[Paul B]

Unless I'm looking at the wrong QDs I think you're making a mistake.

I use DMM Phantoms for trad and any decent length MP sport but for single pitch sport climbing they're grim.

Go for sturdy tapes, not really short or skinny ones. I'd agree with choosing 16-18cm tapes ideally. If you are likely to be using a clipstick, get draws with a ridged biner on the bolt end.

This 100x over. I've got the Wild Country equivalents to the Alphas and they've been great.

[James Malloch]

Unless I'm looking at the wrong QDs I think you're making a mistake.

I use DMM Phantoms for trad and any decent length MP sport but for single pitch sport climbing they're grim.

Go for sturdy tapes, not really short or skinny ones. I'd agree with choosing 16-18cm tapes ideally. If you are likely to be using a clipstick, get draws with a ridged biner on the bolt end.

This 100x over. I've got the Wild Country equivalents to the Alphas and they've been great.

DMM Shadows, sorry! Too many QuickDraw names in my head this morning!

Now, to think about a second rope….

[Duma]

Prob too late to the party, But my last set I made up my own - Fat tape, solid straight gate at bolt, light wire at rope. However banafingers seem to be selling pretty much the exact thing at a decent price atm:

https://www.bananafingers.co.uk/quickdraws/dmm/shadowspectre-hybrid-quickdraw

[James Malloch]

Prob too late to the party, But my last set I made up my own - Fat tape, solid straight gate at bolt, light wire at rope. However banafingers seem to be selling pretty much the exact thing at a decent price atm:

https://www.bananafingers.co.uk/quickdraws/dmm/shadowspectre-hybrid-quickdraw

Is there a reason you prefer the lighter carabiner on the rope end?

[Duma]

I like wiregates -  (about half my sport draws are wire at both ends) light and the euros like them as less likely to "whip" open (think this is more a theoretical risk tbh) but nice to have a solid on the bolt end in case of cross loading.

[duncan]

 

I like wiregates -  (about half my sport draws are wire at both ends) light and the euros like them as less likely to "whip" open (think this is more a theoretical risk tbh) but nice to have a solid on the bolt end in case of cross loading.

I have something very similar: Spirit / fat tape / Helium hybrids. Mainly because I had a bunch of Heliums not doing much. It’s a good combination. Spirit bent-gates at the rope end are also very nice and clip beautifully. 

I’ve witnessed ropes unclip themselves from carabiners twice. Both occasions were big (~20m) gear stripping trad. falls with all kinds of weirdness happening. Not (yet) happened to me sport climbing. I do have a screwgate-screwgate draw which I sometimes use when there is just one bolt between me and the ground. Possibly a bit paranoid…

[jwi]

I have had a quickdraw below me while climbing, on a big runout in Gorges du Tarn. When I looked down to make sure that the rope was not running behind my leg I was ten metre above the last clipped draw.

I have also had a biner unclip on a friend that was clipped in to a shoulder length sling. This was the only piece I had put on the pitch, so I had no drag and the rope was running perfectly.

I think these things happens because mostly because of design flaws on the part of almost all the manufacturers. They put in too weak springs for closing the gate in order to make clipping the rope easier for beginning and intermediate climbers.

[HaeMeS]

I've had the rope unclip from a quickdraw below me only once (on the crux near the 2nd bolt), but I've seen it happen more often and a friend took a pretty bad fall as a result. 

I've noticed that there's something about the design of my current Petzl Spirit draws (grey-orange/black) that makes the top-end biner spin relatively easily so the biner gets cross-loaded in the bolt. This happens more often with the current draws (my 'onsight draws') than with the 1st generation Spirit draws which I still use as draws on projects. I'm under the impression this happens more often with the current Spirit draws than with any other quickdraw I've used.

Jonas might be right to suggest than the springs on karabiners could/should be a bit stronger. Been wondering this myself as well. Would be interesting to hear a manufacturers opinion about this.

Never had a top biner getting worn out but also never a rope end biner. Rope end biners do tend to wear down faster than top biners. Lots of factors come in to play, the preferred style of climbing being a mayor one. Onsighting hardly wears the material, redpointing or protracted sieges though...

Talking of springs (thread hijack alert): the springs on BD Z4's are horribly soft and make make the cam feel very wobbly and not very solid. A horrible design on an otherwise pretty decent cam (range-wise).

[Muenchener]

I do have a screwgate-screwgate draw which I sometimes use when there is just one bolt between me and the ground. Possibly a bit paranoid…

Paranoid but not alone, I have an Edelrid Slider draw for that purpose. Rarely use it though. Partners tend not to like it.

[spidermonkey09]

I've noticed that there's something about the design of my current Petzl Spirit draws (grey-orange/black) that makes the top-end biner spin relatively easily so the biner gets cross-loaded in the bolt. This happens more often with the current draws (my 'onsight draws') than with the 1st generation Spirit draws which I still use as draws on projects. I'm under the impression this happens more often with the current Spirit draws than with any other quickdraw I've used.

Interesting you say this as a friend cross loaded and snapped a Spirit on Space Race at Malham a year or so ago. He got rid of the whole set afterwards (he decked out but was fine after a period out recuperating...)

[Ian T]

I swapped my Petzl Spirit tapes for DMM ones because of this. I think on the Petzl tapes the hole on the bolt end of the draw is too tight, so tends to push the bolt krab about. Looking down at a cross-loaded krab seemed to happen rather a lot with the Petzls.

[HaeMeS]

Good to hear I'm not the only one. I tend to climb vertical and technical routes and the constant left-right-left close to the wall moves the carabiner in the sling. The constant looking down at the last quickdraw and flipping it back into a vertical orientation is a pita and can ruin the onsight. I might swap the tapes for DMM ones or modify the Petzl ones with an extra plastic sling protector on the bolt side or some DIY (non load bearing/damage-causing) stitching/tinkering.

[Ballsofcottonwool]

Is there a reason you prefer the lighter carabiner on the rope end?

Gate flutter, happens all the time, you can't see it without a high speed camera