Field test: AustriAlpin Fish
The Autotuber from Tirol put to the test – tried and tested in the Tannheimer Valley and the Tirolean Zugspitz Arena. Our verdict: an attractive option and 100 per cent ‘Made in Austria’.
As part of our collaboration with our equipment partner, we’d like to introduce you to the AustriAlpin Fish today. This belay device is what’s known as an ‘Autotuber’ – a model that functions like a standard tuber but also provides significant braking power and locking support.
Our verdict: an attractive option in the ‘car YouTuber’ sector – and 100 per cent ‘Made in Austria’!
This time, our team of testers were out and about in the north-western corner of Tirol – more specifically, in the Tannheimer Valley and the Tirolean Zugspitz Arena.
We received the ‘Gold Fish’ set, featuring the HMS Rondo Slide-Autolock, free of charge from our Tirolean equipment partner – this belay device is usually supplied as part of a set. The ‘hard-anodised’ coating makes the carabiner particularly abrasion-resistant. The interplay of the geometries of the carabiner and the belay device guarantees both braking power and practical locking support. A mini-bar on the smaller leg ensures that the carabiner cannot twist – thus ruling out dangerous transverse loads.
At first glance, the Fish with the carabiner appears slightly larger and bulkier than other belay devices. However, this impression does not hold up with prolonged use: the combo is in the same size and weight category as comparable auto-tubers. The design, featuring the cheeky Fish prints, has a youthful and playful look.
Once unpacked, experienced climbers can get started straight away with this auto-tuner (aka ‘semi-automatic’). Once the rope is loaded and your climbing partner starts climbing, things get exciting: does the rope feed out smoothly?
Here’s what one of our testers had to say: “I found it quite intuitive to use. At first I had to concentrate a bit more and was actually belaying in exactly the same way as with a standard belay device. When feeding out the rope quickly, the device did jam slightly at one point, which is why I started using the ‘thumb method’. That made it work much better! Simply place the thumb of your braking hand under the ‘fin’, push the Fish forwards and ‘tunnel’ the rope with your other fingers. This way, your leading hand can easily pull the rope out at any time and there’s no more jamming.”
If the lead climber takes a fall, further advantages become apparent – particularly the automatic braking and anti-jamming support.
Our second tester sums it up: “If you’re already used to belaying with Tuber, making the switch is quite easy. At first, the handling just felt a bit different – I had to concentrate a bit on pushing the device slightly forwards and upwards. That got better and better as the day’s climbing went on. Eventually, it became completely second nature.”
It’s operated intuitively using the ‘braking hand principle’ and can therefore be learnt quickly.
With the AustriAlpin Fish, lowering your Partner is very easy. Experienced climbers can use the two modes intuitively and quickly: first, you simply push the belay lever (aka the ‘fin’) upwards, whilst your braking hand below additionally controls the rope friction – that was our standard method. We used the second method, which involves keeping the device close to the body, less frequently. Lowering is also smooth and completely intuitive; the lowering lever can assist the ‘fin’ in this process.
The set we were provided with, comprising the ‘Gold Fish’ and the extra-sturdy HMS Rondo Selfie Slide Autolock, is available from specialist retailers at a RRP of €79.00, placing it in the mid-range price bracket for car YouTubers. If you factor in the price of the included carabiner, the set is a very good and attractive deal – with this high-quality design, you should be able to enjoy it for many years to come.
The Austrian Alpine Club has also produced a very informative video about the AustriAlpin Fish, which perfectly demonstrates how the belay device works.
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