This chalk bag is pretty much what you'd expect. It's nice and roomy, but I was a little disappointed on the durability of the outer fabric. They could use something a little tougher.

This jacket is the shiz.

This helmet is pretty sweet, I can't see how you could ask much more of climbing helmet design. The suspension system is totally dialed, it's very light, and the venting is great. You'll make fun of your buddies still sporting their Ecrins for looking like cavers. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

Like Kleenex or a Frisbee, there's a reason people will refer to any locking-assist belay device as a Grigri. Can't go wrong with this thing, just make sure you follow the directions.

Fill your entire rack with these things, and you'll be amazed how much weight and bulk you save. They're a little smaller than your average biner, but still plenty big for what they do. I really like using them to make alpine draws - they just make other quickdraws look so heavy and bulky.

I get the same impression from this device that I get from most Trango climbing equipment - a really good idea that almost worked. The Cinch has some big advantages over the Grigri, namely its weight, size, and increased rope diameter range. But the rope handling just doesn't hold a candle to the Grigri. It's easy to bind the thing up when feeding out rope, and once it's locked, it's pretty tough to get it feeding again. Especially when your partner is frantically tugging for slack. The shorter lever arm gives less mechanical advantage, which makes rapping with it jerky. But if you're a skinny rope user, this thing is approved down to 9mm, so that's a big advantage over the Grigri.

Not too much exciting going on here. Medium range, average weight, and no special features make these cams a little underwhelming. In my book, you're not doing yourself a favor by saving a few bucks on gear when the truely good stuff is just a few dollars more. Go get a double set of Black Diamond C4's, and grab a couple Trango Flexcams to fill in the gaps in your desert rack.

I bought this bag to use as a sub-bag on a wall. It worked great for that, we put the day's food, water, and extra clothes in this thing, and that way we never had to get into the big pig except at bivys. It's great not having to dig to the bottom of a giant bag just to find a water bottle.

After I got home, this bag became my main cragging pack. It's the perfect size for a rope or rack and all your personal gear, plus it's waterproof, and tough as hell. It can also double as a rope bucket in a pinch. I definitely recommend it.

Huge. Burly. Waterproof. If you're looking to do a grade VI route, do yourself a favor and invest in this giant. It's not the cheapest haul bag on the market, but the durability and design are well worth the extra cash. The little features like the dry bag closure, the interior gear loops, and the offset clip in loops just seal the deal.

If you need a trad shoe, your search is over. These are comfortable - I have a narrow foot and they fit me like a glove. Not too tight, just a perfect fit. The Stealth Onyx rubber is simply the best on the market. The rubber wraps all the way around the top of the toe, so if you're blowing out the laces in your Mythos from toe jamming, this is your next shoe.

My only complaint is that the sizing is funky. I wear about a size 8.5-9 in other Five Ten shoes, but a size 7.5 is perfect in these. Weird.

These are now my reach-for piece any time it gets thin. Nothing inspires more confidence than a Black Diamond cam, and the C3's follow the tradition. We'll see if they hold up in the long-run. But because the springs are usually the most delicate part of any cam, I'm betting their placement below the trigger will keep them out of harm's way. My only question is: why didn't they go one size bigger? That way I could stop carrying aliens all together.

These pants have stood up to quite a lot of abuse while climbing: butt scooting down granite slabs, knee scraping, and general abrasion. They've held up great, and kept me dry!

Few joys can match a perfect rurp placement. I'm constantly amazed that these things actually hold, but hold they do.

I've owned a few Princeton Tec products, and I haven't been very impressed. My Aurora worked well for a few weeks, then the screw loosened and it started drooping. I didn't fix it right away, and then the screw fell out. Lame. The little light that came with this headlamp then became super handy, because the headlamp was next to useless. Well then one day it wouldn't turn off. It burned for about two days, then of course went dead. There's too many other excellent headlamps out there, go check those out.

These always get a laugh at camp, but they're practical too! Fun little item to throw in your pack.

If you're looking for lightweight, sturdy cookwear, this pot is a great choice. It cleans up easy, and a lot of the smaller stoves fit perfectly inside it. The lid fits well and doubles as a pan. The stuff sack mine came with wasn't tight enough to stop the thing from making noise in my backpack, so I'd recommend securing the whole thing with a jumbo rubber band. Also, the handle can get really hot if you're not careful with the stove flame, so watch yourself. If you don't mind the price, titanium is where it's at.

This stuff is just great. It powered me up a long multi-day climb where it's really hard to take in enough calories. You get real sick of energy bars, and that's when these things are key. The taste isn't half bad considering it's an energy gel, and I like the fact that there's actually fruit in there, not artificial flavor.

The biggest factor for me is light weight and compressibility. I love the fact that I can fit this thing in my camelbak and barely notice it's there. I’ve weathered a few pretty nasty storms in this jacket, and have always stayed dry. The breathabillity could be a little better, but all in all I think this is a great jacket for a good price.

