Black Diamond  ATC Guide Belay Device

The device has some ridges when it is new that make it rather sticky until they wear down smooth with use. Then it is just fine. In the Guide Mode, it works fine with 9 mm ropes, but there is far too much friction with 10.5 mm ropes. The friction is reasonable with a single 10.5 mm rope in Guide Mode. The carabiner that you use for Guide Mode can affect friction. It should ideally be a small HMS type so that the two strands are not forced together. Otherwise they can't be brought in independent. In a perfect world your two followers will climb at the same rate, but that isn't what happens in practice.

This is a great device. I can't wait to get it out in the gorges! If you're breaking out the gram scale for every piece of gear, it may be too heavy for you. If you aren't doing big wall work or marathon alpines, it's a solid choice. The lock is solid as a rock, and it opens as though nothing happened. On the downside, it is a bit tight for gym ropes. I have to work to get anything above a 10.7mm rope through. It's possible, just not buttering. There's real yanking involved. On the other hand, when hitting actual rock I'm not lugging around anything bigger than a 10.4 anyway! Bottomline: Great device, auto-lock top belay feature is an arm saver, not the best choice for indoor training.

I have had this ATC Guide just about a year. I have used it in alpine sub zero conditions to hot and steamy slab climbs. This device is burly and solid. It belays great from the harness or off an anchor. The auto-lock feature is really an arm saver when belaying up a 2nd. The holes on it are large so they clip easy and allow the device to center easily. I do find that I flip the device and use the nonfriction side when rapping at times: If the route is lower angle and the friction would be too much I do this. Really a great device !!

I've had an ATC, ATC XP and a Reverso. This replaces all of them. I use it with 8mm twin to 10.5mm ropes. The feed is smoother than both the ATC and XP and more variable than the Reverso. The autolock catches faster than the Reverso. Releasing the autolock to lower a climber weighting the rope is tricky, but relatively straightforward - something impossible on the Reverso. It's not the best ascender, but functional as one. It's heavy, but I wouldn't trade that for the smooth feel, flexibility, and solid reliability.

This is the smoothest most versatile belay device I have used to date. Ropes over 10.2mm diameter don't go as smoothly because narrow opening, but smaller diameter runs silky smooth. Very good control on rappell due to variable friction, anodized metal surface makes for nice ride. Autolock function is very good with small diameter ropes ~ 8mm but larger ropes tend to have too much friction. Overall, may be best design on the market.

The device works nice with small diameter ropes, however belaying on thick ropes (10.5+) turns into a nightmare. The auto-locking mode is pretty handy when belaying your second from the anchor, however when the follower struggles a lot (and weights the rope habitually) device locks all the time and you need to put some effort into unlocking it. Still, excelent design overall, unless you happen to use a thick rope.

I find this ATC to work great whether training in the gym or climbing outdoors. Extremely good rope holding when locked and allows the rope to move when you need it to. It works well with my 9.8mm rope. As you'd expect, thicker ropes don't slide through as smoothly, but I have yet to see a rope get stuck and not budge. Feels very sturdy and allows me to be confident when rappelling with 2 ropes down a cliff.

Great piece of gear and very versatile for many different climbing/rappelling scenario's. It is true that thicker ropes create a bit too much friction when going through this device. I even had a bit of trouble rapping off a Beal Joker with this device. But too much holding power is never really a bad thing! Works great for wet/iced-up ropes though!

The versatility of this piece is great. It is heavy but worth it due to its multiple functions and ruggedness. I feel like I will be using this piece for years to come. The surface texture of the Guide surprised me by how smooth it feeds. Pair this with a Rocklock Screwgate for the most versatile and rugged belay set up out there.

This device is built to last...if you compare it to other models you quickly see and feel the difference in materials. Being a cast product their are no failure points...other models use pins and rivets that could fail. Go with this product if you prefer safety and durability over weight. Climb On