Climbing equipment review – Wild Country ‘Wild Wire’ quickdraws

The Wild Wire from Wild Country is probably now their heaviest wire-gate quickdraw, which is amazing really because at just 93 grams each for the 10cm sling version, they’re hardly what you would call heavyweights!

What the manufacturer says

Simple, light and elegant to use, its smooth action and Techwire gate makes clipping a joy and its open shape and bow back sits neatly in the hand for all uses. As a hot forged biner its strength is re-assuringly good and the Techwire gate – one the best solutions for a wiregate – means that it has a big gate open measurement for easy clipping.
One of Wild Country’s most identifiable and popular biners it continues to be a great value unit and Wild Country’s best seller, offering great value for trad climbing, sports and all-around use.

My view

I bought 2 packs of 5 before coming out to Singapore for 3 months because I think that for less than £60 for a pack of 5, they represent exceptional value. They’re not the lightest draw on the market, but they certainly don’t feel heavy, and they are a joy to handle.

I love that they use silver for the top and red for the bottom (something wild country have adopted for their range topping Hydro and Helium quickdraws). It makes it easy to ensure you’re always clipping the rope into the same end, to avoid furring your rope by running it through biners that have been burred by bolt hangers. ‘Red for rope’ is a very easy mantra to remember.

With their large gate opening, they’re super easy to clip.

Drawbacks

Well I have a bit of an issue with the, what Wild Country call ‘tadpole’. The little rubber ring which secures the clipping biner in position. At least half of mine had spilt and worked their way around the biner after just a week in my back pack, traveling to and from my local wall. I know it’s not a huge deal, but if the feature is there, I would like it to last longer than a week. I mentioned this on the Rock Climbing UK Facebook page, and John Norley was kind enough to offer a solution; Lambs Rings from Crag X in Sheffield (50p for 20) – job done!

So, as a value workhorse you can do a lot worse than the Wild Country Wild Wire quickdraw. Just be careful how you store them in your bag if you want the tadpoles to stay intact.

If you fancy a set, there’s a good deal over at Cotswold Outdoor.

—Post Update—

Last week I received an email from a representative of Wild Country. He explained that the split tadpoles was a known issue for a small batch of these quickdraws. And that if I would like them replaced I could just send in the tapes from the affected units, and they would be replaced free-of-charge. He was also keen to point out that this offer wasn’t exclusive to me, but to anyone who has experienced this problem with a new set of Wild Wires.

So if you’ve had the same problem, head over to the shop you bought them from and they’ll organise your replacements.