Edelrid has already a solution for this problem, you just have to clip a "edelrid pure" carabiner inside the hole, and use the carabiner as a handle, its super easy and works
I agree, that slot was made for the Pure and it works flawlessly. When you lead belay you remove the Pure, but when you have to lower you plug the Pure. I admit that this is no "big hack", all I am offereing is an inexpensive (less than one dollar) way to have the benefits of a Pure always connected to it without taking much space (smaller than the Pure) and weight (less than 5 grams)...
I recently got the Mega Jul and I love it. Instead of 3D printing this attachment, I simply plug Black Diamond Miniwire carabiner. This creates nice grigri like lever that allows for smooth lowering. Now I understand why You call it a grigri killer. I don't necessarily agree with this since these are different devices, but yeah, the mega jul feels incredibly safe for how simple it is
Thanks for the comments. Some people told me to "commercialize" it, but selling such a small piece of plastic would probably mean that the shipping costs would be higher than the price of the handle. I prefer to offer the STL files and in that way anyone that needs can ask a friend to print it for less than one dollar.
Thanks for the great ideas. In multi-pitch climbing, the options for brake-assisted devices are limited. I have always found mega-joules difficult to use in rappelling. If this part will solve this problem, it will be great. I am planning to build it using the blueprints. So, please let me know about the materials. What kind of materials were used to make it? Thank you in advance.
I am definitely going to print out one of these and give it a try. I personally have never found the Jul to be jerky once I got oriented to the device. I hope I describe this so you can visualize my method. I notice in your videos your fingers on your right hand are not in the green loop. I put mine in that loop and with my thumb over the hole and fingers up against the green plastic piece I just rock the device. I do work with a bunch of Boy Scouts that can range in weight from 90 to 200 lbs and it works pretty great. I think the gizmo you made will probably further enhance my method. Now the hard part...what filament color :)
That's cool. Although I think that you don't have to clip the whole device in guide mode if you're using two strands, because the carabiner can only flip on a single rope.
Ah! True, true.... I was concerned in showing the right procedure for one strand (hence the zoom), but you are completely right: It would have been correct and simpler to clip from the top.
This handle has the possibility with interfering with the locking function of the Jul. I don't think it is a good solution to making it pay slack easier. The handle could easily get hooked onto clothing, belay loop, harness, etc. this would hold the device in the open position and prevent it from locking as intended. Saying you 'don't have to worry about safety because if it breaks it just goes back to locked' is a very narrow view. It could cause problems if it doesn't break as well.
Hi Alessandro, I do understand your concern. When the climber falls (or you take the slack) the Jul is lifted above the belly button(almost chest height) and outwards (when lead belaying, towards the first bolt). On top rope situations (such as the one seen in the video) the direction is vertical. A second comment is that the climber is lowered by a combination of 1.pushing the plastic handle down and 2. releasing the dead rope. The bottom line is that in the eventuality of your clothes catching the handle your hand should always be holding the dead rope. I personally use this setup for 1.5 years without issues (it once touched my clothes when top rope belaying, but pulled my shirt and winter jacket up), and I always keep my hand on the real brake (dead rope). Thank you for the comment!😀
@@TheBrocam Which other device has a handle that sticks backward towards your chest while lead belaying? Assisted tubes all have handles that stick forwards. More complex camming devices like the grigri all have fold away handles.
How much of a gamechanger is this handle if you don’t like the megajul as is? Because I just tried it belaying a few times on toprope and then rapelling on it myself, and I must say I absolutely hate it so far 😓 the mechanics are so similar to my atc pilot but without the leverage and smooth grip on it. It was just jerky and hurt my thumb, on rapelling I had my hand too close to the rope risking burning my hand on it. Should I wait to disqualify it until I get this handle? Thinking of trying the gigajul instead.
Awesome idea! Did you have a tippee or whatever other service which I can use to pay you a beer for your awesome shared files and rewards you for the time you spend building them ?
i guess they don't make the handle becaue you can simply put in the nose of a carabiner in there for the same effect.. at least with the giga jul that is
That sounds great. I don't know how wide the hole for the biner is at the Giga Jul, but for the Mega Jul it is quite narrow, only allowing very specific carabiners to fit there.
@@climbinghacks6900 Yup, i just happened to have an edelrid pure straight carabiner, and it worked like a charm. Didnt know about this function before i saw your video though, its gonna be a gamechanger! Thanks
Or just get a Giga Jul. Those things are sweet. It has the thumb handle; perfect lowering. Total control. The only reason GriGris are popular is because people like to say "GriGri." Its fun. Try it...... "GriGri." Wasn't that fun?
Hahaha, that is true. I would say that the strongest aspect from Grigris is the reliable lowering speed, independent of the thickness of the rope. About the Gigajul, I am not sure on which thumb handle you are talking about (they have one to push in the back?), as I thought that it also required an Edelrid Pure carabiner to lower. That said, I hear good things about the Giga Jul, so I should try it out one day.
