The Best Rock Climbing Rope

Ultimately, all of the ropes in this review were top notch, so the content of these reviews is about the nit-picky details where a few ropes edge ahead of the others.

Handling
This category may seem a little vague, but it measures the suppleness of the ropes and the overall feel of the rope while carrying, climbing, and belaying. We gravitated towards the lighter ropes, such as the Mammut Revelation and the Petzl Fuse, because they were much less arduous to backpack, coil, carry, and climb with simply because they did not weigh as much. These ropes also took up less space in a pack because they were thinner. Overall, in whatever situation these ropes were used, they were easy to pack and handle, which made us want to use these ropes more than some of the others.

Glide/Feed
How well does your rope feed through a belay device when giving out slack to the leader and how well does it glide through pieces of protection while climbing? Usually you want the rope to feel as smooth as possible so things are easy on the leader. While you are up there giving it their all, the last thing you want is a rough rope adding extra friction and pump. Here the skinny ropes seemed to take the lead. The lighter and thinner the rope, the easier is is to give out slack. Also, ropes with a coating finish, either a dry coating or the Mammut Teflon coating had a much smoother glide and feed, and kept this feel much longer than ropes with no coating.

Lock-Off
The opposite of glide and feed is lock-off, which is how much friction the rope has when locking in a belay device (maybe one of the most important functions of a rope). Ideally climbers would like a rope that is great at both. Obviously the skinny ropes do not lock-off very well in a first generation gri-gri since it is only rated to catch falls in ropes down to10mm, but every rope held up well in an atc style belay device. The fatter ropes got better scores in this category, simply because locking-off is easier in any type of device than with the skinny ones.

Durability
Obviously, when you throw down a good deal of money on an expensive piece of equipment, you want it to last you a while. Ropes seem to be the piece of climbing equipment that gets retired most often. However, some still last longer than others. Ropes like the Mammut Infinity and Mammut Revelation stood out because of their Teflon coating, which made the sheaths hold up better when being dragged over rough rock. The same is true of the Maxim Glider with its one-over-one sheath weave, a detail that makes the sheath more durable, and the BlueWater Pulse, which has a 40-bobbin sheath that is extra burly.

The Bottom Line
Editor's Choice Award
The Mammut Infinity (9.5mm) wins the Editors' Choice award because it is one of the most durable and versatile ropes. It is easy to handle and lightweight so it can be brought on many different kinds of climbs and approaches. If we had to buy just one rope, this would be the one to put money on. Close behind comes the Mammut Revelation, which is very similar in features, also having a Teflon coating, but slightly thinner (9.2mm) so less versatile. Also a tough contestant was the Maxim Glider – which conveniently comes in multiple diameter options. Its unique one-over-one TPT sheath weave makes it feed and handle better than any of the others and stay thinner and newer longer.

Best Buy Award
This award easily goes to the Maxim Equinox because it was drastically cheaper than most other ropes. Buying a rope is always a hit to the checking account, and it is nice to see that there is at least one option of a relatively inexpensive yet quality rope.