UKH

Looking to have a go at some via feratta this summer in France and as such am in the market for a couple sets for myself and my other half.

I have found a few sets online which appear to be of the budget variety:

http://www.exxpozed.com/camp-set-ferrata-vortex.html?s=82704¤cy=GBP&gc...

http://www.exxpozed.com/salewa-classic-tex.html?s=324425¤cy=GBP&gclid=...

http://www.bergzeit.co.uk/lacd-via-ferrata-pro-evo-set-001/?affsrc=henkaten...

Can anybody recommend any of these or would you suggest I pay a little more for increased quality/shiny features.

They are likely to get limited use with a trip this summer planned and hopefully a trip to the dolomites in the future.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

In reply to rich H0001:
Don't be put off by unfamiliar (to the UK market) brand names, CAMP and Salewa make some lovely sets (I'm not familiar with LACD) - so long as they are from a reputable manufacturer and have the appropriate CE ratings I'm sure they will be fine.

Budget brands will probably have more basic krabs (slightly more hassle to operate, but also smaller/lighter). If I was replacing my set I would be after a slightly longer lanyard length, and ideally a swivel so the lanyards don't get twisted. Again these features add cost/weight but whilst nice to have aren't necessary - as for the swanky krabs, with my small hands I actually prefer the more basic ones.

In reply to rich H0001:

They are all fine. Provided you both weigh a reasonable amount: within the manufacturer's specifications, and ideally towards the heavier end of the scale.

In reply to rich H0001:

Decathalon were selling a Symond one last year (presumably they still sell it) for £35. It was an excellent set and I was slightly jealous when I got it for the Mrs and I was stuck with my old Petzl Vertigo one. It had all the features of an expensive one too (like the middle loop clip for resting on). I don't know what other features you would want on one to be honest. The krabs have to be a certain size and auto locking for all VF sets, some are more fiddley than others I guess, my friend had an edelrid one that required squeezing at the base before you can unlock in, making it slightly harder to do if you havent grabbed it in the exactly correct orientation.

In reply to rich H0001:

The one feature I recall I would really have liked when I did it was one of the rotating lanyards - they kept getting tangled up with one another. But that could have been avoided by me paying more attention.

We did Italy, but the same might be true of France- it was much cheaper to buy over there than in the UK.

Neil

In reply to rich H0001:

Doesn't look like there's any problem with them, like others have said if they have a CE and UIAA stamp then they should be fine. One thing to note about all the ones you've linked to is that they are ripping stitch energy absorbers so will only work the first time you fall with enough force to tear the stitching. after that you've just got a couple of slings. A friction plate setup is resettable so you're still protected after a fall to finish the route. Whether you'll be in a fit state to after that kind of fall is another question.....

Pros and cons to each, Friction plate setups are heavier (and still damage the rope to a degree), and the 1 use limit is true of expensive as well as cheap ripping stitch designs.

Cheers,

Stuart

In reply to rich H0001:

Decathlon still do the set for 34.99

In reply to rich H0001:

Thanks for all of the advice. I think I will get one of these sets. I am thinking of taking a short rope just in case although I'm not expecting to be falling if I can help it.