Gear
Gear
How to request Gear
The club owns lots of gear which you can borrow! If you would like to borrow anything, request it through the gear requst form. You must have paid membership to borrow club gear. Please request gear as far in advance as possible or you’ll be much less likely to actually get the gear and more likely to annoy the gear sec!
Please make sure you return everything in the same condition you got it in. If you do not return gear, or damage it beyond normal wear and tear, you may be liable for the cost of replacement. You may also be fined if you return it later than you’ve agreed with the gear sec and there is someone else waiting to borrow it.
IMPORTANT- It is your responsibilty to check gear is fit for use and you know how to use it. You use gear at your own risk. If you find any damage, or take any large falls on club gear, you must report it to the gear sec so it can be inspected and logged or retired.
We collect personal data on our gear request form. Read our privacy policy below.
Gear Info
What is ‘Gear’?
Seconding Gear
If you’re a beginner, this is all the stuff you’ll need to start with. When seconding, you belay the leader, then follow them up the climb, removing the gear they placed as you go up.
Helmet
An essential bit of kit, protects your fragile and important head. Modern helmets are lightweight, comfortable and fashionable so There’s no excuse for not wearing one. The club has quite a lot of helmets so please borrow one if you don’t own one.
Harnes
When buying your own harness be sure to try a few on to get a comfortable good fit, since you’ll end up wearing these for most of the day. Also check they have a good number of gear loops to clip all your gear to. The club also has quite a lot harnesses for people to borrow.
Belay Plate and Screwgate
This is what you use to ‘belay’ your partner – this is allowing rope through the device, and braking the rope in a fall. You can get assisted braking belay devices which help lock the rope in a fall, but generally a standard belay plate is most versatile and helps you learn good belaying practice, so those are what the club has to lend out.
Climbing Shoes
These are probably the first bit of kit you’ll want to purchase your own pair of. The soles allow you to grip the rock much better than normal shoes The club does have quite a good selection of shoes that we lend out for trips, and the DCC also hires shoes for use there, but it’s nice to get your own pair. Try on as many different ones as you can to find ones that suit the shape of your feet best. You’ll want to get quite a tight fit so it stays taught and your feet don’t slip, but don’t get anything painfully tight – go for a nice snug fit.
Nutkey
Use this as a tool to help you remove gear. There are several ways you can use it to push or twist out stuck nuts, and can even use it to pull out of reach cam triggers.
Bouldering Pad
Not actually gear for seconding but it’s in this section anyway. Bouldering mats/pads are used for outdoor bouldering to help prevent you getting injured when you fall off.
Leading Gear
Once you’ve got used to seconding, you may want to learn to lead trad, which is when you place protection as you climb and clip the rope into it. Here are some of the common bits of leading gear that you can borrow from the club.
Rope
Nuts
Hexes
Cams
Slings
Quickdraws
Screwgate
Slings
Winter Gear
Crampons
Ice Axe
Ice Screws
Winter Boots (B2/B3)