While Friction Holds has been around since 1999, few setters below the 49th parallel have heard of them. Nevertheless this Toronto based company, run by Luigi Montilla, is one of the top grip makers of the world.

It’s hard to stand out these days in the glutted climbing hold market. But if hold companies do want to stand out it wouldn’t hurt to follow the lead of Friction Holds.

Dominating the local scene on the east coast of Canada, they soon spread west with the help of the popular bouldering series, Tour de Bloc, which is also run by Luigi.

The Tour, Luigi’s marketing prowess and the precision craftsmanship of shapers & brothers — Matt and Luke Coles — have come together to create one badass organization.

From the first look at any Friction hold you get the idea that the Coles brothers’ shaping is inspired by a real rock aesthetic. With some of the most detailed shaping work I’ve ever seen it’s a wonder they have time to run a business.

“We’ve decided to put more emphasis on the natural aesthetic. Although we do every so often produce some ‘abstract’ shapes. It seems like a lot of people like the natural stuff as it closely simulates the feel of real rock,” says Luigi. It sure seems Luigi and the brothers have taken this desire to heart.

But to a setter these artistic details matter little compared to a hold’s functionality. But Friction stays strong on this aspect as well. None of the details ever get in the way of forcing a move or allowing a climber to cheat the sequence.

Over the years Friction has amassed quite a collection of holds and has one of the most extensive lines in the business covering all corners of the grip spectrum. Some of the holds we tested seemed to be straight out of the old school book of shaping. But most were very original, comfortable and functional.

The Mix

When I opened the boxes of holds Friction sent I was shocked to find resin holds. It’s a little amazing that a North American hold company in the twenty-first century can still be selling holds made of brittle and heavy resin.

I dropped Luigi a line and asked him what’s up. He explained: “We’ve been testing a couple of [urethane] mixes – a rigid and a semi rigid. We’re trying to hold off until we dial down the material and the process”. Seems like Friction will be sticking with their traditional recipe for now.

Until then customers will have to deal with broken holds, which is what we had to do when one of the features that was shipped to Routesetter.com came with a completely broken off corner. The break wasn’t structural so we just epoxied it back together and it performed well. I wish I could blame the Canadian Post or the US postal service for this break but unfortunately the blame rests completely on the fragile nature of the hold mix.

At least they’re trying. One thing I hope they don’t mess with is the texture of the holds. The holds have a great large grain texture that is friendly right out of the box and feels most like the sandstone of the south.

Some of you may feel the desire to stop reading right now. I mean what’s the point of buying a hold that is more likely to break, more likely to chip and more likely to strain your back? Well, keep reading and you may find that the true value of Friction holds lies beyond the resin.

Comps

We brought four of the large features to the setters of the NW ABS Regionals at Club Sport in Portland, Oregon. The setters quickly nabbed-up the holds and slung them onto problems.

Almost every hold in the Friction line is ready-made for comps. Most holds can turn up or down the grade of a route with a quick dial. And since most American climbers have not climbed on Friction holds the setters knew they would be able to force a true on-sight attempt. Add to that the high relief nature of some of the holds and it makes it almost impossible for competitors to find the sweet spot on their first try.

The Simples and House series (which we did not test), with their clean, smooth lines would also make any comp setters day a little easier.

The Bento Boxes

We received several holds from Friction’s new 2008 link, including the Bento Boxes. The Bento’s are blocky angular pinches that have sneaky thumb catches. One might think that because they are relatively good to grip on all sides that it would be hard to force sequences. But as long as one puts them a 30 degree or more wall it’s quite easy. It’s also fun to watch climbers fumble around trying to find the “good” side.

However the thumb catch is a shallow oval divot that can be awkward for smaller hands.

Kentucky Slots

It’s a bit incongruous to see a Canadian company making holds that emulate the sweet sandstone of the Red River. But I guess if Kentucky has it you’ve got to use it. And boy does Friction use it. The Slots are just one of many holds modeled after the Red.

The Kentucky series are a hybrid slot-pocket-pinch. But they don’t fit these definitions easily. One climber said of the Kentucky’s, “The crappyness of the pockets really mimics the crappyness you find outside.” I think by crappyness, he meant awesomeness.

These holds are a rare breed indeed. The holds never really allow the climber to get comfortable even when pulling straight down on them, requiring a lot of attention to be paid to foot work.

One draw back of the mix used to make the Slots is their chalk sucking nature. We set a V3 on a vert wall with the Slots and by the next week it had turned into a hard V4. Even with a good brushing, which most indoor climbers do not do, the holds held on to the chalk like a fat kid holds onto birthday cake.

But the pockets are great for hard kiddy routes as the grip surface of the pocket is quite small and would fit small fingers better than chubby man digits.

The medium set will run you $45 Canadian bucks.

