Climbing's best kept secret: The Petzl Pirana!

It will solve your rappel issue with the PMI 9mm rope - you will love this thing.

Vid coming!

I've had my Pirana for a looooong time but due to all your brainwashing about the Petzl Grigri, I had all but forgotten about it. Actually the Scarab reminded me of it. The Pirana is really light, but really versatile and rappels like an elevator ride on PMI 9mm rope - really!

I just did two high speed rappel test stops and when I clamped down on the down rope and I stopped immediately!

Then, I was about 30 feet above the ground, pushed away from the tree and let the rope slide. I sailed toward the ground; the neighbors said I was close to breaking the sound barrier - I could feel the pressure building in my ears as I approached the sound barrier - then there was the ground. I pulled on the down rope and decelerated at will and touched down lightly standing straight up about 8 feet from the tree. Awsome!

Of course I dare not say this is the best device you can rappel on as the climbing world would probably disintegrate at the thought that there could be a best anything for anything. So I'll stop short and say it's the better of the betters that I've tried.

Seriously, the Pirana is amazing, especially to be so light. I'm not just baiting you; you come up here and try it, or I'll mail it to you and you can try it. It cost $35 at On Rope 1. You could almost buy three of them for the price of a micro rack or Scarab and it's better than both.

I already have one. It's sorta like my Tibloc. I have it but I never use it. It's there just so I can say I already have one. My DMM Pinto is on the way. All you have is your new Scarab!

So there!

LOL - give the Pirana a try on the 9mm - I promise you'll like it.

It for sure beats lugging around a complicated rack. Installs easier too.

What are the advantages of this over a standard figure 8? Do you think the Rock Exocita Microeight (available at treestuff) is similiar and provides the same benefits?

Ron, kind of has to do with my other "descending" thread: Do you use any backup for descending with this device?

Not familiar with this, but I'll go take a look and see if there's anything I can comment on from how it looks.


Well, rappelling gloves - they'll certainly stop a descent, but if you pass out etc. obviously they wouldn't help at all. But, if I were high, i.e. above say 60 feet, I'd have an auto-block below it, and make certain the autoblock can NOT come in contact with the Pirana. The 'high' thing is just a mental thing, BTW.

Pyro,

I took a look at the DMM Micro 8. From the looks of it, it looks like it would work pretty much like a Pirana. In a couple of the illustrations, there seems to be several tight rope wraps/turns. I always suspect rope twist when I see something like that.

The Pirana hooks are spaced much further apart than the Micro 8; I like the Pirana spacing better, but I don't know that that's a big deal. It just seems like it would be easier on the rope; maybe a bit easier to install, but only using one would reveal that.

It weighs less and costs less; I suspect that means it's significantly smaller than a Pirana - don't know if that's good or bad.

I may order one and give it a try. I'd sure like to see one FTF first though.

Don't do it!

My finances can't stand another one of your videos where it turns out that some far distant object that I never even thought about before suddenly becomes the object of my wildest desires.

DON'T DO IT, KEITH!!!!!

Brad's message was for GreenLuck and concerned rope, but it applies equally here! Ignore our warnings at your own risk! As soon as you buy this Ron will suggest that you buy something else and there will be no relief until you own one of every piece of climbing equipment ever manufactured!

You mean the Rock Exotica Micro 8? I can send you mine to try.

DO YOU HAVE TO TELL EVERYTHING YOU KNOW!!! It's gettin' so a guy can't have any secrets around here!

Hey, changing technology, new, advanced products - how would you keep up if it weren't for me!

What about that SMC Spider!!!!

Besides, we're even; you conned me into buying that Scarab thing, not that it's a bad thing, a little heavy maybe, but I like the Pirana better.

And who knows, the Micro 8 may be even better .

I did mean the Micro 8. Wow, Bob, I don't know quite what to say, of course I'd love to try it. However, I'm thinking is that shipping would probably be about half the cost of the Micro 8. I can buy one for $20, and if I don't like it I can always sell it to Joe for $25.

What's your impression of the Micro 8? Want to sell it?

I've got an SMC spider, so allow me to save you boys some money.

I wouldn't reccomend it. It's a good descender. It descends. But, that's all it does and it's pretty dang heavy. It does half as much as the Rig with twice the wieght.

Might have to make a video at some point.

HaHaHa!

I bought it cuz it was cute, but it doesn't work well on normal size climb lines. It's extremely well made (like anything Rock-E makes), and I liked it for a fiddle-gizmo. HOWEVER,

today I tried it on my thin 9.5 KM111, along with the Cinch. It worked pretty darn well and really took some heat off the Cinch. I had to use the side horns. One thing to note: the biner hole is small, and has a nifty rubber ring to keep the biner centered, which makes it nearly impossible to get my DMM "O"s on. I'm going to keep it, but still happy to send it over for a try.

I know about that rubber ring thing, the Piriana has that too and I love it. It holds the descender in place on the carabiner. The Priana seems to like the Petzl Attache better than the Williams but the Williams will work. The Attache only comes in a screw gate version if that's an issue.

I knowing I won't be happy until I try this thing. I do climb on 9mm and 10mm rope (and 11 mm - all PMI - that's about all I climb on anymore), so the Micro 8 sounds right down my alley.

What I'm trying to sort out is, I would insist on paying for shipping both ways, then if I just had to have one, I'd have to pay for one plus shipping on it too. If it were $35 like the Pirana, it'd be a no-brainer, but for $20, it's tempting to just go ahead and buy one. Hee, hee, I could always unload it on Joe if I found I didn't like it.

BTW, I'm glad to read you use the Cinch. Joe claims I talked him into getting one and it's useless. I guess you've noticed the razzing I've been getting from him about hardware. Hunabku uses a Cinch too. Hmmm, I need to get mind back out and give it a try on PMI. I can't remember if I've used it on PMI. I need to do a climb today, so I'll do that.

I'm torn about the Micro right now; I'm even looking at it's big brother - know anything about the Mini 8?

Ron, sorry, I have the Mini 8. With the Cinch on 9.5mm KM111 it was smooth and the Cinch didn't get too hot.

The Cinch is pretty useless on 11.5+, while the GriGri still works on the thin stuff, tho you have to really pay attention. I found the GG handles heat much better. Right now I can't try the Mini with the GG cuz the GG was sent back to Petzl. I'm getting close to figuring out that GG2/KM11 issue.