Camalot

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Not to be confused with Camelot.
A #6 Camalot C4 placed in a crack.
#1-#4.5 Camalots from around 2000

Camalot is a brand of spring-loaded camming devices manufactured by Black Diamond Equipment used to secure ropes while rock climbing.

Black Diamond has produced several different models of Camalots:

Current models:

  • The Camalot C4, is the current version of the original model, most recently updated in early 2019. They use a dual-axle system, resulting in a slightly higher expansion range than for a similarly sized single axle unit, and also resulting in increased strength, allowing placement as a passive stopper. C4s range from the small #0.3 to the rarely seen massive #8.
  • The Camalot Ultralight, a lighter-weight version of the C4 with a core made of dyneema instead of steel, introduced in 2016, in sizes from #0.4 to #4.
  • The Camalot Z4, introduced in 2020, as a replacement for the X4 and C3 as Black Diamond's small-sized cams, available in both standard and offset models.[1] Available in sizes #.0, #.1, #.2, #.3, #.4, #.5, #.75
  • The Camalot Z4 Offset, introduced in Feb 2020, Similar to the older discontinued X4 Offset this newer version a combination of the two different sized head from the X4 Offset and the compact lobes of the Z4. available in sizes #.1 / #.2, #.2 / #.3, #.3 / #.4, #.4 /#.5, #.5 /#.75 [2]

Discontinued models:

  • The Camalot X4, with smaller heads and flexible cable stems, designed for placement in very small cracks, in sizes #0.1 to #0.75. The X4 were released in Spring 2013.[3] Now discontinued with the released of the Z4. [4]
  • The Camalot X4 Offset, a version of the X4 with heads of two different sizes for flaring cracks or other asymmetric placements, previously available in #0.1/#0.2, #0.2/#0.3, #0.3/0.4, #0.4/#0.5, and #0.5/#.75. Now discontinued with the released of the Z4. [5]
  • The Camalot C3, introduced in 2007 and discontinued in 2018, designed for placements in very small cracks, with a single axle and a narrow, three-lobed head.

Like other cams, Camalot lobes are in the shape of a logarithmic spiral, resulting in a constant angle between the cam and the rock at each contact point; this constant angle is designed to always provide the necessary friction to hold a cam in equilibrium.[6]

In April 2020, Black Diamond introduced the #7 and #8 C4s, the largest Camalots ever built. The cams were initially teased with an April Fool's Day video of Alex Honnold supposedly placing a "#21" C4. At $199.99 and $239.99, they are also the most expensive Camalots ever sold [7]

References[]

  1. ^ "Black Diamond Launches Z4 Camalot: What You Need to Know". 10 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Camalot Z4 Offset - Black Diamond Climbing Gear". Black Diamond Equipment. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  3. ^ "Welcome climberism.com - BlueHost.com". www.climberism.com.
  4. ^ "Camalot X4 - Black Diamond Climbing Gear". Black Diamond Equipment. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  5. ^ "Camalot X4 Offset - Black Diamond Climbing Gear". Black Diamond Equipment. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  6. ^ "Duke SLCD research". Archived from the original on 2008-10-25. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
  7. ^ "Rock Protection | Climbing Protection | Black Diamond Climbing Gear".

External links[]

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