Climbing harnesses can be divided into the following types:

1. Hip harnessesHere comfort and usability are the focus. 4 equipment loops, large, well-padded hip belt and well-padded leg loops. 

2. Climbing harness for womenAgain, comfort and usability are the focus, but the dimensions of the harness are specially tailored for the woman's shapes. We have multiple climbing harnesses available designed specially for women.

3. Climbing harness for competition / glacier hiking / mountaineering etc.
Here, we focus on weight optimization. The harness should weigh as little as possible and give you the highest degree of freedom of movement. 2 or fewer equipment loops, narrow hip belt and narrow leg loops.

4. Whole body harness for children and special target groupsChildren have narrow hips and a different center of gravity than adults, so in order to ensure stability and prevent falling out of the harness during fall, the child harness has a higher securing point than the hip harness and it is equipped with shoulder straps. 

5. Chest Harness
The chest harness is only used with a hip harness and in situations where there is a need to raise the securing point. Eg. during climbing or glacier hiking with a heavy backpack, here the person, due to the increased weight on the back, may be accidentally be cought in an undesirable manner during a fall. 

6. The ’One-size’ harness
The 'one-size' harness is used e.g. in schools and institutions where it may be used by many different persons. 

Manufacturers of climbing harnesses give different directions on how long their harnesses last before they should be discarded. Further, this may vary from harness type to harness type. In general, however, it can be said that nylon does not perish unless exposed to sunlight (ultra-violet light) or wet environments. Therefore, store your harness in a dark and dry place.

On all climbing harnesses the date of manufacture is given. A general guideline is that you should discard them after five years of use. However, whether the harness has been kept dark and dry for 10 years before does not matter. The five years are counted from the date the harness was put into service. However, we would like to point out that this is a general guideline and that the durability of all harnesses may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and from harness type to harness type. Therefore, as a starting point, follow the manufacturer's instructions.
Ultimately, it is your responsibility that your harness is in good enough condition to use. Therefore, regularly check the harness for signs of wear and keep it in accordance with the instructions above.

Some climbing harnesses are made with a wear indicator. Ie an outer layer of durable nylon, over a red innermost layer of nylon which is resposible for the harness's strength. Gubbies recommend climbing harnesses with wear indicator.

Further information on safety requirements for climbing harnesses can be found on the International Climbing and Mountaineering Association UIAA's website www.theuiaa.org or by clicking here.

We recommend full-body harnesses for children between 100 and 140 cm (max 40 kg) and 'One-size' climbing harnesses for children, adolescents and adults.
Whole body harnesses are also available for adults, which may be relevant for special institutions. 

Your first climbing harness

As a beginner, comfort is the most important thing. You will sit in the harness a lot and you will therefore want a well padded hip harness with well padded leg loops. As a beginner, make sure you buy a harness with a fixed size and not a "one-size" harness, as it easily becomes an annoyance with long loose hanging straps.

Finding the right climbing shoes is a balance between comfort and performance.

Your first pair of climbing shoes should be comfortable and sit tight, but without being uncomfortably so. If they are not tight enough, the support for the foot and the feel of the wall / holds can be diminished to a degree that impedes your climbing. If the climbing shoe is not tight enough around the tip of the toe, the support for the toes may not be adequate when you stand on a small hold. The shoes will bend and you will lose your footing. The tighter the shoes are, the easier it will be for you to stand on very small footholds. But if they are too tight, the pain can ruin your entire climbing experience.

If you are mostly into bouldering, you may want to buy a pair of climbing shoes that sit a little tighter than you would otherwise like for rope climbing. During bouldering, one does not typically wear the climbing shoes for as long. When you are on the boulder problem, you have the climbing shoes on and when you are not climbing you can either pull the heel down or take them off completely.

We are often asked if it is a "nice to" have  or "need to" have when it comes to buying climbing shoes for children. For a start, young children can easily climb in bare toes, socks or tennis shoes, but if he / she has gotten hookes by climbing on the climbing wall in the climbing gym, climbing shoes will make the climbing experience much nicer.

If you are going to buy climbing shoes for children, you must be aware that the stated dimensions of the sizes are very tight and that children grow and the climbing shoes therefore quickly become too small. For children, we therefore recommend that you add 1 cm to the child's foot length. More and more climbing shoes for children are being designed so that they can be adjusted to cover two shoe sizes. This means that the child can use his / her shoes for an extended period of time.

To be able to put on and take off the climbing shoes quickly many boulder climbers prefer a climbing shoe with either velcro closure or slipper type shoes. In contrast, laces are better for securing the shoe's fit throughout the foot, which is better suited for rope climbing and climbing trips.

1. The first pair of climbing shoes should be a pair of all-round shoes
2. They must sit tight, but not hurt
3. They should have a good and thick front and preferably be made of a harder rubber
4. They should have good and stiff support in the forefoot.

The first climbing shoes should be a pair of "all-round" shoes with a stiff sole and a high heel cap for good support. As a beginner, you may not have decided which type of climbing is you favorite, and you would therefore like to be able to try out different types of climbing. Both outdoors and indoors, and both hard short boulder problems and long rope climbing routes, where you spend a lot of time on the wall. Therefore, it is important to have an All-round shoe that lets one experiment with different types of climbing.

When trying the climbing shoes, be sure to try them with bare feet so you can feel if something bothering the foot.