I used this bad boy for some El Cap action, and it performed like a champ. After all the jugging and other big wall abuse, the sheath still looks great. The 70m length is crucial for linking pitches, but make sure your haul line is 70m too. This line doesn't seem to be quite as stretchy as others I've used, which was good for jugging, but really put the "whip" in whipper. Mammut ropes have the best middle marking I've ever seen, very helpful. This rope is a little on the heavy side for cragging or normal multi-pitch stuff, but is a great choice for wall climbing.

These little things come in handy time and again, fitting where nothing else will. However, I think I'd place them more often if they were off-set. Those placements seem to be much more common, especially when you get down to the small sizes. Still a great addition to any rack though.

The Garmin eTrex Vista has some excellent features. The UI is very intuitive and easy to use. I found the little joystick control pretty user friendly too. The sunrise and sunset features are surprisingly useful. If you're staying on a trail, the unit can be safely used by itself to navigate. However, if you're going into the backcountry, I'd recommend using it conjunction with a good topo map. The topos available from Garmin are pretty good, but just aren't of a high enough resolution to be used alone. I keep this little guy in my glove box, and it's very useful for quick navigational checks while driving. However, if you're looking for turn-by-turn navigation, you'll have to spring for something a little more beefy. The available memory is more than enough to hold all the maps I need. All things considered, this is a great little tool.

If you're looking at a shallow seam, get out the beaks and start having fun. They're also crucial for hooking on dead heads and other fixed junk. The #3 seems to be of limited usefulness, I think 2-3 of the #1 and about 2 of the #2 should do for most racks. Oh yeah, don't look at them when you test the placement, unless you want a chipped tooth.

Pretty much standard issue. The dampening handle seemed to work pretty well after a few days of nailing. As far as lumps of metal on the ends of sticks go, this one's an ass kicker.

So comfortable, perfect over a T-shirt for a cool day of climbing or hiking. Also great for just around the house, and surprisingly warm for its weight. It looks great too, this is my new favorite long-sleeve shirt.

Not too much competition out there in this category, but even so, Black Diamond does it best. My only question is: why don't they make sawed off pins too? Hack sawing makes my arm hurt.

This is crawls along on data transfers. It gets the job done, but they should have made it a USB connection.

This stuff brought my down bag back to life. After a good washing, the loft became much higher, and it lost most of it's trail funk smell. If you've never washed your bag before, check a site like Western Mountaineering's for instructions. Great product!

While probably alright for real lightweight hauls, as soon as you start lugging big loads this things is not what you want. The wheel is too small, and the rope can come in at a funny angle causing lots of friction against the wall of the device. We had to bail off the Nose cause the hauling sucked so much. Do yourself a favor and shell out for the full sized version.

Sure you could bring a regular pulley and use an upside down jug, but in my book anything that makes wall life simpler is worth it's weight. Once you haul with one of these, you won't go back. Don't skimp and get the mini either; the weight you'll save will be paid for many times over with extra sweat fighting the higher friction from the smaller wheel.

Great little headlamp until it broke. It's perfect for just sticking in your pocket when you don't think you'll need it. You're always glad you've got it later. Bright enough to rig a rapp or cook dinner. The clip on mine broke a month after I got it, which was a bummer. What good’s a headlamp that won't stay on your head anymore?

Super comfortable and warm for its weight. My only complaint is that the neck is a little tight to get my head through. I've never had this problem with a shirt before. I don't think I have a big head, but it sure is a squeeze. Maybe I should have gotten the one with the zipper...

With the heat-moldable inserts, these are the most comfortable paid of boots I’ve ever owned. I was skeptical of the lacing system at first, but after a few day’s use, it proves itself. No more battling with frozen fingers trying to tie knots, just yank on the strings and you’re set. They could have made the pull tabs a bit bigger and a bit stiffer; they cut into your fingers a little when you’re really pulling. They also could have color coded the upper and lower laces to make it a real no-brainer. But overall, a great boot. I’d like to give it a 4.75, but you can’t, so I’ll round up.

My old bindings kept dropping hardware, which made for more than one annoyed trip to a mountain ski shop. The construction on the P1 is so bomber that I'll never have that worry again. These bindings are so adjustable it's almost a little overwhelming. But if you know just how you like it, you should be able to dial em in just right. The catstrap is nice, definitely superior to a normal toestrap. These bindings won't do you wrong.

I used the ReviveX on some old snowboarding pants, and it definitely helped, but didn't restore the original level of waterproofing. I can finish the season with these pants, which I wouldn't have been able to do without treatment, but I'll definitely still need a new pair next year. I'll buy this product again to stretch the life of my next pair of pants. Just think, if you buy a $100 pair of pants that last 2-3 seasons, adding another season is like getting $30 back. So for the price, the ReviveX is a killer value.