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Petzl started in the French Alps in the 1970s making gear for cavers, and the range still splits the same two ways it did then: rope work and lighting. Harnesses, helmets, belay devices and lanyards on one side, and headlamps that grew out of caving lamps on the other. All of it is certified safety equipment rather than outdoor accessories, which is why every product page lists a standard, a weight and a size range. We stock the headlamps, the climbing hardware and the snow and mountaineering gear, with free shipping Australia-wide on anything that isn't bulky.
Here's a run through the models we get asked about most, and which one suits what.
Lumens is the number everyone compares and the least useful part of the decision. What matters is how long you need light for, whether you're moving while you use it, and whether you'd rather charge a battery or carry spares.
Camp and everyday: Tikka and Tikkina
Both are simple, single-button lamps that run on three AAA batteries, included. The Petzl Tikkina Compact 300 Lumen Headlamp is the cheaper of the two at 300 lumens with white light only. The Petzl Tikka 350 Lumen Headlamp adds a red mode, which matters more than the extra 50 lumens does - red light doesn't wreck your night vision and doesn't blind whoever you're sharing a tent with. Both take the CORE rechargeable battery, sold separately, if you decide later that you want it.
If you're out after dark a few nights a year, this is where to stop. A pair of AAAs costs less than a rechargeable battery and doesn't quietly go flat in a drawer between trips.
Hiking and general use: Actik and Actik Core
The Petzl Actik Headlamp is 350 lumens at 86g with a mixed beam - a flood for close work and enough throw to see where the track goes. Same AAA batteries as the Tikka. The Petzl Actik Core 625 Lumen Rechargeable Headlamp comes with the CORE battery in the box and runs brighter at 625 lumens, so it isn't just the Actik with a battery fitted. If you're out after dark most weeks, it's the one.
Long nights and alpine starts: Swift RL
The Petzl Swift RL 1200 Lumens Headlamp is 1,200 lumens at 92g. A sensor reads the light in front of you and drops the output when you look down at a map or a rope, which stretches the burn time a long way past what the brightest setting would give you.
In short: Tikkina or Tikka for camping, Actik Core if you're out in the dark most weeks, Swift RL if you're covering ground through the night.
Harnesses are sized to a waist measurement in centimetres, not to a clothing size, and getting that right matters more than which model you pick. After that it comes down to how much gear you need to hang off it and whether the leg loops need to adjust.
Most climbing, most of the time: Corax
The Petzl Corax Unisex Climbing Harness adjusts at the waist and at both leg loops, carries four gear loops, and comes in two sizes covering 65 to 107cm at the waist. That adjustability is why it's the one we recommend to most people: it fits over shorts in February and over layers in July, and it works for gym sessions, sport routes, via ferrata and general mountaineering without you paying for gear loops you'll never rack.
Multi-pitch and trad: Adjama and Luna
These carry five gear loops, more padding through the waistbelt and legs, and adjustable leg loops. The Adjama is the men's version and the Luna is the women's. Both are built for the sort of day where you hang at a belay for an hour at a time and want the gear where you can reach it.
Both are also more harness than most people need. The extra padding and the fifth loop pay off on a long multi-pitch route; they do nothing for you on a forty-minute sport climb, and you'll notice the extra weight and bulk on the walk in.
In short: Corax unless you're spending whole days on multi-pitch or trad, in which case the Adjama or the Luna.
Both are assisted-braking belay devices for single ropes. The difference is what happens when something goes wrong.
The Petzl GriGri Belay Device weighs 175g and takes single ropes from 8.5 to 11 mm, running best between 8.9 and 10.5. It's the device most gyms in Australia are set up around and the one most climbers end up owning.
The Petzl GriGri+ Climbing Belay Device adds an anti-panic handle that re-engages the brake if the lever gets pulled too hard on a lower, plus a switch between top-rope and lead modes and a stainless steel wear plate where the rope runs.
The plus is worth it if you're teaching, if the device gets passed around a group, or if it's a first belay device. If it's yours alone and you know how to use it, the standard GriGri is the one to buy. Worth saying either way: assisted braking is assistance, not an automatic brake. Both devices need a hand on the brake side of the rope at all times.
Petzl's helmets split into tough hybrid shells and lighter foam-led designs, and the trade-off is durability against weight. The Boreo is the hybrid: an ABS outer shell over two foam liners, 295g in the M/L size, covering 53 to 61cm of head circumference, with reinforced protection at the sides, front and back.
