Front	Rear

Technical Details

I acquired my Krok Bug from PetrenkoWorld (now Gear4Rocks) in 2007. Gear4Rocks is the same company as Krok, the only difference is that the Krok trademark sells gear only inside the Ukraine, and the Gear4Rocks trademark was created to spread Ukrainian gear around the world.

The Krok Bug consists of a center plate with two bollards and a cover strap riveted on each side. The center plate is made from 6 mm. aluminum, while the remaining parts are steel. The center plate has two ascending ears and two descending ears, the latter flanking a descending shaft with two 14.9 mm. attachment holes. The steel bollards are each 15.2 mm. in diameter and 15.3 mm. long, and separated by 35.3 mm. (inside dimension). The cover strips are made from 14.6 mm. by 2.0 mm. steel. Two rivets hold the device together; each rivet going through one cover strip, a bollard, the center plate, another bollard, and the other cover strip. The entire device is painted with a paint that gives a mottled gray-and-black finish.

The Krok Bug is 120 mm. tall, 85 mm. wide, and 43 mm. thick. Mine weighs 203 g.

One side of the Bug is stamped with what appears to be the Krok logo, although the stamping on mine is not complete.

Comments

The Bug could easily be viewed as a miscellaneous belay device, but I chose to call it a miscellaneous descender instead, mainly because the horns provide tie-off capabilities similar to those on other belay devices. The size of the bug was also a factor. As a descender, it functions much like a Belay Tube does, except the long spacing between the bollards and the long slot-to-carabiner distance leads to a faster rappel. I prefer more friction from a rappel device. For belaying, I would definitely want more.

I dislike the mottled finish, since it will simply wear off, leaving a mess on the rope.