was enough of a challenge even that way. This is because the cobble 'jugs' are really barely that. We set another route with the complete collection and now I get it....they are jugs because the other cobbles are sorry excuses for wall protrusions. I wasn't able to go through that route but eh! Watch'ya gonna do, I tried :).

So the cobbles are pretty standard looking, they are what I assume my grandma would imagine a climbing hold to look like. The shape and color at first glance is nothing special and at second glance, looks like its been done. None the less, these little 'jugs' are a very nice set since the difference between each member of the kit really only is just how much finger space exists in the angle between the hold and the wall for you to close your hand on. This allows a setter to keep the level of difficulty of a route fairly standard since you can use the nice jugs on the angled wall and then keep the 'oh my god, how much am I suppose to squeeze' ones on a slab. Or, if your Noodles, on the 30 degrees! Either way, the Metolius Cobbles are a painless way to get a good training session in. They are skin and tendon friendly with an appreciable touch of holy s***!!!!!
JACKY
Here, spring’s back and the rock are slowly warming up. Yes, I am still complaining; I NEED REAL ROCK!!!! Hence my deception when I saw the Cobblestones from Metolius. I can’t say they are bad holds. They are well constructed with the reliability and solidity you’d expect from Metolius. We even managed to make a very technical route! On the other hand, there is not one ounce of originality in these holds (dull colour, simplistic form and uniform texture). These days, with such harsh competition and holds evolving so rapidly, it is disappointing to still see holds like these for serious training. Worse yet, are the koala-ear-like holds included in the kit, which are outrageously unnatural (except for on koala heads of course). I’m sorry, but I do not climb koalas…you know, trying to preserve nature and all. Basically, I have nothing against the Cobbles but they don’t make me want to climb, or haul myself to the gym for that matter. The worst part is, it’s exactly the type of hold you’d find in industrial quantities at the gym! For a kid’s route; OK. But for a serious climber; Metolius-man, could you at least vary the texture, because your Cobbles are about as exciting as a girl in a snowsuit.
SEB

1. LOOK: They redefine generic. What you expect to see in a gym
2. TEXTURE: Skin friendly, classic
3. VERSATILITY: Let's move to the next topic
4. ARE THEY FUN: Yep
5. PRICE: Cheap!

I don't have that much to say about this set. That's what you always see in a gym, they will help you build forearm power (as they say on the Metolius website) and are what I would refer to as as classic shapes. There is no doubt that fun routes can be set with these but they will be more on the easy side (Noodles: He didn't climb the other route!) which is totally not a bad thing for me as I enjoy playing the monkey. Speaking of which, Eve's route was actually quite fun and with a high monkey factor so watch the video

They are quality stuff that will last and that aren't too rough on your hands and you know what... they're cheap!

Bottom line; I don't think that you always need to reinvent the wheel in order to create good stuff. There is also nothing wrong with classics... even if you know them! Would I buy they? For sure. They would not be high on my priority list but I can assue you that they would be on it.
KC
Those holds are fun to play with. They have a good grip, so you can place them in hard to reach places to upgrade the difficulty of a route (Chris: We all had to stretch for that roof move!) You can place them upside-down on a vertical wall, on an angled wall, on the celling everywhere you want. Want’s fun about them is that you can do a route with only your raw power… the hell with technique (ok, ok!!! Some technique).
The outside of the hold have a good grip (texture), they are a little rough but your fingers stick to it. I enjoyed them.

PROS

• They hold up pretty well in a commercial gym, even after years of abuse
  
• Holds get better the more they are used; good for beginners on steep terrain
• Don't take huge amounts of space on a wall

CONS

• They only come in one color... green
• Take a while to bed in

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Review > Contact Climbings > Handroids

We expected the Contact Handroids to be at our doorstep a couple of weeks ago and we've been eagerly waiting for them since Contact told us that they we're sending us a set. Noodles pointed out that they are like an extension of the War of the Worlds set. If anyone has had the chance to climb on that set you know that there are ridges all over the holds and the same goes for the Handroid pinches, but the difference with these is the pinches are what you're going to be grabbing where on the WOTW2 they're more decoration on the outside of the hold!
So this set has a pinch for everybody. If you have monster hands you'll be strugling for friction on the small holds, if you've got baby hand then you'll be having a hard time wraping your hands around the big pinches. The ridge on the holds helps in sticking the hold although it will leave your skin burning. Normally we would make big deal about this but we realize that the added dimension of holds is well kinda worth the loss of skin. With these holds its about the attention to detail, and its the detail that you need to pay attention to. When we were working on the long move to the box I caught one of the edges with the tips of my fingers and it kept me from swinging off. The intention of these holds for pinches we set the holds with their intended purpose in mind but at the time (and the route we were climbing) the detail on the hold served better for crimps than for the added friction as a pinch.

