First off, neither the Grigri or Cinch are “autolocking;” they are “lock assist” belay devices. I believe that the Cinch is fine on thinner ropes (under 10mm) but the Grigri isn’t (i’ve seen it work on 9.8mm but according to Petzl, rope diameter should be between 10mm and 11mm—something to keep in mind).

I don’t understand how the Grigri would not pull you up as much as with an ATC. The ATC allows rope slippage and the Grigri doesn’t.

IME, it depends. I’m fine with belaying and being belayed with a Grigri on a sport climb. I prefer to belay and be belayed with a tube device (ATC, Jaws, Pyramid, Reverso, etc) on trad and ice unless I know the pro is “bomber.”

Multipitch sport is questionable. Since you’ll already have an ATC on you to rappel off of the route, and you’re not planning on hangdogging a multipitch, why bring up the extra weight?

If you do end up switching over to the Grigri/Cinch (you operate them differently, btw) be sure you learn how to belay properly with them. 1) make sure that whichever method you use you’re not risking safety (ex: don’t keep you hand clamped down on the Grigri cam ‘cause if someone falls, it won’t lock up). 2) make sure you compensate for your partner’s weight for a soft catch. I realize that you’re lighter than most of us and the weight difference will naturally make for a softer catch, but make sure you have the requisite slack out.

Zac had asked about belay devices a while back and here is a bit of a breakdown I provided on the Gri Gri and Cinch.

Concerning the belay devices, I have used both the Gri Gri and the Cinch. Both have pluses and minuses and shine in certain situations. Both the Gri and Cinch are pretty simple and self explanatory, but make sure you read the directions first. My initial experience with the Cinch was not the best, yet it was the original model of the Cinch and it has since been redesigned with a longer lowering handle.

Here is a bit of a break down:

The Gri Gri is easier for lowering your climber initially. I found the Cinch to be weird at first, but then got the hang of it and it is fine now.

The Cinch takes a small bit of time to get used to lowering if you treat it like a Gri Gri. It functions a bit differently.

The Cinch will handle a larger range of rope diameters.

The Cinch feeds rope much easier for sport climbing due to the rope path being less curved in the device than the Gri Gri. I have also found the method of using the Cinch for sport climbing to be less susceptible to belayer error resulting in a larger fall. (With the Gri Gri you must pinch the device to counteract the spring locking mechanism…there have been cases where climbers have been injured when the belayer “froze” up and pinched the device more as the climber fell thus negating the lock assist feature).

The Gri Gri is a bit smoother for rapping (should you be in a situation of rapping on a single rope).

The Cinch provides less rope slippage on sub 10mm ropes. Good for sport climbing, possibly not the best for trad, depending on how solid your gear placements are. I would use an ATC guide for trad.

The Cinch weighs less and costs less.

The Gri Gri overall takes a bit less time to “get used to”, which makes it extremely popular.

For the Cinch…I can get you a very good deal on one should you decide to go that route….

Everything aside, I think they are both great devices and I have no problem using or recommending either one.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Hey Neuroshock, you mentioned that you ’prefer to belay and be belayed with a tube device (ATC, Jaws, Pyramid, Reverso, etc) on trad and ice unless I know the pro is “bomber.”’

I don’t know much about the topic, but am curious to learn why. Is it because a tube device handles shock load better?

MDUB, maybe readers would be interested in hearing about your experiences in Asia where “everyone” (I think you said) used a grigri to lead belay. Particularly how adept they were at handling the device uniquely on leads as opposed to how they would handle in for use on tr.

Most climbers learn to lead belay on a tube device of some kind, and it is sometimes inferred that lead belaying with a grigri is not an option. I teach lead belaying on tubes, but I tell people that they can do it with a grigri or cinch with practice. Anyone who wants to transition might want to practice in a mock-lead threesome and work out the bugs.

Hey Miguel, Using a tube style device when trad leading allows a more of “cushion”, so to speak, when catching a fall. The rope in an ATC or tube device will tend to slip a bit more than in a Gri or Cinch as a result of the design. Couple this with dynamic elongation/rope stretch and you have a more “softened” load to your protection when using an ATC should the leader fall. If you have a dicey nut placement or a bit of a spicy cam placement you will certainly want the load on those pieces to be softened if at all possible, lest they zipper out. A Gri or Cinch is less likely to provide this cushion due to the fact that it tends to provide less rope slippage.

Tom, Yes, for the three plus months I was in Asia I saw the majority of people using Gri’s and some Cinches to sport climb. Some used them correctly and others used them incorrectly for both sport and TR. I even saw guides in Yangshuo taking both hands off the Gri while their client hung from a route. As far as here in Boulder and Denever, I see a good number of people using Gris, Cinches and other lock assist devices in the gyms. However, I definitely feel that they should not be used as a substitute to learning how properly use a tube style device. When face climbing here in Boulder Canyon and other places I would prefer to have a Gri or a Cinch since many of the routes have a pretty bad fall potential. In this situation, I want minimal rope slippage to prevent riding down a cheese-grater or decking out on a ledge. Although, when climbing in Rifle and other places with overhanging routes, tube style devices allow a bit of a softened catch, thus preventing you from immediately snapping/whipping into the wall after a fall and hurting you ankle. But I digress… :)

Miguel, MDUB got it spot on.

Something to think about with some of the tube-style belay devices (BD ATC-XP, Trango Jaws) is how/when to use the high friction mode. I’m not sure how much slippage the ATC-XP would allow in a lead fall (I’ve never had to catch a one using that device) if the brake hand is fully locked off.