Grit Edges & Organics

The real-feel of the Grit Edges and Organics made for nice theme problems. Both sets showcase the design style that Friction is known for: intricate detail and made to look like some sort of dream stone.

Even though the Grit Edges are small and crimpy they, like all the holds we tested, have nice smooth lips that won’t hurt sensitive indoor tips. The Organics are equally detailed but more on the juggy side.

Even though the holds are meticulously crafted the artistic details never get in the way of function. These details speak directly to a setters eye but few climbers will notice these minor features. In fact not one climber mentioned the finely wrought craftsmanship when they dropped off a Friction problem.

Vein Jugs

The Vein Jugs we received were small one handed grips that were very comfortable to tug on. A lot of climbers had more good things to say about these seemingly simple shapes than some of the more detailed ones. They are some of the best mini jugs on the market.

The Veins come in a variety of depths, from mega deep to deceptively shallow. If one was to set an entire route with the Veins and their sister jugs the Bubbles, they would be the hero of the gym. The entire jug line is one of the best in the business with the Ashley’s, Flat Tops and Hoppers vying for the most comfortable jug award.

Because they are so ergonomic and comfortable they will work great for newbie routes. I actually looked forward to warming up on the problem set exclusively with them.

All the jugs feature small footprints that will work well for featured walls and high relief wall panels. The Veins are a bit expensive at $85 retail for a set of ten holds.

Sampson

We received several large features from Friction and they were interesting in their own special way.

Due to the original nature of the holds, all of the big shapes required a little more thought on the part of the setter. One example of this is the Sampson.

One side of the Sampson is a pretty bad sloper and on the other a series of slot-crimps. We used it in the crimp position for maximum psychological effect.

Even though the Friction site tells us the Sampson is “not for children” we did it anyway. When we set with the Sampson at our Youth comp most of kids were able to figure out were the goodness was but were not necessarily able to pull off of it. It could easily become the crux of any problem if one is not careful.

Two of the four possible crimps on the Sampson are decidedly better than the others. But when the hold is set high up the wall it is impossible to figure out which is the best. The size of the crimps fit kiddies digits fine but an adult with meaties could hate life when faced with the Sampson.

Granite Bloc

Another of the better shapes was the Granite Bloc. At first glance I thought the Bloc was an unimaginative effort at carving foam. But after setting with it my eyes were opened to the simple genius of the hold.

The Bloc has the typical “granite” look of broken foam. But the beauty of the hold is not in the way it looks, but in how it performs. The hold is as subtle as a dump truck but without the awful smell. Yet even with the apparent obviousness of the hold it still has the ability to trick a tired forerunner or competitor into grabbing the wrong part of the “jug”.

The hold is a jug, or is it a sloper, or is it a crimp? Because the hold can so easily be turned to fit the needs of the problem setters will love it. But for the same reason comp climbers will hate it.

Dremulus & Pock-mark thing

The other two features we tested were the Dremulus (and its broken corner) and a pocked sloper-pinch.

Both have the trademarked Friction styling. Both holds have numerous divots that look like a good place to grip but turn out to be horrible. Only when a climber finds the good pocket will they be able to more forward.

This aspect is great if one only climbs on it once, as in an onsight comp. But if the holds are used everyday in a commercial gym environment the novelty & surprise of the divots wears off. For holds as big as these I would want all the divots to be equally good or bad to get the most out of a $65 hold.

Only in a Perfect World

If we lived in a perfect world Friction Holds would rule it. If we didn’t have to worry about holds chipping in the crowded hold closet and snapping them on uneven textured walls, then the Friction line would be great.

Of course we do not live in a perfect world and setters need holds that can withstand the abuses of gym life.

But writing off Friction holds because of its ingredient list seems a bit shallow. Is it short-sighted to judge them only on their resin? I think yes.
Once these grips are on the wall they perform very well and any setter would be happy to get a few sets. The holds are some of the best comp holds on the market and I can’t wait till Friction starts sponsoring American comps. (They are already a major sponsor of the Tour de bloc).

None of climbers that tested the holds complained or for that matter said very much about them at all. There is something to be said for holds that elicit no response from usually whinny climbers.

Overall a setter could do no harm by spending some of their hold budget on a few Friction sets. And if American setters and gyms want truly fresh holds for their walls they should go to the Friction site and order up a few of the Canadian specials.

But two things keep coming back to me as I think of all the good things about Friction. The antiquated resin mix and the cost of the holds.

I know Friction is top dog in Canada but they still don’t have power over the Canadian dollar. For Americans and their softening dollar, doing business with Canadian companies can be off-putting.

Nevertheless, while the cost of the holds is somewhat high if Friction switched to urethane and kept the same prices it would definitely encourage trading with Canada’s southern neighbor.

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