Petzl Grigri 2 Belay Device

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Product Feature
- Claimed Weight: 170 g
- Auto Locking: yes, assisted braking system
- Rope Diameter: 8.9 - 11 mm
- Material: (side plates) aluminum, (cam and friction plate) stainless steel, (handle) reinforced nylon
- Recommended Use: rock climbing
Product Description
Petzl took the most-used assisted-braking belay device on the planet, made it 25% smaller and 20% lighter, gave it a wider functional range, and called it the Grigri 2. Unlike the previous model, the Grigri 2 works on ropes clear down to 8.9mm because, let's face it, we've all used the last model well outside its recommended specs. In addition, the new release system uses a graduated cam, which gives you better control while lowering your climber. Since Petzl knows that you'll be using this belay device for a decade or more, it made the cam out of burly stainless steel for a seriously long life.
Petzl Grigri 2 Belay Device Review
This and the original Grigri (pictured above for some reason) are the two most common assisted-locking belay devices. I've had some experience with the original, a few weeks with this, and none with the Trango Cinch or the like, so take my impressions for what they're worth.
The major reason you'd buy an assisted-locking device is for the extra safety margin. The Grigri has a locking cam that halts the rope when it pulls out at a certain speed. That's a tremendous boon where the belayer is inattentive or inexperienced, or where the belayer can't see the climber. It's also next to impossible to get the webbing of your brake hand stuck in it, as I've seen twice occur with sudden falls to ATCs in the last three months. And when your climber wants to hang, it's a lot easier to sit and chill when you don't need to keep constant heavy braking tension.
Relative to the old Grigri, this one is significantly smaller and lighter. The old one could feel like an anchor if left on the harness for difficult climbs. This one, not so much. The friction lip is also a bit wider and easier to slot your fingers under, a helpful fulcrum if you're holding the cam down to feed rope. Inside, the rope grooves are sharper and tighter, which allows Petzl to officially support thinner ropes, but has some downstream implications I get into below.
The belay learning curve for top-roping is very short. For the initial feed of rope through the device, the Grigri is ingrained with clear directional diagrams. Taking rope is identical to what you'd do with an ATC.
Feeding rope for lead climbs takes a bit more practice. Conventional belay technique has your brake hand on the rope at all times. You don't really modify that with the Grigri, but you may need to leave additional slack between the mechanism and your brake hand, and use a thumb from that hand to hold the locking cam down while you pull through. It is actually possible to feed rope very quickly without engaging the locking cam if both ends of the rope are vertical, but I found this method inconsistent. An advantage of manual-locking belay devices is that, when the lead climber falls, they allow the belayer to feed rope for a softer brake and a dynamic catch. This ability is negated by the Grigri's immediate cam engagement, though a lighter belayer may well lift off the ground, a dynamic catch in itself.
Descending and letting down climbers is a novel experience. All of the original Grigris I've used have been very forgiving with the thick and fuzzy indoor ropes I've encountered. The Grigri 2, not so much. The difference between your climber inching and plummeting is about 10% pressure on the handle. I eventually grew adept at quick and controlled descents after about a dozen belays, but only by fixing my hand in place and using my shoulder to adjust the pressure. Fingers alone inevitably led to a quick drop, followed by my climber lifting me off the ground when I let off and the cam suddenly closed. While Petzl's literature implies that the friction lip should control the speed instead of the handle, I've found that careful manipulation of both is necessary. Also of note: with the original Grigri, you could press on the cam to lower a hanging climber without using the handle. For better or worse, that's no longer possible.
On balance though, unless I need the additional versatility of a conventional ATC, I always reach for a Grigri. I don't recommend it at the outset to novices because it can promote sloppy belay technique, but after you've been at it for a little while, it's a wonderful accessory. A simpler, cheaper, and slightly less foolproof alternative is Mammut's Smart Belay Device.
ADDENDUM: The very first copies of the Grigri 2 were recalled for a defective release handle. Any new copy is likely to be post-recall. Beware used copies from early 2011. The affected serial numbers are on Petzl's website.
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