So with 7 holds, its a large set and we weren't in any way worried about setting with them. We pushed the limits of the holds right off the bat by setting them on the 45 it is much easier to get up than some other pinches we've had on the wall (See the Sequence review here). On our last review we had pinches on the 45 and I spent 3 sessions trying to get up the problem with no luck. We set the exact same problem with the Handroids and it took myself and Noodles a couple of tries to get the feel of the holds before we sent the problem, but bear in mind this route was the second one on the 45, we had a different route that was just undoable. Even on our second set there was a fairly long move that I thought would be a challenge for us but it turned out to be a walk in the park.

Some people will like the ridged nature of the holds, some people won't. The holds will stand out on the wall as they're different, they're not the hardest pinches on the planet, but they're not the easiest either.

Pinches are hard to gauge and it really depends on you pinch strength and where you set the holds. Ideally you'd want them on a vertical to 15 degree overhang but climbers are crazy little monkeys we like to see how small/steep we can go. Droids on the 45? Why not. Droids on the roof? Not unless you like concussions from hitting the ground too hard. What this set has going is that they it caters to all level of climbers. They are very forgiving for pinches because you can hold onto the ridges instead of trying to clamp down on the hold. I find that sometimes I'll be cranking so hard on my hand that I'm unable to get myself into position for the next move. With these holds if I found that I couldn't pinch the hold I would switch to a crimp to make it through the sequence. The wider pinches are easier to hold onto on the 45 while the smaller ones are incut and could be used on steep terrain as well, the smallest hold from the set is also the thinnest and this is the hold that stopped us on the first 45 route!

The mold that they use makes the holds rough on the skin and we suspect that the foam that is used for shaping the holds is more pourous which results in a rougher texture.
Urethane, it's a little porous so the holds do have a good ammount of texture to them
I was actually surprised when Bobby and Jack couldn't get their asses off the floor (Jack should have been able to climb it since he made it to the same spot as the infamous Sequence pinch route) SEB
Funny enough, this "review" feels like a continuation of the previous one (here) But before going into it I'd like to spend a couple of words on my thoughts of the week or in this case; why did I put the word review between speech marks.

I’ve been climbing in gyms and outside for a couple of years now. 5… 6… can’t remember. Reaching the top of cliff using small rock pinches and thinking when sending a route in one go that I could have done it without a rope (just the idea as I’m not into soloing stuff) was always what turned me on about climbing. So for me the purpose of a climbing hold was to mimic this feeling while ultimately adding to the potential difficulty of a climb. Then I discovered bouldering and home climbing walls. “Calis de Tabarnac” (swearing in French) was I thinking every time that I was falling on my ass unable to do what all the others were considering “warm up” stuff. This is when I discovered how technical the sport could be and basically how wide the climbing universe is. You could now be asking yourself: “where is he going with this introspective autobiography of a nameless climber… get the point dammit!” I am, hold on. This was actually an introduction to my “review” thoughts as I feel the need to justify where I come from in order for you reader to understand why and how I comment climbing holds. So, where was I… ok, I‘m a slightly above average climber who leads once in a while and who as no intent of becoming professional. I’ll swear at a 5.11 that is too hard for me but I’ll stupidly keep on trying its crux until I can do it or… fail miserably… but still laugh (and swear) at my memorable fail. I do not own a gym and do not participate or set for competition. I like training at the gym, prefer going outside but also go to Noodles place to have some fun getting my ass kicked by routes set by climbers that are way better than me but still are kind enough to teach me the technical part of the sport. I also act like I’m setting small routes with the holds that I comment and consider learning on a regular basic about every aspect of the sport.

I therefore do not pretend to be an expert reviewer but rather a constantly evolving climber who comment and share his experiences.Finally I do not intend to harm any animal or human being during any form of practice related to this sport :P

I felt the need to do this as I think that “reviewing” climbing holds is a complex matter that is often (but not only) based on who you are, what you like climbing, how you climb it and for what purpose you climb. Now you know… and thank you for this active listening session, I feel better now :)

So let’s get it on with the Handroids. The short version:

1. LOOK: I’ll be honest; I don’t like the concept of sci-fi holds. I’m old fashion on that matter and prefer rock like shapes but kudos for the name as it is one of the coolest I’ve heard.
   
2. TEXTURE: A little rough for the skin but highly efficient
3. VERSATILITY: Average and a little bit above
4. ARE THEY FUN: Absolutely no doubts about that
5. PRICE: Cheap!

Overall the Handroids are an interesting addition for somebody who already owns a bunch of holds. They are not that versatile but can surely add to the fun factor of a route… as I recall Noodles and Chris falling repeatedly on a specific move in video two. Cheers to Chris who managed to do it… as for me, I couldn’t do my own move. I know, shame on me. The design itself offers a good grip on both type of shapes (some concave while the others are a little bit meaner and convex) while maintaining a general average difficulty level. Let’s say that they are not mean but can still be surprised.. Especially on low routes when you are tall… damn you short people who set routes. As for the texture, the guys from Contact Holds managed to reach that thin line where pain meets efficiency but without losing too much skin. You get that extra confidence even in sloppier situations which is a feeling that I really like. That being said they feel rough not only from a texture but design/polishing/final touch point of view compared to other holds that I’ve recently tried. But those holds were also more expensive so maybe that explains it.

