Wild Country Pro Key Review
Compare prices at 3 resellers Pros: Keeper leash, plenty of surface area on the handle end for bashing
Cons: The keeper leash isn't removable
Manufacturer: Wild Country
Our Verdict
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Pro Key is in the rankings with BD Nut Tool and the Metolius Torque. All three of these tools feature their own clip-in biner, a blunted handle, and curved hook. The Pro Key, however, the only one with a keeper cord.
Performance Comparison
Nut Cleaning
This tool does its main job well. The blunted end makes for a (somewhat) comfortable place to hit the nuts out with your palm.
Cam Cleaning
The Pro Key's business end is hooked for snagging cam triggers if the cams have walked too far into the crack to reach with your hand. The steel won't bend or break when you're prying at cam lobes in granite, and can bash a cam out of sandstone. Be careful as popular sandstone routes are becoming damaged (crack getting podded out and even changing sizes.
Ease of Handling
The Pro Key has its own clip-in biner, plus an additional attachment point for the extendable cord. In the ideal scenario, the second, pumped silly from hanging on by a measly finger-lock while he hopelessly tries to free a stuck nut without blowing the onsight, drops the nut tool so he can switch hands. The tool is caught by the extendable cord. Awesome! In practice, we find ourselves hanging from the rope more often than not when freeing stuck gear. In the case of a stuck cam, you really need to take your time, since bashing and thrashing with reckless abandon can get a cam even more entrapped. The cord coils up tightly and doesn't hang very low off the harness, but it can become clipped to other gear on your harness. All new aid climbers have experienced the madness of tangled daisy chains, ladders and fifi hooks hooked where they were never meant to be. Do you really need another hindrance? Our testers are mainly free climbers in the sunny Sierra, and they say no.
One more item of note, the end of the Pro Key is sharp, like sharp enough to puncture your tender thighs if you took a fall in the wrong way. We haven't heard of this ever happening to anyone, but it's something to consider for sure.
Durability
This tool is constructed of steel. Bash it, thrash it, throw it off the mountain (don't actually), this little guy will just keep on kickin'.
Weight
Tipping our scale at 3.85 oz with the cord attached. Not as light and fast as the .75oz Metolius Feather, but surely more durable. If you dig the Pro Key but not the cord, you can purchase it without the cord. The cord is attached to the tool via a swage, so you can't just take off and put it back on as you like.
Best Applications
The cord is a great addition for anyone who finds themselves frequently dropping or worried about dropping gear.
Value
For $18, you get the nut tool plus the keeper cord. Maybe the keeper cord will really save you some money if you've been dropping your nut tool all the time.
Conclusion
The Pro Key has all the key features we like to see in a good nut tool; Durability, its own clip in biner, and a hefty bashing surface on the end. If you're psyched on the keeper cord, don't hesitate to go with the Pro Key.
— Ian Nicholson