It's the one to buy if the helmet is going to live crushed in the bottom of a pack, get dropped on rock and come out again for years. A lighter, more ventilated helmet is more comfortable on a long day in the sun, and it will not take the same abuse. If your helmet spends more time in transit than on your head, take the tougher one.
If you're buying one carabiner, buy a pear-shaped screwgate like the Attache. That shape is what works with a GriGri, a Munter hitch and a cordelette, which is most of what a belay carabiner gets asked to do. Straight-gate and bent-gate carabiners are for clipping bolts and won't do that job - those come in pairs on a quickdraw like the Spirit, and you buy them by the rack rather than one at a time.
Most people buying these in Australia are heading somewhere else to use them - New Zealand in our winter, or the northern ranges in theirs. That changes what to buy, because you're packing for a trip rather than building a kit over seasons.
The Summit Evo is a mountaineering axe with a curved shaft, which gives you clearance and reach on steeper ground while still working as a walking axe on the flat. The Vasak is the general mountaineering crampon: twelve points, horizontal front points, made for glacier travel, snow slopes and easy alpine ground rather than for vertical ice.
The part people get wrong is the binding. Crampons attach differently depending on whether your boot has a stiff sole and a heel welt, and a crampon that suits a technical mountaineering boot will not sit safely on a flexible hiking boot. Tell us which boots you own before you order, or bring them into the store and we'll fit them together.
Lighting: Head Lamps, Torches
Climbing: Climbing Harnesses, Helmets, Belay Devices, Carabiners, Quickdraws, Climbing Slings, Climbing Ropes, Chalk Bags, Ascenders & Descenders
Snow and mountaineering: Ice Axes, Crampons, Snow Helmets, Mountaineering Backpacks
Free shipping Australia-wide, bulky items excluded, and 80 days to return most things, sale items included. Climbing safety equipment is the exception. Harnesses, helmets, ropes, carabiners, and other load-bearing gear can't be returned unless they're faulty, because we can't resell safety equipment once it has left our hands (and we won't sell you something that has.) Read the returns page for the full list before you order, and the shipping page for delivery detail. Both our stores are on the store locations page if you'd rather try a harness on first - and with safety gear, that's worth doing.
What size Petzl harness do I need?
Measure your waist in centimetres, over whatever you'd normally climb in, and match that to the range on the product page. It is not a clothing size. The sizes overlap on purpose, and if you land in the overlap the smaller one with more adjustment left in it usually sits better than the larger one done up tight. Since safety gear can't be returned for fit, measure before you order - or call us and we'll talk it through.
Can I return a Petzl harness or helmet if it doesn't fit?
No, unless it's faulty. Climbing safety equipment sits outside our 80-day returns policy for the same reason you'd want it to: gear that has been out of our control can't be sold to the next person as new. That's why we'd rather you measured first or came into a store. If something arrives faulty, contact us and we'll sort it out.
What warranty does Petzl gear come with in Australia?
Petzl list a guarantee period on the individual product page - the Boreo helmet, for example, lists three years. It isn't the same across the whole range, so read the one you're buying rather than assuming. Your rights under Australian Consumer Law apply on top of that regardless. If you have a warranty issue, contact us and we'll handle the claim with Petzl for you.
How long does a climbing harness or helmet last?
Petzl publish a maximum lifespan for their textile and plastic products, and it runs from the date of manufacture rather than from the day you bought it. The figure is in the instructions that come with the product. Retire it earlier than that if it's been shock-loaded, badly abraded, left out in the sun for a season or had anything spilled on it. When in doubt, replace it - it's the cheapest part of the day.
Do Petzl headlamps use rechargeable batteries?
Most of them take either. The Actik Core and the Swift RL come with a rechargeable battery in the box. The Tikka, Tikkina and Actik run on three AAA batteries, included, and accept Petzl's CORE rechargeable battery if you buy one separately. Spares like the Petzl Rechargeable Battery for Swift RL Headlamp are listed under the same category.
Which Petzl headlamp is best for hiking?
The Actik Core for most people: bright enough to walk out on, rechargeable, and light enough that you don't think about it. Drop to the Tikka if it's a couple of nights a year and you'd rather carry batteries. Step up to the Swift RL if you're regularly moving through the dark rather than just finding your way around camp.
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