Which brings us to the final question: would I buy them? The more I think about it the more I appreciate the package as it covers a nice range of “pinchytude” and is really cheap. It would therefore be an absolute yes if it wasn’t from the sci-fi theme.

HOTM

People have been asking about the Hold of the Month clubs that are out there, so we asked some questions to see what the latest holds that have been sent out are, here they are in no particular order; we'll keep updating this post as we get more information!

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Here are the last four sets from Contact-----------------------------------------

Here's what Rock Candy sent out this month

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Element will mail you with a choice each month, here's this months offerings-----------------------------------------

Funny you ask. We cater each month to every single client enrolled. It is a big deal for them because they get exactly what they want. Sometimes it's new sets, others it's older ones that fit the clients criteria. It would be impossible to post all the photos each month. Have them email me and I can set them up. Current members are savings about 35% on average from wholesale.-----------------------------------------

We have two programs -- one for retail and one for wholesale. They end in the spring (depending on how many new products we have) -- and restart in the summer just before OR.... So right now, we're just about at the end of the year and don't have our new stuff together or a photoshoot done for me to give you heads up yet.

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Here's the last three months from E-GripsPeople should get the "Peabody Crimps" for March

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Logos for updates

Review > Element Climbing > Orbits

It's always nice to see a new company spring out of nowhere, I can't remember how I found these guys I think I was looking for a name of a company for one of the people that reads the page and I just stumbled upon it by accident! One thing that I noticed from the start is their website is pretty damn slick, it's not the website you normally see, it was in the form of a periodic table (and as I'm a geek) it stood out. They've been selling holds to local gyms for a while, and we figured we should have a look and see what's up with their line. First up is the Orbits, some round shapes with the tops lopped off and flat edges / slopers for your climbing enjoyment.




We went a different route with these holds, normally we ask can they go on the roof or the 45... this time we gave them to Seb and let him have fly out of the box; he set something that looked just to low to get onto, the first hold was high, and then the second two just looked too low for anyone to be able to make use of them.. and then a throw to what can only be described as a flat edged sloper; remember all of this on an overhang, so the hold (pictured left) is going to be just-that-little-bit-worse then it needs to be! Thankfully, the camera was rolling and I managed to nail the route first time, I'd never touched the holds so it was an interesting climb:



As you can see Chris was a little muddled on his feet, he had a harder time than me because I'm short and I can just keep a lower centre of gravity, Seb on the other had was having a hell of a time keeping his 6'2 frame on the wall; he could actually reach the throw from the start but doesn't have enough strength to hold onto it and move... he'll get it eventually.

One thing we all noticed during that session was the lips on the holds, where the nice round shape is cut off on every hold there's a lip that catches your fingers from time to time. From an aesthetic point of view it makes the holds look nicer than just a sloper with the tops flattened, but from a climbing point of view it's not really needed. People with smaller hands are probably going to feel this more than your monkey clawed brethren, it's not sharp, it is round but it's one of those little things that could have been better. I spoke to Dave over at Element the day after the session and mentioned that the shapes climb well, but the lip gets in the way. The holds would be pretty good without the lip, he agrees and might shape some more shapes without the lip to compliment these.

The second route as you can see what a little more technical, Eve set something that was pretty hard and stretchy, note the use of a head jam for her to get across the route! Again the holds performed well, the edges are just enough for you to hang on without worrying about being spat off once you get the sequence in your head.

You could go to 45 on these holds with some good, no great feet.. your core is going to get a work out trying to hang these, it is doable, but it's hard. Given the nature of the shapes with only one of them being incut this is where the lips do come into play, but you're going to have some sore fingers if you attempt this over and over again! On a 30 degree wall you're going to be challenged with some balancey moves and matches that are going to give you a test but is by no means undo-able. Seb / Eve and Chris had a hard time to start with on the first route, but once they'd worked it a few times they either got the sequence in a few more trys or just nailed it once they figured their footwork out.



EVE
Climbing is always fun! Well, to some. Being some, I can say that the Orbits from Element are fun to climb on! However, I can't say there was enough to them to make them memorable. They're round yeah, and they came in this ordinary shade of green... Dull. Once it's covered in chalk, its pretty gray and unexciting. They have a texture which is fairly soft and sticks nicely. It feels like it looks cause it looks like it feels! They are, I guess, serving their purpose since they almost totally lack in flexibility. The advantage is that it allows a setter to impose pretty easily what the move is going to be. Although when you can't set you can confuse yourself; they just didn't see the headlock :). So I say Orbits work but they won't send you flying.