@@ceecadventure7599 This is probably true. Though I have never personally used one, I am very familiar with their operation, capabilities and limitations. I also saw a poor guy almost wreck himself doing a TRS with it (and no back up!) trying to rap down from a sport climb last week. I personally prefer rope in the hand control over my descent. That lever was giving him the business!
that slot that you are using is made for the nose of a biner to be put in there for leverage. This isn't a hack, this is exactly what it is made for...
Ya, but it's not very practical to keep that biner in your belay device. This piece of plastic is magnitudes more convenient, cheaper, smaller, lighter, etc
I do admit that it is a great device, just like Black Diamond Pilot, but they don't allow you to rappel on them. In the ideal world we should have one device that does everything, instead of walking around with one for this, one for that...
@@climbinghacks6900 that's quite not true, I have 2 alpine smarts and I rappel with mine regularly, maybe the regular one you can't but with the alpine smart you certainly can
@@doughobbs7706 Ah sorry, you are right! I forgot about the Alpine version of the Smart. Yes, with that one it is possible to do everything that you do with a Mega Jul, but they have a heavier and bulky design. The guys from the outdoorgearlab made a comparison between those two and you can see their size differences here: outdoorgearlab-mvnab3pwrvp3t0.stackpathdns.com/photos/13/88/260335_26798_XL.jpg I don't know how I would feel on a multi-pitch chimney climbing with one of those.
The Mega Jul is not an automatic locking device! It is an assisted locking device! so it will never be in the same category as the Grigri, if you want a light tool, use an atc, if you want a safer and more comfortable belaying use a Grigri! I do not see how this device is a "Grigri killer". People who think Mega Juls are auto locking annoy me because when you "take" while climbing they slide you down expecting the Mega Jul to lock. Also, locking the device to go hand free safely is much easier with a Grigri.
Both are actually assisted braking devices. The Grigri shouldn't be seen as "auto-locking". They are in the same category therefor. When locked, the mega jul doesn't slide.
@@GoodLuck-rh8tb Both manufacturers say they are assisted braking devices for legal reasons, but if your rope is in the recommended range for the grigri and there is no oil on the grigri it will lock hands off. The mega jul never will, the mega jul slides because people treat it more like the grigri than the atc, and don't keep their belay hand back when the climber is in a "take".
This is an interesting discussion. They are all called "assisted", and your hand should be there the entire time. Mr. Raman, what is the diameter of your rope? The difference between the Grigri and the Jul (Mega or Micro, which I think you should start considering the latter) is that one is mechanically assisted while the other is geometry-assisted. My second question is do you have a jul? I used to have a Grigri and sold it to buy my second Jul. All in all, this is all about personal preference, but we should all be aware that all these devices are "assisted", and you should always keep one hand on the brake! :)
Not a single professional in the field of rock climbing would call a grigri an Auto-Locking device. It is old terminology that was never true to begin with, especially with more modern rope treatments and diameters. Here is a video to demonstrate the reasons why you would never take your hand of the breaking strand: ruclips.net/video/jKe72j_mBlU/видео.html As for the discussion, I own a Giga-Jul and love it. Heavy, but does everything I need it to.
@@climbinghacks6900 ofc your hand should always be on the rope, but in my experience when learning rope problem solving, is that even with an unconscious blayer, that cannot hold the rope, the grigri holds you, my rope is about 10.5m. I do not own amega jul, but my friends do, eventually they all switched to the grigri, and i noticed whenever one of them switched to a grigri their takes don't slip anymore, and when I am belayed by other people who use a mega jul I always get lowered whenever I take. pepole take too much comfort with the mega jul. They are told to keep their hand on the rope, but not to the side or back where it should be, I belive that in order for the mega jul to not slip you have to belay the same way as an atc, which is less comfortable then a grigri belay, but comfort is subjective.
Hey Dude
Thank you so much for filling in the gap in the climbing community and bringing in such innovative hacks!
Happy to help!
Edelrid has already a solution for this problem, you just have to clip a "edelrid pure" carabiner inside the hole, and use the carabiner as a handle, its super easy and works
I agree, that slot was made for the Pure and it works flawlessly. When you lead belay you remove the Pure, but when you have to lower you plug the Pure. I admit that this is no "big hack", all I am offereing is an inexpensive (less than one dollar) way to have the benefits of a Pure always connected to it without taking much space (smaller than the Pure) and weight (less than 5 grams)...
I'd worry about dropping that biner on someone, careful.
Am pretty sure you can use a (non-edelrid) krab with small enough nose. I've played with my friend mega, and used old random BD or Trango wiregates.
