[danm]

Shunt/Grigri/MT Pro's and con's (just my opinion, JB and Bonjoy will have a better idea)

Shunt: kind to the rope, pays out smoothly if rope is tensioned. Grab it and you're fucked, potentially the same if the cam arm hits you or the rock. Hit a backup knot at speed and it will open up and release pretty easily.

Grigri: kind to rope, bit of a bastard to pay out rope. Harder to defeat mechanism than shunt.

MT: best movement, looks scary but much less likely to develop slack so is probably the safest. Cam release is double movement so very unlikely to happen by accident.

Also, learn to transition, then you can pretend you are a cool caver type rather than a boring climber with no real clue.

[Tony]

I have definitely had a Micro-Traxion disengage by accident. I don't think it is as unlikely as thought when it is attached to harness rather than on lanyard or on (static) belay. Also MT bad at cross-loading 'biner, though v unlikely to break.

Almost all accidents in climbing are user error. Be cautious of: transitioning between devices, incorrectly engaging devices, inadequate rope protection.

Always put a knot in. A device might break hitting a knot but my money would be on it not. If hitting a backup knot catastrophically breaks the device, I suspect in most instances, you would hit the ground in the absence of a knot anyway.

Put a rope protector on anything causing a deviation.

Be nervous. Check. Check again.

[Bradders]

Nice demonstration of a gri gri working well here

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHYCn9_D7tP/?igshid=rh973tzd1r8b

[Steve R]

Nice demonstration of a gri gri working well here

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHYCn9_D7tP/?igshid=rh973tzd1r8b

Ha, that's a good effort - looks like he managed to grab a handful of rope on the braking side whilst sideways on the way down

[Steve R]

I like a shunt for the start of a project/hard moves/ short route. You can go up and down easier than on a micro traxion. Descending on a MT feels horribly sketch. I've never got that on board with the gri gri train. Great for abseiling and trying moves if you're just inspecting stuff, but very bad for the elbow tendonitis trying to move upwards. For anything less than 15m a shunt is ideal (although this isn't how they're meant to be used).

How do you go up and down on a shunt Franco?  just carefully squeeze to go down? never found this very nice, probably due to fat ropes and fat (heavy) body... And to go up, presumably need to whack an ascender on above the shunt?  And do you weight the bottom of the rope?  never like the feel of that personally... Open to switching to shunt if I'm missing the tricks!
As for saving elbows, ascending with a gri gri is easy even hanging in space with an ascender (or shunt!) + sling footloop.

[Bonjoy]

Shunt/Grigri/MT Pro's and con's (just my opinion, JB and Bonjoy will have a better idea)

Shunt: kind to the rope, pays out smoothly if rope is tensioned. Grab it and you're fucked, potentially the same if the cam arm hits you or the rock. Hit a backup knot at speed and it will open up and release pretty easily.

Grigri: kind to rope, bit of a bastard to pay out rope. Harder to defeat mechanism than shunt.

MT: best movement, looks scary but much less likely to develop slack so is probably the safest. Cam release is double movement so very unlikely to happen by accident.

Also, learn to transition, then you can pretend you are a cool caver type rather than a boring climber with no real clue.

I'd agree with all that Dan.
I routinely use a grigri for working/cleaning higher probs on my own. I use with a jammer and etrier to save my elbows on ascent. I also pull a loop of the rope below the grigri through the crab and over the device to lock it when climbing (same way you'd lock off a Stop if anyone is familiar with that). It's pretty easy to release one handed if needed. Rope pro is essential if you are repeatedly falling.
Have tried climbing on a shunt but never felt very safe and always clipped into knots as a backup on a second line.

[mrjonathanr]

Always put a knot in. A device might break hitting a knot but my money would be on it not.

MT is pretty strong. Video from Mr Rope Solo himself:


Big drop is at 7.30

[danm]

Worth noting, you Shunt fanbois:

Not enough detail to determine the cause, but I suspect it was used on a single strand, and perhaps a D shaped krab would help load the cam arm off-axis? https://www.incidents.thebmc.co.uk/responses/012b13ac-0ca6-401d-a79a-521bbe551678

[Moo]

If you're keen on using the shunt I'd recommend looking at a safetec duck R. It's exactly the same working principle as a shunt but has a steel body so its much more durable and won't pop off the rope if it hits a knot. It's basically a shunt but has been designed for the application of a back up device. They are only designed to work on 10.5 to 11mm rope however.

It's obviously a bit more expensive but they are hard wearing and have a proven track record for reliability.

There's a reputable seller in sheffield if you want to get your hands on one before buying.

https://www.access-techniques.com/shop/safetec-duck-r/