Review > Franklin Handholds > Tech Set 1 / All Star Edges

I picked up some Franklin's along time ago and I loved them, so when I saw some new holds the other day I picked them up.
We set numerous routes with the Technique set 1 over the last two weeks, and its a set of holds we seem to keep coming back to for when you need a shallow edge or a really marginal sidepull. Infact when the wall was reset these were the first holds to get the wrench treatment.
As you can see we didn't even get around to moving the other holds before we started climbing. All I can say about this set of holds is that there's something for everyone, from good sized ledges to shallow pulls. There was one downside to this set is that one of the holds didn't sit flush with the wall, but a couple of minutes with some sandpaper soon sorted this out!

RATING

The set gets marked down slightly as its not really a beginner friendly set, and I did have to do some sanding on one hold, but overall i'd say if you have slightly overhanging or vertical wall then you should grab them, the holds aren't huge so they won't eat into space and will give you hours of pulling fun

I was so impressed by the Tech set, I went out and brought some more holds...

Again you're looking at another great set of holds that don't eat up wall space but they aren't for beginners. Straight out of the bag these are the easiest holds I've ever had to set V3/V4 routes with, but bear in mind I was setting on a 30 degree overhang! My only concern with the majority of these holds was that as they were so shallow in places that they'd get chalked up and would become slippery over time...
Especially the above hold, the texture takes the chalk and is surprisingly easy to clean. We also took the holds to a friends wall we can lead on and set some routes there. Again we found that you can set some nice moves as long as the walls not to overhung (we're not that strong) and that you can pull all day without worry. When I did actually get these holds home I found out that I was missing the bolts :( but a quick email to Franklin soon sorted that out, their customer service is amazing, so if you do have problems they'll sort you out really quickly

RATING
The only problem with the set is that its not that versatile, but its an edge set so it does exactly what it says on the bag... gives you edges! Again they don't eat wall space and you can pull all day without ripping your skin off.CHRIS' FINAL WORD
If only we had more of these holds. They're easy to set with and super skin friendly. If you need to work on a specific area of strength them grab the pack of holds for what you need to work on. We're probably going to buy some more early next year and we'll report back when we do.

Review > Metolius > Wood Grips

Metolius have been around for years and have the name that go's along with being a first rate hold manufacturer! Well there's always been Metolius holds on my walls, either here or in the UK and a welcome addition came in the shape of some Wood Grips. I've been aware of the holds since they came out, and always wondered what they'd be like to climb on, thankfully Brooke headed my call and sent me some over...

Now when you get the holds you're going to think that someone has just chopped up some wood, sealed it, chucked a bolt hole through it and then packaged them, well you'd be wrong! I've always thought of holds as works of art, and a climbing wall (if you have one in your home) as a piece of furniture and this is where we get to the holds. They're made from offcuts from a furniture factory, they're ALL hand sanded, shaped and hand sealed so essentially you are buying a work of art! A GREEN work of art, Metoilus have taken someone else's waste and turned it into something that people buy, I wish I'd thought of the idea.

But what are they like to climb on?
At first pull you find yourself being very very delicate on them, they're slick and hard to hold onto, but once you take some time and learn how to get onto them you start realising that they're amazing... point blank amazing. Climb on them for long enough and you'll realise that the more chalk, sweat and hand oil that touches these holds the better and better they get... skin friendly, these are probably the friendliest holds that are on the wall!
So the more they get used the better they get... at the start there would be no way I would have attempted this:
NO WAY, i'd have tried that (Sorry about the video quality, I really should get a new camera)

Let me wax lyrical about the texture some more...
Image a big dual texture hold..
Without the grippy bit!
This is what these holds will feel like the first time you climb on them, add some chalk and hand oil and they get better and better! If you want to loose some of the sealer because you want some more grip? Grab some fine grade sandpaper and sand down the area you want to hold.. you can dial these holds in as you want... I'd suggest just climbing on them for some time before you do this though

We've only got 5 of these holds but there is all of these and two training boards available, the compact and deluxe versions and they're well worth a look at:
RATING:
NOODLES SAYS
Hard to hold, but pleasing to grip. An environmentally friendly hold that should be the staple of any home wall, I wasn't sure what to make of them once I had them and climbed on them but they just get nicer and nicer the more they get used. They are complete buggers for you feet, so they will help your footwork, you're going to find your feet slipping all over the place so careful placement is paramount!
These holds probably aren't for everyone, but if you have beginners on a slab, vertical wall or very slightly overhanging I think that they'd be a welcome addition, you beginners will thank you for the skin friendliness. For anyone that's a "hardcore" climber you're going to find these holds give you more pump per movement as they're harder to hold onto.

CHRIS SAYS
After a little chalking these holds turned out to stick better than expected. Really good to hone technique and you could set a sequence with them without worry of burning skin or injuring tendons. At first I thought noodles was going mad when he suggested a dynamic move to the one crimp of the set and after a few goes its obvious that these holds have a lot to offer.

The Metolius Wood Grips look great on any home wall and would turn heads at the gym but we believe that they would not last in that kind of environment

PROS

• Skin friendly
• Environmentally friendly
• Holds get better the more they are used
• Look amazing on a wall and will make anyone look twice
• Would make an amazing addition to a home wall
• You don't have to brush them, they are better with hand gunk on them :)
  

CONS

• We're not sure what they'd be like in a commercial setting... how would they hold up to the traffic
• They do take a few climbs before they get REALLY good

PRICE

• 5 pack of holds is $39.50 = $7.90 per hold
• 25 pack is $110 = $4.40 per hold