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Quickdraws are essential for a safe rock or ice climbing adventure. All the same, they're highly useful for securing and carrying items. To make sure your rope runs smoothly through your bolt anchors, we have identified and reviewed the best quickdraws of the year.
We've ranked our picks for the best quickdraws based on customer ratings, durability, and quality. Additional details we have covered include size, weight, material, strength levels, and the not-so-pleasant aspects of each quickdraw.
Let's dive into specifics so you can see which one is the most suitable quickdraw for your climbing needs!
The Mad Rock Concorde quickdraw features a Dyneema dog bone design with warm-forged aluminum wire-gate biners for great strength. Satisfied customers recommend it as a high-quality model, as the Concorde is one of the best quickdraws in terms of design.
Mad Rock's Concorde is so impressive that it performs well even during falls. The snap closes securely, and you can open the gates quickly. Made with care, the insides of the biners are smooth without any rough edges, making it ideal for climbing. However, be careful if you put too much weight on it, as the Concorde might break.
Specifications
- Size: 11 x 3 x 1 in. / 27.9 x 7.6 x 2.5 cm
- Weight: 2.4 oz. / 68 g
- Material: Aluminum
- Minor axis: 10 kN
- Major axis: 27 kN
- Open gate: 8 kN
PROS |
CONS |
Secure |
Small |
Well-made |
Fragile under heavy weight |
High-quality materials |
|
Black Diamond Freewire (6-pack)
Black Diamond's Freewire actually comes as a pack of six products and contains some of the best quickdraws manufactured in the US. They have cold-forged hotwire wiregate biners and a nylon dogbone design. Additionally, the dual wiregates prevent freezing up and fluttering for a secure clasp.
On top of that, the quickdraws have a straitjacket insert that correctly orients the bottom carabiner. With plenty of extras available when needed, the Freewire Quickpack is one of the best quickdraws for ice climbing. It’s quite hard to find a disadvantage, but you might not enjoy the fact that the Freewire quickdraws are a bit on the heavy side.
Specifications
- Size: 4.7 x 3.2 x 3.2 in. / 11.9 x 8.1 x 8.1 cm
- Weight: 1.32 lbs. / 0.59 kg
- Material: Nylon and metal
- Minor axis: 8 kN top and 7 kN bottom
- Major axis: n/a
- Open gate: 8 kN
PROS |
CONS |
Durable |
Heavy |
Long product life |
|
Comes in a pack, so you have extras on hand |
|
Omega Pacific Omegalite (5-pack)
Want an alternative quickdraw pack? Consider the Omega Pacific deal. Their Omegalite quickdraws are made of 4.0 biners and they come in a pack of five. Therefore, you’ll have plenty of replacements in case you lose any of the accessories.
Omegalites are some of the best alpine quickdraws on the market right now, and they're also suitable for other types of sports climbers. For example, you can count on them for crack climbing or trad climbing as well. Also, they are easy to clip and feel comfortable in the hand. However, they might not be so comfortable to remove, as the wire gates sometimes snag on the bolt hangers.
Specifications
- Size: n/a
- Weight: 1.2 lbs. / 0.54 kg
- Material: n/a
- Minor axis: n/a
- Major axis: n/a
- Open gate: n/a
PROS |
CONS |
Easy to clip |
Tricky removal |
Strong |
|
Comfortable to hold |
|
Featuring an H-shaped cross-section design, the Petzl Djinn Axess is one of the best quickdraws from a reliability viewpoint. Its design reduces wear and improves glide and strength-to-weight ratio. The Djinn Axess' webbing is made of high-resistance polyester. Also, to help protect its webbing from abrasion and secure the rope end carabiner, the design features a String S.
Although the Djinn Axess quickdraw has been specifically designed for crag climbing, it's excellent for any kind of outdoor activity. The Petzl model is also a good choice for beginner climbers because it is so easy to clip to the rope. Notwithstanding, it is a bit heavy, so it might be a little difficult to handle.
Specifications
- Size: Available in two sizes: 4.7 in./12 cm and 6.7 in./17 cm
- Weight: 1 lbs. / 0.45 kg
- Material: n/a
- Minor axis: n/a
- Major axis: 23 kN
- Open gate: n/a
PROS |
CONS |
Reliable |
Heavy |
Durable |
|
Easy to use |
|
Kong Express Frog (432499)
With a directional connector that automatically clamps with the anchor point, Kong offers us one of the best quickdraws in terms of safety. The Express Frog has a fixed pin meant to prevent disassembly. Thanks to its fast and easy release, you can rely on the Express Frog in any unpredictable situation.
Although many customers use the Kong quickdraw for everyday tasks like clipping leashes, seatbelts, and equipment, it's perfect for climbing and mountaineering too. You can also use it in create applications, such as underwater photography. In any case, you won’t have to worry, as the Express Frog has CE and UIAA certifications.
Specifications
- Size: 5 x 1 x 1 in. / 12.7 x 2.5 x 2.5 cm
- Weight: 3.2 oz. / 90.7 g
- Material: Aluminum alloy
- Minor axis: n/a
- Major axis: n/a
- Open gate: n/a
PROS |
CONS |
Extremely versatile |
On the pricey sid |
Well-made |
|
User-friendly design |
|
Conclusion
All in all, we've ranked a couple of the best quickdraws you can buy based on their size and weight, but also reliability, durability, and usefulness. Summing up, you can't really do better than the Kong Express Frog when it comes to the best quickdraws.
All of the quickdraws we talked about are perfect for climbing, but you can also use them to secure leashes or add some extra carrying space. Which convinced you to hit 'add to cart'? Tell us about it in the comments.