Alpine Smart

Mammut alpine smart or gigajul are assisted breaking but function as a normal tube for rappels and very similar use in guide belay from above.

Do you mean on a Neox? You pay out slack much like an ATC. On a grigri you pay out slack usually with your thumb on the cam. You can pay out slack on a grigri like an ATC, but it's more "sticky". yes an ATC is smoother, but you get used to using a Grigri/Neox/etc. There are several tube style ABD de

I agree with the core of it, that pistol grip devices are mostly just fluff, however the praise for the Jul is misplaced. I own a megadjuk and it has been my only device for many years. I like it's versatility, that you can use it in guide mode, and with half ropes. It sucks with all of my ropes tho

theses days i see no good reason to use a manual tube device. yes they work fine, but you are adding risk into the system. every year there are many accidents that would have been avoided if the belayer used a brake assisted belay device. i’ve switched from a grigri over to a neox and i love it. a m