A great device for some scenarios
I just spent a lovely few weeks up in Squamish climbing some fun cracks and multi-pitch routes. Since I was driving right past Seattle on the way home, I couldn't pass up stopping by Ryan's lab at HowNot2 to run some experiments on my new Roc Solo.
Ryan and I headed out to Exit 32 to find a slightly overhanging route and put the device through its paces with a few different ropes. We tried some easier no-fall sport laps followed by a harder redpoint effort with falls. I'll call these my second impressions, as my first real climbing experience with it was on a 12d roof crack in Squamish, but I didn't actually take the whip.
Being able to LRS that roof crack was exciting, because it is not something I would have felt comfortable doing on the GriGri+, given the failed engagement risk for an upside-down fall.
A quick note: I bought the Roc Solo at full price and jumped through a fair few hoops to import it from Europe. We aren't affiliated with the manufacturer, but we try to keep up-to-date with all things LRS. I really wanted to love this thing. I trust the engineering behind its reliable catch. It is genuinely impressive how much work the team put into a certified, dependable mechanism with real test data. As much as I sing the praises of the GriGri+ in lead mode, it carries real risk, especially during upside-down falls or on overhangs.
This device first appears to be a Silent Partner remake, technology from decades ago that first implemented the rolling clove hitch design for LRS, but I believe the Roc Solo is the more reliable evolution. While the Silent Partner relied on two sharp steel cogs biting into an aluminum housing, marring it over time, the Roc Solo uses four smooth rollers. This is much more like the one-way sprag bearings you would see in industry, such as helicopter rotors, where there is serious endurance data behind smooth rollers and ramps for long-term durability. The Silent Partner was trustworthy for catches, but it wasn't something I would want to fall on thousands of times over the life of the device. Plus, the Roc Solo is also noticeably smaller.
A reliable (and available) device for LRS is a huge step for the community, but let me lay out three real downsides I found during testing: rope drag while climbing, difficulty unlocking the clove post-fall, and rappelling.
First, rope drag. The team deliberately built in wheel drag to prevent back-feeding. The upside is that you only need half as many back-feed cinches. The trade-off, however, is real and noticeable drag while you climb. Some of that comes from the wheel spinning, but the rolling clove hitch itself adds friction as the rope rubs across itself. I found it intensely rope-specific, a real Goldilocks problem. I tried an Edelweiss 9.2mm Unicore that was softer and older, and the clove hitch would really cinch down on itself. On another day, I tried an Edelrid Canary 8.6mm, which is very stiff and cable-like; that proved too stiff and added a great deal of drag. Then I tried a Beal Opera 8.6mm, which performed quite well, though it is admittedly a very skinny rope to be running laps on.
And on the theme of drag, you can short-rope yourself if you do a dynamic stand-up or throw and engage the device.
The second issue is the clove hitch over-tightening, and it may be the deal-breaker for "redpoint rope soloing." The trouble is that any given fall, even a moderate one, can cause it. When you fall, the clutch engages, the wheel stops spinning, and in that instant, the clove hitch cinches down hard on the wheel. Releasing the clutch is easy, a simple pull on the free strand, but that does not necessarily pop the clove free. I found the clove could cinch brutally tight, forcing me to yard up on the rope and draws in an awkward French-free manner, PAS into a fixed point, and then dig the clove loose with my fingers, sometimes for literally minutes.
The third issue is rappelling. Consider how LRS at a sport crag usually works: most routes have open hooks at the top. You lead the pitch, flip the rope into those top hooks, loosen the draws slightly, and then zip down the free tail while cleaning. With a Grigri, that workflow is seamless; you can knock out many pitches quickly while minimizing transitions.
The Roc Solo is advertised as being able to rappel, but the reality was frustrating. You rig a carabiner as a somewhat awkward redirect, which adds a bend rather like an old-school ATC, and the wheel backs you up if you descend too quickly. In practice, I found that carabiner made the rope run sideways and bind. If you started rappelling a touch too fast while cruising down to clean a route, the wheel would lock up, the clove hitch would tension, and popping it loose to continue down was an extreme hassle. This happened three or four separate times. I ended up simply climbing with a Grigri on my harness and transitioning at the top anchor to rappel and clean on that instead. This is a touch ironic because if you are going to do that, you could have just lead-soloed on the Grigri in the first place.
The manufacturer hasn't given clear rappel directions, but this seems to be their redirect method, as seen in one unclear YouTube video
Now, I do not want this to read as though I am simply dismissing the device, because it genuinely has its place. Where it excels is in moderate climbing where you do not expect to fall repeatedly. On that sort of terrain, the clips also tend to be in comfortable positions, so the low hanging device is still easy to access. And since you are less worried about weight, you can simply transition to a dedicated rappel device at the top. You then have a trustworthy device that locks up instantly with no delayed catch risk. It's an excellent choice for moderate cragging, or for climbing the easiest route at a crag to reach the top to rig top-rope solo laps on harder lines.
The second setting where the Roc Solo genuinely shines is aid climbing. When you are aiding, there is an enormous amount going on, including ladders, daisy chains, and weighting each piece as you move. With a Grigri, there is real potential to tangle with the handle or hold the cam in a disengaged postion. For aid soloing, the Roc Solo is actually a superb choice. I relied on the Silent Partner to climb the Nose in a day, solo, in 18.5 hours; if I were choosing a device for another solo aid route today, I might very well reach for the Roc Solo. That said, you had best carry a proper self-rescue kit, because if the device locks up and the clove hitch cinches tight in space, you'll need to ascend the rope to sort it out. A nut tool might help you dig the clove loose, but if the knot is completely welded, you may need to remove yourself from the device entirely.
Ultimately, the Roc Solo will stay in my LRS kit, though reserved for aid climbing and extremely rambly terrain where I want total peace of mind. For redpoint rope soloing and flowy crag mileage, I will still be reaching for my Grigri+, accepting the upside-down risk and using backups to protect myself.
What would my dream lead-soloing device be? I would love to see something with the size and construction of the Neox paired with a wheel that has the sensitivity of the Roc Solo. Velocity would be the catalyst to engage a cam, and the cam itself would do the pinching. When you lower or rappel, you would simply release the cam without fighting a clutch or a cinch. Alas, I am a little too busy climbing to take on a project that hefty…