I recently got the Mega Jul and I love it. Instead of 3D printing this attachment, I simply plug Black Diamond Miniwire carabiner. This creates nice grigri like lever that allows for smooth lowering. Now I understand why You call it a grigri killer. I don't necessarily agree with this since these are different devices, but yeah, the mega jul feels incredibly safe for how simple it is
Great idea , I usually don't mess with my gear , but as you say if it breaks it will revert to lock mode so to speak, great idea, great product!
Thanks for the comments. Some people told me to "commercialize" it, but selling such a small piece of plastic would probably mean that the shipping costs would be higher than the price of the handle. I prefer to offer the STL files and in that way anyone that needs can ask a friend to print it for less than one dollar.
@@climbinghacks6900 it's cool you are offering the plans for anyone to print , and for what it's worth , I think your right about commercialising it
The grigri is gonna be just fine
i use a smaller carabiner trough that eye . in the same way your printed part is used
Yeah me too
Thanks for the great ideas. In multi-pitch climbing, the options for brake-assisted devices are limited. I have always found mega-joules difficult to use in rappelling. If this part will solve this problem, it will be great. I am planning to build it using the blueprints. So, please let me know about the materials. What kind of materials were used to make it?
Thank you in advance.
I am definitely going to print out one of these and give it a try. I personally have never found the Jul to be jerky once I got oriented to the device. I hope I describe this so you can visualize my method. I notice in your videos your fingers on your right hand are not in the green loop. I put mine in that loop and with my thumb over the hole and fingers up against the green plastic piece I just rock the device. I do work with a bunch of Boy Scouts that can range in weight from 90 to 200 lbs and it works pretty great. I think the gizmo you made will probably further enhance my method. Now the hard part...what filament color :)
That's cool. Although I think that you don't have to clip the whole device in guide mode if you're using two strands, because the carabiner can only flip on a single rope.
Ah! True, true.... I was concerned in showing the right procedure for one strand (hence the zoom), but you are completely right: It would have been correct and simpler to clip from the top.
This handle has the possibility with interfering with the locking function of the Jul. I don't think it is a good solution to making it pay slack easier. The handle could easily get hooked onto clothing, belay loop, harness, etc. this would hold the device in the open position and prevent it from locking as intended. Saying you 'don't have to worry about safety because if it breaks it just goes back to locked' is a very narrow view. It could cause problems if it doesn't break as well.
Hi Alessandro, I do understand your concern. When the climber falls (or you take the slack) the Jul is lifted above the belly button(almost chest height) and outwards (when lead belaying, towards the first bolt). On top rope situations (such as the one seen in the video) the direction is vertical.
A second comment is that the climber is lowered by a combination of 1.pushing the plastic handle down and 2. releasing the dead rope.
The bottom line is that in the eventuality of your clothes catching the handle your hand should always be holding the dead rope. I personally use this setup for 1.5 years without issues (it once touched my clothes when top rope belaying, but pulled my shirt and winter jacket up), and I always keep my hand on the real brake (dead rope).
Thank you for the comment!😀
You could say the same about the lever on any other device.
@@TheBrocam Which other device has a handle that sticks backward towards your chest while lead belaying? Assisted tubes all have handles that stick forwards. More complex camming devices like the grigri all have fold away handles.
Any chance you have made this 3d printed addon for the Gige Jul? If so, where can I find the file?
How much of a gamechanger is this handle if you don’t like the megajul as is?
Because I just tried it belaying a few times on toprope and then rapelling on it myself, and I must say I absolutely hate it so far 😓 the mechanics are so similar to my atc pilot but without the leverage and smooth grip on it. It was just jerky and hurt my thumb, on rapelling I had my hand too close to the rope risking burning my hand on it.
Should I wait to disqualify it until I get this handle? Thinking of trying the gigajul instead.
Awesome idea! Did you have a tippee or whatever other service which I can use to pay you a beer for your awesome shared files and rewards you for the time you spend building them ?
what screw did you use on the mega jul version? why dosn't the sport version have it?
What unit is used in the stl file; cm, mm or in?
Hi Paul. The unit is mm
Thanks @@climbinghacks6900!
what are you putting in the hole of the 3D part? a screw?
just subscribed, nice video!
Awesome, thank you!
i guess they don't make the handle becaue you can simply put in the nose of a carabiner in there for the same effect.. at least with the giga jul that is
That sounds great. I don't know how wide the hole for the biner is at the Giga Jul, but for the Mega Jul it is quite narrow, only allowing very specific carabiners to fit there.
@@climbinghacks6900 ok i use a normal wiregate or most screwlocks with the gj.. no hms though
@@climbinghacks6900 Yup, i just happened to have an edelrid pure straight carabiner, and it worked like a charm. Didnt know about this function before i saw your video though, its gonna be a gamechanger! Thanks
It was designed to use with this specific carabiner, don't know why this is not published in the manual
Black Diamond Miniwire fits pretty much perfect
Or just get a Giga Jul. Those things are sweet. It has the thumb handle; perfect lowering. Total control.
