Traditional Climbing: 9. Cam Considerations - 3 Lobe vs. 4 Lobe | Climbing Tech Tips

Subscribe to our channel for the latest training videos, climbing tutorials and more! In this video we review considerations between using a 4 lobe (Alien) vs 3 lobe (Metolius TCU) cams. Both can be useful, and have different applications (see below):

4 Lobe:
- Wider than the 3 lobe, so not ideal for shallow cracks.
- More surface area than 3 lobe, can inspire more confidence in less-than-perfect rock
- Higher tendency to walk than 3 lobe.
- Four lobe cams may have 1 or 2 axes. Cams with 2 axes have greater range, but are heavier than single axes cans

3 Lobe:
- Narrower profile than most 4 lobe cams, better for shallow cracks.
- Less surface area than 4 lobe cams, so it’s extra important to be placed in high quality rock.
- Less tendency to walk back in the crack, but may pivot more than cams with 4 lobes due to having one side with a single lobe touching the rock. Manage this risk/issue by extending the cam with a sling.


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