Petzl Tibloc

Pros: light, easy to use
Cons: little spendy

I came across this little beauty fresh out of a glacier travel/crevasse rescue refresher course and had to purchase it. You see, I had just spent 8 days prussiking up trees and out of 60 ft deep crevasses using slings and, frankly, it's not a lot of...

Pros: Versitile. Light weight.
Cons: Dangerous unless constantly monitered. Eats ropes.

I think it is important to have a contrasting view on this piece of hardware. If it is not used correctly it will DESTROY a rope. Although this is true for several pieces of climbing equipment, I have yet to see something that has as many dangerous set ...

Pros: Lightweight, Can save a life
Cons: None

Note first: If you have used a standard ascender/jumar, etc. this thing makes sense. If you haven't, what happens is this: You place the Ti-Bloc against your rope so the teeth point in towards the sheath and the direction you DON'T want it to go (i.e. if...

Pros: convenient, simple,... essential?
Cons: easy to drop.

this brilliant little bit of metal will hang on my harness every time i cross a glacier or rappel a multi-pitch route. the next time i fall into a crevasse with a 60lb pack on, all i need to do is hook these onto the rope, attach them to my harness with...

Pros: Size and weight.
Cons: Sharp, and not very smooth.

I bought this tool for climbing long routes as a self-rescue device and for hauling. I found it very hard on my rope and not very smooth. In my opinion this is not meant for everyday ascending of the rope as it is close in price from far superior ascenders; However its size and weight make it perfect for an emergency device.

Pros: Ultralight weight, compact, and extremely useful
Cons: Bit pricey,... but what climbing gear isn't?

These little devices may not be the integral part of your rack, nor may they see a whole lot of use at all. But when the time comes, you'll be glad you have it. For what you have to put up with in weight (all of 39 grams), it's just so much handier than using a prusik. While they're not as easy to work with as full size ascenders (of course), the device really does function well, without the fiddling the prusik might give you, and because of the teeth, it won't slip.

I'll agree $20 is a bit steep for one, given that a good solid biner will only run you $5 or $6, but I won mine in a raffle at a trail day (hint.. go to trail days, you get cool stuff!!!).

Overall though, these things are worth their weight in gold, though that ain't a whole lot in this case. There's really just no good reason not to bring one alone... it can save a lot of hassle later on.