The only reason GriGris are popular is because people like to say "GriGri."
Its fun.
Try it......
"GriGri."
Wasn't that fun?
Hahaha, that is true. I would say that the strongest aspect from Grigris is the reliable lowering speed, independent of the thickness of the rope. About the Gigajul, I am not sure on which thumb handle you are talking about (they have one to push in the back?), as I thought that it also required an Edelrid Pure carabiner to lower. That said, I hear good things about the Giga Jul, so I should try it out one day.
@@climbinghacks6900 The thumb handle is in the front for use in brake assist mode. Just lift up controlling the descent. Very smooth.
I'm pretty sure grigris are popular because they're reliable, safe and super easy to use.
@@ceecadventure7599 This is probably true. Though I have never personally used one, I am very familiar with their operation, capabilities and limitations. I also saw a poor guy almost wreck himself doing a TRS with it (and no back up!) trying to rap down from a sport climb last week. I personally prefer rope in the hand control over my descent. That lever was giving him the business!
that slot that you are using is made for the nose of a biner to be put in there for leverage. This isn't a hack, this is exactly what it is made for...
Exactly, the "edelrid pure" carabiner works excellent
Ya, but it's not very practical to keep that biner in your belay device. This piece of plastic is magnitudes more convenient, cheaper, smaller, lighter, etc
i'll stick to the grigri
just buy mammut smart....
I do admit that it is a great device, just like Black Diamond Pilot, but they don't allow you to rappel on them. In the ideal world we should have one device that does everything, instead of walking around with one for this, one for that...
@@climbinghacks6900 that's quite not true, I have 2 alpine smarts and I rappel with mine regularly, maybe the regular one you can't but with the alpine smart you certainly can
@@doughobbs7706 Ah sorry, you are right! I forgot about the Alpine version of the Smart. Yes, with that one it is possible to do everything that you do with a Mega Jul, but they have a heavier and bulky design. The guys from the outdoorgearlab made a comparison between those two and you can see their size differences here:
outdoorgearlab-mvnab3pwrvp3t0.stackpathdns.com/photos/13/88/260335_26798_XL.jpg
I don't know how I would feel on a multi-pitch chimney climbing with one of those.
The Mega Jul is not an automatic locking device! It is an assisted locking device! so it will never be in the same category as the Grigri, if you want a light tool, use an atc, if you want a safer and more comfortable belaying use a Grigri! I do not see how this device is a "Grigri killer". People who think Mega Juls are auto locking annoy me because when you "take" while climbing they slide you down expecting the Mega Jul to lock. Also, locking the device to go hand free safely is much easier with a Grigri.
Both are actually assisted braking devices. The Grigri shouldn't be seen as "auto-locking". They are in the same category therefor. When locked, the mega jul doesn't slide.
@@GoodLuck-rh8tb Both manufacturers say they are assisted braking devices for legal reasons, but if your rope is in the recommended range for the grigri and there is no oil on the grigri it will lock hands off. The mega jul never will, the mega jul slides because people treat it more like the grigri than the atc, and don't keep their belay hand back when the climber is in a "take".
This is an interesting discussion. They are all called "assisted", and your hand should be there the entire time. Mr. Raman, what is the diameter of your rope? The difference between the Grigri and the Jul (Mega or Micro, which I think you should start considering the latter) is that one is mechanically assisted while the other is geometry-assisted. My second question is do you have a jul? I used to have a Grigri and sold it to buy my second Jul. All in all, this is all about personal preference, but we should all be aware that all these devices are "assisted", and you should always keep one hand on the brake! :)
Not a single professional in the field of rock climbing would call a grigri an Auto-Locking device. It is old terminology that was never true to begin with, especially with more modern rope treatments and diameters. Here is a video to demonstrate the reasons why you would never take your hand of the breaking strand:
ruclips.net/video/jKe72j_mBlU/видео.html
As for the discussion, I own a Giga-Jul and love it. Heavy, but does everything I need it to.
@@climbinghacks6900 ofc your hand should always be on the rope, but in my experience when learning rope problem solving, is that even with an unconscious blayer, that cannot hold the rope, the grigri holds you, my rope is about 10.5m. I do not own amega jul, but my friends do, eventually they all switched to the grigri, and i noticed whenever one of them switched to a grigri their takes don't slip anymore, and when I am belayed by other people who use a mega jul I always get lowered whenever I take. pepole take too much comfort with the mega jul. They are told to keep their hand on the rope, but not to the side or back where it should be, I belive that in order for the mega jul to not slip you have to belay the same way as an atc, which is less comfortable then a grigri belay, but comfort is subjective.