Version A	Version B

Overview

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Version A
(#1491, 2481)

Front	Rear

Technical Details

I acquired my Singing Rock, Version A on eBay from Richard Ziarnowski in 2016, and a second from Ondřej Belica / Climbing CZ sro in 2017.

This version is forged from aluminum alloy and then soft anodized. Mine is 143 mm. tall, 131 mm. wide, and 16 mm. thick. The rope hole is 50 mm. high and 49 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 13 mm. The shaft length and width are 46 mm. and 25 mm., respectively. The auxiliary hole is 27.5 mm. high and 10.7 mm. wide. The eye measures 26 mm. by 25 mm. The ears are 27.9 mm. long. My Singing Rock weighs 154 g.

One side is printed with "40 kN," "Singing Rock," and "1215."

Comments

This version is a "Midi" Size Figure Eights with Ears, but it looks more like a small "rescue eight" with the ears sticking out to the side.

This eight has a belay slot. The slot dimensions are designed for Sticht-type belaying with 9 mm. rope, and compare favorably with the slot dimensions found in true 9 mm. Sticht-type belayers, but I would have preferred a slot sized for 11 mm. rope since I consider 9 mm. to be a bit small for single-rope belaying.

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Version B
(#2482)

Front	Rear

Technical Details

I acquired my Singing Rock, Version B from Ondřej Belica / Climbing CZ sro in 2017.

This version is forged from stainless steel. Mine is 142 mm. tall, 130 mm. wide, and 159 mm. thick. The rope hole is 49 mm. high and 48 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 13 mm. The shaft length and width are 45 mm. and 25 mm. , respectively. The auxiliary hole is 26.9 mm. high and 10 mm. wide. The eye measures 26 mm. by 26 mm. The ears are 28.6 mm. long. My Singing Rock, Version B weighs 460 g.

One side is engraved with "40 kN," "Singing Rock," and "0212."

Comments

This version is a "Midi" Size Figure Eights with Ears, but it looks more like a small "rescue eight" with the ears sticking out to the side. Why make this eight out of stainless steel? It will wear well, but it is too heavy for me to consider carrying it. Also, from a heat dissipation perspective, stainless steel is decidedly inferior to aluminum.

The slot in the shaft is too narrow for belaying with 11 mm. ropes, and I can't imagine anyone carrying the weight of this eight and climbing on single 9 mm. rope at the same time.

All I can figure is that Singing Rock copied the similar Kong without thinking.

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